Kustuka

Purulia, West Bengal

Kustuka is an agricultural area in Purulia, 27 km away from the city. Before the beginning of summer the area still looked dry and yellowish with harvested fields and almost no greenery around. However, the fields were full of herds. Midway to the village from the main road, there is a dam that keeps people and animals cool in the scorching heat.

CADIP’s involvement in this district has brought many changes into the village, helping and rehabilitating many individuals and families. The project identified new leprosy cases, enabled several physically disabled to access government benefits, initiated 12 Self Help Groups, enhanced several with self employment or business ventures and relocated two families into low-cost houses built by TLM. A few students were assisted with educational grants through CTY programme.

In the days to come several ponds in the area are going to be populated with fish and the harvested fields and pens with goats. Let’s have a quick visit through the area and meet a few of them whose lives were touched through the programme. The local volunteer, Sankar Mahato- a farmer- is helping the villagers to sustain the impact of the project.

*Radha is a 7th standard child who is completely cured of leprosy. Her grandfather, now over 60 years of age, affected and disabled by the disease, was able to identify the disease on her.

Three years ago, he took the child to the TLM hospital for treatment which lasted for six months. Radha’s parents along with her grandfather, live in a new house (LCH) built by TLM. Radha also got an educational grant through CTY.

The lane in the village soon crowded with people, all of them some way or the other a beneficiary of the CADIP Project.

S H Group by the Disabled

*Mukti, 75 years old, affected with leprosy, is the secretary of a SHG for the disabled. He had discontinued the course of treatment during his recent eye operation. The eye surgery was not successful but he was planning to go back to the hospital shortly for continuing the MDT.

Out of the seven members in the group, one is blind; two are leprosy affected and one with general orthopedic disability. The group continues to meet up and save money for helping one another. With the help of the CADIP volunteer, the group received a special grant of Rs.2,000 from the project and later accessed a bank loan for Rs.10,000. The group received a subsidy of Rs.2,000 from this loan and had already paid back Rs.4,500

Women Empowerment Groups

There are twelve local SHGs functioning in Kustuka by the village women. Let us get to know one women-group and meet one of its members.

Matara Swanirbhar Dal (Matara Self Help Group)

The group with ten women members had started three years ago. It is a woman from another group in the village encouraged them to form into a group. They decided to save a Rupee per day and bring it together in one of the two meetings in a month. As they began to meet together, they identified what each of them could do to help themselves. Most of them decided to start something they liked and had some skill. One of the women opted to buy paddy and sell the rice; another decided on goat rearing and yet another one growing some vegetables to sell. Buying a cow and starting a small shop were the plans of other two. To help them, the group took a loan for Rs.5,000. Some of them started off their ventures with this money and they were able to pay the loan back. Next time the loan was for Rs.10,000. After repaying they took another loan of Rs.20,000.

*Kranthi borrowed Rs.2,000 from the group and started to sell rice. She bought paddy from the village and processed it at home. A bag of paddy with 27 kg costs about Rs150. She carries the processed rice in a bamboo basket. At present rates the rice she sells costs Rs.12 per kg and on an average she sells 50 kg of rice a day. Kranthi’s husband and children also assist her at home. Now she is able to manage the home better and pay back her loan by an easy installment of Rs.100 per month.

“Nothing can Disable Us” Sarva Hara Pratipanti Dal (SHG)

The SHG has 5 members and all of them are disabled. One of them lost his leg in an accident; another is polio affected, yet another mentally retarded. The group was started two years ago in 2007 and the members contribute Rs.30 per month. The group took a loan of 25,000 from a bank and shared it equally among themselves and by now they have paid back Rs.7,000. All the group members have disability ID cards though only two of them are getting a monthly pension of Rs.500 each.

*Subodh lost his leg 15 years ago in a truck accident. He is using the artificial limb he received from TLM Purulia three years ago, with the help of CADIP project. He is an 8th passed bachelor and started a general and stationary shop with some personally mobilized investment. The SHG also assisted him with a loan of Rs.15,000. His mother helps him in the business by taking care of the shop when he needs to be away. According to Subodh, his shop had a stock of Rs.1,00,000 and the daily sale amounts between Rs.500 to Rs.1,000. He pays back Rs.300 to the group towards the loan he took from the group.

