Being illiterate does not mean a roadblock to economic independence and Chaya Naik proves that every day
Achieving success is a matter of effort, expertise andimportantly confidence. This importantingredient can be the difference between winning and losing a battle. For ChayaRamesh Naik a housewife, it required a push and a lot of gumption to evolve intoan entrepreneur. With just a SSCcertificate as an educational qualification, Chaya settled into a life as ahousewife. With no credit and zero capital, she was marked down as a candidate fora life of drudgery and frustration.
However, on the horizon appeared an individual who turnedher life upside down. Social worker, Amol Morajkar visited her vaddo at Anjunaand urged the women in the area to join hands to improve their lives. Amol stressed the benefits of economicindependence and the importance of saving money to rid themselves of theirpoverty. Chaya became a member of the Vijaya self-help group and realised that everyonecould earn something if they had some capital. 20 women started saving Rs100 amonth. Within a year they had collected Rs 24,000.
The area she lives inis a tourist hot spot and every other day Chaya had a tourist, inquiring ifthey had a bike to rent. The germ of an idea was now developing in her mind.She said “I took a loan of Rs 10,000 from our self-help group fund and paid itas down payment to buy my first bike in 1998 with the help of the CorporationBank. I offered it on rent to the tourists in the surrounding area. It took methree years to repay the loan. But after learning the nuance of this business,I purchased another bike and another and another”. Chaya now owns 17 bikes andtwo cars and runs her own business from her residence. She has over a period oftime replaced the older bikes with new.
The idea to give thebikes on rent to foreign tourists proved to be profitable. “A new rule by theGoa government to issue the permit for a taxi to those who own more than five bikeshelped me to get a permit for tourist cars. My graduate son Rohan drives themas tourist vehicles” she affirms. Her younger son Nilkanth is studying butattends calls at odd hours.
Chaya’s one-womanshow has given her confidence and prosperity. Her one-room home in Anjuna hasnow been transformed into a small bungalow. She also built a house on theseashore to give it on rent to tourists. Husband Ramesh a life guard with the tourismdepartment, will soon retire and join her. Chaya is happy that she could securethe future of her family.
