Winds of change
Together in success
AMRITA DATTA
|
A women's self help group in Dasi, Orissa, proves they are as good as anybody else in managing business.
|
PHOTO: AMRITA DATTA
Proving a point: (From left) Manjula, Jagyasini Durga and Piaja Bag.
IN the tribal belt of Orissa, in the infamous Kalahandi district, there is a village, Dasi, where the people live in extreme poverty and deprivation. Hunger and malnutrition are a way of life here, and the future seems bleak. In such conditions, in 2000, the Ma Thakurani Self Help Group was formed by Parivartan, a development organisation working with the poor in Kalahandi for more than a decade. The purpose was to bring poor women together; and to practise credit and thrift activities.
The men in the bhatti
In the village lies a bhatti, a parlour for illicit liquor consumption where many men-folk consume alchohol, get drunk, become violent and create havoc. The location of the parlour, at the entrance of the village, worsens the situation; the entry and exit of women and children are extremely cumbersome. And dangerous.
The Ma Thakurani Self Help Group consists of 13 women. Together, they save, borrow, meet and discuss issues. Together, they make a difference in each other's lives. One day, after their monthly SHG meeting, the members of the Ma Thakurani SHG group passed by the bhatti. The men as usual were inebriated; they foul mouthed the women, and accused the SHG of ruining the village. The women had already had enough. For 15 years, they had borne the brunt of the drunken men and the bhatti. They decided to do something about this situation in the village; they decided to take charge.
Taking up the challenge
They called a Village Committee meeting and expressed that something needed to be done about the bhatti; it had to be shut. They received a lot of support from other villagers, and under pressure, the bhatti owner, committed that he will shut the liquor shop.
One of the government ward officials who was present at the Village Committee meeting sneered at the women, and told them that the SHG was unnecessarily creating a ruckus about the bhatti, and interfering in the matters of the men. He accused the SHG members of crossing the line, and being notorious. He dared them to do something productive, like taking up the contract of the weekly Haat market. (The weekly Haat market is the space in the village where buyers and seller interact once a week and supplies for the entire week are bought. It is a place where robust rural markets function; a point of social gathering for the villagers as well.)
The members accepted the challenge, much to the ward official's surprise and everyone else's too.
The women had been together in a self help group for five years. They had collectively mobilised savings, and guaranteed each other's loans. They had confidence in each other's abilities and in Ma Thakurani as a collective entity. It was time now to do something more, something big.
They decided to take a loan for the annual lease of Rs. 81,000 to run the weekly Haat market. They decided that if the lease yielded a profit, it would be shared equally amongst the members; if it suffered a loss, that too shall be borne equally. Tasks were divided amongst the SHG members; the elders were to supervise and strategise, and the young and active women were supposed to be present at the weekly Haat, observe its functioning, keep the accounts and collect rents from shopkeepers and vendors.
Initial hesitation
When they approached Parivartan for such a large loan, the NGO didn't know how to react. "We were scared when we received an application for such a large loan. But when a detailed business analysis was done, we conceded that ownership of the lease of the Haat will bring the group an annual profit of Rs. 30, 000", says Sharda, one of the founder members of Parivartan. The loan was sanctioned and disbursed in three instalments. They had property rights over the weekly Haat at Dasi Village from June 2006 for one year.
Once the wheels of the market began churning, revenue started pouring in. Approximately 300 sellers sell their produce and wares in the weekly Haat, where residents of Dasi and nearby village purchase their weekly supply of vegetables, pulses, rice, fowl, and other utilities to run their households. The sellers pay a rent between Rs. 10 and Rs. 30 per week, depending on the size and location of the shop at the Haat. The SHG maintains the Haat, and takes care of its logistical requirements. The villagers are impressed by the professional management of the Haat by the illiterate women. The women are pleased and proud of their venture, and the respect it brings them.
Sweet success
The ward member who had sneered at the women once and ridiculed them when they took the lease of the Haat, squirms when he passes the SHG members. They walk past him, with their heads held high, their accomplishment written in their smiles.
Together, for the women and Parivartan, the success of the Haat has been very sweet. Their struggle continues with the bhatti; they are determined, and confident that it will soon be closed for good.
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Magazine
