Kriti Bharti has been fighting for years against child marriages despite facing death and rape threats.

Her struggle for survival began even before she was born. Her own family members wanted to kill her in her mother’s womb after her father abandoned them. Rajasthan-based Kriti Bharti had been fighting ever since — which eventually led her to battle for those who are are let down by their families and forced to get married as children.

Born prematurely at seven months, she first fought for her own survival; then she fought her family which considered her to be a curse. And now she has been fighting for years against child marriages despite facing death and rape threats.

While Kriti’s mother decided to have her as it was too risky to go for an abortion, her personal struggles were not over as she was constantly tormented by her relatives. Owing to some medical complications, she got stuck in the womb, due to which she had serious head wounds.

“This was my first struggle — to survive in this world. Born against the will of my relatives, I had to face torture and taunts in my childhood. When my mother went out to work, I was ill-treated and mentally tortured by my relatives who said I had bad blood,” Kriti told IANS.

“Some relatives went to the extent of changing their paths to avoid seeing my face (thinking she brought ill-luck),” she recounted sadly.

While such experiences scarred her psyche, it was her mother Indu and grandparents, Nemichand and Krishna Mahnot, who supported her, becoming pillars of strength.

But the social torture crossed all limits when one of her relatives gave her slow poison when she was just 10 years old. Even as she survived, the poison paralysed her body, save her head and a hand.

“I could not sit, walk, stand or even change sides while sleeping. About 90 per cent of my body became insensitive. Despite being taken to several hospitals, nothing worked,” she said.

During this traumatic time, her mother took her to Reiki teacher Brahmanand Saraswati’s ashram in Bhilwara where several Reiki (a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing) sessions led to some improvement.

For the second time in her life, she had to again learn to walk. At 11, she was able to crawl like a toddler. Then she learnt how to sit and walk with some support. At the age of about 12, she could again stand on her own feet and started walking.

But traumatised by her childhood memories, Kriti was disenchanted from the world, gave up everything and changed her last name to Bharti, becoming the “daughter of Bharat (India)”. She learnt the Reiki art of healing while also learning Yoga practices.

After being counseled by her mother and her teacher Brahmanand Saraswati, she resumed her education and appeared for open board exams after a gap of four years and skipping six standards.

“With regular 15 to 16 hours study, I cleared my class X exams, followed by class XII and then did my graduation, post graduation and doctorate in psychology from Jai Narayan Vyas University in Jodhpur.”

After her doctorate, she set out on her mission to work for the welfare of stigmatised children and women and now has a dream to make Rajasthan child marriage-free.

After freeing many girl children from child marriages, she has become the guardian and mother of such “balika vadhus” (child brides).

In 2012, she started Saarthi trust in Jodhpur and is now a rehabilitation psychologist and managing trustee of the organisation.

“With a firm pledge to eradicate child marriages in the country, I prevented dozens of child marriages. But such marriages continued and innocent children were forced to follow traditions, thus wasting their lives,” she said.

Faced with the challenge of finding a solution, Kriti turned her attention to a legal remedy and discussed the situation with legal experts and came up with the idea of annulment of such illegal child marriages.

“Annulment of child marriage means the marriage which took place years ago is made legally null and void. After annulment, the boys and girls who tied the knot of child marriage years ago are freed from this bond,” she explained.

A victim of child marriage, Laxmi Sargara, came to Kriti seeking help and her marriage was successfully annulled — a first in the country, setting a precedent for future cases. This also brought national and international fame to Kriti and her organisation.

Not only did she find a place in several record books for the first annulment of a child marriage in the country, her campaign also found a place in the syllabus of class XI and XII of Central Board of Secondary Education.

Once infamous for the highest number of child marriages in the country, Kriti’s campaign is slowly bringing about a change in Rajasthan, especially Jodhpur, which tops the list in the country for the most number of child marriage annulments.

Kriti’s efforts have helped annul 36 child marriages so far, which took place years ago. She has also created a record of preventing thousands of child marriages, finding a place in record books like Limca Book of Records and World Records India, and Unique Book of World Records.

In 2016, her name was once again registered in World Record India, India Book of Records and Unique World Records for nullifying three child marriages in three days.

Besides working for annulment of child marriages, she also works for rehabilitation of child labourers, victims of child trafficking and child abuse. She also works for the rehabilitation of women. Till now she has rehabilitated more than 6,000 children and more than 5,500 women.

