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Along with the women from Bihar, there were contingents from Kerala, Uttrakhand, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Murshidabad, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh. The huge semi circular Sri Krishna Memorial Hall in Patna was overflowing with sisters from SEWA. Their enthusiasm and spirit were worth seeing.
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As soon as Sanjaybhai Kumar , coordinator of SEWA Bharat took to the dias, the hall echoed with slogans – “Long Live SEWA” and “We are one”. The whole atmosphere became lively with the joyful and spirited songs by the sisters from Bhagalpur and Kerala. A play enacted by SEWA Munger pointed towards a new and open road to opportunity. Around the same time, Sudha Srivastava, Minister of Planning and Development, Bihar graced the occasion. |
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This was followed by a video film depicting the activities of SEWA Bihar in an all inclusive and comprehensive way. The songs by SEWA Jodhpur and Madhya Pradesh enthralled the audience. |
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The gracious presence of Hon’ble Chief Minister of Bihar Shri Nitish Kumar on the Women’s Day was a matter of pleasure and pride. |
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Renanaben, Chair of SEWA Bharat gave a brief account of the initiatives and achievements of SEWA right from its inception as a trade union till now. She narrated how SEWA activities spread from Ahmedabad to the entire country with passage of time. All these decentralized SEWA units are busy in organizing and development work. The mother organization i.e. SEWA Bharat, establishes new SEWA units and empowers them. |
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Madhuriben, General Secretary, SEWA Bihar, shared in brief the activities being carried out in four districts of Bihar. She informed the audience that there are different kinds of women workers like papad, beedi, incense sticks (agarbati) and vermi compost makers. She informed that SEWA has been instrumental in reviving the traditional silk industry, which was almost dead, with its tireless efforts. There are twenty thousand members of SEWA presently in Bihar units. Under the employment generation programme, members undergo on-job training in Agarbatti and vermi compost production. Personal counseling and social security have been integrated into different health related plans. |
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Elaben Bhatt, founder of SEWA has been spearheading campaigns for upliftment and development of women work force. In her address she said that we are all fortunate to have the presence of Hon’ble Chief Minister of Bihar Shri Nitish Kumar among us who himself is instrumental in the development of Bihar. Elaben further said that she has been meeting sisters from SEWA Bihar on different occasions. They are very hard working. They adopt modernism while honoring the traditions. If women of Bihar are provided opportunities to work, they would add crores to the GDP of Bihar. It is worthwhile to quote what one woman said “There is no work; but they grind of work is killing me”. She made a humble request for the working class women of Bihar that the Government of Bihar should constitute a “Bihar Women’s Labor Commission”. Such a commission would study the conditions of women labor in Bihar and make suitable recommendations for their betterment. Elaben appealed to the Bihar Government to support and encourage use of solar energy enabled appliances. This would save women from the smoke created due to the traditional cooking ovens and environmental pollution will be controlled. Women should be trained in Solar Energy generation, distribution and application. This would help them work at night and thereby increasing their work output. The availability of light in the night will also help children to study. |
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Hon’ble Chief Minister of Bihar, Shri Nitish Kumar accepted the memorandum submitted by SEWA Bihar in this regard. In his address, he extended his good wishes on Women’s Day and said that a large number of people do social service but organizing women, ensuring their development and creating woman co-operatives is really great and commendable. He further said that they have made a provision of 50% reservation for women in the panchayat but they have won many more seats. Making education all inclusive and each girl is granted Rs. 700/- per year so that she can buy two pairs of dress, books and school bag. The atmosphere has changed in our villages. Elaben has appealed for two demands and they have been accepted and soon shall be implemented. He agreed that for the development of Bihar, upliftment of women is a must. |
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The address by Chief Minister was again followed by songs, dance and plays which not only entertained the audience but also conveyed message of unity and development. |
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The occasion was then graced by the presence of Hon’ble Minister of Labour , Bihar, Shri Awdesh Narayan Singh . |
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Hon’ble Minister, while expressing his happiness, shared with the audience that his ministry is doing a lot for the skill development in women. Women are provided with social security, scholarships, loans etc. They have also been covered with insurance schemes. |
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Hon’ble Minister’s address was followed by thanks giving speech by SEWAs sister. This was followed by songs and a dance programme. The Mahotasav concluded with “Garba Dance” in which board members and SEWA sisters participated. |
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