Click to play videoPatna: A village girl from rural Bihar fought her way to become an entrepreneur at the age of 14. Her extraordinary journey has made her the UNICEF poster girl.
17-year old Anita is called ‘honey bee’ by people in Patatiyasa, a small village of Muzzafarpur district in Bihar, for her unique honey selling business. She started rearing honeybees at the age of 14.
“I wanted to prove if men can do it, so can I or any other girl like me,” says Anita whose fight for independence began at the age of seven.
She had to fight many odds to complete her education. After that she had the challenge to convince her parents that she could handle the business—the honey making business. Those who mocked her then, are now full of praises for her.
"No girl did even step out of our village ever. But Anita has set an example for others,” says neighbour Sunita Devi.
“Initially I and the village people discouraged her. Once she started making profits did we all realise that she was serious about her business plan,” Anita's mother Rekha Devi says.
The poor homely girl began with ‘seed’ money of Rs 5,000, which she invested into buying bee rearing cages and honey extractors. Today she reaps a cool annual profit of Rs1 lakh.
Anita's mother is now proud of her daughter for she makes enough money to support her entire family. “With her business she is able to provide for the education of her brothers and herself. She is looking after the family,” she says.
The queen bee's moment of glory came when she met President Kalam. “It was my biggest dream to meet the President of India. It felt really great,” she says.
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