As reports of the abduction of Indian aid worker Judith D’Souza in Kabul came in, the phone lines at the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) here, kept ringing, as people she knew and had worked with called in with a measure of disbelief that melted into shock as they realised that it was indeed the Judith they knew so well.
Some of them still keep in touch with her, and had only heard from her a couple of weeks ago, describing her situation in Kabul, the work she did, and the situation in that country. Ms. D’Souza had worked at MSSRF from 2010 to 2014 in training and capacity-building on gender issues.
“She came to us first from the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD) in 2010 and served as a trainer. Even then she was well-travelled. When she came to MSSRF, Judith had already worked in Bangalore, Bhutan, Nepal, and later went to Kyrgyzstan,” an associate at the research centre said. She handled the gender mainstreaming programme for staff of different projects at MSSRF.
Ms D’Souza graduated in Sociology, Politics and English from St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata, her home town, and then went on to do her Masters in social work at the Nirmala Niketan Institute of Social Work, Mumbai, her friends recalled. Vivid in their memories however, is her passion for the job, fearlessness and eagerness to travel and help people of different regions.
Strong-willed
Sangeetha Rajeesh, who is associated with MSSRF, and a Research Uptake Manager & Communication Specialist at LANSA, says, “The Judith I know is strong-willed and a very firm personality who does not allow emotion to get in the way of work. She was not easily swayed by circumstances, however difficult, and yet she had the unique quality of being able to understand the nuances and complexities of the work she did. I do admire that quality about her, and that's what made her an expert in her field of work — gender empowerment.”
In Kabul, Ms D’Souza was working with the Aga Khan Foundation, as Senior Technical Advisor – Gender. In a mail sent to one of her friends at MSSRF, she said, “Kabul, this year, is not a good place to stay and work [in]. The security situation is getting worse.” In the same mail, she also hints that keeping a low profile would be safer, and says she was trying to do that.
She was earlier involved with the Auroville Water Harvest (AWH) project in the experimental township near Puducherry between 2005 and 2008. Apparently her efforts involved developing an integrated water resource management model through budgeting, human resource management, project implementation, research coordination and collaborating with the government.
‘Pleasant demeanour ’
Colleagues at MSSRF recall with affection that Ms D’Souza was “very pleasant, very friendly and got along famously with people.” One staffer said that was one of the reasons she was so good at what she did — training.
