Govindi Devi, a 27-year-old Raji woman from the remote village of Ganagaon in Pithoragarh district, has emerged as a shining example of resilience, leadership, and community mobilisation, with the support and guidance of ARPAN. Her journey from a humble background to becoming a vocal advocate for land rights and a community leader is nothing short of inspiring.
Govindi lives in a village perched atop a hill, nearly 6 kilometers from the nearest motorable road. Married to Kailash Singh, a daily wage labourer, she is a mother of two children who study at a government residential school. Despite the challenges of her remote location and limited resources, Govindi’s determination to bring about change in her community has been unwavering.
ARPAN played a pivotal role in Govindi’s transformation. Through a series of capacity-building trainings and workshops, ARPAN helped her develop leadership skills, confidence, and a deep understanding of community issues. Equipped with this knowledge, Govindi identified a pressing problem in her village: seven landless families who had been deprived of land rights for generations.
Govindi took it upon herself to address this injustice. She gathered information from ARPAN about the procedures to claim land rights and organised the landless families. With unwavering determination, she advocated for their cause before the government authorities at Dharchula Tehsil and Pithoragarh district. Her articulate arguments and persistence impressed the officials, who instructed the Patwari (village registrar) to prepare the necessary documents for land titles.
The process of creating pushtnama (family tree) is long and tedious, but Govindi has been diligently following up on behalf of the families. It will no longer take much time for these families to get ‘Dakhakharij’ (land transfer).
Govindi’s leadership extends beyond land rights. She is an active member of the Jai Bhagwati Maiya Self-Help Group (SHG), formed under the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM). As the SHG’s treasurer, she has played a key role in its success, earning the trust of the bank, which has granted the SHG a Cash Credit Limit (CCL) of up to Rs. 1 lakh for livelihood promotion activities.
Govindi’s aspirations go beyond her current achievements. She dreams of seeing someone from her village become an elected representative in local governing bodies like the panchayat. For her, true leadership is about creating opportunities for everyone to participate in the development process. Govind Devi thinks about the entire community and is constantly working to help them progress.