Posted: 14/01/2008
On Saturday 12th January, Mr PC Chidambaram, India's Finance Minister, made time to visit Asha and one of its nearby project areas at the invitation of Asha's founder and director, Dr Kiran Martin.
Mr Chidambaram has held the position of Finance Minister since 2004. He is highly regarded in India due to his pivotal role in facilitating India's economic growth. The media has been ablaze with stories of India's burgeoning economy and its potential to become one of the world's top financial powers, and Mr Chidambaram has been a key figure in this development.
The lanes and Asha centre in Ekta Vihar were buzzing with excitement as the community members heard that an important guest was about to visit. Mr Chidambaram's arrival was low-key, and he was surprised to receive a warm welcome from a sizeable group of slum residents who were there to accompany Dr Kiran Martin as she greeted him on his arrival.
People jostled to get closer to the centre of the group as Mr Chidambaram took the short walk with Dr Martin to the building in Ekta Vihar that doubles as a clinic, dispensary and a resource centre for the children. A photographic exhibition had been set up that vividly depicted slum conditions, Asha's programmes in health and empowerment, and the positive effects its work has had on communities and their environments. Dr Martin talked Mr Chidambaram through the various interventions and answered his questions on Asha's work.
They then sat and spoke with a large group of women who are members of Mahila Mandals (women's groups), and some who are Community Health Volunteers and midwives. A group of women originally from Tamil Nadu in South India happily chatted to Mr Chidambaram in Tamil, as he was born and brought up in the same state.
The women were proud to tell their various success stories, such as those who made a good income as midwives or who ran profitable beauty parlours locally. One member of the group raised a laugh from Mr Chidambaram and the entire audience as she confided that they sometimes didn't even let their husbands know when they made extra money, but saved it instead.
The Finance Minister was disappointed to hear that none of the women present had been received loans from local banks, but was pleased to learn that many of the women now made a reasonable amount of money when previously they may have made less than Rs 50 a day doing physical labour.
Mr Chidambaram was then introduced to a group of Bal Mandal children who told him about their responsibilities within the area and their new-found proficiency with using computers. Some were able to speak to him in English as they had been part of Asha's English Literacy Programme.
Afterwards, some of the residents were proud to be able to show the Minister their homes; well-equipped and pristine, a feat that is not easy to achieve in an area where only a few homes have running water. The visit ended with a visit to the Asha Polyclinic, Asha's headquarters, where Mr Chidambaram met many other staff members.
Everyone at Asha was thrilled to meet such an important politician. It is likely to have been an eye-opening experience for Mr Chidambaram, and we have every hope that his exposure will lead to future policy changes in favour of slum dwellers.
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I despaired when I came to Delhi and had to live in a slum hut for shelter. I couldn't see how things would improve, but Asha's training has given me the confidence to lead others and work as a group to make changes. Now I enjoy helping other women who were once like me see how things can be so much better.
Rekha, women's group member, Zakhira