*Diban is affected by polio. He discontinued his studies after 8th class due to his sickness. He has 1.4 acre of a single crop field in Kustuka where he grows a kind of oil-seed crop. Through CADIP he became aware of the disability rights and also developed a desire of helping other disabled in his area. Near to a pond in the field, he has built an ashram where other disabled people meet regularly for interaction. The tricycle he got through CADIP’s assistance make him more mobile in the dusty village roads. With his share of the loan from the group, he bought two goats and has entrusted it to someone in the village for gracing. He also has plans to use the pond nearby his ashram to grow fish. During the season of programmes Diban also joins the folk troop led by Prasanth, another member the SFG.

*Prasanth is blind but he has a vision to earn a living for his family. He is a folk singer and his troop has eight members. Prasanth composes songs and when he sings, he will be accompanied by an electric organ, tabla, and a flute. During seasons they will be busy through the villages and every week they will have programmes for two or three days. With the loan from the SHG, Prasanth had bought a pair of goats. Now he has five goats, each worth Rs.1,200. He is also planning to partner with Diban to grow fish to earn more for a better living.

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*All the names of individuals are changed

What a TLM Community Project Could Initiate in a Village

The *CADIP-I Project in the district of Bankura in West Bengal had reached all the villages in Mejia block including Ranipur, in 2003. It brought awareness among the people on different aspects of leprosy, disability and on the rights of the disabled.

As the project programmes progressed, it enhanced many among them beat their limitations. The following sketch from Ranipur is made after a short visit to the village and spending a few hours there with some of the primary beneficiaries of the project. It is a summary of the immediate physical impact of CADIP in Ranipur. A brief profile of Ranipur, Three Self Help Groups and some of its members are introduced here. (Philipose)

Ranipur village is 35 kilometers away from Bankura (where TLM has a base). Though it is only three kilometers from the NH 62, the village depicts all the features of a typical interior and backward Indian village. The village beside the long stretch of paddy filed, has more than 300 households and many more adjacent settlements. Beyond the village a few kilometers away there is a railway line on which coal wagons run frequently.

It is at the back yard of two sponge iron factories and a thermal power station in Durlavpur. To add to the dark smoke they emit, there is a ‘black’ coal market thoroughfare through the village, making the mud road blacker. However, CADIP project in this village have enlightened lives and ignited initiatives. The project in the district is completed. It influenced individuals, transformed families and the community, and continue to influence communities around.

“All the children go to school now; we are able to go to hospitals and can afford buying medicine. The mortality in the village has reduced greatly. People are able to spend on buying house hold items and improving the facility of their homes” said Uttam Mandal, in response to the inquiry on the impact of CADIP in Ranipur.

The coming of CADIP staff here has brought in a lot of changes to the village and well-being to many of them who were otherwise marginalized. The movement which caught the flame with a handicapped individual in the village is still permeating. The impact of the first awareness meeting conducted in the village by CADIP is still growing and spreading to other villages, transforming lives.

Awareness programs were conducted at the village and at the primary school. No children are hanging around the village without going to school as seven of the dropouts were re-admitted to their old schools. Several disabled in the village had already received Disability Identity cards while it is under process for others.

Antenatal meetings were arranged and genetic counseling given. Polio vaccination in the village had a very good track record. Eighty cataract operations were done out of which thirty-five were in the last camp alone. At press time, arrangements were underway for another eye camp. Twelve leprosy cases were identified by the staff and volunteers. One of them with foot drop problem was waiting for reconstructive surgery in the local hospital.

Three children received educational grants – CTY - and were very excited about studying as much as they could. Four students referred to and were being trained at the Vocational Training Center at Bankura.

A couple (one of them disabled) was united in marriage through the intervention of the staff and volunteers.

