We
at Bandhan run a holistic assistance program for the poorest of poor in the society. It
identifies the most needy women headed families through rural appraisal,
supports them with productive assets, provides livelihood and confidence
building training, connects them to village mainstream, build social capitals
for them. With the instilling of hope and dignity with continuous hand-holding
on livelihood and range of other interventions, it is remarkable to see that
such marginalised families, headed by women, graduate out of extreme poverty in
2 years and undertake stable livelihood options successfully. This graduation
program called Targeting the Hardcore Poor (THP) program is a proven, evidence
based model hailed in international circuits. It’s now a talking point at
various policy circles if this can be a sustainable pathway out of extreme poverty.
For
us who work in this program, it is a great opportunity that we can be of
assistance to these most disadvantaged families in their journey from
helplessness to self-reliance. We are glad that we have this kind of a job role
where one can contribute positively in changing lives of many who are less
privileged than us. But actually it is much more than that. While we think we
are transforming their lives, the grit, love and empathy we see in these women
change us. We discover the treasure of human capabilities and values they
possess. They are income poor, opportunity poor but very rich in social and
moral values. It is a blessing for us to work with them which instils in us the
faith on human qualities manifest even in the face of extreme adversity. Here
are three journies of three women which we believe you will find inspirational
and transformational:
A Tale of Courage: Anarbanu to Abeda, Breaking the Mould:
Eleven years back we started our THP Program in the
District of Murshidabad of West Bengal as a pilot. A small team of extremely
passionate and energetic young men led by a seasoned development professional
with equal amount of energy and passion started this arduous journey under the
visionary guidance of our Founder Sri Chandra Sekhar Ghosh. But the journey was
far from smooth. Religious mistrust came in the way. The villages where we were
working have predominance of a minority community. And due to misconception and
rumour mongering, they took our efforts to provide assets to the selected women
as a ploy to conversion into other religion! There was collective resistance.
No one would come forward to take those asset grants. There was one village
Sutighata where the entire village refused. Some declined to accept the assets
and some, after receiving, brought it back to return. The program was not going
anywhere and we were almost at the point of giving up on that village.
But Anarbanu
was an exception. A frail middle aged lady with three children and having no
stable means of livelihood, reached out to us and said “Whatever others think
or say, I have faith in your program and I will participate in it. Come what
may.” She took paddy husking as the income generating enterprise and came over to
our office for the first round of training. This invigorated our team and they
started with renewed energy with Anarbanu as the sole participant of our
program in that village. Anarbanu not only sincerely followed the advice from our
team but showed exemplary grit and alacrity to quickly learn the skills of
enterprise running as well as availed the linkages established by our team.
This slowly convinced others to come forward and ultimately we could distribute
assets to all the selected beneficiaries.
I met Anarbanu a
few years later. By then she had graduated from the program. She was again one
of the first few who ventured to take micro loan to expand her enterprise, post
the THP programme. When I met her she said: “Everyone advised me not to take
loan, but I did not listen…I have seen and believed what you are doing.” She is
such an amazing example of courage and determination- one who breaks the
stereotypes and welcomes the change. We spoke about her family, daughters
education and so on- general discussions. She said she wants her daughter to do
work like ours- to help others come out of despair, to take it as a profession.
We casually said when your daughter becomes a graduate she should join
Bandhan THP team. And you know what? Anarbanu brought her daughter Abeda to our office immediately after
she completed her college. And now Abeda is working in Pakur, Jharkhand as a
Community Organiser in our THP program.
A Tale of Care and Concern: Farida Re-building a Home
When I first saw Farida
Bibi five years back, as part of program field visit, she didn’t appear to
be a “fast mover” among our program participants. There were others who have
done better after receiving the asset support in terms of generating income and
assets. However, this humble lady left an impression due to her care for the
elderly and young in the family. Farida’s husband had left her couple of years
back. When our THP team selected her for the THP program, she didn’t show much
promise. She didn’t have any specific trade skills and was too burdened with
five dependent members in the family. She opted for fire-woods as assets! There
was a demand in the locality for fire-woods for cooking and she started selling
those. One year into the program, she was doing moderately fine and it was a
regular source of income in addition to odd jobs and some livestock. She has
been looking for her husband but in vain. I couldn’t give her much hope, encouraged
her to continue with her enterprise and not allow her children to drop out of
school.
