When we had nothing else to eat. I saved the water from boiling rice to feed my two boys in the evening. Never could I buy vegetables; only broken rice, along with pickles or chutney. Many days I went to the neighbors for food for my children. The neighbors told me someday I would have a better life because I was struggling so hard to take care of my family. I yearned to get out of this distressing condition.
My husband and I had to live with and depend on my parents for everything. Venkaiah worked in the paddy mill which resulted in a serious lung problem. He stopped working just after the two boys were born. At my parents' house, I arose early and cooked the day’s meals for everyone before I took my eldest son to work in the fields. On many occasions we had only one meal a day. I felt weak in the mornings without breakfast and having to work until lunch before eating. In the evening if anything was left, it went to my children. I had to ask my parents before I did or spent anything. This left me in a mental depression.
I and my eldest son worked as indentured daily laborers in the cotton and beet fields for a total of Rs. 30 each day. (Rs. 44 = $1.00). My son never attended school, but his and my labors went to send our second son to school until the age of 18. We took loans from the money lender to care for my husband in his unhealthy state and because we were many mouths to feed under that one roof. The money lenders came to the house and quarreled with my sons.
During ten years, we tried leasing one acre of paddy, but the last two years did not yield well. We went back to day laboring. Recently I had a seizure, fell unconscious in the fields and had foam come out of my mouth. The doctor said it was from lack of sugar. My sons will not allow my husband to work with his poor constitution.
I have four sisters, and I was the only one who could not attend family functions. They considered me an outsider. I used to feel sad about being left out even though my sisters encouraged me to come and relieve my depression.
Because my second son became educated he acquired a home guard position in Vijayawada City and began to contribute his income. He is very good looking. A well-to-do girl met him while visiting from out of town and decided to marry him.
At this time I was introduced to SPANDANA and got the courage to take a loan to buy a water buffalo. The buffalo yielded two liters of milk a day for which we earned Rs. 30 a day. My success at repaying the loan inspired me to take out a second loan in order to repair an auto rickshaw for my eldest son to drive. I plan to take out a third loan of Rs. 10,000 for more water buffalos. Presently our income amounts to Rs.120 a day.
Now both my sons, married and with children, live with us in separate quarters for each that we have been able to build onto the house of my parents, now deceased. Each of their families even has its own latrine! The government provided a subsidy for the latrines. We have acquired a gas connection, and my elder daughter-in-law helps with the cooking.
All our relatives say we have no problems now and want to talk to me. Sometimes I even give small loans to relatives and neighbors. We have been able to clear away Rs. 20,000 in loans. Of all the services, I am the most grateful for the loan service of SPANDANA, but the savings plan has also been important to help us succeed.
• • •
My father-in-law passed on and wanted his sons to have his acre of land every other year. This year is our year. The third loan of Rs.10,000 we have invested in pesticides, fertilizers and seed with Rs. 3,000 left over to increase the offerings in a small petty shop where we sell rice, vegetables, dal, soaps and sweets. We still have very little and do not own a TV, refrigerator or metal safe. We have no latrine, but will use the surplus from our cotton crop to build one. We often give vegetables and rice to neighbors and relatives on credit until the end of the week. It is my husband who keeps pestering me about the credit I have extended. He will go to collect from the men and makes sure that I am able to repay our loan to SPANDANA.
Because our daughter is achieving higher education I am more respected by neighbors and relatives. I have the time and money to be able to attend my relative’s rituals. More importantly I have great confidence in myself that I can repay an even higher loan. Now after seeing my success, seventy women in my village have taken loans with SPANDANA. They look to me as a leader in our community and ask me for advice. Those who are thinking about joining come to me for information. I find the savings product to be as valuable as the low-interest loans. Savings can be used for making payments if I am otherwise unable. I plan to take a consumer loan after my daughter finishes school to purchase a TV.
Though I still work every day in the fields and in our petty shop with my husband, I can be unworried about our existence, and have some time to enjoy my friends and family.
My father-in-law’s health and our daughter’s education were our first importance, but that meant we would have to sell the acre of land Prakasa Rao’s father had given him to pay the money lenders
We are daily laborers in the field. My father-in-law had three acres of land and gave each of his two sons the gift of one acre when they married. In the following years I delivered our three daughters at home. When they grew up, we were able to marry our second daughter to the nephew of my husband who has two acres of land growing lemons. To him we gave only the dowry of Rs. 2,000 and a gold ring. For our third daughter’s marriage we went to money lenders and took Rs.10,000 loan for which we had to pay Rs.1,000 interest per month. If we could not pay the interest it was added to the amount for which we had to pay interest. We were determined to pay the necessary so that our eldest daughter should finish her post graduation.