Two individuals were helped in finding industrial jobs through awareness on the reservation quota available for the disabled. They got the job at the sponge iron factory nearby.

Two self employments were initiated through the counsel of the staff and through financial assistance by well-wishers. One of them is a dress material vendor and the other runs a video hiring shop.

Three Self Help Groups started here during the project were running very successfully, improving the lifestyle and living condition of the people. A low-cost housing under the CBR programme had been built for one of the villager very close to the central village of Ranipur.

The CADIP volunteer in the village is actively involved in spearheading this movement of transformation in the village beyond the borders and time limits of the project. He had already motivated two more volunteers who are self motivated to carry on the good work they have started.

Read more about the 3 SHGs in Ranipur and meet some of their members

Self Help Groups

1. Proyas

The Bengali word proyas means ‘effort or to try’ and it is personified in the members of the Self Help Group at Ranipur. The group was formed in 2005 during the CADIP project in Ranipur. Out of the ten members, five are physically challenged, two leprosy cured persons and the other three below poverty line. Initially the group met regularly twice a month for internal learning and contributing a small amount of Rupees 50 per month. The members in spite of their limitations continued to encourage and support one another. Some of them were experienced in making Bel Mala (chains and necklaces made of beads dug from the shell of wood apple). Bel Mala has cultural and religious connotations and is popular in West Bengal and other Northern parts of the country. Others in the group too learned the skill, realizing the scope of marketing it. Though the work did not need much investment it required labour and time. The group procured a loan of Rs.15,000 from a nationalized bank and advanced it to the needy members who invested their time with wood-apple shells and made needles and thread their friends.

Sunil Vadyakar and Montu Mondal are two members from Proyas SHG.

Sunil Vadyakar, the president of the SHG is a Leprosy cured person who had been given to begging. Motivated by CADIP programmes in the village he was willing to give a try. Sunil’s life is a good illustration on what community based rehabilitation can do. He can make Bel Malas and also weave baskets. He took an advance of Rs.5,000 from the group and bought a bicycle too. Depending up on the demand in the local market, he makes either of them. In a day, spending part of his time he can make three or four bamboo baskets; each will fetch him Rupees ten at a wholesale rate. He has a son who is studying in class five and he has received educational grants through the ‘Catch Them Young’ programme. Sunil is happy today that he said bye to begging and he bought his bicycle that carries his bamboo baskets.

Montu Mondal, another member, was identified as a victim of leprosy at the awareness rally conducted at the beginning of CADIP initiatives in the village. Three years ago he had taken general treatments from different hospitals including the Medical College for numbness in his hand and on the leg. He had ulnar paralysis on one hand and foot-drop on the left side. Uttam the volunteer who identified the sickness from the symptoms, had referred him to the Public Health Center for treatment. He is waiting for a reconstructiv e surgery at the nearby hospital or at TLM Purulia Hospital which is about 3hours journey from the village. Montu and his wife have a son and a daughter who are studying 12th and the 7th standards respectively. They both received the CTY study grant from TLM through the CBR. Both of them are interested in further studies.

2. Swami Vivekananda Swanirwar Dal

All the 10 members of the SHG are disabled physically but proved that they are able to make a living and help one another. Thanks to CADIP which brought them together. The group which was formed in 2005 has been meeting regularly and they contributed monthly Rupees 50. One member of the group died a couple of years ago and his wife is member in his place. Being made aware of the privileges of the disabled, all of them had acquired Identity cards which give them several opportunities including free bus and train passes.

The group had taken a loan of Rs.24,000 from a bank and were able to pay back most of it. At report time, they had a bank balance of Rs.10,000. The members take individual loans from the group and pay it back monthly with an interest of Rs.2 percent for every month. This is a good revenue to the group. Most of them are engaged in Bel Mala making.

The leader of the group, China Bhai has a small business of selling rice. She buys paddy and process it at home and sell the rice to the villagers. Pinky Banerjee, another member is a class 10th pass and is busy making Bel Malas of all kinds. The necklaces she makes will cost between Rupees 15 and 30. She is also learning tailoring and planning to set up a tailoring place in the village.

