In Chennai's Ambattur, a hub for tiny auto component manufacturers, machine operator Sahaya Marym was pushed out of her job of 10 years. With no means of income, she had to take a loan from a private money lender at a very high interest rate. Unable to pay off her debt, she has now pledged the little gold that she owned. "I don't know whether to eat, pay rent or repay my loan," she says. A widow, Sahaya Marym lives in a two-room rented house. Left with no option, she is now looking for a housekeeping job. Job losses due to the economic slowdown are pushing hundreds of sacked workers into a debt trap in Chennai, a city dotted with auto component manufacturers.
