1) A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed!

Sunita Singh is a vibrant and determined woman who leaves no stone unturned when it comes to achieving her goals. Sunita has been a part of NEED since 13 years and currently works here as grievance manager. Her story is an epitome of perseverance, hard work and will power.

Sunita was born and brought up in a conservative family in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh. Her father passed away at a very young age, leaving her mother with the burden of raising seven boys and one girl. Sunita being the youngest and the only girl in the family was showered with utmost love and care. However, her wish of studying further was suppressed by prejudices and the stigma of girl being a liability. Immediately after passing her intermediate education, Sunita was married in a Sultanpur based family. Sunita’s life underwent a topsy-turvy change soon after getting married. Sunita and her husband had to go through the traumas of land abduction and family conflicts, which posed serious problems before them. The couple found it difficult to make the both ends meet. Undergoing a serious financial crisis, Sunita decided to step up and assist her husband in earning a living. Sunita then came across a school, funded by a retired army officer, which was hiring teachers. Despite her minimal educational qualification, Sunita got hired. Situation had just begun to work in her favour when her husband was rendered jobless. Sunita’s meager income could not support the two for a very long time. They decided to shift to Lucknow in the hope of finding better paid jobs.

Lucknow had something big in store for Sunita, of which she was unaware. The first few months were full of misery and suffering for the two until she met Shabnam Praveen, a worker at NEED. As they say, satisfied customers make the best advertisers; Shabnam introduced Sunita to the NEED’s vision of “Putting Poor People Forward”. She came to NEED for the post of a receptionist. Given that Sunita has this innate quality of getting along well with everyone, she got hired after being interviewed. Sunita was assisted by the staff there at NEED and was explained the work mechanism. Soon, Sunita started grasping things and even became proficient in Chikankari embroidery just by merely observing the artisans over there. The NEED family appreciated her efforts and entrusted her with the responsibility of a team leader at Zarchi. Over time, Sunita became well versed with other tasks as well and played a vital in performing daily chores. One game-changing incident took place when NEED was looking for a grievance manager. Sunita, being a receptionist, had been attending to the clients’ complaints and queries for long. She never thought her empathetic, friendly and out-spoken nature would ever be rewarded like this. So, upon the request of a number of clients, Sunita was appointed as the grievance manager. She feels extremely obliged and says, “With such minimal qualifications, I never imagined in the wildest of my dreams that I could ever reach such heights. I am thankful to NEED for putting faith in me and recognizing my potential.”

Sunita’s story is no less than rags to riches. Her story supplements the fact that determination and the will power to learn and become better paves the way to success, despite all the odds.

2)Driver turned Tech-Savvy

Kuwar Bahadur Singh, resident of a small village in Sultanpur, plays an active role in the day-to-day functioning of NEED MFI. Having completed his high school, Kuwar Singh started to work as a driver thereafter, learning everything about car parts and manufacturing. Kuwar was blessed with the ability of grasping things quickly. So, with the passage of time, Kuwar got appointed as a supervisor in Wipe India Automotive Pvt. Ltd, a leading manufacturer of wiper blades. However, following the trend of urbanization and unhappy with his unsatisfactory income, he decided to settle in the city of Lucknow with his wife. Finding a suitable job and surviving in a big city like Lucknow was not less than dodging a bullet for Kuwar. Kuwar started to work as a truck driver in his early days at Lucknow. After a couple of years, Kuwar came to know of NEED through the recommendation of his wife.

Kuwar became a part of NEED eleven years ago. Starting off as a driver, Kuwar has come a long way becoming equipped with computer-based knowledge. During his tenure at NEED, Kuwar actively assumed the role of a driver, electrician, and stationary manager and learnt the important role of management. Overwhelmed with curiosity and in an urge to learn, Kuwar says, “I have always been fascinated by the way machines work. I am thankful to NEED for providing me such exposure that today; I am capable of operating a computer all by myself.” Kuwar Singh is a prime example of a multi-tasker and is always found with a machine in his hands, exhibiting his engineering skills.