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| Headlines Vol. 1 Issue 34-35 | Jan 22-Feb 6 , 1999 |
''For a strong Assam violence must stop'' : Meena Agarwala She never joined any of the groups which demand reservations for women nor she had inclination to join politics despite being approached by many political stalwarts of our country. Yet she has an enviable record in the field of upliftment of women. Sounds like a strange fiction? No way. Because it is the true life story of Meena Agarwala, recipient of the IMC-Ladies' Wing Jankidevi Bajaj Puraskar - 1998 for Rural Entrepreneurship. The list of Ms. Agarwala's contribution towards upliftment of the women is endless. Meena Agarwala, who belongs to the family of Jyoti Prasad Agarwala, doyen of Assamese culture over the last 50 years, has made concerted efforts for economic, social, spiritual and general upliftment of rural women and children Tezpur district guided by Gandhian principles of self-reliance, truth and non-violence. Under her able leadership, the Tezpur District Mahila Samiti has rendered selfless services to the people in time of distress such as floods, earthquakes, riots, etc. and has undertaken successful projects in handloom weaving, sericulture, textile production besides health care, family welfare and thrift co-operatives. These activities have led to economic empowerment of rural women and encouraged a spirit of entrepreneurship amongst them. One hundred and twenty rural Mahila Samitis have been set up which undertake weaving of cotton and silk fabrics, growing and trading of money crops. Ms. Agarwala runs training-cum-production units, oversees distribution of yarn, 31 women's banking co-operatives managed by executives elected by 4, 750 women corporators. Legal aid is also given to women affected by dowry demands, repression, divorce and property matters. Out of 379 complaints, 78 have been solved by the Samiti. Fifty eight health camps have been organised benefiting 5, 500 women, distributed medicines free of cost. Thirteen villages have been made self-sufficient. After receiving the prestigious award in Mumbai, Ms. Agarwala came to Delhi on her way back home. At that time, North East News Agency met the dynamic lady who has dedicated her life to the cause of women and children. North East News Agency: What was your first reaction after hearing the news that you bagged the prestigious Jankidevi Bajaj Puraskar? Meena Agarwala: Nothing very special. Because I didn't join social service expecting that one day I would win this or that award. I was quite moved by Gandhiji's concern about upliftment of the weaker section of society, especially the women. So I decided to do whatever little was possible by me to make his endeavour a success. That is why I joined the Tezpur District Mahila Samiti, which was following the Gandhian principles of self-reliance and non-violence. Rather than these awards, the success of Tezpur District Mahila Samiti gives me immense pleasure. As it shows us how nearer we are to our goals and how many more miles to go. NENA : But your colleagues and followers must be very happy. M.A.: Yes, they were. In fact, when I saw their jubilant faces, only then I realised how prestigious is the Jankidevi Bajaj Award. NENA : What do you intend to do with the cash award? M.A.: I will spend it for the betterment of the women in my district. NENA : Do you have any specific plan for this purpose? M.A.: I have yet to draw a specific plan. But certainly I have some ideas. I can tell you more about this when I will go back to Tezpur and discuss about it with my colleagues. NENA : Tell me something about your organisation. M.A.: It is totally dedicated to the cause of women and children. The idea of forming such an organisation first cropped up when Gandhiji visited Tezpur. With Gandhiji's insistence, the organisation started functioning. I joined the organisation in the forties. In 1952, I became an office-bearer of this organisation. In 1978, I was elevated to the post of the president. Since then, I have been continuing in the same post. In all these years, the Tezpur District Mahila Samiti has indeed come a long way. Now we have 120 rural mahila samitis. We encourage the women to take up weaving and few other things to earn their livelihood. We also put lot of stress on healthcare. We organise health camps in rural areas at regular intervals. We supply free medicines. We have also formed self-help groups. This was specially done to encourage entrepreneurship among women. At the same time we take up the the cases when we find that a woman is in distress and needs support. NENA : All the activities require a lot of money. How do you arrange funds to keep all these activities going? M.A.: Mainly through donations from our well-wishers. Our members also contribute a lot. NENA : Are you getting government help also? M.A.: No, not at all. So far, we have not received a single paise either from the Central Government or from the State Government. NENA : It's really amazing. Any way, have you received any money from foreign donors? M.A.: In 1988, Oxam, an American organisation, gave us some money. Another Canadian organisation CIDA also helped us. But frankly speaking, the amount of foreign help is not much compared to our activities. NENA : Does any political leader in his personal capacity ever helped your organisation? M.A.: No, never. Forget about help, as far as I can remember no politician has ever visited our organisation. Only after I received this award, Brindaban Goswami came to see me. That's all. NENA : Why are the political parties or leaders indifferent to your organisation, especially when your organisation has a strong influence over the women in your district? M.A.: You better ask this question to them. As far as I am concerned we have nothing against any political party. Many a time, we have been approached by some political party to join them. But all along we have managed to keep equi-distance from all the political parties. NENA : According to you what is the main strength of Tezpur District Mahila Samiti? M.A.: Our belief in Gandhian principles. I think that is our main strength. We had to face many hurdles. But we never deviated from Gandhian ideology. The best application of Gandhiji's concept of decentralisation, to my mind, is the base structure of our organisation. All the rural mahila samitis are under the district mahila samiti, yet these are independent and can take decision of their own. The corporators are also elected democratically. Inspired by Gandhiji, many mahila samitis were formed in Assam. But apart from the Tezpur District Mahila Samiti, no other mahila samiti is so strong, as those organisations could not