Our Community - OBEETEE Carpets | hand knotted | hand tufted | carpets for life | rugs

Our Community

Since OBEETEE began nearly 100 years ago, we have made solid commitments to the social, economic and environmental impacts of our business on the community. As evidence of our efforts, OBEETEE achieved the SA 8000 Standard, the world’s preeminent and auditable certification of social standards. We are the first in our industry to be honored with this prestigious accreditation.

The process of weaving a carpet is a way of life, and we are committed to protecting that way of life. "

Rudra Chatterjee, Chairman, OBEETEE

Children's Education

Education is a large concern in India, especially in the remote areas and villages where many of our weavers live and work. It is an OBEETEE core value to support access to free, quality and lasting education. Two programs we proudly support are Project Mala and Pratham.

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Community Involvement

Gopepur village, just outside our factory, is home to 163 families, many of whom weave carpets for OBEETEE. Hand-in-hand with our efforts for Children’s Education and Women’s Economic Advancement, our projects seek to improve the living conditions for this community.

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OBEETEE’s system for preventing child labor has been acclaimed by The International Labor Organization and other world bodies. "

Sir Mark Tully, journalist and former Bureau Chief of BBC, New Delhi.

Women's Weaving Centre

We have created training programs designed to provide women with skills needed to achieve sustainable and long-term work. This multi-faceted project includes the necessary support to make this important transition possible. We are certain this project will not only improve the lives of the women, but also directly impact the future of the community.

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Environment

The first in the industry to install a water effluent treatment plant, eco-friendly power and energy conservation systems, OBEETEE is committed to sustainability and protection of our environment.

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Join our Social Fabric Auction.

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Giving back to community lies in the heart of everything Obeetee does.

Children's Education

Project Mala : Preparing today’s children for a better tomorrow

Poor economic conditions coupled with chronic illiteracy have been the bane for rural India. Instead of being sent to school, children have been forced to work on agricultural fields, or as apprentices in industries. But with OBEETEE’s help, for the last 26 years, over 8,000 children have been able to attend school.

35 kilometres from the Varanasi Railway station is a quaint little village called Guria. Early morning, Monday through Friday, a motley group of children walk or bicycle to school. Their enthusiasm is palpable with the speed with which they walk and the chattering of voices audible from a mile away.

This is a primary school run by Project Mala. This campus was established in 1989 and today provides education to 460 children from 15 nearby villages. The total area occupied by the school is around 67,000 sq ft, initially built on land donated by OBEETEE. The school has nine classrooms, a large dining hall, two rooms for extracurricular activities, a sports field and boys and girls dormitories.

The school serves breakfast and lunch every day that help meet the children’s daily nutritional needs. Free medical checkups and immunizations keep them healthy and uniforms, backpacks and school materials aid their education. The school succeeds with over 92% daily attendance, and strong sense of community.

OBEETEE believes that young minds should be allowed the liberty and perspective of education; to give them an opportunity to realize their potential. Currently, OBEETEE sponsors almost a third of the student body, with concrete plans to increase that number and scope in the future.

There is a noticeable difference in the local community since the school’s inception. Some of these children have gone on to university studies and changed the fortunes and futures of their families and villages. OBEETEE supports the notion that children are the change makers for tomorrow. Through Project Mala, children from some of India’s most remote and underprivileged villages have access to a brighter future. It is an honor to support this important program and the great work that they do.

Community Involvement

Gopepur Village : Our most valuable asset

Our community lies at the heart of everything we do. Our approach to community investment is simple: make a positive and lasting difference to the communities surrounding our operations. As a large employer with 25,000 odd weavers and employees, and as one of the leading carpet manufacturers in the world, OBEETEE is committed to supporting the economic development of its community.

Gopepur is a small village in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh – in the proverbial Carpet Belt of India. Surrounded by lush green fields, the picturesque village is home to a 163 families, most of who weave or farm for a living. There is a school in the village which provides education up to Class 8th. 90% of the villagers here do not have toilets.

In 2015, OBEETEE partnered with Sulabh International to build 25 toilets in the village. Some of the toilets have been constructed in the homes of elderly women, some in the school, and some function today as community toilets. OBEETEE believes access to clean water and sanitation are not only about hygiene and disease prevention, but about dignity too.

