'LIKE MOTHERS TO ME'

At an educational hostel, in the heart of India, 65 girls from low caste backgrounds find love, support and the opportunity to build a future for themselves and their families.

The Latur Girls Hostel is a special place. A delightful family atmosphere is created by 65 girls and three wardens with a mix of exuberance, intelligence and care. The walls resound with creativity and potential.

The Karuna-supported hostel was purpose-built after a devastating earthquake in 1993 in this droughtprone area of Maharashtra, with a large population of tribal people and migrant sugar cane workers. Admission to the hostel is based on need – these girls come from the very bottom of the caste structure. They live at the hostel free of charge, attend the local schools and are coached by the hostel wardens. There is a long waiting-list of parents looking for a place for their child, hoping to rescue them from lives of poverty and discrimination. The education of a
child can pull a whole family out of the cycle of deprivation.

Vidhya Salgare, aged 14, is lucky to be here. She is from a Dalit family. ‘I was 10 when my father was murdered. There was bad discrimination against Dalits in the office where he worked. They found acid in his ears. My mother sells vegetables now, a very hard life. My father loved me, and wanted me to get an education. In the village, the teacher made me sit at the back of the class and the other students wouldn’t let me play with them. It is not like that here in Latur. The wardens treat me like their own child. I am very happy here; they are like mothers to me.’ Shy and withdrawn when she arrived, today Vidhya is self-confident, and doing well at school. ‘My favourite subject is Maths and I am a First ranking student at school. My ambition is to be a teacher and I want to donate my first salary to the hostel.’ She loves dancing and has performed many times at school. ‘The first time I was frightened but when I remembered the faces of the wardens I found inspiration. The other girls were calling out, “Vidhya, Vidhya, Vidhya” and I felt very happy!’

As always, Dr Ambedkar provides a strong example. ‘When I hear about Dr Ambedkar I feel he has given me the chance to be a top quality person,’ she says.

One of Vidhya’s friends, Jyoti Awale, is from a Scheduled Tribe, the Mahadevkoli. ‘My parents are labourers; I have three sisters and one brother. My parents could not get educated but they are very keen for their children to be educated. All of us go to school. In the village, some upper caste people were harsh and at the school there was discrimination, so I was not interested in learning. But here all the children are my friends. The wardens speak to me very warmly, I feel very loved. I dream of being a teacher, I want to help my parents, they have worked very hard for me and I want to make a happy life for them.’ Shaweta Bhandare is a warden at the hostel and an old hostel girl herself. ‘I lived in a hostel from age 10 and
admired the wardens’ work so I became a warden when I finished school. I grew up in a hostel, I have a feeling for the life, and I know the problems. The girls are like my family. The parents have left their children here and I must honour that trust.’ Shaweta is in a position to influence
caste attitudes and behaviour. She says, ‘There are students from different backgrounds and castes and they tend to stick together in their groups and castes, but I use a creative approach to encourage them to mix.’

The hostel wardens have a good reputation in Latur, which helps breaks down caste barriers. ‘People from other castes help us even if they don’t know our caste. They do not look down on us, I think because of our positive approach, from our Buddhist practice.’

The hostel is a wonderful example of how the rigid unkindness of caste can be broken down by care and friendship, and girls who were once imprisoned by poverty and discrimination can realise their potential and, in turn, help others gain dignity, strength and hope.

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