My father-in-law’s hospital and medical costs were added to our expenses. The money lenders came to our door and made a loud scene to embarrass us for not being able to pay. We had to sell our one acre of land, and we were forced to borrow from the more well-to-do farmers and become indentured laborers on their land.
We had no life other than going to the fields and working. We could not go to relatives’ celebrations or rituals. Although they knew the reason we were absent and excused us for it, we felt sorry for the loss.
I heard an organization was giving low-interest loans from relatives in another village. I went to the village and spoke to the branch manager asking him to come to our village. My neighbors discouraged me from taking this kind of loan because I would have to pay it back weekly. I decided to try. As SPANDANA’ s first customer in Tadikonda, I have now taken out three consecutive loans. I started with a small loan to be sure of myself with this new system. With the first of Rs.5,000 I handled our debt redemption. That was a large burden from our shoulders. At this time my daughter was ready to study her bachelor’s in education for which we took a loan of Rs. 8,000.
• • •
My husband had me terrified more than ever when he took a loan of 10,000 rupees and put up our household assets and goods as collateral. I was convinced that we would lose everything this time. My husband had the habit of mortgaging our household assets to pay the expenses of his relatives and friends. He took loans at very high interest rates.
I knew something must be done to change the course of our lives and joined SPANDANA as soon as I could. With the first loan of 5,000 rupees and a second loan of 8,000 rupees and I was able to get back all of their assets.
Now my husband is much more thrifty and careful with money and in fact, he is helping me save and repay SPANDANA’s loan every week. One of the best outcomes is that my children respect me more because I was the one able to regain their assets that their dad had lost through debt. I have no worries anymore. I have the courage and confidence that I can work on my own and solve my family’s problems.
• • •
Client who has had extraordinary success and taken a few loans.
I started working after my husband, Kotiah, became ill with asthma and pneumonia. He used to work while I stayed at home, but after he became sick, I had no choice but to work — I had to provide for my two small children. I took over his business of being a ragpicker. Every morning I went to the house of a scrap wholesaler. He would provide me with the initial capital I needed to buy scraps from households and would give me a pushcart to rent. I would then go around collecting people’s scraps in my pushcart, and at the end of the day, I was required to return to him and sell the scraps I had collected. I was obligated to accept whatever price he gave me for the materials, without argument, and he would not always be fair in the weighing of the materials. In a given day, I would take a loan of 200 rupees from him and would pay a rent of 10 rupees for the pushcart. If, at the end of the day, the scraps that I brought back were worth over 200 rupees, he would pay me the difference. Otherwise, if they were worth less than 200 rupees, I would be indebted to him for the rest of the amount. I lived like this for 5-6 years and became indebted to the wholesaler for 10,000 rupees. My husband and I couldn't argue with his debt amount because we had no records.
At that time, I was making 1,200 rupees per month, not even enough to meet my household expenses. My family and I used to go to sleep without eating 2-3 days a week and it was even worse during the rainy season. The conditions we were living in were unspeakable. We didn’t even have sheets to sleep on, we would spread dirty rags on the floor and sleep on them and use saris as blankets. We were forced to buy used clothes. My children used to accompany me collecting scraps on the street. Although my husband was still very sick, we did not have enough money to go to the hospital because it costs 15 rupees in an auto rickshaw to get to the hospital. If my husband felt very sick, he would go to the government hospital and the medicines they gave him used to make him vomit. I had to work even if I felt ill, otherwise we would have no food. My friends and relatives wouldn’t speak to me because they were afraid that I would ask them for money. I was in a constant state of worry and depression about not being able to take care of my family and manage household expenses.
