Mehroon was married and sent to her marital home only to find that her husband already had another wife. She was beaten up by her husband for not performing her wifely duties and the other wife did not spare her either. She ran back to her grandmother’s home where she grew up without parents to save her life. She now considers herself a separated woman and this “woman” is all of 15!
This is not a story of North Bihar, neither a story from the hinterland of Rajasthan, it is only about 20 km away from Kolkata, the state capital of West Bengal. I know we would love to find the religion in it. After all it is always the “other” who has all the problems and not us! But, Malati’s suicide in a similar situation a few days ago would not let us do so. May be now we will try to find the caste in it, after all it has to be the other!!
Mehroon, Susmita, Tapasi and Mahroof …I met them all in the adolescent centers run by an organization in South 24 Paraganas. Their stories give a new meaning to grin and bear. I am introduced to a girl in Jugdiya whose smile will put a thousand watt bulb to shame! Who would say that she stays in a foster family where her uncles do not give her food at night just because she does not “work enough” during the day? She comes to the center to learn Batik work and read and write. She wakes up early morning cleans all the plates (yes the same plates in which she did not get to eat her food!), cleans the house and then comes to the center. She also works on putting glitters on those trendy sarees that you see in the market now a days, to bring in additional income to the family after returning from the center. All these because she wants to ward off her marriage by a few years and come to the center to learn a little more!
I am sorry this does not seem to be a story of hope as my other notes from the field. These girls are also giving the custom of child marriage a tough fight... but the odds are too many. The odds include the fact that every development dollar that is spent in the sector, less than half a cent is spent on adolescent girls.
This was one place where all my long learnt and acquired professional attitude and outlook failed me. I wanted to reach out as a woman, as an individual! The centers seemed so fragile and inadequate! I wanted to protect them myself. It was heartening to see how the organization is fighting this unequal battle in many fronts through its Kishori Vahinis, Mahila Dals, Farmers’ clubs along with running the day care centers to mainstream the girls. May they remain as unrelenting as ever…...
This is not a story of North Bihar, neither a story from the hinterland of Rajasthan, it is only about 20 km away from Kolkata, the state capital of West Bengal. I know we would love to find the religion in it. After all it is always the “other” who has all the problems and not us! But, Malati’s suicide in a similar situation a few days ago would not let us do so. May be now we will try to find the caste in it, after all it has to be the other!!
Mehroon, Susmita, Tapasi and Mahroof …I met them all in the adolescent centers run by an organization in South 24 Paraganas. Their stories give a new meaning to grin and bear. I am introduced to a girl in Jugdiya whose smile will put a thousand watt bulb to shame! Who would say that she stays in a foster family where her uncles do not give her food at night just because she does not “work enough” during the day? She comes to the center to learn Batik work and read and write. She wakes up early morning cleans all the plates (yes the same plates in which she did not get to eat her food!), cleans the house and then comes to the center. She also works on putting glitters on those trendy sarees that you see in the market now a days, to bring in additional income to the family after returning from the center. All these because she wants to ward off her marriage by a few years and come to the center to learn a little more!
I am sorry this does not seem to be a story of hope as my other notes from the field. These girls are also giving the custom of child marriage a tough fight... but the odds are too many. The odds include the fact that every development dollar that is spent in the sector, less than half a cent is spent on adolescent girls.
This was one place where all my long learnt and acquired professional attitude and outlook failed me. I wanted to reach out as a woman, as an individual! The centers seemed so fragile and inadequate! I wanted to protect them myself. It was heartening to see how the organization is fighting this unequal battle in many fronts through its Kishori Vahinis, Mahila Dals, Farmers’ clubs along with running the day care centers to mainstream the girls. May they remain as unrelenting as ever…...
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