Koraput (Odisha): Laki Jani, a native of a tribal village in Semiliguda block of Odisha's Koraput district has become an inspiration for many tribal women of her community. Her relentless efforts in bringing change in the society has now been recognised by ‘UN Women’ and she has been featured in its prestigious annual edition of 'Hum' magazine.
It narrates how she had started her journey working as a teacher in an organisation working at the grassroot level in the valleys and plains of Deomali region of Koraput district. When the Agriculture Production Cluster (APC) project was launched in the area in 2018, various tribal villages were identified for promotion of sustainable agriculture, especially among the women farmers. The aim of the project was to double the income of the farmers and to promote organic farming.
Foundation for Ecological Security ( FES) was looking for women cadres with good rapport with the community to lead the implementation of the project and had identified Laki for taking up the role of Community Resource Person (CRP) for Pakjhola Gram Panchayat in Semiliguda block .
Laki narrates how in the past, she used to be afraid talking to others in the village as she was not aware of many things. Gradually she gained a lot of knowledge and skills by attending training programmes and meetings on agricultural activities, livestock interventions and horticulture, that were conducted by ITDA and others.
Now she is trained to help the villagers, especially the most vulnerable, to avail different government schemes through the concerned government departments.
According to Pradip Mishra, coordinating officer from FES, Laki is much more confident now than she was before and has gained a lot of trust from her community members.
The entire village is very happy with the work under the APC project. The village sarpanch too is happy with the initiatives that are being taken here and has always been ready to co-operate with Laki whenever she needed any kind of help.
On Laki being featured in the prestigious magazine, Mishra said that the process has indirectly given recognition to her hardwork and diligence.
For Laki, the honour is nothing less than a lifetime achievement. It has given her more responsibility to work with the community so as to bring to the forefront more women like her from the community.
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