“Our’s was a love marriage, our hearts matched. He was good working boy from the same community and his father and mother agreed. But after marriage and with the children there were too many mouths too feed. My husband is the only income earner. The low daily wages was not enough. And last year the wild elephants destroyed our home. So 5 months ago my husband left for Kashmir. Every year, many men leave for Kashmir from our community to find work. The broker calls and asks them to gather. He comes and all the men go with him. Sometimes 50 men, sometimes 100 men, at a time. They stay there for 6 months and some stay for a year. Some send money, some are lost. My husband has gone there too. I know he is doing this for our children so that they do not have to go through the same struggles like we have. There was some hope but now the floods has taken whatever we had. I called him in panic and he asked me to wait. So these days, I spend my time sitting close to the children and waiting for my husband to return.” (Babita Devi Sada, Kanchanrup 6, Kanchanpur)

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