lionbikash

Surprised, I recollected; under Vision 2020 and Lead India, we had conducted this competition in Govt. Schools for students from 8th to 10th standard on the occasion of Birthday of President Kalam. The topic was – ‘what is your vision of India in the year 2020 and how are you going to contribute for this vision’. I will tell about that experience in future. Today let me talk about her.

She is a Hindu girl, a skinny one, may be 16 or 17 years old. A look at her desperate eyes forced me to listen to her story. She desperately needed a job. She is the youngest of the six daughters of a person who works as a cook in some nondescript hotel. Two of her elder sisters are married. One of the married sisters came back from her in-laws place as she is suffering from kidney ailment. As they are not in a position to bear the medical cost for the treatment, she is turned away from Govt. Hospital and now at home waiting to die. Among the balance four only one could complete her SSC examination and is working in a private firm. Others could complete studies from fourth to eighth class.

I did not know what to tell her. In my organization I don’t have any job for an uneducated girl. But listening to her stories I just could not send her away. After a few calls to various people I could get some assurance from my printer, who agreed to put her as helper in his screen-printing section.

She left happily profusely thanking me, tears of happiness rolling down her eyes, but spoiling my mood in the process.

Today being World AIDS day, I had a long schedule of activities. With a heavy heart how can I continue to act as if nothing has happened? Everyone was surprised by my lack of enthusiasm.

Whole day my mind was on her plight only. And was thinking, this is the real ground reality of the situation of majority of Indians. In my mind I wanted to shoot the father for giving birth to six daughters. I am sure that he has continued to give birth to these girls in the hope of getting a son.

What is the future of these girls? May be a few of them will run away with somebody and ultimately will be sold in the bazars of Mumbai. What did we expect these girls to write on the topic ‘what is your vision of India in the year 2020 and how are you going to contribute for this vision’? Now it seems cruel, even vulgar.

Who has to take the blame? I remember the benign fatherly (?) advice of RSS chief Sudershan ‘produce as many children as you can’. To save Hinduism? Bloody Hell!!!