“I face many brutal attacks and threats but I continue working for the protection of girls. Being a woman, I received rape threats several times, but I stood firm,” she said.

At the international level, Pixel Project ranked her seventh in the list of role models, and her organisation Saarthi was ranked 10th in the global list.

With grit and determination, she continues to pursue her life’s goals.

IANS

new York Five months pregnant supermodel Lily Aldridge walked the runway at the New York Fashion Week. She says that it was nothing but empowering.

On Saturday, the supermodel, 32, owned her five months pregnant status on the Brandon Maxwell runway at the Classic Car Club, strutting her stuff in a backless red dress with her hair pulled back.

Aldridge’s fellow models including Cindy Bruna, Taylor Hill and Joan Smalls were on hand to support her.

In a chic slideshow on Instagram, Gigi Hadid, decked out in pink, enthusiastically motioned towards Aldridge, and Bella Hadid patted Aldridge’s growing stomach, reports variety.com.

“So proud to walk the Brandon Maxwell runway 5 months pregnant! I’ve walked few runways in my life and this is a moment that I’ll look back on forever with great emotion. Thank you Brandon for letting me shine and being such a true gentleman, Love you forever,” Aldridge wrote.

After expressing gratitude to her glam squad, Aldridge added, “It was so much fun being backstage will all the girls, everyone was so uplifting and rubbing my belly celebrating this beautiful journey with me. Nothing but empowerment at Brandon Maxwell.”

(IANS)

New Delhi Designer Anita Dongre says that with her new campaign #ANDImpact for which Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor Khan has also shot a video, her brand highlights importance of a sustainable environment and celebrates four such women change-makers — Priyanka Raina, Purnima Burman, Srishti Bakshi and Rashi Anand.

“Through its latest campaign, #ANDImpact, the brand highlights the importance of a sustainable environment and celebrates four such women change-makers who are individually working towards this cause,” Dongre told IANS over an email.

Priyanka is the wife of cricketer Suresh Raina and founder and director at Gracia Raina Foundation dedicated to creating awareness and work closely with mothers and children.

Srishti is the founder of Crossbow Miles, a social initiative that mobilizes communities to make the country safer for girls and women.

Rashi is an entrepreneur and social activist working towards social welfare activities primarily aimed at educating and aiding street children, and Purnima is a conservationist, environmentalist and winner of the Whitley Award (also known as Green Oscar), a prestigious international nature conservation prize in honour of her work to protect the greater adjutant stork and its wetland habitat.

“The subject of women empowerment is very close to me, Whether it is through Grassroot where we empower rural women by providing them with employment opportunities and sustainable livelihoods, or through AND where we bring forward stories of urban women entrepreneurs to inspire other women,” said Dongre.

For their latest autumn 2018 collection, which will launch on Friday across all AND stores, Dongre has collaborated with Reliance for their R|Elan initiative and have also incorporated TENCEL™; the premium eco-friendly textile from the Lenzing group.

While R|Elan is the blend of functionality with both business and environmental longevity, TENCEL™ offers a range of features including botanic origin, sustainable production, enhanced breathability, colour retention and biodegradability.

On the collection, Dongre said it is all about the season’s must-have midi dresses in denim and autumn checks that make for smart everyday wear as well as modern office wear.

“It comprises versatile styles apt for every occasion at and outside work. Colour palette is monochromatic with hints of deep winter hues and pastel tones,” she said.

(IANS)

Union Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi on Tuesday asked the Indian Ambassador in Spain to send back the adopted girl who was abandoned by her foster parents in the country.

She was reacting to a recent media report according to which a Spanish couple had abandoned the 13-year-old girl they adopted from an agency in Madhya Pradesh after they were allegedly deceived about her age.

The couple was reportedly told that the girl was seven-year-old at the time of adoption earlier this year.

“It is very unfortunate that the adopted girl has been abandoned in Spain. I have requested our Ambassador in Spain D. B. Venkatesh Varma to immediately send her back to India where we will ensure her rehabilitation and safe custody,” the Minister said.

Gandhi also expressed her concern for the girl who is currently in foster care in some institution in Madrid and added that the Ministry is in the process of fixing the responsibility for the lapses which happened on the part of the Child Care Institution in Bhopal.

