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Save in Drops Helps Indeed

Muthulakshmi has interest on savings money in her box since childhood, she is member of Mariamman Kalanjiam under Madurai Vattara Kalanjiam. She joined her Kalanjiam 6 years ago. She came from a big family where she has five younger brothers and two sisters with her. Her parents used to give one paisa to every child before going to work every day. All her sibling buying chocolate, but she saved her money in her peel box. Savings leaf bud is blossoms on her mind when she was 5 year old. Once during her teen age years her sister was affected due to illness. Then her parents needed Rs.500/- for meeting her medical expense. They tried to source their needs from all side, but they didn’t get money on time, Muthulakshmi offered her savings to saves her sister’s life. That incident teaches her the essence of savings and she started believing that saving in small value will be of a great assistance at times of need.

Her Beginning in Kalanjiam

Before Joining in Kalanjiam, she is a member of another SHG, where she played a lead role in her SHG. She is not satisfied with the groups policy, where the priority is given for accessing credits and for repaying them. Least importance was given for savings. Through that experience she got aware about the SHG group process. That time Kalanjiam got promoted in her neighborhood, first she didn’t joined the Kalanjiam thinking it as another regular SHG. Later she got clear idea about Kalanjiam. The Kalanjiam policy ie. "Savings is First. Lending is next and Insurance is best" gave her the much sought confidence she has been seeking to save her money. She willingly joined in Marriamman Kalanjiam. Her involvement makes her as a General Body member of her Anuppanadi Cluster.

Interested on special savings:

Her childhood incident makes her interested on savings as a habitual act. Kalanjiam enthused its members to do special saving other than their regular savings to address their planned expenses. She had a savings of Rs.18442/-(279 USD). It gets incremented at Rs.200/-(3 USD) every month. The habit of special savings will help the poor to pre-plan their financial needs and save accordingly, thereby reduce their debt burden. This planned savings help the members to access their own funds at the time of need and help them by getting their savings with interest, it also saves them from the cost of debt. Thus she started doing special savings in her group. Now she is doing a special savings of Rs.200/- other than her saving of Rs.200/- month. Now her special savings is Rs.2548 (39 USD) she spends her special savings like, to her children education, every year in her home she decorating with durbar at saraswathi pooja festival. Every year she gets Rs.1200/- (18 USD) repaid from her special savings for pension. She also educates to her group members about important of special savings, now most of her group members are also started doing special savings and realizes the benefits of special savings. Their group members has saved Rs.18058/-(274 USD) as special savings. As all their members of Kalanjiam have started doing special savings they got an incentive benefits of Rs.15000/- (227 USD) from CODE SoCCS.

Her aim is to make all members of her cluster do special savings as per their needs and requirements. She told the difference between Kalanjiam and other SHG is "Kalanjiam make myself a Saver, other SHG wishes to makes me a Debtor and Savings is not the balance of our expense, but savings is my first expense before other expenses”. And she also wish to have her special savings to be Rs.5000/- (76 USD) within this year. We wish to her aims become a true.

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