Women who fought all odds to taste success

LUCKNOW: Growing up, Poonam Yadav learnt the importance of hard work. She was in class VIII when her father passed away. Their rented house was taken away and continuing education seemed difficult. But she didn't want to give up without trying. So she would go to school in the morning and do the dishes in homes along with her mother. By the time Poonam Yadav finished her Class XII, she was working at a chemist shop while also supporting two siblings. She would walk 10km everyday to reach her workplace. While studying for her graduation, she also prepared for the exam of police constable. “It was a do-or-die situation for me,“ said Yadav.

But she isn't the only woman constable who has faced hardships; many among the 488, who passed out of the Recruitment Training Centre in

Sitapur

on Thursday, could relate to Poonam's life.

Pooja Katiyar fought against all odds to take the exam and qualify. After class XII, her marriage was fixed in her village (Akbarpur in Kanpur Dehat). She didn't give into family pressure and said she wanted to study further. It took her father three years to arrange funds for her studies.

Katiyar says, “I worked during the day and during nights, when my family watched TV, I would study. I had filled the form of BA and that for police constable's job after mortgaging some of my valuables. My mother supported me throughout.“

Radha of

Pratapgarh

was the sole breadwinner in her family after her father's business failed. She has five siblings. She said, “I was in Class XII when tragedy struck. I decided to give tuitions to make ends meet and also stitched clothes. My mother also found it hard to feed so many mouths. One after another, we were forced to sell our belongings. Buying books and even filling form for a job was a challenge. I still remember going to a scrap dealer so I could read newspapers,“ she said.

Renu Pal of Hardoi hailed from a small farmer's family and had no opportunity to get out. “In the morning, I studied at school and in the evening, I sold grocery from a stall till night. Then I studied till early morning,“ Pal said, tears in her eyes. I was so poor that I could not afford a good school. But now my aim is to provide better education for my younger sister who is in Class X.“

With the addition of 488 new recruits, the state now has 977 women constables.SSP Lucknow

Manzil Saini

said, “We have, for the first time, trained them in horse riding and bike-riding.“

Saini

added that more women constables would help check crime against women.