Bor
n in the Tehri district of Uttarakhand, my
village Kunti was fertile and prosperous. My father was a businessman and a
politician, whom, people lovingly called Netaji. After completing my
primary education in the village school, I was sent to study at Sarlaben's
Ashram in Kausani. At the ashram, along with gaining a formal education, I learnt
various life skills. I faintly remember spinning yarn on Charkha and making
cloth on a loom. I also got to travel on study tours – this gave me the chance
to visit cities of Bihar, Maharashtra, and South India. This was the time when Bhoodan
movement had captured the nation’s imagination.
After
finishing middle school, I joined Sevagram Ashram, Wardha in Maharashtra, where
I studied for two years. Soon after my return, I was married to a history
lecturer posted in a college in Rudraprayag, Uttarakhand, which was a charming
little town with friendly people. The Inter college, where my husband was
teaching was not yet recognised and there was a time when we did not get salary
for 11 months. It seems unbelievable now, but there was no dearth of ration,
wood, milk, vegetables, fruits etc at home, thanks to the shopkeepers who used
to send everything on our grocery list on monthly basis. Bills were paid only when
we got our arrears and the Swami Sachhidanand College got government
recognition. Our two elder sons Yatindra and Dhirendra were born there. Our
dear nephew Govind, a brilliant student and a loving child, kept us in good
humour.
My
husband was more of a friend to me. We read many books together, and we would
read by taking turns, chapterwise. Phanishwarnath ‘Renu's’ Maila Anchal,
Acharya Chatursen Shastri's Vaishali ki Nagarvadhu, the Bhagava Gita
are the ones I particularly remember. Once I was busy in the kitchen and he
called me, " arre suno, kitna achha likha hai" (see, how well it is
written). He was reading the Bhagwat Gita. The discussion went on for a
long time till we could smell the burning milk in the kitchen.
Soon we
were transferred to our home district Uttarkashi. My younger son Girish and
daughter Manju were born in our village Raturisera. There I was unanimously
elected for the position of Gram Pradhan. I completed two terms and was the
only woman among the forty Gram Pradhans. Later I was offered the chairmanship
of Samaj Kalyan Vibhag, where I volunteered for nine fruitful years. At one
time, we were given a grant from the department, for ten women from different
villages to go on a tour to any place we wanted. Many women were interested but
could not leave the house. A world of chores like looking after the cattle,
cooking, and agriculture depended on them. To exhaust the grant, with the
permission of the District Magistrate, we organised a ten-day camp. We invited
experts in various fields to deliver lectures on healthcare, animal husbandry,
food preservation etc Around fifty women from three villages attended the camp.
Looking after the Anganwadis was one of my main duties, for which I was given an
assistant, a vehicle, and a driver. It was very fulfilling to be able to help
women turn around their lives through the government schemes.
Now, I
stay with my sons in Mumbai, Delhi, and Kanpur. I read, watch TV, and enjoy my
short walks in this beautiful and pollution free campus of IIT Kanpur.
-Shanta Bahuguna (m/o Prof Dhirendra Bahuguna)
penned by Vandana Bahuguna
appeared in our campus mag EYES, March' 24
