Published Feb 08, 2024
I identify myself as a writer, teacher, advocate for women’s rights, and an aspiring leader. I tell stories through my scientific research. I prepare cases for pressing social justice problems in my local and larger Indian communities to help policymakers take informed decisions. I try to bring the best of technology and humanity and storytelling to one place.
I was a volunteer at the National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights NGO where I taught underprivileged children from the Dalit Varna which is considered as the most suppressed and underserved stratum of castes in India. My work laid ground for future movements within the Seelampur Dalit women community for girl child education and economic empowerment.
In my class, girls largely came from poor families living in slums, with fathers working as farmers or daily wage laborers and mothers as sanitation workers. Delhi, the national capital of India, with the richest companies, huge skyscrapers, and vibrant culture is also home to one of the largest slums in southern Asia, something which is often neglected by the media. The struggle of not knowing where their next meal will come from puts these girls at huge food insecurity risk; they mostly relied on food handouts. They’d frequently miss school due to flooding in their slums during untimely monsoon rains in Northern India. Their families would suffer significant crop losses, damaged lands, and restricted access to savings groups. This has compromised their financial resilience and ability to cope with climate change. It disproportionately affected women as their parents would marry them off early or they would drop out of school to help earn extra income for their families.
As a teacher, I took the liberty to homeschool these girls after school hours and offer transportation to some of them on my way to school. However, I believe this is a much bigger crisis which needs nation level policy changes and a support system.
It is important to note that tribal village populations, particularly women, experience disproportionate amounts of discrimination, oppression, inequity, and trauma, resulting in a greater likelihood of developing mental health conditions.