Story 1
Rubi Pandey, a fifth-grade student from Prathmic Vidyalaya, lives in Bhitti. It is a small village/hamlet in Baragaon Block in Varanasi District of Uttar Pradesh in India. Her mother is a homemaker and her father is an auto-rickshaw driver. Like most auto-rickshaw drivers, he does not own his vehicle and plies on a daily rent basis, primarily due to the complexity of the loan facilities from the banks and the high cost of self-financing. The challenge for the auto-rickshaw driver community is to earn at least a part of their regular income to feed and look after their families, and Rubi's father is no exception. She has two sisters and three brothers. Her hobby is drawing, and she is happy to create art anywhere as long as she has two things: pencils and paper. It gives her a chance to start using her brain and be creative. Also, it is an opportunity to challenge her thinking skills and develop cognitive aptitudes. Her dream profession is to become a teacher when she grows up. She is a student at the Sewa Learning Center and has been studying here for the last three years. Her dream is to become a good, helpful, and hardworking teacher like her teachers. Her teacher at the Sewa Center says teaching is a service by which she can help future generations with good ideals, thoughts, and many enjoyable things about life. We do not know how much Ruby has digested her teacher’s words. But she likes how they teach subjects, test after every month, and monitor their progress regularly. Ruby also learns a lot of new things like art and craft. She learns new habits from her teachers, who are kind enough to teach them and answer their doubts. She consistently secures the top rank in her class. This year they also got a school kit from Sewa International, which consisted of notebooks, drawing pads, a color box, and a geometry box. They have also started getting fruits, and milk products, as part of the nutrition program initiated at the learning center.
Story 2:
Fareeda Ben, mother of three children, lives with a family of 10 people in Jiyapar village in Gujarat. It is a gram panchayat in Nakhatrana Tehsil. The only occupation of the family is embroidery work. She has been doing tie-dye work since childhood. She likes the craft of decorating fabric or other materials using a needle to apply thread or yarn. Akin to painting, embroidery helps her give shape to her unique ideas and needlework designs. The family income of Fareeda Ben is not much, and supporting ten family members was proving to be a difficult task for Fareeda Ben and her husband. Sometimes they would not get work even for fifteen days a month. Their situation was heartbreaking. They are working but still toiling to make ends meet, and they are struggling to find and keep a toehold in a changing labor market, to pay their bills, meet the spiraling costs of essentials like healthcare and housing, and to raise children with a chance of future success. She heard about the training program run by Sewa International from her friend. She instantly enrolled herself and completed the training. It has been three years since she got associated with the Sewa training program. She trains Bandhani to her fellow women. Besides coaching, she takes part in some training programs and business presentations. The workshops helped her learn new skills and techniques, which improved the quality of her Bandhani work. With the help of Sewa International, she opened a savings account in a nearby bank. In a short duration, Fareeda Ben has improved her skills, and through her hard work and application of the learned skills, she has improved the financial condition of her family to boot. She presently organizes the Bandhani unit of the Sewa International Design and Development Center (SIDDC). She also works as a Community Resource Person (CRP) and regularly enrolls in Bandhani training workshops of the other women artisans. Bandhani work is an Indian tradition of tying and dyeing cotton fabrics. The name is derived from the word 'Bandhan'. It is designed on cotton, gajji silk, wool, muslin, etc. Fareeda Ben mentors about 80 women who do Bandhani work. Her income is now Rs. 7,000 per month. She happily claims that Sewa International has made her self-reliant and independent.
