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Journalism of Courage
VADODARA, June 16: If one has the will and determination to achieve something, no handicap or barrier can ever prevent that person from realising his ambitions. This is the summary of Atulbhai Upasni’s life.
Upasni is a 32-year-old man in the city who lost his eyesight on the fifth day after his birth. Upasni — who earns his livelihood by selling wafers and namkeens on the ground floor of Narmada Bhavan — say that from the day he decided to fend for himself he was determined to do it his way, rather than begging and earning an easy buck like most of the other visually-impaired counterparts did.
In the beginning, Upasni, a class five drop out, in order find some work got his name registered with the city’s employment exchange. He tried to get a job in the Narmada Project where his father Bhaskarrao Keshavrao Upasni worked. “I also met several people, including politicians, and requested them to get me a job, but nothing worked out,” he regrets.
After trying all options available to him, he finally decided to launch his own business’ and be self-employed as he did not want to be a burden on his aged parents, he explains.
But many people in his locality scoffed at him when he announced that he would sit besides some temple or mosque and earn money by requesting people to weigh themselves, he recalls. “They wanted me to beg as they thought that would bring in more money,” he adds.
“But my conscience ordered me to earn a livelihood by working for it and not by begging,” he announces. So not only did he reject their suggestions, but also requested them not to approach him with such ideas.
Thus began his journey of earning a livelihood when he first began selling eatables at the Narmada Bhavan. A missionary organisation also donated him a weighing machine to supplement his income, he recalls. But later the machine developed some snags and he purchased a new one from Ahmedabad for Rs 550 from his earnings, he says proudly.
Today, Upasni feels quiet contented by earning about Rs 30 per day from his venture. “Something is better than nothing,” he beams in English. His motto is “Andhe ko daya nahin, sahkar aapo’‘(Handicapped people need help and not mercy to be self-reliant).
Eldest among his four siblings, Upasni’s only regret in life is that his parents don’t seem to be interested to marry him off. “How will you look after your family?” is the question they pose whenever he expresses his desire to get married.
According to him, they are not convinced by his arguments that when he can look after himself, he can definitely look after his family.
