PPT

1. Wise and Otherwise :
Story 20:
Wretched of the Earth
Gokhale Education Society’s
S.M.R.K. B.K. A.K. Mahila Mahavidyalaya, Nasik-5.
Ms. Geetanjali Gitay
Assistant Professor
Dept. of English
CC English (LL)
T.Y.B.Com. Sem V
Unit 4

2. Story 20. Wretched of the Earth

3. • Sudha Murthy
• Veeramma : An Old Woman suffering from leprosy
Summary
• Sudha Murthy narrates an incident regarding people suffering from leprosy here.
• Sudha Murthy says that the moment we think of a person afflicted with leprosy , we think of a
begger or a person who has lost some fingers or toes. People suffering from leprosy are often
ostracized by society. Sudha Murthy states that there are many myths regarding this dreaded
disease. It is contagious, it is hereditary etc. However, not all types of leprosy are contagious and
if proper treatment is taken at an early stage, it can be cured completely leaving behind no signs of
disfigurement. The treatment period is long and requires lot of patience and family support.
• However , people neglect the disease at an early stage and that causes the situation to get worse.
One of the programmes of the organisation with which Sudha Murthy is associated is to help
people suffering from leprosy. Sudha Murthy was working in a remote area where there was a
separate colony for leprosy patients. When she went it was a hot summer and temperatures were
difficult to bear. The scene at the colony was depressing.
Characters

4. • Most of the inmates were clearly disgusted with the disease and their sufferings. They were all
poor and helpless. They required psychological as well as material help. Even soothing words are
necessary for them.
•Sudha Murthy project’s aim was not to show pity or to hand out money. They planned to
rehabilitate patients economically. If they could handle even some limited work and earn their own
livelihood, then they were ready to finance them. That was the best way to make them feel
confident.Acceptance by society and a reasonable measure of economic independence could
change the lives of these people.
•There were many huts in the colony, with a family staying in each hut. In every family, at least one
person was afflicted by the disease. The weather was harsh but it was Sudha Murthy’s duty to go
from hut to hut. The women patients kept telling their difficulties. They could not get jobs even as
housemaids because of the disease. Sudha Murthy saw that youngsters were sleeping even when
it was mid-morning. Children were playing in the dirt. The older people were in a pathetic state.
The ravages of the disease like leprosy and the consequent social ostracism may drive people to
suicide.
Summary (cntd)

5. • One of the hut was with a thatched roof, clay walls and the bare semblance of a bamboo door. A
woman lived there, the oldest in in the colony. Her name was Veeramma. Sudha Murthy called
out to her and asked her to come out. She did not. Sudha Murthy thought that she must be
partially deaf. When no response came, Sudha Murthy pushed the door open and went in.
• There was hardly anything in the hut. Holes in the roof let in some air and light. There were two
three earthen pots and one earthen plate. Three stones made up a stove. There was a torn mat, two
or three onions on the ground and a pot of water but Sudha Murthy could hear the sound of
breathing. She still could not see Veeramma in the hut as she had entered the dark hut from the
bright sunlight outside.
• Sudha Murthy calls out softly and says that she wants to talk with her. Veeramma answers but tells
Sudha Murthy not to come near her. Sudha Murthy could see the frail form of a woman in the
corner of the room, all her grey skin shrunk, no flesh on the body. She was just a skeleton covered
with skin. She was sitting in a corner. She says she had heard Sudha Murthy calling her out but
she didn’t went put as she could not without any clothes. And then Sudha Murthy realised that
Veeramma almost had no clothes. It was a picture of dehumanising poverty even after fifty years
of independence. Sudha Murthy guilty wearing asix-yard saree.
Summary (cntd)

6. • For a minute, Sudha Murthy felt ashamed to talk. Then she sent her driver to get 100 saris to be
given to all the women in the colony. Whether they are rehabilitated or not, their minimum needs
must be met with.
• Sudha Murthy says that those of us who have generous share of God’s blessings must do what we
can to help the poorest of the poor who are wretched through no fault of theirs.
•Sudha Murthy remarks that India does not always mean technology, fashion, films or beauty
contests. The real India is in the dark, neglected interiors of our country. Helpless and miserably
poor people live beyond the reach of any government departments. To serve the country means to
serve such people.
• After that visit to the colony of leprosy patients, Sudha Murthy makes it a point to carry at least
ten saris with her whenever she went for her rounds.
Summary (cntd)

7. Text Content Source :
1 .Wise and Otherwise, Murthy Sudha, Penguine India, New Delhi, Reprint(2006).