Kuldip Kaur :The First Woman Chowkidar Of Punjab

Kuldip Kaur is the first woman among 13,500 Chowkidars of Punjab appointed by the government. She ventures out every night breaking gender norms with a torch in one hand and a lathi in other.

Dressed in salwar-kamiz and armed with a khunda (wooden stick), the 55-year-old is the only female chowkidar in her village, Bangiwal and the first woman to be appointed this job in the state of Punjab. She has been working every night since 2008 and making sure her village is safe on her own, without a man and she’s the one doing all the protecting, and I think we can all celebrate that.

She is an inspiration to all the women who are burdened with predetermined gender roles and are denied access to job opportunities in the male-dominated fields simply because they are women.

She starts off her duty every night at 9.30 pm taking rounds around the alley of her village and screams out ‘jagde raho’.

She gets home past midnight around 12.30 or 1 pm. She said her kids were scared for her when she took the job but she never had a second thought. However, seeing their mother bravely wandering the streets and keeping the village safe, they have now become assured. “They now call me a superwoman!” she added.

But it hasn’t been exactly cakewalk for her. She is still reminded of the unconventional role she’s taken up and is mocked for it by the villagers. She said, “At times people even make fun of me when I say Jagde raho as I pass by their homes.” Why? Because the society can’t handle a woman protecting the whole village when she is not even considered strong enough to protect herself. She added that it doesn’t affect her anymore as she has become used to it.

This job is her only source of income other than the widow pension she gets. More than the financial security, it’s the identity the job has given her that she enjoys.

Even as she is suffering from a cataract and has no money for surgery, she is all dedicated towards her job and says can’t compromise with the duty as it is with this chowkidari income that the expenses of her family are taken care of. Meanwhile, amid the pandemic, she has had two jobs. Along with guarding, she also sensitised people to the safety guidelines. “During Covid, keeping vigilance in and around the village became quite stringent and I was asked to ensure that no one steps out during odd hours. So, instead of shouting my pet phrase ‘jagde raho’, I would call out ‘ghar vich hi raho’, she says.

https://thehauterfly.com/lifestyle/the-first-woman-chowkidar-of-punjab-kuldip-kaur-is-smashing-gender-stereotypes-women-are-doing-the-protecting-

Dr. Gurdeep Kaur
Associate Professor
Sri Guru Nanak Dev Khalsa College
University of Delhi