I was raised in the Kailali district of the Seti Zone, in the far west of Nepal. Now I am twenty-one years old. I grew up in a big family, with seven brothers and two sisters. Our Tharu community survives on agriculture. Because we have a big family, the land we farm is not enough for us. It is adequate for food but hard for clothing. Everybody must work.
Most of the people in our village work in the fields. They do not have any other opportunities. They are not educated, and they have difficulty getting other jobs. They need education to get out. My family is the most educated.
We brothers forced our parents to send our sisters to school. Everybody should be educated. Boys are not everything. Girls are also something. They also can do things -- they may be more powerful than us if we give them priorities. Most people force girls to work at home. They do not want to send them to school or college.
Read more of Gaj's interview in Speaking Their Peace.