“I felt devastated after witnessing such superstition but I made sure to come back stronger”.
By Shakti Swarupa Pattnaik
Posted; Odishabarta
(Here’s a story of Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA workers) of Koraput district who defied the practices of superstition for the well- being of village people).
Koraput: Among the many roles they play, spreading information and awareness is top among ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activists) worker’s priorities. They are strongly determined to mobilize communities by engaging them in discussions on family planning, maternal and child health, and healthy choices for men, women, and adolescent girls. Therefore, transforming lives.
“It is very difficult to talk to the newlyweds on family planning as their parents wouldn’t let me talk to them,” said Babita Hiyal, ASHA worker of Mondalguda village, an interior of Laxmipur block. She only got the evening time to talk to the young couple when they went outside of their home.
But somehow, she managed to convince these young people to make a proper choice by using Contraceptives and giving a gap of 3 years between each child and defined that Sukhi Parivar has 2 children. Thus, has got the Family Planning Award in 2009. She smiled elegantly while sharing this with us. The smile couldn’t sustain as she reminded her struggles.
When Babita joined in 2005, there weren’t enough ASHA workers for every village and so she had to work as an ASHA worker for 5 villages that are Chuchukona, Mushupalu, Ramijhola, Piskadanga and Mondalguda, the interior villages of Laxmipur block, till, 2007.
She had to manage a lot of issues that were caused by the blind beliefs of the Adivasis of Mondalguda. She got chills and goosebumps while briefing me on the story of a Disari of her village named Opesor Miniaka. His child was born in Laxmipur medical and got back to his home on the 5th day of delivery. A small part of the naval was still attached to the baby. The Adivasis of Mondalguda have a fest on the 6th day when a child is born where they perform puja and make sure that the entire naval is perfectly detached from the child as the puja cannot be performed otherwise. For this reason, the Disari cut the naval of his child with a blade and the blood flow didn’t stop till morning. The family immediately went to Babita and with her help, they successfully reached Laxmipur medical. The skin of the child had become pale due to blood loss and was immediately referred to Koraput medical. The child had to stay 15 days in that medical to become normal. The uneducated and unaware Disari bought his child back home on the 16th day of admission without informing the doctor in charge. Babita tried to explain to them but failed badly as they had no intention to listen to her as said that they wouldn’t stay longer in the medical as they had to work to get money and food. Within the next 5 to 6 days, the child was diagnosed with pneumonia and died in Rayagada medical. “Kete bujhaile bi bujhu nahanti madam “said Babita that meant “they don’t understand madam, no matter how much I try to make them understand”. She was frustrated after struggling hard to save Disari’s child and failed badly due to the blind beliefs of the village people. She directly blamed the entire family of Disari and made sure such events never repeated again. The entire village witnessed the devastating result of such blind beliefs and started supporting Babita whenever she made a point about this. She quoted “No matter how disappointed I am, I will still give my hundred percent to ensure the well-being of village people and children in particular. I felt devastated after that baby dying on superstition but I made sure to comeback even stronger”.
The month of July 2022 had been tough for her due to the burst of Dengue and Malaria all over the district of Koraput. Her home had become a hospital as maximum people used to come to her for testing and medicines and didn’t wish to go to medical in the fear of getting a test for Covid. “They are putting those needles in our nose didi, we will not go there,” Babita said while quoting the reactions of village people during that time. She had to work day and night just to ensure the safety and well-being of the village people. “Masari Ku kehi nakara hela, dura karipare bipada bela, sarakara dia masari jana, gram panchayat jaiki ana” had been her slogan during dengue times that inspired the villagers to go and get mosquito nets from gram panchayat and use them properly. With the help of the supervisor of Anganwadi and other health workers, Babita could successfully clean the entire drainage system of the village and nearby areas to ensure a mosquito-free environment.
ASHA and Anganwadi didi of Mondalguda on a mission to make the village mosquito-free
She had to go through many struggles that had given her chills even to remember, which included; the bleeding condition of a pregnant lady while her husband was high on alcohol and asleep, she made all arrangements immediately to take her to the Laxmipur medical at midnight. And while working, she was about to lose her kids as they were drowning in a river and she wasn’t there to look after them. They got saved by the village people.
“I can see a huge shift in the mindsets of people since the day I joined. Once they would not even listen to me, but, now, not only do they listen to me but also treat me as their family member. Despite all struggles, I had to go through and the future struggles included, including a less salary of 3500/- per month, I am extremely satisfied with my service as the changes required for a better society are being seen clearly as a result of my continuous effort. They don’t just call me ‘Didi’, they actually treat me like an elder sister. And all these people are my family. I am just one call away, be it day or night” said Babita with pride and honesty in her eyes.
ASHAs like Babita Hiyal and millions of others do certainly play the most important role in mobilizing the community and fostering its development.
