Blogs from India

Yoga Gives Back campaign now has two volunteers based in Bangalore, India. Suruchi and Anand visit women borrowers and update us stories of how micro credit is really changing their lives.

"I have been involved with a local NGO called Vidyanikethan, helping poor children to get education. This experience has deeply ingrained one strong feeling in me, "I have to end up doing some good in this world." So every day I strive to spread a little cheer to the world around me. It is through Sagar, a friend from Vidyanikethan that I got introduced to "Yoga Gives Back" campaign. The basic concept of the campaign is simple and amazing, "Let us give back to the country that gave us Yoga." It is inspiring that people feel so strongly and passionately about Yoga that through this campaign they want to reach out to the needy people in India. A visit to a woman borrower of Grameen Koota made me realize that even a little money can make a huge difference in the life of a person. It is this intent of the campaign that attracts me towards it and I hope that with time it grows bigger and touches numerous lives."

June 29th, 2008
Jayashree: Got her 2nd loan!!
Monday mornings are usually unpleasant. I have to literally force myself out of my cozy bed even as my mind tries to induce sleep by thinking that the weekend is not over yet. But today is unlike other Mondays and the biggest departure from the tradition is that I am excited. As I am on my way to Chennapatna, which is a small town on the Bangalore-Mysore highway famous for its colorful wooden toys, to meet Jayashree. She is one of the woman borrowers of Grameen Koota (GK), which is a micro finance organization that operates in and around Bangalore. Jayashree has received two installments of loan from GK and her life has considerably improved after this association.

I meet up with a few GK volunteers in Chennapatna, who guide me to JayashreeÕs home. As we park our car in front of a School compound we are met by the curious gazes of the villagers. We pass through a narrow alley that leads to Jayashree's home; the auto rickshaw that was bought after Jayashree received her first loan proudly stands outside. Jayashree comes out of the house and greets us, surprisingly, in broken English.

Jayashree takes us inside her house through a verandah to the main room, which also doubles as the kitchen; we meet her husband Ramu and their sons Govprasad and Hoyasala. Govprasad, the elder son, studies in the second year in the Science stream and dreams of becoming a Doctor. He tells us that the biggest difference he feels after the GK loan is that they have a house of their own and they don't have to worry about food. He is grateful that unlike his family he has been able to study so far and through his education he wants to help his family. Having seen poverty early in his life he seems determined to make things better for his family.

As far as the younger son Hoysala is considered, he is a healthy and cute two years old and he might well end up having a much easier and better childhood. He runs around the house following Jayashree as she cooks Upma a common South Indian breakfast on the Kerosene stove.

Jayashree is optimistic about her future, an entrepreneur by spirit she wants to start her own garment business. With the first installment of Rs. 7000 from GK she was able to send Govprasad to college and with the second installment of Rs. 15000 she bought herself a sewing machine. They were also able to buy an auto rickshaw that they were renting previously. She feels that in a year of association with GK her family has come a long way and wants this association to continue. The inspiring part is that she wants her children to get educated not only so that they can lead a better life but also so that they can contribute to the society.

After performing pooja the family sits down for breakfast. Ramu tells us that the maintenance of the auto is high and he is almost earning the same as he used to when he rented it, but he is satisfied that he owns it. We come out of the house and he shows us the auto with a glow on his face. He is with happy with GK and feels that more and more people should be benefited from these loans.

Jayashree shows us their plot behind the house where she wants to open her garment factory. The loans from GK have instilled a confidence in her; they have made her independent, unlike her mother's family where everyone was dependent on each other for monetary help. Jayashree got her loan just on the basis of a document signed by her husband.

Jayashree wants to start her business by sewing bags, she can sew 15- 30 bags on her machine and as she gets more business she wants to employ people and expand her business. I believe more than the money the trust organizations like GK place on people, who have never been acknowledged by other financial channels, does wonders to their selfrespect. It is heartening to see Jayashree's steely determination to fight poverty and her flair for business. The fact that she is getting encouragement from GK in the form of loans makes her resolve even stronger, I hope she succeeds.

As we start from Jayashree's house, I wonder how all of us aspire to lead a better life, all of us have hopes, dreams and desires; a little courage and encouragement is all we need. I hope with her determination and GK's support Jayashree is able to make all her dreams come true.

Visiting Nageena and Gulnaz: A Poor Muslim Village in Mysore

"Story continued from Chennapatna... I headed towards a village in Mysore, about 2 hour drive from Bangalore, where Grameen Koota distributes micro loans to poor Muslim families. They started this program 2 years ago in the area, and already have 4000 women borrowers.

I met with ladies & children with all smiles as I reached the locality. The local co-coordinator introduced me to the ladies.

My first interview was with Nageena Bhanu. She is a first time borrower from Grameen Koota. Nageena speaks only local Urdu (a common language in India).

Nageena is 22 years old and has one baby son. She lives in a house with one bed and bare floor. Roof is made of straw just like other houses in this slum.

With her beautiful smile, I forget that she comes from very difficult background.

She told me that she had to stop her schooling at 7th grade and had to start work to help her family. At a young age, her parents decided to get her married and they got her wedded to Naheem Pasha of Kesare village in Mysore.

After moving into her husband's house, Nageena started interacting with her neighbors, who were really helpful and cordial. She learned about Grameen Koota from these neighbors. She discussed with her husband about applying for a loan from Grameen Koota. Her husband was happy about it and told her to go ahead on it.

Last December in 2007, Nageena received Rs. 7000 loan and gave it to her husband to invest in a plastic products business. Before they acquired the loan they used to earn 50-60 rupees a day, now their daily income doubled to at least 100 rupees. Even though they can not start saving any money right now, they are re-investing the profit into their plastic business.

Today, Nageena's family is leading a better life than the brothers of Naheem. Her parents are happy about her & she feels she is leading on the right way to have a much better future. She hopes to have her own home and give her son a good education, which she did not have a chance.

My second visit was with Gulnaz Begum 32 years old, mother of 4 children, who shares a small 3 room house with a joint family of 9 people. Gulnaz's upbringing was as hard as Nageena's. Her father was an auto repair mechanic and family was very poor. She had only one same dress for a year as a little girl. She wanted to continue her school but had to stop at 9th grade. When her father got sick and got his leg amputated, she started helping her family by doing house maid jobs, embroidery for sari, and rolling incents. This gave her a little income, however they were in such dire poverty they never knew if they had enough for daily meal.

In 1998, her father got her married to Abhid of the same Kesare village in Mysore. Her husband's family had eight children and was also in poverty. He also had little education. The only job he could find was a daily labor to assist an electrician.

As they struggled, Gulnaz came to know about Grameen Koota through her friends. She gathered a few of her neighborhood friends and met the center Manager and applied for GK loan.

In 2006, she got a loan of Rs. 7000, and gave it to her husband for investment. With this money, he was able to buy electronic parts on wholesale market and sell them on retail to make some profit. Now Abhid himself has his own little set up and takes up electrical contract works.

Gulnaz successfully paid her first loan back, and got the second loan of 10,000 rupees. They are very happy as the interest is very low. Their two children, viz Mohammed Ismail and Maskan both are studying 3rd standard. For the first time, now they are able to send their children to school without much problem. She says "I grew up very poor, so I want make sure that my children have enough so that they can marry well, live in a nice place."

After a good long chat with 2 members of Grameen Koota we started back to Bangalore as the rain started to shower slowly. I am hoping to revisit them and see how their loans will keep improving their lives little by little and share with you all.

Learn more about microcredit:
www.grameenfoundation.org