They came from villages scattered across Maharashtra’s interior tribal regions—girls and women for whom daily life is anything but easy. In their communities, schooling often ends too early, healthcare is distant or unreliable, and avenues for earning a steady income are scarce. Restrictive gender norms add another layer of difficulty, shaping what they can learn, where they can work, and how much they can hope to build for themselves.
It was with these realities in mind that the Lions of District 3231-A1 designed their Signature Project. Rather than offering a short-term intervention, they chose a skill that women could carry back into their own homes and neighbourhoods. Training in stitching and sewing offered a flexible and familiar pathway to income—something each participant could pursue at her own pace and turn into a sustainable livelihood.
Coordinators visited Adivasi hamlets and remote settlements to understand needs on the ground before selecting 200 women and girls who would benefit most from the program. To help them get started without delay, the District distributed hand-powered sewing machines on October 6, 2025, at the Bai B.S. Bengallee Girls High School, Mumbai. Each participant also received groceries and fabric, enabling them to begin taking small orders or creating items for sale as soon as they returned home. Several Lions Clubs of the district and individual donors came together to make the initiative possible.
The event was attended by International Director Luis Augusto David Caro Chong and his spouse Norma; District Governor Feroze Katrak PMJF and his wife Shiraz; Vice District Governors Pawan Kumar Agarwal MJF and Hozefa Ghadiali MJF; and Multiple Council Chairperson Manish Ladage.
The dignitaries commended District Governor Feroze Katrak for an initiative that did more than impart a skill—it created a starting point. For many of the women present, it marked the first step toward shaping a livelihood with confidence and dignity.