The right foundation

What made Yamato Kawakami feel so deeply for Indians?Kawakami came to conduct research on the co-operative sector in India, and while her...

What made Yamato Kawakami feel so deeply for Indians?
Kawakami came to conduct research on the co-operative sector in India, and while here, saw the plight of the workers on her visits to the rural areas.

When she first came to Pune in 1964, she insisted on staying at Mahila Niwas on Karve Road, which has modest accommodation, common bathing facilities and simple vegetarian fare. She shared a room with a working lady who could only converse in Marathi. She thought it the best way to get acquainted with our culture and customs. Within a few weeks, she started wearing salwar-kameezes, and subsequently, took to wearing bangles and bindis. She even borrowed my young son8217;s Marathi primer and started taking Marathi lessons.

She was impressed by the active participation of women in dairies and on farms, but felt concerned about their dependence on males, particularly widows, divorcees and single women. She was equally concerned about the rapid increase in school dropouts amongst girls. She visited Pune again in 1981, and thereafter, a few times till 1990. And each time she came, she mixed freely and donated generously.

How was the foundation started?
She wanted to establish a research institute on a modest scale. However, destiny left her mission incomplete. She underwent four operations for cancer between 1980 and 1986. She died in 1991, and in her dying wishes, expressed a will that all the monetary offerings to her spirit a Japanese custom be used for Indians.

Her husband, Professor Katsumi Kawakami, transferred Rs 5.3 lakh to me and authorised me to use it as per my judgement. And the public trust was formally registered in December 1993. He donated another Rs 2.5 lakh before he passed away in 1994. And since then, we have received spontaneous donations from many in Pune. The objectives were to enable women to become economically independent and encourage girls to get higher education or acquire professional skills.

What is the reason behind giving loans and actively encouraging the women to pay back?
We give interest-free loans to women who want to start small enterprises and urge them to return the loan in easy installments, so that we can use the money to help other women. I feel bad about taking back the money from such poor people but I want to create discipline and a sense of social responsibility in them. However, we don8217;t take back the money we give for girls8217; education. And till now, most women have paid us back.

Of course, if some are unable to pay, we don8217;t penalise them. Like Janabai, an HIV-positive sex worker who wanted to leave the profession because her son desired it. I gave her Rs 2,800. She bought a handcart and started selling seasonal fruits. She has been unable to repay us.

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Most women start small enterprises like selling fruits and vegetables, clothes. In some cases, the girls8217; education is subsided by benevolent organisations.

How do you decide who deserves the loan?
That is the difficult task. You need personal involvement. I meet each applicant and verify her credentials with the help of social workers from organisations like Vanchit Vikas, Mahila Mandal. My wife, Asha, who has won awards for social service, also comes across cases in her field. We have been successful in helping the truly needy by digging out information quite meticulously.