Fatehpur (Uttar Pradesh): In today’s time, every industrial pursuit is being upgraded. Old equipment is being replaced with ultra-modern machines. There is hardly any business which is not going for a technological makeover, but there are certain exceptions. The district’s Gram Seva Sansthan is still using charkha or weaving machines to empower rural women financially. In other words, these women are truly weaving the story of an Atma Nirbhar Bharat.
Once a symbol of India’s freedom struggle, the charkha is now becoming the basis of economic independence of our rural women. At Fatehpur unit of the Gram Seva Sansthan in Uttar Pradesh, women from more than 20 villages are earning their livelihoods by operating a charkha. This is improving not only the economic condition of their families, but they are also becoming stronger by realizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream of a self-reliant India.
250 families earning their livelihoods
More than 250 families are eking out their livelihood with charkha, which was so close to the heart of Bapu, at Gram Seva Sansthan, which is creating awareness among the people of the district about the importance of self-reliance and use of charkha. The needy women of rural areas, who do not have money to buy spinning wheels, come to the Gram Seva Sansthan and make yarns. They are also inspiring other women to be self-sufficient. The cotton fabric made by them is supplied not only in Uttar Pradesh but in ten other states including Gujarat, Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Bengal, and Haryana.
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The women working at Gram Seva Sansthan said that earlier they were confined only to daily household works. When they came to know that they could get a job of spinning, they stepped out of their houses and reached the Gram Seva Sansthan. After working for 8 hours, each of them earns Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 a month. Through this work, they are moving shoulder to shoulder with their husbands. The women said that they used to get money from their husbands as and when they asked for. That is why many times they were scolded as well. Since they are working now, they are self-reliant. In fact, they meet their household expenses. They are also able to provide good education to their children.
Gram Seva Sansthan president Mevaram Katiyar said that they provide charkha and raw materials to women who are willing to work. “We use the yarn that is spun by these women. We weave it here. Around 250 women are working with us,” he said. The women who work here are given money from the Khadi Gramodyog. The fabric made at Gram Seva Sansthan is supplied to 10 to 12 States and Union Territories.
