This year saw an important initiative by Samaj Pragati Sahayog (SPS) towards fostering awareness about education and placing it in an encouraging light. The attempt was to reduce one of the major costs incurred by members for their children’s education, at the community or Self-Help Group (SHG) level.

_{Punjapura Pragati Samiti workers distributing notebooks to students of government school in Bhikupura village}

Schoolchildren require a variety of exercise books for different subjects in the course of an academic year. Some subjects call for single-lined notebooks, others for notebooks with double or triple or four-line formats, which students use according to the requirements of English, Hindi, and other subjects. Families sustaining themselves through daily wage labour can ill afford these notebooks, given the way their prices have skyrocketed. The poorest families are unable to buy, on time, all the notebooks the child needs – and this adversely affects her schoolwork.

When this concern was raised in several of the women’s SHGs, SPS workers decided to support the women’s families so that their children’s education would not suffer.

_{Barwaha Mahila Pragati Samiti SHG members receive good quality note books}

At the SHG level, discussions with the women elicited lists detailing the number and types of notebooks required. Such lists emerged from various villages and small towns where SPS is active. SHGs in nine locations – Bhikangaon, Sanawad, Barwaha, Maheshwar, Punjapura, Bagli, Hatpipliya, Khategaon, Satwas – asked for a total of 54,265 notebooks. In order to find out the cost of these in the open market, an 11-member survey committee was formed from among members of the Bhikangaon, Barwaha, Bagli, and Hatpipliya Samitis (SHG Federations). This joint committee went to different vendors, asked for quotations, and after scrutinising all the terms and conditions, settled on an Indore vendor who offered the most reasonable prices for good quality notebooks from a reputed brand.

Buying in wholesale from a single vendor meant a 40-50% discount on the cost of each notebook. This benefit accrued to all SHG members who invested in these notebooks for their children. A distributor was appointed, through whom SPS made the notebooks available for all nine locations.

In this way, the school children received notebooks of excellent quality, whereas low-cost notebooks sold in the local markets have poor quality paper that tears easily while writing; besides, the thin paper makes the writing in ink visible on the reverse side, which becomes an obstacle to both reading and writing. And the paper turns limp during the rainy season, making these problems worse.

At five locations, the notebooks were distributed to SHG members directly. The SHGs in two other places decided to utilise their social funds to pay for the notebooks: these were both groups whose women members are daily wage labourers or marginal farmers cultivating an acre or two, and yet save money from their meagre earnings to put into the SHG. They are then able to seek loans against their deposits. After the overall expenses of the SHGs are subtracted from accumulated moneys, the balance amount forms a community fund, of which 30% is kept aside as an emergency fund and 20% as a social fund which SHG members may decide to draw upon for the benefit of the larger community. Thus, at Hatpipliya, 18,892 free notebooks worth Rs 7,05,266 were distributed among 2,410 students; and in Punjapura 1,000 students received 9,698 notebooks worth Rs 3,50,074. For all the locations together, notebooks that would have cost a total of Rs 41,89,335 in the market were acquired for just Rs 20,44,177, helping 5,074 families in the process.

For all the locations together, notebooks that would have cost a total of Rs 41,89,335 in the market were acquired for just Rs 20,44,177, helping 5,074 families in the process.

Given the role of education in social transformation, this initiative by SPS is a sure harbinger of positive change. And there is no dearth of examples of how society as a whole is more empowered when women choose to participate in bringing about such change.

_{Students from Hatpipliya government school with good quality notebooks}

Some experiences shared by SHG members

Nita Varma of Aakanksha Pragati Samuh (Group): 
"In the market, a copybook with an MRP of Rs 100 costs us somewhere between Rs 80 and 95, but the SHG is selling it to us for Rs 52. We ought to adopt the same strategy for schoolbags and pencils as well. The school asks us to go to their fixed vendors, but they listened to our explanation and agreed to let us buy notebooks for our children from the SHG.”

Sarika Gangarade of Sakhi Saheli Pragati Samuh:
“The notebook action plan is very important. Because of it, our SHGs and we, personally, are saving thousands of rupees. We must keep this up every year.”

an account by colleagues Akhilesh Yadav, Govind, Sundarlal Rawat, Sunil Kumar Rawat, from Bhikangaon: The members come to the office with their children to collect their notebook copies. When a woman member sees her bill, she often says, “Brother, “Brother, let me have a few more!” Most of the women have asked us to keep this programme going every year, and not let it shut down. When we started distributing the copies, some members told local shopkeepers that they were getting a 50% discount from the SHG – which led several of them to begin selling at discounts of 30 to 40% as well.

a member from Barwaha SHG:
“I’m a farm labourer. I have three children, and can’t afford the market rates for the notebooks. The amount I’m able to pay in the shops gets me only half the notebooks required, whereas from the SHG I can get all the copies needed for much less.” 

an account from Hatpipliya:
When the notebooks were being distributed, the children were excited, and radiant with joy. They were told about the thinking underlying this programme, and how it was being coordinated by women, who were contributing a portion of their SHG’s earnings towards the welfare of society at large. The schools and villagers joined in praising the women members, observing that this was the first time an organisation’s members had paid attention to children.

It must be said in conclusion that the way these women set aside their own financial difficulties and came forward to help students truly sets an example.

Writing: Aajad Singh Khichi

Source: Akhilesh Yadav

Photography: Ankita Kuduple, Aajad Singh Khichi, Jitendra Kharadiya, Abhishek Chouhan, Mohmmad Thah and Nandalal Rawat