The movement towards empowering persons with disabilities is growing. Entrepreneurship plays a key role in developing the skills and perspectives of individuals with disabilities. Similarly, entrepreneurship provides an opportunity for people with disabilities to gain control over their own lives and create values based on their interests. In this context, the Deal Foundation, as an entrepreneurial initiative, is empowering persons with disabilities by providing training tailored to their needs. Through this, individuals with disabilities are able to utilize their skills and talents, enabling them to be recognized in society.
Looking at her background, Shobha Kamath is originally from Lakshmeshwar taluk. Her father is Basappa, and her mother is Nagamma. She grew up in an undivided family with three siblings. Her childhood was filled with happiness within the family. She was the first daughter in the family. Shobha was not born with a disability, but after marriage, she became disabled. Her parents ensured that all their children received an education. Shobha studied at a government school until the 10th grade. Later, she developed a strong desire to educate her children. To achieve this, she started working as a laborer alongside her parents, managing the household and ensuring her children received an education.
Later, Shobha provided education to her children up to a certain level. Her parents decided that she should get married. Her parents were not keen on sending her to a far-off place for education, so they arranged her marriage in Lakshmeshwar. After marriage, Shobha’s life was happy. She was blessed with a son. Shobha had a strong desire to pursue higher education. However, due to financial struggles at home, she couldn’t continue her studies. She hoped to fulfill her desire for higher education through her son. With that in mind, she decided to start working as a laborer so that she could provide her son with a better education.
Thus, Shobha’s life continued as a daily wage laborer. One day, while going to work, she fell down and injured one of her hands. The people nearby took her to the hospital. This incident was a blow to her family. Her father, mother, husband, and son were all deeply worried. After receiving treatment, Shobha gradually recovered and continued with her life. However, sitting idle at home was not an option; she thought to herself that she needed to do something. It was then that Deepa Gokavi, a Livelihood Officer from the Deal Foundation, visited Lakshmeshwar village, surveyed the disabled people, gathered information, and informed them about the Deal Foundation and the Self-Help Group. She also visited Shobha’s home, met her, and provided her with information about the foundation.
Then, Deepa gathered the interested disabled individuals from the area and formed a Self-Help Group with 10 disabled members. They named the group ‘Parvata Mallayya Disabled People’s Self-Help Group’ and opened an account at KVG Bank. All the members contribute a hundred rupees every month.
Then, Deepa provided various training to the group, including book writing training, leadership training, 2016 Disability Awareness training, and information about government benefits available for disabled individuals. This training made it clear that there are opportunities for disabled individuals in society, and the Deal Foundation is providing support to recognize and seize these opportunities. Inspired by this, Shobha decided to start her own business with a small investment after receiving employment training from the Deal Foundation. The members came together to receive the training with the aim of becoming self-employed.
Later, the Deal Foundation provided training in various fields such as Kunkuma training, paper bag making, candle making, and goat and sheep farming. Along with this, Deepa also provided information about market connections for those who started their own businesses. Inspired by this, Shobha decided that she too should start her own business. However, she needed capital to do so. For that, she decided to take a loan from the savings of the group. She took a loan of 15,000/- from the group’s savings and purchased a tailoring machine. Despite her disability, she did not let it hinder her and began her business.
Thus, Shobha is becoming financially stable through her business. As per her dream, she is striving hard to provide her son with higher education. She is repaying the loan without leaving any arrears.
Thus, Shobha has advanced in self-employment by receiving training from the DEAL Foundation. She expressed her gratitude towards the DEAL Foundation, stating that the foundation became the support in her life, which was once filled with poverty. DEAL Foundation recognized me and helped me realize that people with disabilities can achieve anything if they are given opportunities in society. Following Deepa’s advice, we formed a self-help group and received various trainings, which allowed us to engage in self-employment and improve our financial condition. Initially, we had no knowledge about self-help groups, but with Deepa’s help, we were also made aware of the benefits available for people with disabilities. Now, we have the courage to face and demand government grants, which was something we never had before. Due to the formation of the group, we are able to save a small amount of money each month. All members have decided to take a bank loan in the future to expand our business. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Deepa and the DEAL Foundation, on behalf of my family, for all the support they have provided. We will always remain indebted to you.
Thus, it can be said that the efforts of the DEAL Foundation have been a support for the lives of people with disabilities. May many more lives of people with disabilities be illuminated, and may the DEAL Foundation’s reputation grow on an even greater scale, as wished by all people with disabilities.
For any specific questions related to this blog or for any assistance, please contact us at Info@deal-foundation.com. To learn more about the work we do, please log in to www.deal-foundation.
Thank you.