Praveena Solomon is a crematorium manager of Chennai’s oldest and busiest cremation ground.[1]
Solomon started caretaking the Velankadu crematorium as part of her affiliation with an NGO.
Education
Solomon is an English literature graduate from the University of Madras.[2] She has also studied Nursing. Solomon was introduced to social work by her mother, who worked closely with social worker Sarojini Varadappan.[citation needed]
Career
She joined the NGO named Indian Community Welfare Organisation (ICWO) in 2004, working as a field officer and educating underprivileged children and sex workers.[3]
In March 2014, ICWO won the contract to run the 120-year-old Valankadu crematorium. Solomon, as caretaker of the crematorium, faced initial challenges. Initially she did not have the support of the local community, who were opposed to a woman running a burial ground. Some members of the community even threatened to attack her with acid.[3]
Eventually, she managed to win over the community, with a combination of support from the police and her own hard efforts. Solomon worked to change the looks of crematorium. Now people say it looks like a park.[3]
Solomon's position marks the first time a woman has running a burial ground in Tamil Nadu, where—like in most parts of the country—upkeep of crematorium is traditionally a male domain.[3]
References
- ^ "The Chennai woman who runs a Hindu crematorium". BBC News. 4 August 2016. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
- ^ NewsDesk2 (4 August 2016). "Cremation @-chennai-lady@@works%%cremation". NewsGram. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c d "How an English graduate gave new life to a Chennai crematorium". Hindustan Times. 17 July 2016. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
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This page was last edited on 4 December 2023, at 00:16