The Story of Ranjubala Patra

Mahashakti Foundation December 3, 2020

As per Niti Aayog SDG India Index Baseline report, Odisha ranks second among bigger states which have maximum number of population below national poverty line after Bihar. The urban population of the state, which consist millions in numbers under the poverty line usually find it very difficult to sustain even if they are engaged in small or micro enterprises.

Ranjubala Patra, wife of Pravat Patra, aged – 42, resides at Rental Basti in Bhubaneswar. It was hard for the family to even meet with their daily requirements. With the intervention of Mahashakti, Ranjubala formed a Self Help Group along with four other women and applied a loan of INR 25,000 in the year 2018 from MSF Group Company. With the money, she started the business of selling Dahi vada-Aloo dum on the streets of Bhubaneswar.

Her strong urge to earn for the family fuelled her motivation for entrepreneurship. Though it was tough for her to sustain in the competitive market of Bhubaneswar, she cemented her place as a go-to Dahi Vada vendor by not compromising on quality. She earned aprox INR 15,000 a month with her business and in summer, the income increases because of surge in demand. She was using part of her income for raising her only son and manage his educational expenses. The other part, she used to repay the loan instalments. With this, she started to lead a comfortable life.

But the Covid-19 outbreak in the country, which led to complete lockdown took a toll on her life and income. Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation was in Red Zone for months, and their business was shut down for about more than three months. The major issues that were faced was no income and shortage of food.

Therefore, Mahashakti Foundation prepared a route map on how to provide support to the community and save lives. With the esteem support of the existing partners, MSF started relief & response to the disadvantaged & poverty stricken people. The organization also identified the vulnerable households affected by the pandemic and even analysed the continuation of support services required to them to sustain. A total of 55,400 households were covered in 126 villages of Odisha.

Even Ranjubala and her family received Family Essential Kits containing ration items such as- Rice, Dal, Sugar, Suji, Atta, Tea, Turmeric powder, Soya, Biscuit, Salt, Chuda, Oil, Onion, Potato and sanitizing items such as – Bath Soaps, Washing Powder, Sanitizer, Face Masks, etc from Mahashakti. We feel blessed to have got an opportunity to serve the impoverished section of the society and also help the people who were suffering due to the pandemic to sustain the lockdown period.

Mahashakti Foundation

Leading Livelihood Development Organization of Odisha - Mahashakti Foundation

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