Story -- 3:
Uma Ben was married off at the very tender age of 14 and lost her husband after eight years of marriage leaving behind four children. She had to face countless economic, social, and psychological problems, particularly the first year after her husband passed away. She was less prepared emotionally and practically to cope with the loss. Shattered dreams are a crucial part of her experience of widowhood: losing a spouse is very different from losing any other family member. Coping with loneliness was one of the hardest parts of being widowed. It was challenging for her to look after her children and to earn a livelihood. Due to a shortage of money, her three sons could become daily wage laborers, with their collective periodic wages ranging from Rs. 3,500 to 4,000. Wages have a substantial role in maintaining the livelihood and well-being of the workforce. Therefore, any alterations in the worker’s livelihood can make an adverse impact on the family. Living near the India-Pakistan border in the remote village of Kuran village in the Kutch (Kachchh) district of Gujarat, she had lost hope for any chances of a better life. Several issues like infiltration by Pakistani terrorists, cross-border shelling and sniper attacks, and trafficking of drugs and arms, pose a challenge not only to the Indian Army patrolling the border, but for local villagers. But destiny had other plans. Ten years ago, at the age of 55, Uma Ben heard about Sewa International’s Women’s Empowerment Program from her friends. With stepped-up action on empowering women through training and skill development, Sewa International believes that the world can progress towards sustainable development, leaving no one behind. The Sewa program is implemented to provide counseling, legal assistance, temporary shelter, and financial relief to the victims. The scheme aims at providing training to these women to be self-reliant to empower them. She hasn’t reconsidered her association since and has been a dedicated companion of Sewa International. She happily recounts that Sewa has played a pivotal role in enhancing her skills and making her self-reliant. Over the years, she has received various opportunities for training from Sewa International, especially training on design and development, color combination, and value addition. She also participated in the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) and the Technical Training Programme (TTP)organized by Sewa. EDP is a program that helps women like Uma Ben develop entrepreneurial abilities by offering them required to run a business successfully. Sometimes, students may have skills, but it needs polishing and incubation. Uman Ben is now a Master Trainer in Pakko embroidery and imparts training to other women artisans. At present, she is managing a group of 80–85 women. She constantly offers backing to each participant of her cluster. She mentions that even though she is 65 years old now, everyone in Sewa and the local community respects her dedication and commitment to preserving and teaching embroidery to the next generation.
Story -- 4:
Salma Ben, 25-years-old, lives in Jiyapar village with her two sons, husband, and father-in-law. Jiyapar village is in Nakhatrana Tehsil of Kachchh district in Gujarat. She and her family worked as agricultural laborers. These laborers had to face unemployment and underemployment problems off and on. For a substantial part of the year, they remain unemployed because there is no work on the farms, and alternative sources of employment do not exist. Their income was measly, Rs. 1,500 – 2,000 a month, insufficient to run their household. The increasing agricultural landless laborer problem is due to the high level of mechanization of farming and decreasing farming land. A few big farmers own the agricultural land, and the landless laborers are unorganized. Illiteracy, poverty, absence of alternative occupation, and seasonal unemployment are common. Salma Ben’s father had some serious health issues. They spent a large portion of their income on his healthcare and medicines. It made the day-to-day struggle all the more difficult for the family. In the meantime, Salma heard from her friends about the training and development program run in Bandhani village. She met with the representatives of Sewa International and indicated her interest in the program.
Salma Ben knew about the advanced training in Bandhani the tie-dye technique fabricated on woven clothes. The name Bandhani is used colloquially for both the technique of tie-dye and the final cloth. Knots are arranged in various patterns to make alluring designs. The tied knots result in dots in the dyed clothes. Fine dots in the design are due to the meticulous tying of knots. Finely designed dots are a mark of high craftsmanship. Her skills improved after this training program, and she got registered as a Bandhani Designer with Sewa International. Now, she alone earns more than Rs. 3,000 a month, enhancing the economic condition of her family. Her confidence level has improved remarkably as she now has her own identity in the village and can go to various places and interact with people. An improvement in her economic condition has made her more optimistic about the future and potentially brought positive returns. Her interaction with different stakeholders has given her a better understanding of products and their markets. She says that she now feels that she can achieve anything that she sets her mind to.
Story – 5:
Damyanti Ben is a 40-year-old woman with two teenage sons, 19 and 16. Damyanti Ben’s family has been doing embroidery work for generations. Embroidery is often included in historical paintings, but it is reflected more like a detail than the subject itself. Gradually, the art began to stagnate and there was no new creativity in embroidery. Moreover, the demand for embroidery work lessened. As a result, Damyanti Ben’s family began to suffer.
Her husband, Ashok Bhai, works as a day laborer but doesn’t get work daily. The average monthly income of this family of four dropped down to 5,000 rupees, insufficient to maintain the family. They had to make hard choices between food and education. As a parent, it was challenging to maintain the family. The day-to-day struggle was taking its toll on the mental and physical health of the family.
