Page 222 - SocialHarmony
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226 Social Harmony

petition in the Supreme Court that I am allotting land to the
poor people in order to entrench myself in politics and that I
should be checked from doing so. They have filed a case against
me. The court cannot give me a higher sentence than capital
punishment, let it come, what’s new in it? After all, this will
happen for the welfare of the poor, what can be a greater thing
to do in life? The Government of Gujarat has started to allot the
land to the poor tribals, and it is being done as a campaign. The
idea behind all this is that the poor tribal people should become
self-dependent.

     The daughter in a poor family has grown young, and the
father has to marry her off, but there are no means at home;
what should he do? Should the poor girl remain unmarried all
her life? You will be happy to know that the State Government
keeps all records of the poor girls, and bears all marriage
expenses. The government also allots funds for group marriages.
If your daughter is married but she has no house to live, then
the government makes scheme to give her a house too; if she
has no source of livelihood, then the government makes
provisions through the Sakhi Mandals. The government is
concerned that a poor person is not forced to live a life of penury.
It has given pension to a sister who gets widow, but she has not
been forgotten about after giving her a pension; rather she is
given training in order to cultivate some talent in her. If she can
stitch clothes, she is given a sewing machine; if she knows
embroidery or zari, she is given further training in it. If she
knows cooking, she is trained how to supply tiffin to different
households. The government has provided for training in order
to make them self-dependent. We cannot accept that a widowed
sister or a poor man’s daughter is forced to live a troublesome
life; the government feels concerned about her.

     If a child is handicapped, the government has thought about
him too. There are several girls who suffer from headache at
school. When she complains to her mother, the parents thrash
her saying that she does not wish to study so she is making an
excuse. But that poor man does not realize that rather she is
suffering from poor eyesight and requires a pair of specs, due
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