Haryana: Milk-'woman' on a motorbike makes one lakh every month

Panipat: As the nascent rays of sunlight declare dawn in the quaint village of Nagla, Jano sets on her motorcycle laden with milk cans every day without a miss. A milk-'woman', as opposed to the typical Indian stereotype, Jano rides to Panipat to sell around 90 litres of milk every day to make a living.

What started as an attempt to keep the financial spine of her family intact has led to a fully flourishing milk business that the woman single-handedly manages. Over the years, the business has seen exponential growth, resulting in an income of around Rs 1 lakh per month for Jano and her family. "The money is more than we need honestly, but then nothing is permanent. We try to spend nearly as much as we earn," said Jano.

Being a middle-aged Muslim woman in Haryana with a husband and children to look after, doing the kind of job Jano does every day is not without its own hurdles. When asked what made her take up such an unusual job, she said the circumstances had left her no other option. "My husband was crippled in an accident a few years ago. My elder child was just 5 at the time and he had fallen severely ill with no money left for his treatment. I figured there was no point in waiting for my husband to get up and earn money. I decided I'll do what he does every day -- sell milk. I learned to ride the bike by myself and got going. It seems like yesterday that I started. God has been kind, it's going good." The woman took forward her husband's business to heights that the family must have never expected.

"We own around 80 buffaloes. They produce around 90-100 litres of milk every day that I go and sell in the city. The quality of milk we sell is pure, without any mixing. So the demand is constant," Jano said. Followed by a bike ride to Panipat and back home early morning, Jano sets out with her cattle to graze the buffaloes on a vacant Panchayat land on the outskirts of her village.

"The land is huge, around 700 acres. I just leave the buffaloes grazing there. They know when and how to trace me back. It's an everyday affair," the milk-woman said with a hearty smile. Asked if she is not scared of going alone in the ravines, the woman said she has been doing it for so long now that the fear has eventually taken a backseat. "It has been years now that I have been grazing them. I think their company also helps," Jano affirms.

This ordinary-looking woman from a small village in Haryana has shattered glass ceilings in so many ways. Jano inspires many other women like herself around her. Her husband and children are living a rather comfortable life because of the sheer grit and courage she has shown. Jano dared to step out of her comfort zone for her family's sake but unknowingly turned out to be an inspiration with an extraordinary story that will now be read as an inspiration for women across the country.