One day, during her grocery shopping, Damayanti Ben learned about the training program organized by Sewa International. She immediately contacted Sewa volunteers and asked whether she could join. She later admitted that the reassuring attitude of Sewa volunteers prompted her to join the training program. She enrolled in the training program, which focused on design and development. Damayanti Ben already knew Pakko embroidery. Hence the training acted as the guide to strengthen her knowledge and skill base and offer her a source to earn a livelihood. Impressed by the earnest desire to learn and her positive attitude after training, Damyanti Ben’s husband Ashok Bhai also joined her and helped her learn new designs.
Damyanti Ben has been with Sewa International since 2007. She has not only learned traditional embroidery but has also trained others – about 100 women artisans – who have improved their skills and techniques. Along with the training, she also participates in many awareness drives related to the upliftment of women and society. Her husband Ashok looks after the marketing aspects of their work. He procures the raw material and sells the products in the market too. Their children are studying well.
Story – 6:
According to the United Nations, “Poverty demonstrates through hunger and malnutrition, limited access to education and other essential services, social discrimination, and exclusion”. We do know that people living in poverty often feel powerless to change their situation, and we don’t need experts to remind us of this or theorize about it. The poor feel isolated from their community as poverty is about a lack of money, and how money can be a marker of well-being and status. But poverty is never about hope, and 21-year-old Banshari is an example. Her family compelled her to leave her studies due to poverty.
Banshari is also a resident of Jiyapar village in Kutch (Kachchh) district in Gujarat. After quitting school, Banshari started helping her mother with household chores. She was unhappy as she neither had any source of income nor any skill to start her own business. She wanted to stand on her own feet to fulfill her basic needs and contribute to her family. After talking to some people in her village, she learned of Sewa International that was offering skill-based training to women artisans. She met the volunteers of Sewa in her village and joined the program.
Banshari has learned to stitch “kurti” (top for women and girls) while participating in design and development training organized by Sewa International, which also helped her open a savings bank account in a nearby bank. Consequently, Banshari managed to get a sewing machine and started stitching kurtis at her home. Earlier, dresses were for the use of the family, but later on, demand came from neighbors and other community members. She stitched the dresses and trained other girls and women in her community.
Motivation need not always be monetary, but money does and can motivate. Banshari’s financial status has improved gradually. Now she can earn Rs. 4,000 to 5,000 a month. Financial independence has provided her with enough income to pay for her family’s living expenses. It has increased her ability to work according to her own schedule. She is not only financially independent but can also help her family. She feels that this is just the beginning of a prosperous life ahead.
Story – 7:
Sanju Devi Goswami, 41 years old, is the village pradhan (head). A mother of two, unassuming and ever-smiling, Sanju Devi is well-liked and popular among the village folk. She enjoys taking visitors around her home and her farm. It is a mixed farm, where conventional grains are harvested seasonally with various vegetables and flowers. She perceives, “I recollect when I had come to this village after marriage, farming was the strength of most people. Unluckily, the fluctuating weather condition has become a danger to our way of life. For me, I am resolute to face this task.” She is also associated with the Haat village “Self Help Group” (SHG) called Shivshankar Swayam Sahayata Samooh. From morning to evening, Sanju Goswami is a woman with a lot of demand. The whole day, Sanju Goswami is active in her work. Says she: “The life of hill women is tireless, and in the region where the men did not have stable jobs, women took up all burden of their family as wives, mothers, and even farmers. Their life is intrinsically connected to nature – too little or too much sun, rain, or snowfall is always bad for the land. Sewa International has helped us in many ways, and my farm yield is better, and through the SHG, I am saving money every month now.” She has successfully demonstrated how, given the proper support, people can effectively adapt to changing conditions and transform their lives. In her opinion, it is the right time for farmers to adjust to fresher, superior ways of making practical farming. Sewa International is committed not only to the cause of the farmers but also to empowering the fabulous and hardworking women of Uttarakhand, a hill state and mountainous land. "Five years ago, Sewa International volunteer Govind visited our village. He told us that Sewa International wanted to run a program for the development of women. He called us for a meeting, and I heard that Sewa plans to open a center of embroidery learning in the village for women. Govind Ji said they would form an SHG of women in the town. It ensures that any woman who learns embroidery will have work every day. In a village-like Navasa having a job, every day was more than anything we could wish for. But our question was, will this plan work? Our knowledge of embroidery was restricted to domestic use. We were not professional, and we did not know who would pay for and purchase our work. Sewa international provided us with training under their Technical Training Program. We learned about traditional Kutch embroidery, market trends, new color combinations, etc. Learning these new skills increased my earnings. Now, I earn Rs.3,000 to 3,500 from this work. I am also saving some money being part of the Sanskar Sakhi Mandal, and this gave me a sense of security for my future," says Sanju Goswami.
