Ahmedabad: Woman ragpicks to keep her sons' dreams alive

Don't be surprised if I tell you a rag picker has encouraged over 200 women in Odhav to read and write. The more you see the 39-year-old Harshitaben Parmar's unflagging desire and standalone spirit to get her sons educated, the more you derive joy.

Convincing her neighbours about her son's prospects in an engineering college, Parmar says she is determined to put him in a college irrespective of its fee and expense.

For now, the son has finished Diploma in computer engineering and wants to pursue a degree course. Her younger son is in Industrial Training Institute (ITI) and would soon begin his apprenticeship. It is easy to mistake Parmar for a middle-class home-maker. The brilliant woman, who has received formal education only till class 10, is a teacher in Odhav. However, she is also equally good at some else. Rag picking.

She has been doing it for over a decade to support her family. But, what sets her apart is her diamantine will to ensure that her two children get education. There are many like Parmar in Odhav, but according to officials in SEWA (Self Employed Women's Association, an organization that works with women in the informal sector), she has been strong when it comes to educating their sons.

"I have only studied till class 10. My father could not afford it. But, I am determined that my two boys get educated," said Parmar, whose hands and feet bear the scars of her daily struggle. Her husband is a labourer. Parmar's undying spirit keeps her go-getting attitude alive.

"I decided to teach women in my area how to read and write after I came in touch with SEWA. Now, I conduct classes in the afternoon for them. I wanted to be different than the other women," said Parmar.

Owing to the skin problems in her hands that she got by picking rags from the industrial waste, Parmar says, "Now, I look for plastics. I can't simply afford to be choosy about what I get and I don't.