Gramin Vikas Sansthan

Shashi, from village Mangarh, started working as a VHW in 2002, her first job. She is also studying for her Bachelor's degree. She has a five years old daughter and a son, who is five months old. She admits she did not know much about diet and nutrition before she got trained as a health worker. Nor did she understand the importance of immediate breastfeeding.

When her daughter was born five year ago she gave her breast milk after twelve hours. The baby fell ill frequently with fever, diarrhoea or vomiting. By the time her son was born last year, she knew better. She followed all the instructions to the last detail, thus practicing what she preached. She had the child in nursing home. There the nurse herself suggested she give the newborn a little honey in the beginning. But Shashi knew what she had to do. When nobody was looking she quietly gave her newborn son breast milk.

When the nurse come back to ask her what she had given the child, she said: "I gave him my own milk.” “If you do that, that’s fine," said the nurse.

Things have really been fine since then. Touching wood, Shashi said her son did not fall ill like her daughter used to. "It must be magic of mother's milk.”