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'Our menfolk laughed at us, they heckled us'

For residents of her village, she is the Mahatma.

And for officials of the New York-based United Nations Development Project, she -- by virtue of her commitment to the uplift of the poverty stricken -- is the fit recepient of this year's UNDP award for her 'race against poverty'.

"Ignorance of the benefits of family planning, and not following the 'small family' norm, is responsible for poverty in India," says the proud awardee, Fatima Bi, sarpanch of the backward Kalva village, Oravakal mandal, Kurnool district.

Till just the other day, the 600-odd families in the village went without adequate drinking water. Not that they had water for irrigation -- that necessity was left to the rain gods to fill, as and when they saw fit.

Their children grew up 'in the wild', so to speak, till they reached 12 years old -- at which point, they were forced, often by their parents themselves, to migrate to cities like Hyderabad to earn a living polishing stones.

Three years ago, everything changed. The 34-year-old Fatima Bi took over as sarpanch, and in the interim has changed the face of Kalva village.

The mother of three children says she was inspired by UNDP representative Vijayabharathi. Another guiding spirit for her has been 'Poddu', a voluntary women's organisation headed by Shankaramma.

The starting point was the 'Poddupu Lakshmi' savings scheme launched by Poddu, which inspired the villagers to be more disciplined with their daily wages. 260 members signed up from the village, and within a year, their combined savings had touched the 200,000 mark.

The UNDP stepped in at this point, to match that amount as grant for several development projects.

The next step was the setting up of a creche, 'Ammavadi', for the benefit of the children of farm labourers.

Simultaneously, adolescent girls were rounded up and enrolled in literacy classes at night. They were also taught cycling, and trained in tailoring and embroidery -- all of which enhanced their earning capacity.

Under the aegis of Fatima Bi and Shankaramma, periodic meetings were held by the members, and this constant interaction in turn led to positive action in the field of personal and environmental hygiene.

With Fatima taking the lead, the villagers also came together in little groups to take up small ventures aimed at improving their living standards.

Surveys conducted by the UNDP indicated that child marriages were rampant in the village, and also a correspondingly high number of teenage widows. Thanks to Fatima Bi's crusading, child marriages are becoming a thing of the past.

"Today," says Fatima Bi, "no villager can complain that they don't have a square meal a day. I don't like anyone to be hungry," she adds, firmly.

Fatima Bi hails from a traditional Muslim family, comprising five sisters and three brothers. "My parents didn't know about the advantage of having a small family, and that was the case with others in my village as well," she says today.

Her general attitude is simple: can do, will do. One instance suffices -- seeing that water was blocked because of silt in the bed of the stream, Fatima Bi decided to organise the womenfolk's energies, to the task of de-silting.

"Our menfolk laughed at us, they heckled us," she recalls. "But we managed the task in just six days and that is a record. We received compliments even from the local legislator, Byreddi Rajasekhara Reddy, and other government agencies," she smiles proudly.

Come October 16, Fatima Bi -- who has rarely stepped on a bus in her life thus far -- will board a flight that carries her to New York, to attend the award function organised by UNDP.

"I am greatly honoured to receive the award," she says. "Inshallah, our village will progress even more..."

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