3. Netaji Self Help Group

Netaji SHG in Ranipur was started in 2005, following the awareness program and community based rehabilitation orientation given by the CADIP team. The group has seven members; among them six are disabled and one below poverty line. The members are involved in making bel malas (necklace), curtains, table clothes and pillow covers decorated with bel beads, skillfully made from the dry shell of wood apple.

While a good necklace fetch about Rs.30, a curtain or table cloth will be sold for Rs.400 to 500. The products with the bel beads have religious significance in several parts of the country and therefore a good market. The group is planning to buy a shop in the town to open a small showroom.

The SHG used to meet every fortnight and the members contribute of Rs.50 per month. After six months of the inception, they were able to take a loan of Rs.15,000 from a nationalized bank. After due repayment, they had taken Rs.25,000 and the next time Rs.40,000. The group had a liquid asset of Rs.90,000 including Rs.50,000 as bank balance.

“The group is doing well”, says *Uttam, the group leader. “We are able to help and encourage one another. Everyone is motivated and their life is improved now”. Asking about some visible changes, Uttam responded, “Our children are better dressed now. We can afford going to hospitals when we are sick. Some of us have bought TV sets and some replaced their black and white with colour.”

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*CADIP: Community Awareness and Disability Impairment Prevention, an awareness and advocacy project conducted in ten districts in two phases.

*Uttam, the volunteer’s story is featured earlier: More than a Volunteer/ Volunteer can Venture

Valunteer can Venture

More than Just a Volunteer

Bankura, West Bengal

Uttam Mondal worked as a supervisor for an earth movers company in Bankura. Returning home one day, sitting on the mudguard of the tractor, Uttam never thought, that will be his last ride on a tractor and that he will not return to the site again. He slipped off and the wheel ran over his leg.

The accident was a big blow on his life and the family. The burden of winning bread for the family of three fell up on his wife. Until almost three years after the accident, he was depressed and struggled to pull on. But as days went by, he began to gain confidence and had positive perspectives for life. He began to move in the village with crutches and even managed to ride on a bicycle, peddling with one foot. He was fond of visiting and encouraging those who are disabled and depressed, as he was looking for his own rehabilitation.

Like some of the women in the village, he began to learn necklace making from organic sources available in the area. His concern for the needy and helpless made him an eloquent speaker. Politicians and the local panchayat offices began to take his help in addressing common issues.

It was during this period, Uttam met the CADIP staff who wanted to arrange a meeting in his village. Attracted by the ethos of the project, Uttam did not think twice to commit to assist the CADIP staff. For every components of the project, Uttam was a volunteer ready at any time to go to any village. He was incidental in every activity that followed in the block including the formation of SHGs. There are three very active SHGs - Proyas, Swami Vivekananda and Netaji- in Ranipur where Uttam lives. Uttam himself became the leader of a SHG- Netaji. The seven member group is doing extremely well. Awareness on Leprosy, polio immunization camps, eye-camps, village meetings, school awareness programmes, women gatherings, all fell perfectly in place with the motivation of Uttam. He could see seven school dropout children rejoining school. During the project period, 80 cataract operations were done in Ranipur alone. Eye camps are still arranged in the area with the help of other service organizations.

Commenting on CADIP’s impact in the village, Uttam was happy to take us to his home. Uttam has a son who is studying in 7th standard. His wife recently has found job as a cook for the midday meal provided for students at the local primary school. Up on our visit both were away from home. His wife had gone to school after making his lunch ready. She also makes ‘pop-rice’ for selling, which is a small source of income to the family. Uttam took us around the renovated house with a hall and two rooms. The rooms were kept neat and tidy. He told us that he sold his old black and white TV to Sunil (the basket maker from Proyas SHG) and bought a new colour TV. His wide colourful face revealed his grateful heart about CADIP’s intervention in Ranipur.

