Dr. Laxmi
Gautam
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India has the largest recorded number of widows in the world—33
million (10 per cent of the female population, compared to only 3 per cent of
men)
·
Only about 10 per cent of widows marry again
·
Indian society, like all patriarchal societies, confers social
status on a woman through a man; hence, in the absence of a man, she herself
becomes a nonentity and suffers a social death.
·
In Vrindavan alone, an estimated 10,000 widows struggle to
survive. Younger widows are forced into prostitution and older ones are left to
beg and chant for alms from pilgrims and tourists. Older widows may have lived
the greater part of their lives in these temples.
·
Dr Laxmi Gautam, a professor, takes care of
these widows, providing them with a warm meal, a blanket, takes care of their
medical needs and provides them the much-needed emotional care. Over the years
Dr Gautam has helped bury bodies of 100s of widows who no one wants to claim. (http://www.realheroes.com/laxmi-gautam.php)
“One’s deepest wish is the
whisper of her genuine self. She must learn to respect it. She must learn to
listen.” The meaning of this saying is well illustrated in the story of Dr.
Laxmi Gautam, a 51 year old woman, well known as the Nari Shakti Puraskar
winner.
Vrindavan, is a renowned site of Hindu pilgrimage located in the
banks of Yamuna, Uttar Pradesh. In such a divine place, the sight of widows in
white sarees with shaved heads and bare foot is very disturbing. There are many abandoned women who come to
Vrindavan to leave their soul in the hands of their god so that they can be in
peace. That is the reason behind Vrindavan named as ‘the city of widows.’
Not everyone do much about it. But there are a few brave hearts, who really
give it a thought to act against the system. One such example is Dr Laxmi
Gautam, an academician of Vrindavan. She has been teaching ancient culture and
history for the past 11 years in the institute of Oriental Philosophy at
Vrinavan. Dr Laxmi has truly dedicated her life to serve these unfortunate
women. She says that she have been observing these widows since her childhood, as
Vrindavan is her birth place and she feels connected with them.
Professor Dr Laxmi Gautam resides in the alleys beside river Yamuna. Her day begins
walking the alleys in search of dead bodies of the widows of the place. On finding a dead body, she arranges for a
cremation and performs the rituals. Even there have been circumstances where
she has lifted the dead bodies herself. Till date she is given the credit to
have carried out more than 500 cremations.
Her service doesn’t end here. Apart from carrying out such unusual
social initiatives, she also acts as a blessing in disguise to the countless
abandoned widows of Vrindavan. There have been instances when she has paid from
her earnings for the treatment of these destitute widows on being refused for
free medical help by the Government hospitals. After their discharge from these
hospitals, she makes arrangements to send them back to their homes. If the
widows are hesitant to return, she provides shelter to them in one of the local
Ashrams like the Apna Ghar Ashram of Rajasthan. She also knocks the door of
Police, State government and even central government to provide justice to
several rape victims.
There are widows who are too old to take care of themselves and they
don’t have any place to go, Dr. Gautam brings them to her own house and takes
care of them as if they are her parents. In the current date, she houses three widows in her house
and takes good care of them .She also helps them in getting ration cards
so that they can avail their basic facilities from the government
organizations. She feeds them and emotionally supports them through her
foundation named Kanak Dhara NGO.
In 2011, Hindu published a report on the condition of widows of
Vrindavan. Mathura’s legal services Authority received certain directions from
NALSA to address the issues of these unattended women. Supreme Court ordered a
survey based on this report. The survey aimed at finding the economic,
religious and the social status of these deprived women. Dr. Laxmi was given
the responsibility to perform this survey. Displaying absolute dedication, she
visited the numerous stay homes to interact with around 2500 to 3000 widows.
Based on the findings of her survey, Supreme Court ordered to provide the basic
amenities to these abandoned widows.
Dr Laxmi Gautam has served a decent period as a deputy mayor during
which she originated the idea of pension plans for several widows.
She founded the NGO with all the kind support from her dear ones and named it
after her late mother in law. Laxmi never entertains donations. She mentions
that she has two sons working in government organizations and is always readily
available to provide any financial support. She gets support from her family
which enhances her motivation for invaluable work.
Dr Laxmi Gautam is a proud woman to have received the award called
the Nari Shakti Puraskar from the honorable President of India, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee on the
International Women's Day. She received a citation with an award of Rs 1 lakh
which she donated to the foundation without giving a second thought. After the award ceremony, she met the Prime
Minister of India, Mr. Narendra Modi. When asked about the most heart touching
moment of her life, she explained how an 80 year old lady was thrown out of her
house by her own sons, absolutely naked. She was furious because many people
have seen her but nobody came forward to help. This revelation even brought
tears in the eyes of the Prime Minister.
Dr Laxmi recalls some desperate incidents including a scenario where
dogs were having a feast of the deceased body of a widow. She adds stating that,
there was one widow whose feet were infected by worms, her relatives denied to
come and help her. She took her to hospital but they refused to admit her. She
argued with the hospital administration for the entire night and finally they were
convinced on a condition that she herself would have to stay with the widow as
the hospital didn’t have much staff to take care of everyone. She continues
explaining how a daughter once tried to poison her widow mother in order to
snatch all her cash from her. She believes that incidents like these are a
wakeup call for every Indian and it is high time that the action should be
taken to abate them.
When asked about the reason behind her noble work, she replies “She
always had a feeling for these widows. These women are abandoned after the
deaths of their husbands by their own families. Many of them die, some of them
turn into domestic helps and the younger ones are forced to prostitution.
Someone needs to build their confidence and to help them in their living.” Dr
Laxmi quotes that her own daughter has remained as a victim to such social
disparities. Many times she has been tortured for dowry and for carrying a baby
girl in her womb. With a heavy heart, she continues stating that women are
discriminated at work places, institutions and even at their own homes. While a
widow is considered as a bad fate, the men after losing their wives are free to
remarry. Neither the modern society does something, nor does it let anyone do.
This rudimentary attitude needs to be reformed. Every old woman should be
treated as own mother and should be given due respect.
Dr Laxmi Gautam concludes stating that, a woman’s strength is not
measured by the impact of the hardships she felt in her life; rather it is
conferred from the extent to which she refused the hardships to dictate her.
·
Her early education and background.
·
Year of starting work?
·
How many such widows are estimated to
be in India today?
·
What are the other works she does?
Many used to
work as domestic helps,” says 51-year-old Laxmi, who has been teaching Ancient
History and Culture for last 11 years at the Institute of Oriental Philosophy
in Vrindavan College. – (See more at:
http://www.theweekendleader.com/Heroism/1863/helping-widows.html#sthash.QI9OgCTZ.dpuf)
http://www.realheroes.com/laxmi-gautam.php (downloaded on 5th May 2015)
http://amazingindian.in/a-helping-hand-for-the-abandoned-indian-women-dr-laxmi-gautam/
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