Case Studies

Phoola Devi - An Ideal for Rural Women

"My seven-day old daughter died in my arms just because I couldn't feed her. I couldn't afford enough milk to keep her alive"… (Meri saat din ki bacchi ne meri bahon mein sirf isliye dum tod diya kyunki mere pass apni bacchi ko doodh pilane tak ke paise nahi the)… These were the words of a grieving mother who will not be able to conceive ever again. A mother who regrets not being able to arrange for a measly two rupees to feed her child. What can be worse for a mother?

But today, Phula devi, the same helpless mother, is out of the clutches of poverty and is thinking of participating in forthcoming Gram Pradhan Elections of Badokhar. Phula Devi belongs to Dalit class of Badokhar, a small hamlet in Banda district of Bundelkhand region. Today she herself finds the change in her life hard to believe. Going down memory lane, her face fills with grief because she does not have a single pleasant memory.

Phula Devi is head of SHG in Badokhar and 'animator' of the information center established under Parivartan Project. She is the first of the two wives of Kallu Yadav, who is suffering from serious illness for the past many years. She states that when she came to her husband's house there was not a single piece of bread to eat with the whole village being in the clutches of poverty. But today the whole scenario has changed. The life of the villagers is moving towards betterment. She gives the credit for the change to the Parivartan Project. Phula Devi's new-found confidence and strength have not only changed her own life but has also helped the other women of the village to stand on their own.

Today's confident and highly-motivated Phula Devi was not so strong earlier. Since she was not allowed to move out and work, she was unable to do anything for the improvement of her family's financial condition. One day she came to know about the Parivartan Project through Shanti, a resident of the same village. Shanti was also a poor and helpless woman like Phula, but after seeing the drastic change in the life of Shanti which in her own words was because of being a part of this project, Phula decided to join this project.

Phula met with other SHG members and Parivartan project volunteers and asked them to do something for her and the betterment of her family. The group members then asked her to take an initiative on her own. They made her aware of her rights and the process to stand by her own efforts. With the help of project members Phula came to know about the savings and the benefits which she can utilize to arrange bread and butter for her family. Despite family restrictions she came forward to fight for her rights and started attending the VDC (Village Development Committee) meetings. Thus after joining the project a process of change started in Phula's life which led her to the path of success and a desire to do something for her village suddenly got a platform.

Talking about the condition of women in Badokhar, she said that earlier they were not aware of their rights and worked in other's fields on less than Rs 10 per day. But they are now in a position to demand their actual wages. "Earlier they could not understand what SHG was about and what the benefits in joining it were, but now they understand it clearly."

Badokhar is now undergoing the process of development and women empowerment. The below-poverty ratio which comprised the whole population of village few years ago is decreasing day by day because of the efforts made by villagers with the help of on going Parivartan project.

Those women who had never moved out of their houses are now ready to step out and demand their rights. Today, Phula Devi has the confidence to talk to any government official and is ready to take on any kind of responsibility. In the beginning she was scared of the office atmosphere but now she thanks Village Development Committee VDC) meetings and training programmes for making her a strong woman.

Phula Devi is an example of a strong woman and suits the typically Indian image of a woman being a goddess or devi. She says that earlier whatever happened to her was her destiny. The change was made possible because of Privartan Pariyojna.

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