69) Raw courage in hinterland

Of all the things on earth there is nothing is more distressing than to hear of starvation deaths and farmer’s suicide. Farmers the true sons of the soil and when they lose hope as to take their lives; then something is seriously amiss.

I work for Care India, a NGO and assigned the task of women rehabilitation in Anantapur. It was in a small hamlet that I first saw Parvati Mallappa and her story is truly an inspiration.

She first counseled her husband against suicide; pointing out that the whole village was in a similar state of debt and despair and urging not to give in to creditor pressure. Duggala Mallappa killed himself anyway leaving his wife and three daughters to fend for themselves.

Paravati had the option to going back to her mother’s village in Bellary, Karnataka but she was determined to stay in Anantapur and educate her three daughters Bindu, Vidya, and Divya who were just four, seven and nine years old. She herself was one of the most educated women in the district having passed her X standard.

The sadness of losing her husband in such penury and having to take care of three young daughters must have tried her mental equilibrium. Says she,” I did not even have time to grieve as the daughters were demanding for my attention. Only my eldest daughter comprehended what had happened while the last two did even know what happened except that they missed their father”.

She leased out her 12 acres for a pittance and decided to teach herself tailoring. “I did some sewing as a child”, she says. “I felt I could make this work” and started her shop four years back. Now she has managed to pay most of her husband’s debts.

Parvati sold her cattle and invested the proceeds along with the compensation from the government in bank deposits on her daughters’ names. The two elder daughters are doing well in school and one recently scored 49 out of 50 in a science test. The proud mother says,” I will educate them to any level they want to go”.

Parvati realized that there were 800 families in the village and everyone in one way or the other had been affected by the famine and the wretched Bt. Cotton. She assembled all the idle girls and started a tailoring school by adding two more sewing machines.

The district collector says, “Her courage is amazing. To stay alone with three girls and face up to the challenges is not easy. She has a clear-headed view of her tasks. Parvati sees her future in her children and they are her motivation”

I wind up my visit, she tells me,” It’s all for the children, sir. Our time has gone”.

I can only salute her spirit and see if there is anything personally I can do help them further.