BRIDGE TO HOPEIlliterate women in Odhisa find power in learning to read

Women are not inferior to men on the basis of intellectual power or ability. Women have the willpower and creative energy to do any type of work. Whatever the form of action, women can attain extraordinary heights.

- Amma“

Nearly every adult in Guptapada, a semi-tribal village community located in Khurda district of Odhisa, is illiterate.

Fortunately, the children and teenagers are receiving some level of education in the local schools now.

The main occupation of the people there is collecting firewood from the nearby forest and selling it in the market.

Amrita SeRVe started Adult Women Functional Literacy—a big step forward.

At first, none of the village women felt they had the time to learn to read and write. But, several motivation sessions were organised.

Devotees from the nearby city of Bhubaneswar were called to talk to the villagers about how literacy could help their lives.

The number of women who signed up for class was 38. Two teenage 12th pass girls from the village were recruited to help teach the women.

On an auspicious day, the inauguration of the program was done, with the sarpanch of the village attending as the chief guest.

After a few days, the class automatically split into three groups, according to the learning capacity and speed of the students.

Another teacher from Amrita CREATE joined in, making it three teachers for three groups.

The first group is learning basic letters, while the next has mastered more than half the letter chart. The high group has moved on to maatras (vowel combinations) and simple words.

One of the things for which the women are grateful is that now they will be able to read their own prayers instead of having to only hear them recited by others.

Recently, the program completed its first month of classes. The average attendance was 71%, with 10 women achieving 100% attendance.

A small oral and written test was also conducted to gauge the progress of women. The scores were in the range of 60%-85%, which is encouraging.

With Amma’s grace, soon the program will bear fruit in the form of functionally literate and aware adult women, who can then play a vital role in the development of the village.