Then I met Padmaja Madam through other people that rented pushcarts. At that time SPANDANA gave pushcarts under consumer loans. I was one of the first members of SPANDANA and came back to my village and recruited 9 other women to form our own group. The first loan I took was for 4,000 rupees. I used 2,500 to buy a pushcart and 1,500 for initial capital to collect scraps and started my own business. Although repayments were daily, we did not find it difficult to meet them because I was able to get a better price for the scraps I collected every day instead of going to the same wholesaler and being forced to take the price he gave me, I was able to get the highest price for my scraps by shopping them around to the best buyer. The second loan I took was for 5,000 rupees. I used 2,000 to buy another pushcart and the rest for capital. The third loan was for 7,000 rupees. With this money I repaid back all of the 10,000 rupee debt I owed to my old wholesaler and bought another pushcart. I prepaid both my second and third loans. I bought 2 more pushcarts with my fourth loan of 8,000 rupees and continued to expand my business. I was able to start my own business at home with my fifth loan of 15,000 rupees. I then began employing 5 people to collect scraps for me. I used 5,000 of the loan as initial capital for them and rented my 5 pushcarts to them. At present, I buy scraps from my 5 employees and also from other scrap collectors who come to me because I give them a reasonable rate for their scraps. The sixth loan of 40,000 rupees was used for further scaling up the business. I began to stock scrap and to sell large quantities of it directly to wholesalers without a middle man. I took a seventh loan of 100,000 rupees. I used 45,000 rupees to buy land for a house and 55,000 for my business. Today, I make a profit of 300-400 rupees per day and am providing employment for 5 people.
After joining SPANDANA, I have no worries for food and rent. I bought a TV, beds, a cupboard, a gas stove and water filter, among many other things. Presently, I am able to buy 50 kgs of rice at one time, as opposed to before, when I was barely able to afford a few grains. If my family is sick, we go to private hospitals immediately. I have nice clothes and even bought jeans for my children! I was able to adopt another child, my first girl, that was left at the hospital by her mother. Before SPANDANA I could not even provide for my own children. Now I have the money to provide for another child! For the past 4 years, we have also been able to visit the temple for Mother Mary in Nagarjuna Sagar. Now all of my relatives are coming over and asking me for money, people that didn’t even talk to me before! I have earned a good reputation in my community. My friends and neighbors respect me now.
I am not afraid anymore. I have the courage that I can manage my repayments, though they are large, because I am making money and SPANDANA has taught me to save. I have plans for the future and dreams. Wholesalers are currently coming to me and buying scraps instead of selling to wholesalers, I soon plan to store my own scraps in large quantities and go to Vijayawada and sell them myself in those markets.
I will educate my third child to the highest degree she would like to attain. I didn’t think that I would ever be able to afford a site for a house or a TV. SPANDANA has taught me to live and I have pride in SPANDANA. The organization has been like a God to me. Without SPANDANA, my husband and I would probably not be living. We would have had no business and no money for food, and we would have been under the control of money lenders. We were under so much mental pain and worry before, but are now living happily.
I think one of the most important services that SPANDANA provides is the lectures on health and vitamins and eating well. SPANDANA continues to teach me things.
• • •
Poorer client who recently took tiny loans for small businesses, but have potential for growth.
I didn’t know what I was going to do after my hut collapsed.
My husband is a wage laborer and welds iron cots. He only makes 200 rupees per month, hardly enough to meet our bare needs. When I needed money in emergencies, I would have to take loans from money lenders who would charge interest rates of 120% per year. We didn’t have enough money to eat, I would at least try to feed my 3 children, even if my husband and I couldn’t eat. Most of the time we couldn’t give our children proper clothes. If they had a pair of shorts, they had no shirt, if they had a shirt, they had no shorts. One of my sons is deaf and dumb and we did not have sufficient money to provide him with the proper medical attention or care he needed while young. Once I thought, “What is this life? What is this debt? I cannot provide for my children, I should just take my life. I don’t even have a pot to bring them water in.” Then people told me that I should not take my life — I have a daughter that I have to take care of — my sons would be okay without me, but my daughter’s condition would be very bad if I did not continue to live.
My husband brought home money when he could, but when he wasn’t able to, it was my responsibility to figure something out. He does not drink or gamble, but simply did not make enough money. I did not have family to turn to. My mom is also very poor and used to cry when she saw my state, because she couldn’t do anything to help. My mother-in-law is also very poor. I did not go to relatives’ functions or weddings because I was ashamed at my state. I did not know what to do. I put up a small penny shop to try to bring home some income by taking on debt and supplies from money lenders, but I am not educated and I did not understand how to run a business. I had to close my shop and incurred a lot of loss. Afterwards, I started making snacks on the ground in front of my house on a charcoal stove. I did not have any money for a gas stove or for kerosene and started selling those snacks to people on the street.