OBEETEE also believes that low-cost and self-sustaining electrification options can put in motion an entire socio-economic transformation of the community. To this end, Obeetee has installed thirty solar streetlights in Gopupur along a one-kilometer stretch on the Raipur link road. This has benefitted a substantial number of villagers who live along this road, and have positively impacted movement in the area, particularly for women.

In Phase II of this project, Obeetee will begin installing more solar lights along the link road to help illuminate other densely populated areas.

Women's Economic Advancement

Designs for a bright future

Obeetee believes women should have access to equal opportunities. In their careers as well as within homes. For over a year now, Obeetee has been helping train ‪‎women in ‪rug weaving from some of the poorest villages in the ‪carpet belt of India. Despite this being a traditionally male dominated profession, & villagers having reservations about sending women to work outside homes, Obeetee has managed to train 36 women who are now already in the workforce. To keep them from dropping out midway through training, Obeetee pays these women a daily stipend of Rs. 150 for the entire training duration of 3 months. Obeetee believes men must support & encourage women, and that's why is simultaneously working on creating awareness among the villagers & the weaving community to extend to women weavers the respect & dignity every woman deserves.

Environment

OBEETEE’s effluent treatment system: High-tech, low impact

For over 30 years, OBEETEE has been ensuring that water used in its manufacturing facilities are treated to the highest standards before disposal. In 2007, OBEETEE invested INR 10 million to build a physiochemical-biological water treatment plant inside its manufacturing facility in Mirzapur, in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, to ensure a more efficient treatment of effluent.

In an industry where wastewater generation and treatment are recurring and persistent concerns, OBEETEE’s state-of-the-art effluent treatment facility sets it apart. Conventional wastewater treatment consists of a combination of physical and chemical processes to remove solids and organic matter from wastewater. A much more sophisticated and thorough process, OBEETEE’s physiochemical-biological treatment of wastewater involves the removal of biodegradable, dissolved and colloidal organic matter using biological treatment processes as well.

OBEETEE’s effluent treatment plant is designed to reduce energy consumption. Dyeing of wool at OBEETEE’s huge dyeing plant happens at a temperature of 98 degree Celsius. Instead of letting this energy go to waste, this heated wastewater is run through a heat exchanger that collects the heat energy and uses it to pre-heat incoming water in the dyeing plant. The now much-cooler wastewater, along with wastewater from the carpet washing department, is mixed in an equalizer to achieve a homogenous input for the chemical treatment.

During the ensuing chemical treatment, wastewater is processed physiochemical through various stages of chemical reactions and physical separation of particulate waste. The hazardous waste matter is segregated in the form of a clay-like substance, collected and left sealed until Ramky Enviro Engineers - a government recognised waste management company - collects it and transfers it in sealed leak proof containers from the OBEETEE factory premises.

The physio-chemically treated water – now free of hazardous substance - is further treated with good bacteria. The biological treatment is performed in the presence of oxygen by aerobic microorganisms (principally bacteria) that metabolize the organic matter in the wastewater, thereby producing more microorganisms and inorganic end-products (which are removed, leaving the water clean, stable and usable).

750 kilo litres of clean, treated water is pumped out into an irrigation canal and used by local farmers to irrigate the neighbouring fields.

The entire treatment of wastewater takes about 24 hours, however, OBEETEE is in the process of introducing the MBBR technology to reduce the treatment time and enhance the capacity of the treatment plant. Although the process is supported with a laboratory and supervised by a team of specially trained professionals who ensure that all safety regulations are followed, OBEETEE is in the process of introducing an online monitoring system of the effluent treatment quality. The resulting water exceeds the government’s guidelines. OBEETEE is always at the forefront of industrial social responsibility, as evidenced by the SA 8000 certification. Great care is taken to ensure that OBEETEE’s environmental footprint is as light as possible.

Why? Rudra Chatterjee, CEO, explains.

Our commitment to sustainability is central to the way we work. For us a lower environment footprint is not just a one-off initiative, or campaign; it is the cornerstone of our business. We work from the understanding that our operations must have a long term, positive impact on our community and that we must leave as small an environment footprint as possible.

OBEETEE is a creative, and dynamic enterprise, and the community is fundamental to how we think, how we conduct our businesses and how we capitalise on growth opportunities. Ensuring a low environmental impact is a stated goal and driving philosophy of this company.

For the last 30 years, OBEETEE has ensured that no hazardous water waste has been released into the environment.

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