She is a girl next door, frank, open and friendly. Fiercely independent, bound in family values and spiritually connected. A qualified techno-economist, she abandoned the luxury of the city bound job offers and urban life to work in the remote regions of Odisha. She chose the development sector as her profession not just for a career but with a dream to become a change agent. She found her inner calling in serving the teeming millions in the tribal and rural areas of Odisha. From KBK to Kendrapara to work on women and environment and from Bhubaneswar now to England for higher studies, Sarita has travelled a long way to equip and train herself to contribute to the community. She strongly believes in social engineering and her Ford Foundation award to pursue higher studies in Gender and Development Studies at the University of East Anglia (http://www.uea.ac.uk/) is a milestone in her career.  In a candid interview to Loveleen Kaur and Kamala Kanta Dash, Sarita talks about her personal and professional journey and shares her views on pressing issues of our time.  

Q: Congratulations Sarita on your Fellowship to study in England. Why University of East Anglia? How will this benefit you?

Ans: Thank you very much. Livelihood, Gender and Governance are key areas of my interest. University of East Anglia is an internationally acclaimed centre of higher learning and their work on gender and development are world class. This is a dream opportunity to hone my academic and research skills in the western academia so that I can come back to serve my community.

Q: Please tell us something about you, your schooling and education

Ans: In one line I am a budding development practitioner with interest in diverse fields including literature, cinema and tourism.  Being a Navodayan (as I did my schooling till Intermediate from three different Navodaya Vidyalayas, an initiative of Ministry of Human Resource Development, Govt of India for promoting quality education in rural areas), I spent seven long years in a residential school which has given me a strong foundation to understand life in a broader perspective. At University level, I opted for a master's course in Applied Economics from Utkal University, Odisha in 2001.

Q: What's the aim of your personal and professional life?

Ans: I would love to build a network of potential human resources so that they can be shareholders in development and peace. Having said so, I believe, promoting education for girl child is one of such strategies that I would advocate to create an inclusive and gender sensitive society. 

My journey in life has never remained confined in living a life for myself.  I have always tried to work in rural areas so that I can understand the communities and their issues. It is necessary for me to work at the grassroots level to have an insight to policy and programmes.

Q: What are your hobbies and interests?

Ans: I enjoy building social relationships and for that I never waste a holiday sitting at home. I enjoy travelling. When I am very restless I find meditation to have the healing effect on my mind. I spend my leisure time writing poems that I find creative as it helps me in narrating thoughts on a big canvas.

Q: Whom would you credit for the success that you have achieved? How family and friends have inspired you?

Ans: To all of them, who have shown their faith in my capacity. The community I work for, my family and friends and my school teachers who are always there to drive me high, spiritually and literally.

Both family and friends are indispensable part of my life. Family supported me when I was a failure during initial days of my career and friends have motivated me to try every possible path to reach my destination.

Q: We would like you to share with our readers about the recent Award. How it became a reality? What preparations did you make?

Ans: Currently I am a fellow elect under the Ford Foundation's International Fellowship Programme. The year 2009 has remained a year full of surprises. I very well remember that I had no access to internet while working in remote areas of Bolangir district in DFID supported Western Orissa Rural Livelihoods Project (WORLP). I had to travel at least 50kms. from Bolangir to Titilagarh to write an email for preliminary application form for Ford Foundation's International Fellowship Programme (in December 2008). It was on 21st July'09 that I received a call from Ford Foundation, New Delhi informing that I have qualified for this Fellowship.  After a nine month of rigorous screening process, I could finally make it.

I believe that it is my hard work that has brought this success. Nine years ago I worked as a volunteer from Utkal University for Costal Orissa Rehabilitation Programme (CORP), during interaction with victims of Orissa super cyclone in 2001.  I could realise then how difficult it was to understand their emotions without having a real exposure to field. Therefore, after completion of the post graduate studies, I decided to join the development sector.

I believe working with different communities across the state was a key factor in the selection process. I would say this fellowship is a kind of acknowledgement for the work I did to bring change in the lives of poor people.  These changes might be small but the efforts have been consistent and will continue.

Q: You have worked in different capacities in Odisha. How was your experience while working in KBK?

Ans: I have been brought up in Kalahandi district, a part of KBK region. I have had a series of learning experiences from a multi-lingual and multi-cultural environment while studying in Navodaya Vidyalaya. My attachment with people of that region became intense when I first encouraged a girl for higher education who was incidentally my batch mate in the school. I decided to live and serve people of this region where illiteracy, hunger, ignorance and other social barriers obstruct development.

Q: Your main focus of work has been on gender and development in Odisha. Given the conservative and patriarchal nature of our society, how would you see the women movement in the years to come? Is there any feminist movement in Orissa?

Ans: Reactions are must for any developmental discourse, be it fighting against terrorism at national level or gender discriminations at household level. Movement is most often an outcome of oppressive systems. It may be in the form of mass revolution or be an exclusive feminist movement. In coming years, the intensity of women movement is definitely going to be more not only because they constitute less than half of the total population in the country but for their informed choices in selecting a life with dignity. There have been attempts in Odia literature to locate women in emancipatory frameworks of society but feminist movement as we understand today has not made its roots in Odisha.

