Kwatha women live by sweat and labour
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, May 17 2015 : They have been compared to a flower, classified 'fragile' by many.

Women since time immemorial have been stereotyped as the 'weaker sex'.

A little observation is all that it takes to understand that women are so much more than 'weak' and definitely not 'fragile'.

A remote area at Chandel district along Burma border lies Kwaktha village where women are defying stereotypes, unknowingly.

Kwaktha resident Takhellambam Khambi Devi, during an exclusive interview with The Sangai express said women of the village are engaged in tilling land, harvesting bamboo shoots for making soibum (fermented bamboo shoots), a delicacy across Manipur and making charcoal round the year to earn a living.

Kwatha people rely on jhum cultivation for their annual rice requirements.

Ahead of the paddy cultivation season, women spend many days on cutting down trees and clearing forest areas for jhum cultivation.

During rainy season, women harvest bamboo shoots which are processed to make soibum.

The processed products are then sold at Kakching and Thoubal markets at Rs 70 per kg.

They could produce as much as 800 kilograms of processed bamboo shoots in a year, Khambi informed.

During autumn, these women shift their trade to scaling tree barks.

During the entire course of the season, women scale bark of Uningthou trees, also known as Thanghidak.

The cherubic scent of the tree makes it an important element in the production of incense sticks.

Local agarbati or incense stick manufacturers purchase large amount of these barks from Kwaktha every year.

The women earn about Rs 850 per kilogram from these barks.

During winter season, these women would go deep into the forest area to find woods suitable for making charcoal.

They trade a bag of charcoal for Rs 250, Khambi stated.

Kwaktha women have been sharing the same burden with their male counterpart.

They contribute equally in the management of the family and in bringing up their children both physically and economically.

There is only one school in the village - a Government primary school run by two teachers.

For those who desire to continue further studies, they have to go all the way to Kakching or Imphal for lack of higher education facilities in the area.

The area also lacks proper health care facilities.

Kwaktha PHC is being run by two local nurses.

There are no doctors.

As such, patients with the slightest medical problem are referred to hospitals either at Imphal or Moreh.

With 70 households, the village has about 300 residents.

The village has 16 Government employees, 8 women and 8 men.

A speck of positivity amidst the deficiencies is the abundance of water in the area.

Prepaid power service has not yet reached the area but the villagers have no other option but to stick to the current power supply which is not very regular, Khambi stated.

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