While returning I came to know from my colleagues that
her husband’s sudden departure was not the usual story we expect: that of
another irresponsible drunkard male of low income families fleeing from
responsibilities. No he was not that typical image we have in our mind. He was
a good tailor but had taken large sums on loan from neighbours and community. Unfortunately
his calculations proved to be wrong and he couldn’t earn enough to repay those
loans. And in the fear of being hounded by the lenders, he left home, all of a
sudden. Perhaps to save himself…perhaps he assumed at least people will not trouble
a helpless lady with kids and elderly in-laws. This proved to be right somewhat. In our Participatory
Rural Appraisal meetings in that village, community identified Farida as a
potential candidate for the THP program. People are not that bad every time to
every person. People do care for the hapless.
Farida carried on with the small enterprise she had
and gradually became a successful “graduate” candidate of THP program. End of
story? Not in the least.
After couple of years I had been to that village
again, with some visitors. And one success case we were shown was Farida! We
saw that Farida and her husband are working together making garments for the
wholesale market in Kolkata. They had purchased couple of sewing machines and engaged
others in the work. The elder daughter was completing her schooling and her
siblings were studying in the school. Her father in law had passed away but
mother in law was staying with them. Prosperity, happiness and harmony in the
family were evident.
What Farida did in these 2-3 years is the real story.
Exemplary and inspiring. When there was some stability in the family, Farida
started to look for her husband more energetically. And one day she came to
know where he was staying. It was in a different district where he was working
in a small garment factory. Farida went to the factory one day. She was not allowed
inside. But she didn’t lose heart. She sat there- near the factory gate
throughout the day and when her husband came out after factory hours, she
approached her and told him “Let’s go home”. Farida’s husband, as we had learnt
earlier, was not a bad person who would desert the family but he had the fear
of inability to repay the loans in his village. He said “How can I go back?
They will chase me for the dues.” Farida replied “I will repay the loans, you
come back with me. To your family, to your home.” Husband saw a new found
confidence in Farida and agreed to come back. In the THP program we create
village committees in every village as a community guardianship to our THP
members. The village committee gave them assurance that no one will hurt them,
they can take some more time to repay the outstanding loans. And there began a
new journey for the couple. They started garment making and as the husband knew
the trade and had requisite skills, soon they started getting orders. Slowly
their business started growing and they enhanced production capacity by
introducing more machines and manpower. My second visit to them was at that
point in time.
But it’s not a story about happy ending. What touched us
the most is Farida’s love and care for the entire family. She not only endured extreme
hardship, but in the midst of that didn’t give up on those human values. She
took care of the ageing in laws, maintained her children’s education and most
spectacularly brought back her husband and reunited the family.
A Tale of Compassion: Marjina Rising above the Small and Obvious
Marjina Bewa,
aged about 55 years, lives in the Village Dadpur, Block Baruipur, Dist. South
24-parganas, West Bengal. As it happens with most girls in poor families,
she was married off early and married into poverty. Husband was an agricultural
wage labourer. When they had two sons and they were growing up gradually
it was becoming more and more difficult to run the family on the meagre income
of the husband. It was far from “two square meals a day”. Children slept with
half-empty stomach and dried up tears on their cheeks. Marjina had only water
for the dinner. It is then she decided to join her husband in the field so that
their joint income would perhaps improve the situation somewhat. And it did.
Somewhat…..
It’s the
usual story of a very poor family in rural Bengal. Like thousands of such
stories. Not exciting enough, not “cool” enough to come in printed article.
They were destined to doom. And sure, it was going like that. Until one day
when a strange incident happened. Marjina was collecting firewood near a forest
land. Suddenly she heard a baby crying. She looked around and found a new born
baby, wrapped in clothes, abandoned. She took the child back to the village and
looked for its parents. No one came forward. No one seemed interested. The kid
was unwanted….
Marjina
decided to adopt him. She said “I am a mother, how can I not take care of this
child…even if it’s not my biological one”. And hence she had her third
son “Jahangir”. But this didn’t bring any luck to the family. Rather this
additional member was an additional mouth to feed. Her husband fell ill and
became bedridden. Eldest son got married and started living at his in-law’s
place, leaving his parents. Next son got married also but stayed with parents.
But his income was low. Marjina started working as domestic help to supplement
the family income. But despite the penury and hardship she admitted the
youngest son Jahangir into school.
started
rearing ducks, chicken, cows and goats in the household. Her income, added with
her middle son’s income (though meager), covers all the needs of the family.
There is smile in everyone’s face.
Did you think
we forgot Jahangir? Not at all. He is one central character in the story.
Jahangir completed his elementary schooling and now doing apprenticeship
in wood craft designing. And Marjina showed us what is called selfless empathy.
We generally refer to the recipient of
program support as beneficiaries. Such stories make us think who the actual
beneficiary is? Are we not benefiting from these experiences and lessons from
life that changes our perspective and elevates our souls? Are we not
beneficiaries too?
And this is the magic
of a program like THP where all involved are transformed.