Then someone in my community told me about SPANDANA. I took a first loan of 7,000 rupees. The roof of my hut collapsed and sewage water would come into the hut during the rainy season. I knew that 7,000 would not be enough to repair the house, so instead I moved into my sister’s home and used 5,000 rupees to buy a food cart and the rest for purchase of materials for food preparation. My business improved a great deal after cooking on the cart and I was able to save 500 rupees during my first year. Fifteen weeks ago I took my second loan of 10,000 rupees and put 1,000 of that into savings. I used 5,000 for gas and the rest for supplies. I can now buy 10 kgs. of supplies at a time, instead of 1 kg. per day like I was buying in the past, because I have the capital to buy larger amounts.
Before I lived such a hard life, but now I am now living happily and eating fully. After paying SPANDANA back, I am making 2,000 rupees per month. I can afford food and clothes for my children, and everyone is healthy. We celebrate festivals cheerfully now. I can buy things I need for the house. Before we bought 1 kg. of rice, now we are buying 20 kgs.! I am now saving to pay for my daughter’s wedding and have been able to buy her the clothes, jewelry and supplies she will need. I regret that I had to take her out of private school after seventh grade because I could not afford the tuition previously. I have also helped one of my sons to finance an auto rickshaw and he is running it himself. I don’t feel hardship anymore, I just have to continue to work hard and pay back my debt.
I have plans for the future — I want to start a hotel of my own with my next loan. I have looked for a rental site by a lowry stand. I will cook at the hotel and my whole family, including my husband, will work there. I like the consumer loans of SPANDANA and slowly plan to take advantage of that loan as well to buy a flour grinder. I have confidence and hope in our future.
I am courageous now because I am able to provide for my children on my own, through my hard work. I know that I am only able to eat now because of SPANDANA. It is a good group with honest people. Now I am getting much more respect. Before when I had no money and I used to go to my mother-in-law’s house, they never used to show me a lot of value. Now my mother-in-law and sisters-in-law ask me to sit and eat something and ask me about matches for my daughter. My whole community is looking at me differently. My children also feel very proud of me because they know that I am doing all of this for them and their future. Without SPANDANA, I would still be in a lot of pain. I used to feel sick and weak from worry, thinking, “How can I provide for my children?” Now, no matter how hard I work, I feel active and well, even if I am working outside in the rain. Only from worry and pain do people damage their health.
• • •
A client who has taken a number of successive loans.
At times I wanted to take my life, but then I thought, if my kids can survive just by begging, why should I kill myself — as long as they’re okay, I will be too. I felt I had no one to turn to and no one to talk to or ask for help.
I was the second wife of my husband. He did not like working hard and another wife was another source of income for him. His family was in the business of buying hair from the local temples (where people shave their heads as an offering to God) and braid that hair and sell to people door-to-door to use as extensions. I became involved in the same business. I used to take loans from moneylenders to buy the hair at an interest rate of almost 400% per year. My husband and I had no money and had to provide for our five children. The money lenders often gave us trouble — they would come to our house if I couldn’t work one day because my children were sick and would say, “I don’t care about your children, they have nothing to do with me, go to work and pay me!” If we could not pay them, they would yell at us in front of our whole community and we would lose our respect.
The government had sanctioned us a one-room house — there were two families, 16 of us, in that one room. The roof leaked when it rained. There were many days when we did not have sufficient money to eat. We used to beg for food and clothes. We had no supplies in the house, only a clay pot to make food in. Kerosene was too expensive so we would use one 25¢ candle at night. I could not afford to send my children to school. We could not afford to go to the hospital. If we had a headache, we would crush ginger and put it on our foreheads. If we had a laceration, we would put oil on it. I even gave birth in the house. I had to work, even when I did not feel well and when I was pregnant. Once I even went to work 5 days after giving birth and took my 5-day old baby with me. We did not have any money for a wedding for my daughter and married her to my younger brother when she was 12. I was in a dreadful state.