follow the path shown by the Mahatma the way we did. NENA : As you belonged to a family which has contributed a lot especially in the field of Assamese culture, how did this factor help you? M.A.: I am really grateful to my family. Without their help I could not have performed my duties towards society. My family members have always encouraged me. It was from my family that I learnt that every human being has certain responsibilities to perform. It is the duty of everyone to contribute to make this planet a better place. Let it be on the record that what I am today is for them only. NENA : For the last few years Assam is reeling under violence? Has your society made any attempts to put an end to it? M.A.: At the outset, let me tell you that the Tezpur District Mahila Samiti is totally against violence. Because we believe that through violent activities we can only achieve destruction. No constructive work can take place if a society reels under violence. Coming to the second part of your question, we have always participated whenever any peace initiative has been mooted. We have also organised peace march despite strong protests from the misguided youths. In fact, people participating in the peace march told me that they were threatened by those boys. But all these threats could not deter us from working for peace. Again, recently there was a signature campaign in favour of peace in Assam. In Tezpur, the signature campaign was a tremendous success. NENA : Did the underground forces ever try to spoil the good works of your organisation? M.A.: No. They have never obstructed us from performing our duties. For our works, we use to go to interior places. But we never faced any problems. NENA : What is your message to the misguided youths? M.A.: If they are really interested in doing something good for the people of the State, let them join hands with us and work at the grassroots level. I really believe that this is the only way to make a strong Assam. NENA : Can you see any change between 1948 and 1998? M.A.: Yes a lot of changes have taken place. These days the women are more aware about their rights. They have started getting education also. But what really pains me is the fact that the women are becoming selfish these days. These days, they first think about their betterment and then about the others. That is why we are not getting as many women as we used to get in the past who were committed to the cause of upliftment of the women and children. If we really want the women to play a positive role in building a peaceful society and a strong nation, they should encourage selfless deeds and thoughts and contribute their mite to make this world a better place. Acceptance speech of Ms. Meena Agarwala "The President, The Chief Guest, Smt. Ela Bhatt, founder chairperson, SEWA, Smt. Vajayanti Pandit, secretary of IMC, board of members of the ladies wing of the Indian Merchants Chamber, Ladies and Gentlemen. At the outset, I offer my warm greetings to you. The honour of receiving the prestigious Janki Devi Bajaj Award has overwhelmed me, a humble social worker. I am deeply grateful to those who found me worthy of the award. It was the Tezpur District Mahila Samiti itself that stirred my young mind with the sense of duty towards my country. In 1921, when Gandhiji visited Tezpur, he urged upon the women to devote part of their time for constructive social activities. In response to his call, the Tezpur Mahila Samiti was formally constituted in 1928, based on the Gandhian principles of self-reliance and social commitment. The late Kironmoye Agarwala, the indefatigable fiery leader of Assam's Women's Movement, late Chandraprobha Saikiani, my teacher and mentor the late Chandrabala Baruah and last but not the least my mother, the late Hemlata Baruah, all inspired and motivated me to carry on the task that they had started. I was fortunate enough to be the daughter-in-law of the Agarwala family and with the active support of and goodwill of my late husband, Kamala Prasad, I started my work as the secretary of the Weavers Co-operative of the Tezpur Mahila Samiti in the year 1946. The newfound independence further strengthened and renewed our hopes and aspirations to build an India of Gandhiji's dream. With this burning desire I have been trying to serve the Samiti to this day. I have not sought any honour name or fame or compromised my principles for any reason or compulsion. There were pressures at times, to join mainstream politics, but I refrained from it because I believe that the country needs constructive social workers and political empowerment of women through Panchayati Raj are some of the key issues which we were trying to achieve by way of our humble service. The fifty years of my active involvement has made me realize the importance of the eradication of poverty, particularly of women and children. Education, welfare and development are only attainable once economic self-sufficiency comes to our society. The women's movement for substantive quality will be feasible when this social change brought about through the alleviation of poverty and people's participation. The Tezpur Mahila Samiti with its limited resources and various constraints is continuously striving to give women their rightful place in society through economic empowerment, social justice, healthcare and educational opportunities. With courage and unwavering commitment, it is committed to work for peace, communal harmony and secular harmony and secular ideals in the eighth decade of its existence the Samiti has faced many challenges ---- national calamities, diseases, epidemics, riots and even the external aggression in 1962. I also consider this award a tribute to all those countless members and workers past and present, and receive it as the recognition of their untiring and continuous effort. I take this opportunity to pay my respect to the late Janki Devi Bajaj in whose memory this award is instituted. May her ideals and values continue to encourage and inspire people to work ceaselessly for the welfare of our people. My sincere thanks to the board of members of the ladies wing of the Indian Merchants Chamber for considering my name for the award. I feel proud today to receive this award from none other than the incomparable Smt. Ela Bhatt who in the past had graced the Tezpur District Mahila Samiti by her luminous presence. I also appreciate the ex MP from Tezpur, Purna Narayan Sinha for recommending my name for the award. With great humility and gratitude, I accept this award as a token of love, goodwill and a blessing to continue my work and remain worthy of the award till the end of my days."-Mina Agarwala |
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