(IANS)

Environmental activist and scholar Dr Vandana Shiva on Tuesday urged the Prime Minister to ban “illegal GMO import” and stop unnecessary imports to support Indian farmers and strengthen the country’s sovereignty.

In a joint letter to PM Narendra Modi, Shiva of Navdanya and founder of Guild for Service Dr Mohini Giri pointed out how our country is “unnecessarily importing roundup-sprayed pulses and processed food with Genetically Modified Organism (GMO)” technique.

“While our farmers grow a diversity of safe, healthy, GMO-free food, we are unnecessarily importing roundup-sprayed pulses and processed food with GMOs. We can feed two times India’s population with bio-diverse nutrition-sensitive organic agriculture,” the letter said.

It further said that illegal imports of GMOs and roundup-ready food grains are destroying the livelihood of our farmers and women in the indigenous food economy and health of the people.

“Our government seems to be in a rush to put the profits of MNCs above the food sovereignty of India, the livelihood of Indian farmers and women, and the right to safe and healthy food of the Indian people,” it said.

Shiva and Giri then called upon Modi to stop the entry of GMO foods and roundup-laced pulses and edible oils, and “build on indigenous alternatives which can provide fair incomes to our farmers and a healthy diet to the last child”.

In another letter to Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Dr Harsh Vardhan, Shiva implored the Minister to investigate Bt Cotton (genetically modified crop) for criminal fraud, accusing Monsanto — an agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation — of deceiving Indian farmers by making unscientific and fraudulent claims.

“Over the two decades since Monsanto entered India, it has violated laws, deceived Indian farmers by making unscientific and fraudulent claims, extracted super profits through illegal royalty collection by violating India’s Patent and Intellectual Property laws, pushed farmers into debt, and, as a consequence of the debt trap, to suicide,” Shiva said.

“Monsanto cheated Indian farmers by claiming that its Bt cotton will control the bollworm. The claim of Bt cotton being a pest control technology has been proven false with the emergence of resistant pests and farmers are being forced to use pesticides. Farmers are now dying due to pesticide poisoning,” she added.

Mukki zone in the famous Kanha National Park had been known throughout its recorded history to have been ruled by tigresses, rather than tigers. True to this legacy, tribal women of the Mukki zone are breaking conventional chains by taking over men-dominated jobs in the region. These women now drive, guide tourists, guard the forest that traditionally gave them sustenance and are coming forward to shoulder bigger responsibilities.

While the idea to promote women in forest staff, especially as drivers in this largest national park of central India, was conceptualised and executed only in December last year, the way these women excelled in a short span of time has surprised everyone. And encouraged by the success of the experiment, forest authorities are planning to set an example by making Mukki the country’s first women-controlled forest zone while also replicating the idea in other zones.

Judged and under pressure from the day one, it was a difficult journey for Neeta Markam to become the first licensed forest driver here. Her battles began from home, right from convincing her father that she can share family responsibilities and that she wanted to do so by being a driver in Kanha.

People made fun of her when she enrolled in an induction course meant for drivers in this forest reserve but now other girls come to her for advice how they can also do what she did.

“It never said that the course was only for men. My aunt convinced my father and he let me go even as some families taunted, while other girls and boys made fun. Today more girls want to be drivers and they come to me seeking advice. And the boys who made fun of me are now jealous,” Neeta, who belongs to the Gond tribe and hails from Mukki village at the edge of core tiger reserve, told IANS.

Neeta recalled composure of other trainees at driving school watching a girl stepping in. She also recalled how in the beginning of the safari season, people would be a skeptic of being driven into a forest by a woman driver, often asking her bluntly if she would be able to manage.

“At times I had to convince them that this forest is my home and I had been trained to drive and show them around,” she recalled.

The Mukki zone – one of the three zones of Kanha Tiger Reserve – presently has two women drivers, six women guides, and one forest guard apart from about ten tribal women operating the forest canteen, all hailing from neighboring villages situated within the forest buffer.

As the tiger reserve is set to open again in October after a three-month hiatus, training is going on for six more guides with local ecology, and a batch of ten women with basic hygiene to work in the forest kitchen.

While Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of the displaced tribal families, the example set by the forest authorities by extending support to rather marginalized tribes is now raising hopes and aspiration among villagers who previously abstained from allowing women to do jobs they thought were meant for men.

