60-year-old woman carries disabled husband to collectorate, seeks pension and tricycle

A video of 60-year-old Bindubai carrying her paralysed husband, Dayashankar, on her back into the Burhanpur collectorate in Madhya Pradesh went viral on social media on Saturday night. She had gone to ask for a tricycle and a disability pension for her husband.

The video reached Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, who directed that the family receive immediate assistance. According to NDTV, Dayashankar has since then been given a tricycle, and the family has received support for their daughters’ education.

The couple, who lives in Mahajan Colony, had come for a public grievance hearing, where Bindubai met Collector Vivek Kumar. Dayashankar was paralysed nine years ago, and one of his legs was amputated during treatment. He has been unable to walk since, and Bindubai carries him whenever he needs to travel.

She holds a certificate confirming his paralysis. In the video, she says officials had told her she would get nothing.

Her situation is not isolated. Unpaid care at home falls disproportionately on women. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation’s Time Use Survey 2024 found that 34% of women aged six and above took part in unpaid caregiving for household members, on the day surveyed, against 17.9% of men.

Bindubai’s persistence after being told she would get nothing is a form of leadership that rarely gets highlighted.

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Edited by Teja Lele