Focus On Adolescent Girls, Kitchen Gardens Helping
Musahar, Nut Communities in Varanasi
In 2017,
the People’s Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR), with the support of
Child Rights and You (CRY), adopted 50 villages and a couple of slums to work
on the issue of child survival (maternal, neonatal health and nourishment) in
the most marginalised communities in four blocks of Varanasi district.
LENIN RAGHUVANSHI22 JUNE 2019
Kotali Nut lives in Aura block of Varanasi district
in Uttar Pradesh. Kotali and her husband Mannu Nut have a monthly income of
around Rs 3,000 which is very difficult to fulfill basic needs. Ever since they
were introduced to kitchen gardening last year, they are able to include
nutritious vegetables in their meal which has had a positive effect on their
health.
There was a vacant plot behind Kotali’s house, in
Nonari nut ghetto, Phuwarikhurd of Aura block, where she did kitchen gardening,
sowing different types of seasonal seeds like sponge gourd, squash, pumpkin,
snake gourd, bitter gourd, ridge gourd. She began her kitchen garden in July
2018, thanks to the efforts of People’s Vigilance Committee on Human Rights
(PVCHR), and is happy with the result.
“Before we used to eat rice, roti with salt. But now
we have a lot of green vegetables with our meals after we began kitchen
gardening. It effects our health as well,” she said. Kotali produced around 54
kg of different types of vegetables -- like 15 kg of sponge gourd, 32 kg of
squash, 4 kg of pumpkin, 2 kg of ridge gourd and 1 kg bitter gourd.
The story is the same with Jarina Nut, wife of Bholai
Nut, whose monthly income is around just Rs 2,000-3-000. Like Kotali, Jarina
also took to kitchen gardening and is sowing different types of seasonal
vegetables. Jarina says she produced 39 kg of green vegetables. “We had enough
fresh vegetables everyday for our meals. It is very tasty and healthy,” she
said.
Kabutara Nut, wife of Nandu Nut, has a kitchen garden
where they grow different types of seasonal vegetables. They have also a hen
coop in their home. Initially they were scared thinking the hens would damage
the sown seeds, but PVCHR workers informed them about how to protect their land
by covering it with bamboo fencing.
Nandu’s son Rajiv helps him to protect the land and
in weeding and sorting. Regular follow-up by PVCHR helped to sustain their
enthusiasm. They produced 29 kg of vegetables.
In the Musahar ghetto of Phuwarikhurd, Aura block of
Varanasi, Sanju and her husband Sushil grow vegetables according to their
taste. Sanju says her husband helps with the kitchen garden, sowing seeds, in
manuring, weeding, sorting and also protects the land. “When the garden
started producing vegetables, we had different types of veggies daily in our
meals. We never bought any vegetables earlier because we can’t afford it.
Now we share vegetables with our relatives and friends,” said Sushil.
There are 13 Musahar families in the Musahar ghetto,
Aayer Village, Harauwa block of Varanasi district. They work as labour. Six men
work as a carriers in a hardware shop, some others ride tractors and one family
works in a brick factory. A woman also works as a daily wage labourer. They sow
crops and graze in other lands for money. They don’t have their own land,
but they have some land near their homes where they started kitchen gardening
with different types of seasonal vegetable seeds.
In 2017, the People’s Vigilance Committee on Human
Rights (PVCHR), with the support of Child Rights and You (CRY), adopted 50
villages and a couple of slums to work on the issue of child survival
(maternal, neonatal health and nourishment) in the most marginalized
communities in four blocks of Varanasi district. The Right to Survival is one
of the four child right categories in the United Nation Convention on the
Rights of Children. Survival Rights include the child’s right to life and to
fulfilling the needs of a child to lead a happy life. These include nutrition,
shelter, adequate living standards, and access to health services for a healthy
and happy childhood.
After entering the village, PVCHR did a baseline
survey and focused on group discussion to understand the Knowledge, Attitude
and Practice (KAP) of the community. Based on the KAP mapping, they prepared
strategies based on their interest and influence. The PVCHR team explained how the
major problems identified in the baseline surveys were stereotypical thinking,
superstition, and lack of trust in the government-sponsored healthcare schemes.
The below-par presence of the health Sub Centres, Primary Healthcare Centres,
Community Healthcare centres is the main hurdle in the realization of health
services for pregnant women and their children.
These communities faced apathy from the village heads
and did not get access to various government schemes. Due to lack of knowledge
and resources, adolescent girls use dirty cloth during periods instead of
sanitary pads. The adolescent girls have no source to obtain information
regarding the biological changes in the body and were left to follow
longstanding and illogical concepts.
The changes and developments in the bodies of
adolescents also affects their health. Adolescents mainly suffer from anaemia
and weight loss or low weight. Lack of information is the primary reason behind
that. During the analysis of the sample survey conducted across 20 villages in
Varanasi, we found that, due to ill-treatment and negligence in the government
hospitals, 19 families out of 20 were facing a severe debt crisis.
PVCHR organized a meeting with marginalized people
and encouraged them to utilize the vacant plots of land near their homes. They
were informed about the importance and process of kitchen gardening.
A Girl Adolescence and Nutrition Fair was organized
by PVCHR with the support of New Zealand High Commission in Harauwa Block level
in October. The main purpose of the fair was to inform people about various
issues related to adolescence such as Reproduction Health, Menstruation,
Infection, Personal hygiene and Nutrition.
In the fair for adolescences, issue-based
posters were displayed. Posters created on the basis of issues came from
meetings and folk schools with girls and their family’s members. Adolescents
were aware about the reproduction process, menstruation process, personal
hygiene, health, reproductive health and nutrition. The main slogan of the
programme through the posters was information to adolescent girls, about
reproductive health, nutrition and love. Also, they were told they must care
about their health and wear sanitary pads during menstruation. Girls should
increase their iron intake by eating green vegetables. The adolescent girls
were encouraged to freely speak on menstruation. The girl focused
on the slogan, the messages, information and posters and also discussed among
each other.
