Dhanraj Nepali (32 years old) has a grill industry at Thalara-5, Bajhang. The name of his grill industry is ‘New Thalra Grill Industry’. He started the grill industry four years ago. Before that, he was working in Faridabad, Haryana, India. After COVID, he was forced to come to his own birthplace.
He went to India for the first time while studying in the 4th grade. He was only 13 years old at the time. After that, he started coming and going to Nepal while working there. He started working with 700 per month and gradually increased to 1500, 2000, 5000, 10000, and 15000. He was earning 35,000 per month before he left for Nepal after COVID. He spent more than 15 years working in India.
During his stay there, he worked in carpentry and wall painting. Before coming to Nepal, he had been working in the grill industry. He worked there for about 6 years. Due to his hard work and learning attitude, he gradually learned the skills required for the grill industry, one after the other. He worked as a general laborer and became a welding assistant, mason, and head mason. His skills led him to professional competence. Along with his increasing skills, his salary, benefits, and other compensation gradually increased.
Post-Covid forced him to return to his country, and then he joined the Sirjana project. With his enrollment in the project, he received help in setting up his own grill industry as he proved the project team with his skills and knowledge of the grill industry that he learned in India. He had no savings as he sent the money he earned in India for household expenses in Nepal. However, he became happy as the project helped him invest in his skill project.
The project supported his grill industry with tools and equipment such as a zinc cutter, welding machine, grinder machine, hand drill machine, and other tools required in the grill industry. That helped him with the start of his grill industry. Other day-to-day raw materials required in the grill industry come from Dhangadhi.
‘New Thalara Grill Industry’ is the only grill industry in this area. In his industry, most orders come for gates, grills, house railings, ladders, tables, and chairs. As the work increased, he couldn’t finish all the work alone. Then, he hired local workers. He trained workers who were interested in learning skills. Currently, he employs five people in his grill industry.
His grill industry is growing better than expected. Excluding the expenses of the industry, he earns up to Rs. 3-4 lakhs per month. With his income, he has taken care of 14 family members, including himself, his parents, wife, two sons, and siblings.
He says, “I had gained the necessary skills required for the grill industry but made no investment. I never dreamed of opening a grill business myself. After coming to Nepal, I was only worried because I was unemployed to run my house. At that time, the support of the Srijana project helped me become an entrepreneur that I never thought of.” He has been living far away from home with lots of suffering in India, but now he is very happy to become an entrepreneur in his own village, providing employment to the locals.
