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Field assessment draws to a close

Having gained some deep insight into the livelihoods of rural women groups in Odisha, having gained tremendous experience interacting and meeting with lot of people and taking back many many stories to share, the field work came to a close and soon we were on a flight to Delhi to share our findings and experience with a broader team with representation from four other states of India. Besides speaking to a number of people in the national capital on this matter, we also took time to visit Lodhi Gardens in Central Delhi. A beautiful place that we used a space for reflecting and thinking about our 2 weeks in Odisha. Post the national consultation the following day, which went really well, I was soon on a flight to Hyderabad to visit home. A quick 2 days and now waiting at the new international terminal in Hyderabad to board the flight to London. What a brilliant two weeks it has been for me. An opportunity to also discover the hidden secrets of Odisha albeit in a different context. An...
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Dhenkanal Diaries

Second week kicked off with a nice cup of chai by a road-side stall en-route Dhenkanal. After multiple official meetings, it was time to meet the Dhogra tribes at Nuagaon. An incredible skill producing these intricate pieces of crafts. Astonished by the amount of craftsmanship and the equal amount of hardship that goes into making these pieces. Again understanding their challenges and discussing with them about how their business could be transformed was enlightening both for them and for me personally in many ways. On our way back we stopped by at Cuttack to buy some traditional jewellery. The following day was filled with some high-profile meetings in Bhubaneshwar which also included a meeting with Mr. Subroto Bagchi of MindTree. Summing up our field work was this interesting high-level perspective on things and added another angle to our findings. Treated ourselves to some privileges that Pal Heights had offered before we left Bhubaneshwar for Delhi the following morning. ...
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By the Eastern Ghats and the East Coast

After a busy day going around government offices in Rayagada and meeting with officials to get further insight on the situation in the district, we got a bit of leisure time and visited the hanging bridge at Rayagada - beautiful and could do with a lot more marketing and promotion. The following day we drove about 2 hours to get to Muniguda where we were due to meet more tribal women from the famous Niyamagiri range of the Eastern Ghats and other groups. This was facilitated by Adhar Foundation. Again another very insightful and a unique experience interacting with these women groups. Having spent the morning with them, that afternoon we met with the men in that region to understand their perception towards women empowerment. It was interesting to note the contrasting ideologies. Back in Rayagada, we were preparing to leave for Bhubaneshwar by road the following morning. 8am, Saturday and we hit the highway - an expected 9 hour road trip to the capital. With a few mini breaks and ...
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The ambitious young women of Gunupur

Our next stop was going to be Gunupur, a town close to the Andhra Pradesh border and an area covered and supported by Pratham Foundation . It was inspiring to see the Pratham team helping young women drop-outs from school complete their education and support them with finding formal employment. The young girls we met had many aspirations and were determined to achieve them. The thing they lacked was support in all forms and social factors also seemed to be a barrier to their progress. The ideas they had for what they wanted to do, the kind of roles they wanted to perform and the sort of businesses they wanted to start was truly amazing and inspiring. Having captured tons of information and having also visited the GramTarang training centre to see what sort of vocational training was being offered, we headed back a 100 kms to Rayagada well on time to prepare for the following day.
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The tribes of Bandhaguda

Our first meeting was with Pradan Foundation to understand the support they are providing to local tribal communities in the region. Having obtained some valuable insights and information we set out to explore the reality on the ground. Nestled in the heights of the Eastern Ghats was Bandhaguda, a small village with only a few inhabitants depending mainly on agriculture and livestock breeding for their livelihood. From being termed as an unlucky village to being named as the number one village in the district this small in-habitation had seen it all. While all our communication was through a translator, we could sense the emotion with which they were sharing their challenges and aspirations. Little problems that are sometimes ignored tend to have a huge impact. The setting for this meeting with the women was also a unique one with a calm and serene atmosphere except for the buffaloes mooing now and then. A day to reflect on and was also a day to test out our activity pack for the f...
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Odisha Calling

Little did I know that I will be visiting India again in little over a month from my last visit. This time for work though. It all happened in less than a week from me talking to a colleague about this potential work through to packing my bags and leaving for India. Odisha it was! My first time visiting this East Indian state besides a quick few hours in the capital about 8 years ago. What am I doing here? Well, I am here with a colleague to do a field assessment of the labour market situation for women, understand their aspirations and research educational opportunities for young and marginalised women who are at the risk of being left behind. Covering two major districts of Rayagada and Dhenkanal and a number of small villages and towns, the work involves visiting women groups, employers, communities, local governments and identifying their current and potential challenges and needs. Landed in Mumbai, briefly met a friend for breakfast (thanks Karan for dropping by), flew ...
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