Women Empowerment

Shakila and Kamini are two Kalandar girls who till this time last year saw their future with bleak eyes. A quick marriage, several mouths to feed as the children came, and then the struggle to make ends meet….that was what they saw for themselves.  For both of them there was no chance to be independent financially, or even to earn a little pocket money to put aside when the days were hard and the income lean.

Wildlife S.O.S Vocational Training Project, with much needed financial support from The Ford Foundation however changed their lives and gave them an avenue to earn a second family income. It also gave them the courage to speak up in family matters and enjoy more respect within the family, because they too NOW contributed to the family’s income. In such small ways does a community change and quietly a future gets built for the entire village of kalandar families. These are their stories.....

Kamini worked hard at the tailoring classes run by Wildlife S.O.S and moved from sample pieces to stitching her own clothes. Her parents were very protective of her because she suffered from fits ever since she was a child. Her father Gulfam surrendered a bear and through the seed money provided to him by Wildlife S.O.S, he adopted an ‘Alternate Livelihood’ by raising poultry and selling eggs. But his earnings were slim. Her brother was given a job at the Van Vihar Bear Rescue Facility, a collaborative project between Wildlife S.O.S and the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department.

Using her imagination she started stitching beads onto the kurta/pyjamas she was sewing. The project development officer of Wildlife S.O.S in Bhopal Prerna Sharma, began to supply her tailoring books and designs. She also participated in the Wildlife Week Creative workshop and the Awareness programmes conducted by Wildlife S.O.S. Soon Kamini starting getting orders from the women of her village and from shopkeepers and those outside.Today she earns a satisfactory amount from both her tailoring and her bead work. All it took was the vocational training school, a lot of encouragement and a little guidance to empower Kamini and give her control of her own life.

Shakila’s story too changed after she enrolled at the vocational training centre. Here she learnt the art of using the date palm leaves to weave into mats. There was a tremendous demand for these from the hotels of Bhopal . She is earning well by selling these mats and she contributes to her family earnings.

Asha-bi’s story is that of a successful entrepreneur who not only mastered a skill but also knows how to market her wares and that of her friends at the vocational school. One of our best students, she used her hours at the tailoring school to stitch for a large family of female relatives with her daughter happily modelling the dresses she stitched. She showed innovation and creativity by making file folders, bags, and purses and is earning well selling them in the city.


Educating the Kalandar Child, for a future that’s bright!

Wildlife S.O.S has changed Asha Bi’s life in more ways than one. Her children are all attending school and have their uniforms, books and schoolbag sponsored by the Wildlife SOS Education programme. The story is repeated in the households of several Kalandars in Bhopal whose children can now avail of the Education programme.

It wasn’t always that easy, to convince the children and more importantly the parents, that going to school was important. Nizar, son of Iqbal Miya and Salma-bi, was the first child and only child going to school in this village. Naturally bright, very hard working, he seemed an amazing child, so different from the others. Wildlife S.O.S proudly sponsored his school fees and books as well as additional tuitions needed to ensure his success and enrolled him in a regular recognized school. He was the only boy to get a First Class in his government school exams that year and he brought much honour to the Kalandar community.
Wildlife S.O.S simply held out a hand to someone who had the will to change his life and whose hard work will ensure his bright future.

His example soon sparked a desire amongst the others and this year, for the 2007 – 2008 session Wildlife S.O.S is pleased to announce over 60 children enrolled with regular schools and under the aegis of our Education programme are receiving a formal education.

Wildlife S.O.S was working hard at raising funds to provide books, uniforms and schoolbags to these children and this is where The Ford Foundation extended its support to Wildlife S.O.S’s Community Rehabilitation Initiative that gave a much needed thrust to our mission of ‘giving both man and animal a life of dignity and freedom’.