Q: What do you think that works against women raising their voice against exploitation and harassment?

Ans: Established system of patriarchal authority in the house itself hinders women's liberty to express their voice against exploitation. We, the common mass, encourage women members to take part in decision making processes at village level per say but failed to create a plausible environment to ensure their participation. In unorganised workforce sector even it is the restricted wisdom of authorities that limits freedom of women to raise their voice against crucial issues.

Q: You have worked for the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA). Do you think it has contributed to the increase in enrolment and decrease in drop outs?

Ans: See now the question is not about enrolment, it is about ensuring quality education and retention at school level. Education statistics says we have created ample infrastructure for ensuring enrolment of school going children across the state under SSA, but the paradox lies in ensuring quality of education being imparted. Engagement of Shikhya Sahayaks, Para teachers is a welcoming step but how far government have ensured quality in education remains to be answered.

Q: Would you like to tell us something more about the problems of girl children in particular?

Ans: Education of girl children in remote pockets like KBK region of Odisha is a big challenge. Even if there are schools within half kilometres of their villages, provisions like free education and cash based incentives are also unable to ensure retention. One alternative may be like flexibility in school timing so that their involvement in household chores and education can go together.  "Right to education" being implemented this year is a promising step towards inclusive education.

Q: Climate change has emerged as the most pressing issue of this decade and women can play a major role in keeping this debate gender sensitive. What is your take on this?

 Ans: It is not about women alone, need of the hour is to take integrated steps to address such a grave situation.  Contribution of women in terms of economic use of scarce resources like water at household level is a step we have initiated in watershed villages under our projects. Conservation of rain water for different purpose is another initiative in this line. As a part of knowledge sharing and advocacy, I don't feel hesitated in motivating office staffs to optimally use water in terms of washing cloth, vehicles and check wastage of water during bath.

Q: You have been passionately involved and have worked in the field on the relationship of women with water.  Tell us something more about your own involvement in this issue.

Ans: In the South Asian region, water is becoming the source of conflicts at the national, regional, and local levels. The processes of liberalisation and globalisation, growing inequalities, global environmental changes and water scarcities are all interconnected. These processes particularly affect the lives of women, often the primary informal managers of water. For women access and rights to water are mediated through their social and economic position in society. Water is an ecosystem resource that is not easily manipulated and cannot be indiscriminately mined.

Therefore, when we think about sustainable development, conservation and optimum use comes first to my mind. Why water, because I have faced a lot of difficulty in managing access to safe drinking water while studying in school and working in remote villages for last ten years. Therefore my concern about conserving water is not new; in the due course of development I have had both in personal and professional life, I felt women have a special relationship with water-as they are main users of water for domestic and other purposes.

Q: What's your view on the impact of rapid industrialisation and mining on the lives of indigenous/tribal people? Development most often results in displacement and loss of livelihood. How would you approach the development discourse in this backdrop?

Ans: Despite, rapid economic growth in terms of mining and industrialisation the failure in trickling down the benefits to displaced and affected sections is critical and has invited debate across the globe. For instance, mining and industrialisation in some pockets like Kashipur of Odisha has impacted the condition and places of livelihoods of indigenous people specially. Therefore as a first step towards inclusive strategies, the government would have to draft a policy on tribals that could address emerging concerns and ensure minimum standards of living. Furthermore, displacement due to any development-based-activity encourages cross-border and cross-regional migration. This further transforms the livelihood patterns of displaced people, their rights and access to minimum support programmes.  

Q: Orissa has been consistently struggling at the bottom in the ranking of National Human Development Index (HDI). Why is this so and what must be done to remedy this situation?

Ans: This is a broader question to answer in short. In a nutshell, Odisha is an instance of poverty amidst plenty. We have reservoir of natural resources in one hand but failed to sustainably use them for benefit of common people. No doubt, industrialisation and mining sector growth would contribute positively to the economy, but how far it will bridge the gaps that have been created due to development and deprivation is a question.

Q: Given your activist orientation and experience in the field and a lack of female leaders in Odisha would you like to join politics?

 Ans: It is equally important for young generation to think about contributions not only in terms of social development but also regarding how best you can shape understanding of people towards the largest governing sector i.e. political system of a country. We all should contribute meaningfully towards a corrupt free social system, for that if getting into politics is a requirement, I would think positively about it in future.

Q: What would you like to say (message) to the students?

Ans: I would encourage students to keep their faith in hard work and remain hopeful in life. To me, short-term pain of trying hard brings long-term gain in life.  There is no short cut to success. Even if, some people have succeeded without much effort at times, that may not sustain longer. For instance, I tried to get the first hand exposure and experience about living conditions of tribal community by actually living with them in their village. It equipped me to understand their problems and concerns so that I can bring forward the issues clearly.

Q: What is your message for Orissa Diary?

Ans: I frequently log into OD and find it regularly updated. I like your focus on development and would strongly urge you to continue this focus. I am happy to contribute to your endeavour in making Odisha proud of its culture, history, development. I would like to start sharing my ideas on OD forum when I am in England.

Q: OD team is happy to accept your offer. We look forward to hear from you soon. Thank you very much for your time.

Ans: It has been very nice to talk to you. Thanks and Best Wishes