“In its recorded history, Mukki zone, unlike Khatiya and Kanha gate, had always been ruled by tigresses, rather than tigers. Staying true to its nature and name, we wanted to take the tradition ahead and turn it into a place where women guards go on night patrolling, drive vehicles and also show people around. And when you come back, you stop by an all-women-led cafeteria,” S.K Khare, assistant director at Kanha Tiger Reserve, told this visiting correspondent.

In an initiative by the Kanha Tiger Reserve’s administration, the Mukki zone cafetaria is now run by tribal women from villages at the vicinity of the core forest areas.

He added that at present, Kanha is one of the few national parks where women forest guards are stationed in the core forest posts and licensed women drivers to take tourists inside the forests.

Madhuri Thakur, who cleared her intermediate examination in 2017 at the age of 20 years, is another licensed driver. Inspired by her father, a retired forest guard, Madhuri said while the forest officials and her trainers had always been patient, her colleagues also encourage all women to believe in themselves.

“Once Neeta brushed her jeep and started crying; then other drivers came and started boosting her confidence and making her comfortable. They jokingly told her that this is merely a small incident and they had almost killed a person in their initial phase,” Madhuri recalled.

As the tribal culture marries girls young, the emerging trend of empowerment pitches these women to change traditions.

“I don’t want to marry now, and even if my family forces me to do so, I would prefer to be married somewhere near my village because I don’t want to quit this job that I love. Why should women make all the sacrifices,” said Madhuri, who aspires to own her own vehicle some day.

Forest guard Lakshmi Maravi, who also hails from the Gond community and is the sole breadwinner of her family of three siblings and a mother, said that forests had given her a sense of belonging and an identity.

“During my training, I was skeptical of my abilities but now I go on night trails, shoo away the poachers and keep the forest safe. Now I feel I was made to do this,” Maravi said.

Suhkati Dhurvey, a forest guide, told the visiting IANS correspondent that merely six guides is a good start, but it isn’t enough. She, along with others, earn about Rs 10,000 per month, but since the park is closed for three months, this hampers their income.

“There should be more women employed in this sector; it means a lot for tribal ladies and gives them hope that they are more than mere labourers,” said Dhurve.

She said that spotting birds is far more fun than tigers and that is something she likes to encourage tourists to do as well to show that there is more to a tiger reserve than tigers alone.

Asserting that employing women was not just another social experiment of “women empowerment”, forester Khare said it is rather part of a larger cause.

He said while there was a mistrust and misunderstanding among the tribes and the forest department – as tribals largely depend on the forests and the department has the responsibility of conservation – only steps like empowerment can make both go along.

“Almost every woman who works here has a some sort of crisis back home. These jobs have given them hope,” he said.

Stating that while earlier women were not preferred for the job of a guide or a guard, it was observed that they work harder and with more passion than men.

“It is important that we create better work culture and environment. After we employed women, we saw the staff had started acting more responsibly,” Khare said, adding that the aim is to make Mukki zone an “all-women-operated area”.

The scheme proposed by the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) for compensating victims of sexual assault and acid attacks should be made applicable to child victims of such assaults, said the Supreme Court on Wednesday.

A bench of Justice Madan B. Lokur and Justice Deepak Gupta was of the opinion that the scheme should be modified to some extent to include children of sexual assault.

The bench asked senior advocate Indira Jaising, assisting the court as an amicus curiae in the matter, if slight modifications could be done in the ‘Compensation Scheme for Women Victims/Survivors of Sexual Assault/Other Crimes-2018’ to also include child victims.

The bench asked Jaising to submit a note in this regard to the court.

The NALSA’s scheme clearly defines the compensation slabs for victims of sexual assault, acid attacks and even loss of a foetus, and earmarks minimum Rs 5 lakh and Rs 7 lakh respectively for women who go through a crisis post sexual assault or an acid attack/

As per the scheme, a minimum of Rs 5 lakh is to be paid in case of loss of life or gang rape of a victim and maximum of Rs 10 lakh. A minimum amount of Rs 4 lakh is to be paid in case of rape or unnatural sexual assault, with the maximum fixed at Rs 7 lakh.