Responding to the question on the biggest component of the project in Ranipur, he highlighted, “Self Help Group”. Uttam is a good motivator and a positive thinker. He had led two more individuals to become volunteers with CADIP; Gunamoi Mondal assisted the project activities in the same block and Santhosh Das in the nearby block.

Santhosh Das is an enthusiastic young man. He is doing his second year Bachelors. The honorarium he received as a volunteer was of course an encouragement but his motivation was much more. Even after the completion of the project, Santhosh continues to serve the cause by awareness building. He led us to a high school he had visited recently and arranged an awareness program single handedly. The headmaster of the school and the students, whom he called up on our request, witnessed the effect and sustainability of the awareness building that a volunteer could do beyond the time frame of the project. Santhosh is the son of a leprosy cured person and he was excited about the leprosy eradication and awareness programmes. Nine months ago he also became a Life Insurance agent. He was able to achieve almost the double of the minimum business target of a year! Yet, more than anything, Santhosh cherishes becoming a staff of TLM. ‘Santhosh’ means ‘happiness’ and he is happy that he was part of CADIP.

Uttam has become an opinion leader in Ranipur and his service extends to several other villages, in spite of hurdles on his free mobility. He was happy to accompany his ‘disciple’ Santhosh, who led us to the Japamali D. B. High School where he had arranged the awareness programme.

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CADIP: Community Awareness and Disability Impairment Prevention, an awareness and advocacy project conducted in ten districts in two phases.

Anand and his wife Thankam* had come to a government leprosy rehabilitation home in Tamil Nadu several years ago. They met and got married there. They have a son, Pratheesh* who studies in class VIII at the government school in the town.

Thankam got affected by leprosy at the age of 26 and developed clawed hands. After consulting the primary health centre and completing the treatment from the nearest government hospital, she had arrived at the rehab home.

Along with a few others, Anand and Thankam had come out of the rehabilitation home sixteen years ago and made their hut beside the nearby highway to start an independent life of their own.

Seeking alms, collecting and selling firewood and the like sustained them initially. In due course, along with the others they moved to the small place alloted to them by the govermnet, up on constant request. They built a better hut in the new space and sought ways making their own living including rearing goats. People of the colony and nearby villages used to seek Anand’s help for getting their dress stitched. In mid sixties, his declining vision has affected the family income. He helps his wife who is very industrious too.

The Leprosy Mission's (TLM) community project staff had identified the colony and began to help them establish themselves. TLM along with equal partnership by the government introduced puca houses to the colony dwellers under the Low-cost housing scheme. The project helped them to access all the available benefits.

Now with a disability status certified as 60%, they both get a government pension of Rs.400 each. They also could acquire the National Disability Identity Card, Social Security Card, bus and train passes with concessions.

Thankam in her late forties, no more had enough strength to hold on to the ropes of the goats she was rearing. She decided to switch over to cows. A cow of a reasonably good breed costs around Rs.20,000. Adding the sale proceeds of the goats to a bank loan, she could buy a cow to start with. Now they own two cows - one milking and the other will be ready shortly. She is planning to develop her cattle rearing for better earning.

Talking about the new house they got through TLM’s low-cost housing scheme, and narrating the benefits , her joy had no bounds. The new house has a role in everything in addition to staying safe. Every year they had to find about Rs.5,000 to maintain the palm-leave roof of the hut. Even when she found the money, it was almost impossible to get workers due to fear of leprosy. Twice the huts got fire and consumed everything including the straw stocked to feed the cows.

There is no stigma in the village! The local milk society’s vendor comes to the village for collecting milk. The new RCC house brought respect in the community around and changed their perspective towards life. Thankam participates in every developmental activity in the village - laying cement roads, getting water well and taps, electric connections and street lights for the village, involving in self-care programmes, and MCR Assessments. As she deserves, Thankam is also a member of the District differently- abled people’s federation.

Along with Anand and Thankam there are 25 more families who are proud owners of decent and strong houses of their own, that stand against sun and rain. They are grateful to TLM and the community based rehabilitation project for what it meant to them.

* Names preserved

Philipose Vaidyar

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