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Journalism of Courage
Normally, the seven women sitting outside a mud dwelling 8212; clad in traditional Maharashtrian nine-metre sarees with pallus covering their heads 8212; mixing manure into small packets, would not merit a second glance. And yet they do.
They have never stepped inside a school, but they knowledgeably talk about 8216;8216;vermi-compost8217;8217;, 8216;8216;aloe vera8217;8217;, 8216;8216;backyard poultry8217;8217; and 8216;8216;organic farming8217;8217;. After all, they are the founding members of the country8217;s first exclusive Innovative Women Farmers Club 8212; Arunatai Shivaji Thete 40, Yelubai Aba Popshe 55, Meerabai Bhagwat Hardi 45, Chandrabhaga Murlidhar Tambe 60, Shankuntala Sitaram Tambe 42, Manda Nivrutti Satpute 40 and Hirabai Vijay Tambe 32.
Five years back, the club was founded in Chinchpur village on a corpus of just Rs 50. Today, the club8217;s account with the Central Bank of Ashvi stands at Rs 73,000. So how did it all start?
8216;8216;A group of us got together and started a chit fund to supplement the family income,8217;8217; said Thete. 8216;8216;Each month we would draw lots, and the winner would get the month8217;s collection. One day, an agent of NABARD visited our village. During our meetings with this official, we realised our potential as a group. Instead of keeping money in the dabba box in the kitchen, we started saving it in a bank. One thing led to another,8217;8217; she added.
So, agro-based entrepreneurship became the club8217;s focus. 8216;8216;Our family income has increased. Organic farming has led to better yields and also increased the water level,8217;8217; said Popshe. Once upon a time, she had to sell her mangalsutra to pay for the family8217;s monthly ration. Today, she is the proud owner of two gold mangalsutras, two gold kadas and heavy gold earrings.
Guided by Kalpana Shah, home scientist with the Krishi Vigyan Kendra Babaleshwar village, these seven women have changed the face of agriculture in this village. Organic farming has increased their crop yield, improved their health and taste of food and reduced dependency on chemicals. And the club8217;s water conservation programme has ensured that water scarcity is now a problem of the past in this drought-hit dusty belt of Ahmednagar. Topping all these benefits is the fact that this home industry supplements the family income in a huge way.
Some of the changes that the club brought about: replacing conventional poultry stock by breeds such as Ireland Red and Giriraja; increasing goat milk yield by introducing Osmanabadi breed of goats; increasing fat content in milk with a special dry-green homemade feed; changing crop variety to high-yielding hybrid; using vermicompost instead of chemicals; using neem and chilly-garlic extracts to reduce worms in vegetables.
All the farming plots grow aloe vera plants, which are sold to companies manufacturing Ayurvedic products. 8216;8216;We have realised that Ayurvedic plants are beneficial for our health, soil as well as our pockets. We have planted Shatawari, Ashwagandha, Kachkauli and white muesli. These also fetch us a good income,8217;8217; said Hardi.
These women regularly attend agricultural seminars in the district and are quick to implement new techniques. So popular is the club that people from different parts of the country visit Chinchpur and study it as a project model.
One thing that stands out is their dedication to the project. Monthly meetings are mandatory. Anybody who misses a meeting is fined Rs 5 and only has to bear the expenses of the next meeting.
8216;8216;Through all this, we learnt the importance of education. We have brought adult education into the village and have enrolled everyone. The first thing we did was learn to sign our names,8217;8217; said Shakuntala Tambe.
And the success of their interaction with a world beyond their village is evident in their changing lifestyle. Polyster nine-metre sarees have replaced the traditional Irkal sarees, girls wear salwar-kameez instead of sarees, and not only is Gen Next educated, they are also getting married later. And the most significant change: toilets are now an integral part of the design of every home in Chinchpur. 8216;8216;A toilet inside the house was taboo in our villages, so this is a big social change,8217;8217; pointed out Thete.