In case of victims of burning and acid attacks, the minimum compensation will be Rs 7 lakh for total disfigurement, with a maximum of Rs 8 lakh. Rs 5 lakh has been fixed in case of 50 per cent burns, while the upper limit would be Rs 8 lakh.

For loss of limb or body part resulting in 80 per cent permanent disability, Rs 2 lakh is to be given, with Rs 2 lakh in case of grievous physical injury.

The scheme provides that in case of pregnancy on account of rape, the victim would get between Rs 3 lakh and Rs 4 lakh, while for miscarriage or loss of fertility due to such assaults, the amount would be between Rs 2 lakh and Rs 3 lakh.

After the December 16, 2012, gang-rape and murder case in Delhi, the Central government announced in 2013 the Nirbhaya Fund scheme to support state governments and NGOs working for women’s safety.

The court was hearing petitions filed after the 2012 case, raising concerns over the safety and security of women.

Earlier, NALSA had told the apex court that hardly 5-10 per cent of sexual assault victims across the country were able to get compensation under the relevant schemes in various states.

Geeta (name changed), a resident of Sangli village in Maharashtra, was 19 when she became a sex worker, not as a victim of trafficking but as an option to feed herself and support her family financially.

Now 32 and a mother of 10-year-old son, Geeta is facing a new hurdle — that of forced rehabilitation by the government of sex workers. And she expressed her anxiety that if Parliament clears an anti-human trafficking bill pending before it, it causes chaos in her life.

“I don’t want to go to any rehab center, I don’t want to learn stitching work or making pickles. Nobody forced me to be a sex worker; it was my choice and I am earning well enough to survive with my son,” Geeta told IANS.

This is not just the voice of Geeta — many other sex workers to believe the anti-trafficking bill will create turmoil in their lives.

Kusum, 40, who only uses her first name, lives in one of the brothels on Delhi’s GB Road. She said she is not ashamed of being known to the world as a sex worker and insisted on not changing her name.

“I had chosen to go ahead as a sex worker, nobody pressurized me. This is my profession, just like other jobs. Had I wanted to move out of it, I could have done so a long time ago. Now, the government is pushing for rehab but they don’t understand that sex worker are not perceived by the society with dignity,” said Kusum, who is also President of the All India Network of Sex Workers (AINSW).

“Not all sex workers are victims of human trafficking and the government needs to understand the difference between the two. There are many like me who have chosen it as a source of income,” she added.

As the monsoon session began on July 18, the Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection, and Rehabilitation) Bill, 2018, was tabled in the Lok Sabha by Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi.

According to National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) figures, around 8,100 cases of trafficking were recorded in India in 2016 and around 23,000 victims of trafficking were rescued the same year (61 percent of these were children).

Trafficking, under the Section 370 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), has been defined as “any act” of physical and sexual exploitation, slavery or practices similar to slavery and servitude.

Legal experts and social activists also expressed their worry that the bill might have a direct negative impact on the lives of many sex workers as it does not address the legal and real-time challenges in trafficking in persons.

“The clauses of the bill do not directly point at sex workers; however, some of the clauses are linked to them,” Samarjit Jana, Director, Sonagachi Research and Training Institute, Kolkata, told IANS.

According to the activists, the bill must clearly state that it does not include consenting adults and they should be enabled to continue with their chosen occupation.

“Trafficking of persons into forced or coerced labour should not be equated with sex work undertaken by consenting adults. This conflation can lead to misuse and over-broad application of the provisions in this bill,” Jana, who has for long been associated with the rights of sex-workers, stated.

Another issue that the experts are concerned about is that the government does not offer a proper rehabilitation programme.

“What the government is offering as rehabilitation cannot be called a substantive package for surviving. In the name of rehabilitation, all they offer is stitching classes. How can a sex-worker, who is also a mother, earn enough through simply sewing work,” asked Aarthi Pai, an activist, and lawyer associated with the Bengaluru-based NGO Sangram.

“There is also the social-stigma factor which the government has been totally ignoring. Indian society will never accept an individual who has been a sex worker. The government needs to have a deeper insight into such factors,” she noted.

Jana pointed out that certain guiding principles were shared with the government, asking the WCD Ministry to consider certain factors before drafting the bill — but these have been ignored.

Earlier this month, around 4,300 sex workers had also written to Maneka Gandhi appealing to her to ensure that the new law does not lead to their incarceration. There has apparently been no action on this either.