PROJECT RAAH
Worldwide footwear consumption has doubled every 20 years, from 2.5 billion pairs per year in 1950 to more than 20 billion pairs of shoes produced presently each year. However, more than 300 million people walk around barefoot every day. In fact, according to WHO reports, 23% of 2.3 crore people residing in Delhi NCR do not own a pair of shoes. Every day thousands of barefoot rag pickers are exposed to extreme health conditions, adults belonging to the less fortunate class are unable to work with it even becoming difficult for children to attend school as the mere act of walking becomes unbearable. It is estimated that 20 billion pairs of shoes are produced annually, with roughly 300 million pairs ending up in landfills or marine waste after they have been worn and less than 5% being recycled. The Ethylene Vinyl Acetate, which usually makes up the midsole of most shoes, lasts for 1000 years causing grave ailments to our mother earth.
SOLUTION
The core idea of Raah originated from the simple sight of a little school girl walking down a dirty street, in her untidy uniform, barefoot. To fight the lesser-known waste problem of India and answer staid issues like health & sanitation, discrimination and waste generation, we developed a simple yet effective action plan.
Through our business model, we divert the shoe waste back into the economy with the help of our community of cobblers. In the initial phase of the project, we collected old and waste shoes through donation drives at schools, colleges and housing societies. The shoes thus collected are categorized on the basis of their condition, durability and level of refurbishment required. The majority of shoes are transferred to cobblers around Delhi for reincarnation through washing, stitching and polishing.
JOOTON KA GARAGE
As the number of beneficiaries under Project Raah increased, we established permanent sources of supply of discarded shoes. We collaborated with footwear manufacturing companies that supply us with discarded shoes on regular basis. After mending the shoes, cobblers sell them at weekly markets, slums and stalls with profit margins.
We are also focusing on expanding Raah’s concept of Jooton ka Garage – a workplace for the benefit of cobblers so that they can easily renovate footwear. To provide them a common identity and creating a brand name, we have provided them with customized t-shirts, posters and stickers. One can also find them on Google Maps by searching ‘Jooton Ka Garage’ and the page has already accumulated more than 10,000 views.
To develop our entrepreneurs, we also provide them with soft skills and personal financial skills training which helps them in managing their business. Creating a win-win situation for both the buyer and seller by providing high-quality product at little cost, the project endeavors to turn irrelevant roadside cobblers into independent entrepreneurs.
Zero-Waste Model
Moving towards a zero-waste model, we introduce you to the concept of shoe plants. Shoe planters are meant to diversify our project and repurpose the old, torn and worn-out shoes, which cannot be mended again. Used as a decorative item, we plan to sell these shoe plants to interior designers, theme-based restaurants and cafes.
Our Partners
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Established in Jalandhar, Punjab, Just Sports joined hands with Enactus CVS back in late 2018 and since then there has blossomed fruitful relations between the two. Enactus CVS sources its raw material predominantly from Just Sports, with the company ensuring the recycling of its old, discarded and /or defective shoes by providing the same to our team here at a mere cost of INR 50. Their constant support has made for continuity in the supply chain ultimately reaping monetary benefits for affiliated cobblers.
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Also located in Punjab, Tyka Shoes came on-board with the team for Project Raah in the October of 2019 as a supplier of discarded shoes (raw material), much like Just Sports.
Established in Jalandhar, Punjab, Just Sports joined hands with Enactus CVS back in late 2018 and since then there has blossomed fruitful relations between the two. Enactus CVS sources its raw material predominantly from Just Sports, with the company ensuring the recycling of its old, discarded and /or defective shoes by providing the same to our team here at a mere cost of INR 50. Their constant support has made for continuity in the supply chain ultimately reaping monetary benefits for affiliated cobblers.
Project Impacts
Social Impact
Raah is the harbinger of hope, health and happiness for several communities. Development of entrepreneurial skills and regular earning has paved way for better lifestyles and social recognition of the downtrodden cobblers who have always been discriminated since time immemorial. In this wake of uplifting cobblers, we have comforted around 750+ feet from dust, dirt and prickles of poverty. Our team is constantly toiling to spread awareness about hygiene, sanitation and long term impact of living barefoot.
Economical Impact
We utilize inherent expertise of cobblers to offer them more income opportunities and better lifestyles. Inconsistency of income was an impediment. With Project Raah, not only have we provided a consistent employment to our cobblers, but also boosted their total income by 165%. Over the past 12 months, we have generated a revenue of around Rs. 7,69,200 last year. The raw materials involve waste from households and industries, and hence the input cost is almost negligible.
Environmental Impact
We create jobs from garbage that would other fill other landfills for next 1000 years. These shoes end up in landfills and can eventually end up contaminating the soil and even drinking water as the chemicals used in the manufacturing slowly start to leak into soil as the shoe slowly starts decomposing. With collection drives all around the year, we’ve saved more than 2250 KGs of footwear from ending up in landfills and water bodies and created a zero –waste model to help in its management.
WANT TO HELP A COBBLER BY BRINGING HIM UNDER JOOTON KA GARAGE?