I heard about SPANDANA through another woman in my village. Instead of going to money lenders, I took my first loan of 4,000 rupees from SPANDANA to buy hair from temples and took a second loan of 6,000 for the same purpose. During my third loan of 10,000 rupees, I started the collection of fallen hair from households in Guntur. After taking a fourth loan of 30,000 rupees, I started going to other towns to collect fallen hair. During my fifth cycle, after taking a loan of 50,000 rupees, I hired 10-15 people as my agents and expanded my business — I advanced them a certain amount of money and they went to different towns and villages to collect hair. My sixth loan of 150,000 rupees enabled me to appoint 25-30 more members and expand to farther villages. The initial capital I gave to my employees ensured that they would continue to work for me and not go to others. Four months ago I took my seventh loan of 200,000 rupees and have expanded my business to include very far distances. I sell this hair directly to wholesalers that distribute the hair to big companies that use the hair for wigs. I currently make 10,000 rupees per month and employ 200-300 people! I am elated that I can provide income to this many people because I will always remember my past and the days when I could not eat.
Now I have no worries. I am feeding and educating my children. One of my sons is an engineering student and the other wants to become a collector. I dream of a good education and future for my children. I am buying new clothes and all the supplies I need for my house. I have expanded my house and built two additional rooms. I have also bought many other things like a TV, cupboard, beds, a refrigerator, jewelry, etc. Nowadays I go to a private hospital even for little things. These days, my husband works harder than I do. Before he felt hopeless at our condition and had no motivation to work. Now we are succeeding and living well and we know that we can continue to live well. He helps me make the weekly repayments of the loans and interest payments. We are so happy that we will never have to live under the rule and oppression of money lenders again. My husband and I both have the courage that we can face life and provide for our families, all because of SPANDANA’s help. Without SPANDANA our lives would have been over.
Now I have respect in my community because I have started my own business and thrived. I have also taught other women about SPANDANA and have helped them improve their lives. Before my friends and relatives barely used to say hello and now they all pull out chairs for me when I go to their homes and cook meat for me. My value has been raised in my community. I have been elevated to this status only because of SPANDANA. I want to continue to shape my future and build a house for myself and my family.
• • •
Our difficulties became overwhelming when the government widened the road and sacrificed our cycle spare parts shop in the process. Of our seven daughters only three were married. Now we had scarce means of fulfilling our basic necessities. My husband and I lost our livelihood and felt desperate and lost.
SPANDANA trusted us with a Rs.7,000 loan to reestablish our cycle part shop in our home. It was a tremendous blessing to be back renting and repairing the cycles. My husband respects me so much now that I am the one able to take out a loan. He is now helping with the cooking and preparing the mid-day meal for our school children, something he would never have offered to do before.
• • •
My husband died four years back and left our four daughters still to marry. With each marriage I went deeper into debt so that after the fourth with a debt of Rs. 10,000. A desperate feeling was clutching at my heart. I was believing that death is better than living in debt. I had no one to turn to — not even to share my worried and sorrowful thoughts with. My relatives were also in the same state. I felt that only God could save me.
At this hour a neighbor told me about SPANDANA. I took a loan of Rs. 7,000 to sell tidbits (eatables, candies and snacks). At first I was very nervous and scared about taking the loans because if I cannot repay, then the others must pay for me. I feared I would not be able to make the weekly repayments.
I did it! I repaid the loan and, not only that, I have taken out another loan. Now I believe in myself and encourage other women to join the program saying, “If I can do it and make the weekly repayments, so can you!”
• • •
Farming is risky business. My husband and I had too many years of crop failures. We had four daughters and one of our daughters died. We had leased the land, but the scarcity of crops put us deep into debt. By this time no one wanted to lend us money — no relatives, neighbors or friends — to invest in a field once again. Farming is all we know how to do. I became weak, both mentally and physically — so depressed I couldn’t function.
I don’t know which angel led me to SPANDANA, but one of the members of my present center put the message in my ear. I took a loan of Rs. 7,000, and this time our crops are okay. It feels so good when we return from the fields and know that we are steadily repaying our debts.
TOP
• • •
The lorry accident left my son, it’s driver, in the hospital with major injuries. My husband was only a wage labourer. What could we do? We were sick with worry. We could barely meet expenses to feed and clothe our family of two sons and two daughters. Now, without my son’s earnings we had even less to live on.
I heard about SPANDANA in a nearby community. It saved our family and my son’s life to be able to take out a loan at this frightening time for all of us.
© All rights reserved • Prosperity Rings • webflunky.com
