on Nov 15, 2020)NASHIK: Taking on the mighty Narmada river is certainly not for the faint-hearted. But 27-year-old Relu Vasave, an anganwadi worker, has seen the river flow by her village all her life. So when the coronavirus fear kept a group of tribals from coming to her anganwadi by boat for their food and medical check-ups, she decided to go to them.With road access poor, the only way to reach the hamlets is by boat and a return trip is all of 18km. But that did not deter Relu. The dainty woman borrowed a small boat from a local fisherman to travel to the hamlets, Aligat and Dadar, so that the 25 newborn and malnourished children, and seven pregnant women did not lose out on proper nutrition. Since April, she has been going by boat five days a week to check on the tribals.
The anganwadi where Relu works is located in the remote tribal village of Chimalkhadi in Nandurbar district of Maharashtra.Relu’s job is to keep an eye on the health and growth of newborns, children under six years of age and pregnant women. She checks their weight and hands them nutritional supplements provided by the government.After the nationwide lockdown was announced in March, the tribals from the two hamlets across the backwaters of the Narmada stopped coming to the anganwadi. Relu told TOI, “Usually, the children and pregnant women visit our centre by boat with their families to collect food. But they have stopped visiting ut of fear of the virus.”
Unlike her husband Ramesh, Relu is adept at swimming and rowing since childhood. The mother of two young children, she has been visiting the hamlets regularly for six months, barring July when the Narmada was in spate.Relu’s work begins early. She reaches the anganwadi at 7.30am and works there till noon. An hour after lunch, she sets off in her boat to the hamlets and returns only late in the evening. Most times, she goes alone with food supplements and baby-weighing equipment. On occasions, her relative Sangita, who also works in an aganwadi, accompanies her. After the boat ride, Relu has to trek up the hilly terrain to reach the hamlets.“It is not easy to row every day. My hands ache by the time I’m back home in the evening. But that doesn’t worry me. It’s important that the babies and the expecting mothers eat nutritious food. I will visit these hamlets till things improve on the Covid front,” she said.The tribals are overwhelmed by Relu’s selflessness. Shivram Vasave, whose house in Aligat Relu visits to check on his three-year-old nephew Gomta, said, “She guides us on taking care of the child and questions us about his health every time she visits here. We are dependent on her for the well-being of the child.”Word about Relu’s extraordinary efforts recently reached chief minister Uddhav Thackeray’s office. Soon, additional chief executive office of the Nandurbar zilla parishad, Shekhar Raundal, travelled to her village and conveyed the CM’s praise for her.
