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Sudha Varghese, also known as Sister Sudha, is a social worker and Catholic nun〔Nolen: 10 December 2011〕 in India who has devoted herself to the Musahar, the Dalit of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, one of the Scheduled Castes and who are considered the "untouchables". She resides and works in Jamsaut, a village in Patna district.〔Indian Catholic Community〕 She is sometimes called didi, which means ''elder sister''.〔Nolen: 2013〕 She is the chief executive officer of Nari Gunjan ("woman's voice"〔Nolen: 3 December 2011〕), a not-for-profit organisation that provides education, literacy, vocational training, healthcare, advocacy and life skills for Dalit girls and women in Bihar. Nari Gunjan has 50 facilities with an overall enrolment of 1500 girls.〔Srivastava: 2006〕 Varghese has stated that she draws inspiration from B. R. Ambedkar,〔Nolen: 3 December 2011〕 a Dalit who fought against the concept of untouchability and was one of the drafters of the Constitution of India. ==Early life== Varghese was born to a prosperous family in the Kottayam district of Kerala in 1949.〔Patna: 2008〕 In 1965, she moved to Bihar to work for the poor with the Sisters of Notre Dame at the Notre Dame Academy.〔Patna: 2008〕〔Nolen: 2012〕 She trained there for a few years, during which she learned English and Hindi.〔Nolen: 3 December 2011〕 She resigned from her job as a teacher in the convent,〔Shoshit Seva Sangh〕 and in 1986 moved into a complex of mud and brick houses (''tola'') used by the lowest castes in India, to educate the Musahar.〔Indian Catholic Community〕〔Nolen: 2012〕 From that time, she built schools and a home,〔Patna: 2008〕 and in 1989 obtained a law degree from a school in Bangalore〔Nolen: 3 December 2011〕 to "fight cases for women who have faced abuse",〔Srivastava: 2006〕 particularly cases of rape, sexual harassment, and violence against women.〔Patna: 2008〕 She was also in a demonstration supporting the victim of the 2012 Delhi gang rape case.〔The Times of India: 2012〕 In her home, she convened a group of teenage girls, to whom she taught reading, writing, sewing, and embroidery.〔Patna: 2008〕 Two years later, she opened five centres to teach girls "vocational training in nutrition, sanitation, and money management",〔Patna: 2008〕 the first of the Nari Gunjan facilities for Musahar girls. These centres also teach nursing and preliminary medical assistance, and other skills that are economically valuable.〔Patna: 2008〕 She had obtained funding from her parents, siblings, and the community.〔Nolen: 3 December 2011〕 A UNICEF grant of a few thousand dollars allowed expansion to 50 centres.〔Nolen: 3 December 2011〕 She resided within the tola for 21 years.〔Nolen: 3 December 2011〕 She returned briefly to the convent after being threatened by the parents of the perpetrators of an attack against Musahar boys; the victims had filed a police report, in part because of her teaching the Musahar about their rights.〔Nolen: 3 December 2011〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「Sudha Varghese」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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