Story – 8:
Hansa Ben Mukeshbhai Pokar is a resident of Narayan Nagar in Jiyapur village in Kutch district. Being a part of Umiya Sakhi Mandal, she joined Sewa International and has been with Sewa for five years. Her life was quite different before her association with Sewa. She used to work as a laborer on farms for her livelihood. She struggled to look after the family as she earned little and only intermittently.
One day she heard that Govind, a volunteer from Sewa International, was planning to roll out a program for the development of women. According to the United Nations, “rural women are key agents for development. They play a catalytic role in transformational economic, environmental, and social changes required for sustainable development”. The UN also points out that “limited access to credit, health care, and education are among the many challenges” these women face.
Hansa Ben was curious to know how the program would work and how it would help her earn a living and fulfill her family’s daily needs. She had attended a meeting organized by Sewa where they informed them that Sewa planned to start a sewing and stitching center for women in the village. Any woman who learned to sew and stitch, Sewa ensured work every day. Sewa helped them to open a Self Help Group (SHG) in the village. An SHG is a financial intermediary committee usually composed of 12 to 25 women between the ages of 18 and 50. To have a job every day was only a dream for them. So, with the other women, Hansa Ben also decided to enroll in the program and learn to sew and stitch. She had learned to darn and started earning Rs. 3,500-,4,000 a month.
The Entrepreneurship Development Program (EDP) helps these women in developing entrepreneurial abilities. The skills needed are varied, and they need to be taken care of in the best possible way. After she joined the EDP, Hansa Ben learned to make handicraft products like mobile phone covers, handbags, tote bags, shopping bags, and evening bags. She is now in charge of her unit after three years of working as a member. Now, she is looking after the quality of products made by the unit members and marketing strategies for these products. Currently, she is earning Rs 7,000 per month. Her family situation has gradually improved with what she earns. Apart from monetary benefits, her connection with Sewa has helped her develop as a confident woman.
Story – 9:
Harkhu Ben Lakhabhai Rabari is a resident of Navasa village in the Kutch district of Gujarat. She has been with Sewa International for five years. In Navasa village, most villagers are agricultural laborers earning daily wages. Poverty had become the destiny of many of these villagers. In Navasa village, the work was seasonal, and there was a lack of earning opportunities. Poor workers accept lower wages because they are landless and are ready to work at any pay, as experts have noted. These workers are uneducated and are unaware of government policies that could benefit them. Therefore, the wealthy farmers exploit them by paying them poorly. Low wages increase their stress, affect their self-esteem, and engage them in unhealthy activities. It is a vicious cycle in which poor health hinders employment and income growth. Five years ago, Govind from Sewa International visited the village. He told them that Sewa International wanted to run a program for the development of women. He called them for a meeting, and Harkhu Ben heard that Sewa planned to open a center of embroidery learning in the village. Govind said they would form an SHG. The members of an SHG face similar problems. They help each other to solve their problems. SHGs promote small savings among their members, and their savings are safe in a bank. It ensures that any woman who learns embroidery will have work every day. In a village like Navasa having a regular job was more than anything to wish for. But the question was, would this plan work? They knew embroidery work but only for their domestic use. They were not professionals, and they did not know who would purchase their work. Sewa International provided them with training under their Technical Training Program (TTP). They learned about traditional Kutch embroidery, market trends, new color combinations, etc. It is safe to say that with an already considerable market base that is continuing to grow, this is one business in which artists can potentially make a lot of money. An embroidery business does not require many upfront costs to get started. The low cost of the embroidery materials is one of the reasons why it is that productive. Hand embroidery is expensive because it is time-consuming. Learning these new skills increased Harkku Ben’s earnings. Now, she earns about Rs.3,000 to 3,500 from this work. She is also saving some money being part of the Sanskar Sakhi Mandal, which gives her a sense of security for her future.
