Woman demands education, health, water and jobs for Musahar community

In the twilight world of Musahars, an untouchable community in India, Girija Devi is a shining exception. After leading a spirited drive to root out alcoholism and get the government to work for her community in the troubled state of Bihar, she has become the first woman from her community of rat-eaters to address a United Nations convention. Musahars are so poor that their staple diet often comprises mice. On 27 February, the unlettered Girija Devi will lead five women from India at the international meeting to talk about the status of women. She will speak in her local Bhojpuri dialect. “I will speak for the equal rights of women and try to draw the attention of the world to women in my state,” she says. There’s no end to the problems of women - and men - in the Musahar community. There are about 1.3 million Musahars in Bihar. Less than 1% of them are literate - the lowest in India, and some 98% of them are landless. The Musahars mostly work on the farms owned by landlords and go without work for up to eight months a year. No wonder alcoholism is rampant among Musahar men, who end up spending more than half of what they earn on cheap locally brewed liquor. This hurts the women and children most. But in her dirt-poor village of Bhirkia-Chhapaulia in East Champaran district, Girija Devi decided to pick up the gauntlet and launch a war against alcoholism a few years ago. Leading a group of women, she demolished local liquor vends and toddy pots hung on the trees by their men. When the sorority found the men drinking, they shaved their heads, garlanded them with shoes and paraded them around the village to shame them into kicking the bottle. Girija Devi has always led by example - her husband Singheshwar Majhi was the first alcoholic to face her wrath. Her untiring efforts have led to 125 Musahar villages in East Champaran to become “alcohol free”. “Earlier our men would come home drunk and beat us up. Now things have completely changed, and our husbands treat us with respect. All thanks to Girija Devi,” says Dhanmati Devi, a local villager. Girija Devi did not stop with combating alcoholism alone - the mother of four children has pushed for roads, schools, teachers and doctors in her villages. She blocked roads, locked up government offices and squatted on railroad tracks to demand for development of her village. Now, thanks to her efforts, Bhirkia-Chhapaulia has a primary school, a brick road and drinking water supply. Seventy per cent of the villagers have got basic government-built homes. The indefatigable woman is still not satisfied with what she has achieved. “I want a high school, a primary health centre, better drinking water, jobs for our men. I will not stop till I get all this from the government,” she says.