Itahari, April 6:

Be it freezing cold, prolonged rainy spells or scorching hot, Sarita Rai, 66, toils from morning till night everyday — washing utensils for people in more than half a dozen houses — all for the sake of one square meal of insipid leftovers. Yet, she sometimes does not get even that much. Often, she goes hungry for three days on end even after working her fingers to the bone.

What’s worse, Sarita is also the sole breadwinner for her young daughter-in-law and her children. Sarita’s son is away in Punjab of India. Since the last eight years he has neither cared to send home money nor bothered to find out what state his family is in.

“Sometimes, I don’t get food even though I wash utensils in five-six houses. I often have to go to bed hungry,” said Sarita, a resident of Inaruwa (Sunsari). She said that she has had the bitter experience of not having food for three days.

Getting up early in the morning, cleaning utensils in five-six houses, and eating leftovers at night is Sarita’s daily routine for the past eight years.

Sarita, along with the whole family, has been eagerly waiting for the return of her son. The family is landless and has to share leftovers that Sarita gleans from the houses where she washes utensils.

Luckily for her, an official has provided her a room in return for her washing his utensils. Sarita said the official treats her kindly. But, others are not so considerate. Some even abuse her when she goes to work for them.

Sarita’s is not an isolated case. Parvati Mandal, who has been earning her livelihood washing utensils in half a dozen houses in Itarahi, suffers just as much as Sarita.

Parvati’s husband is a rickshaw-puller. He earns enough but blows up the money on liquor and returns home sozzled and empty-handed. He also takes the household essentials and sells them off when he doesn’t get enough for his daily tipple, said Parvati. She added that she is treated badly in the houses she washes utensils.

In the rural areas of Itahari and Inaruwa, there are at least two dozen women eking out a miserable living in this manner.