The Report - North 24 Parganas

25.ANITA BHOWMIKVillagers are comprehending multiple cropping options for NREGAAnita Bhowmik, 30 years old and Alok Bhowmik have two sons and onedaughter. Elder son, 17 years old is in Class IX, younger son is in class VIII and is 15years old. Her daughter is much younger and is nine. The family consists of herhusband, three children and her mother in law. Anita is now married for 18 to 19years. Her husband works at Anandamohan. Owing to lack of opportunities, shenever had access to education but she has made sure that her children receivethe education that she did not have access to in the past. All her children havebeen receiving private education and although the family’s monthly earningsare only about Rs. 2000, she makes sure that the earnings are spent for the rightcauses. Otherwise, “Rs. 2000 is too small an amount to run a huge family as this”,Anita says.The family has been facing acute financial issues in the last few years. Owing toseveral loans that exist, there are no savings in the family, earnings are limitedand huge loans still remain to be repaid. Alok Bhowmik had taken a loan of Rs.30000 to repair his boat and buy fishing net, in order to mobilise his fishingbusiness. Due to severe storms however, the boat was broken and the net eatenup by insects. All the money that was invested has therefore been washedaway. The land that the family owned was then mortgaged for funds to repay50% of the loan. Hence the remaining 50% has to be repaid still in instalmentsand Alok has been working at off site locations, away from home to earn extramoney to manage these loans. He has infact visited Andaman islands for theearnings as well.Anita is very active in social activities as well. She and her neighbours havemanaged to collect Rs. 200 among themselves and establish a tube well fromwhich the families draw drinking water. Water required for bathing and sanitationcomes from the pond. Anita is also not very happy with the pond water, “thewater has too much saline in it and we cannot use it for sanitation as well.”The family owns the piece of land that they have built their house on and use itfor plantation of vegetables. ‘Kachu’ plantation in the last one year has yieldedgood results and Anita hopes to be able to bear the expenses of riceconsumption in the family from selling the ‘kachu’ yields. She also plans to storesome of the plantation in order to have seeds in the long run. The pond providesall the water for these plantations.