E-Paper
NGO helps marginalised women in Noida villages overcome poverty using awareness
NOIDA: Thirty-nine years old Ameena, who belongs to the economically weaker section of society, is certain about one thing that she will get ₹1,000 monthly as pension
NOIDA: Thirty-nine years old Ameena, who belongs to the economically weaker section of society, is certain about one thing that she will get ₹1,000 monthly as pension once she crosses 60 years. Ameena, a tailor who lives at Morna village in Noida, is not alone. There are at least 50 in her cluster who have got included in different pension and life insurance schemes of the government.
This could become possible due to a campaign by a group of professionals from different backgrounds that includes IITians, lecturers and housewives, among others. They formed a not-for-profit organisation -- ‘myloktantrafoundation’ -- in August last year after they found out that many women belonging to the EWS category were ‘unaware’ of the financial schemes that can change their lives. The outfit, which has now more than 20 volunteers, started educating such marginalized women about the different government schemes to empower them economically.
“We were not aware of the schemes. But now we are happy to get a pension scheme,” said Ameena.
Similarly, Malina’s family has opted for PM Jivan Jyoti Beema Yojna at an annual premium of ₹330. “I started working as a maid in 2015. But I managed to open a bank account last month and got a life insurance done at ₹1 per day with help of the volunteers,” said Malina, who resides in Noida.
Since August, the organisation has managed to help 700 people via 15 camps that they organized in slums of Noida’s sectors 10, 15, 16, Nithari, and Morna, among other areas.
The organisation that was started by four people -- Vimlesh Gangwar, a retired lecturer, Usha Dubey, a housewife, Abha Dubey, an associate professor, and Smita Singh, additional commissioner of income tax, has now grown into a bigger force with volunteers in more than a dozen sectors to help the needy. While Vimlesh, Usha, and Smita are residents of Noida, Abha is from Indirapuram in Ghaziabad.
“Our job is of providing the right information about government schemes to such women that can give them financial security and secure their lives after they cross 60 years. During my work at a Covid support group desk, I realized how vulnerable these people are due to lack of information about schemes. So we formed this group to help them,” said Smita.
The group, which aims to cover all slums and villages in Noida by 2025, organizes camps on Saturdays and Sundays in places, where it finds the needy.
“Most of the domestic helps cannot even open their accounts with the banks due lack of documents. We have partnered with banks and got accounts opened of those who do not have one,” said Abha Dubey, associate professor at MMH College, Ghaziabad.
The group members spend money from own pockets to organize camps and educate them about the importance of Aadhar and bank account, and inform them about small savings scheme, Sukanya scheme and schemes on life cover.
Now, Anand Gupta, an IITian who also runs a school for slum children in Sector 16, has come forward to help the cause. “The good thing with this campaign is that it talks about the financial inclusion of those people who cannot get benefit of these schemes because they do not have an address as most of them live in slums,” said Gupta, an IIT-Kanpur passout and a management consultant.
The group now plans to set up camps at housing societies to cover more maids. “For example, there are at least 200 maids in our society and most of them do not have Aadhar, or any life cover or saving plan. This campaign is for them,” said Gupta.
