What is your name, your age, and your village?
- Saggar Kanwar, from Golia. She is 40 years old. Her mother taught her to sew and she’s been sewing for over 15 years. She also has a day care job that pays her 500 monthly. There she works 24 hours a week.
What is your hourly wage? What is your monthly wage?
- I work at home. I take orders from neighbors. My average monthly intake is between three and four hundred rupees.
How long did you train with Veerni?
- It was a ten day course. I went to the Golia sewing center for eight months. I also took a three month training course in health, given by Veerni. This helped me to get the day care job.
Would you like to have more sewing training? What is your opinion of Veerni’s training?
- It would be good to have more training if it would increase my income.
Are you married? How many children do you have?
- Married with three girls and two boys. Husband is a farmer.
Are you literate? How do you keep account of the money you earn? Do you keep your salary or do you give it to someone else?
- She has reached the 8th form. Has no accounting of money, but it all goes to the family upkeep.
Does your sewing income influence how you are treated in the home, by your husband and your mother-in-law?
- “My husband thanks me for my work. “
Has earning money empowered you? How?
- “It makes me feel strong to support my family.”
Has earning money given you self-respect, the respect of others?
- Yes.
Are you able to save any money?
- She saves 100 rupees a month, a micro-credit self-help group. It is in the bank.
Should women work?
- Earning money means that you get a good response from your community. You can help to care for your family.