Livelihood for 500 Tribal Women in Gujarat

It has been awhile since the last update.

In recent news, the women are working hard to prepare the land for monsoon season. The rain has already begun and much more is expected to come our way!

The growing and selling of organic vegetables was a great success this past month. Making a profit totaling 700 INR in one month, the women have therefore increased their crop. In the last ten days only, the vegetables sold have made a whopping 400 rupees! Their demand is on the rise!

Mahila Panch, the Women's Court, has had wonderful turnout and results in the last two months; the number of successfully resolved cases is constantly increasing. More and more cases of domestic violence are being brought public to the court because of recent achievements. The tribal women have created a unique space amongst their communities where their voices are heard loud and strong.

Lastly, but definitely not least, the women have significantly increased their interest in loans. The Sakhi Sanghatan decided collectively to loan 20,000 INR to a group of marginalized tribal sex workers, ORSAN, for the collection of grain. This money will greatly improve livelihood, and proves the power of sharing between women's groups. The SS is able to provide a helping hand to yet another tribal community of marginalized women. Sharing resources between women has always been at the heart of Vikalp.

SHARING A CASE from Women's Court:

A woman, Shashilaben came with her parents and six year old boy to testify against her husband who drinks, verbally harasses and physically harasses her. She did not want to remain married, claiming that he is a negligent father and husband. Shashilaben requested a divorce from the Mahila Panch.

The husband came with many elders from his community, who all argued for his case. Women from Mahila Panch individually approached the men, who quickly became defensive and began to yell. One, however, agreed with the Panch, mentioning that the boy is out of line in his drinking, so they will indeed be willing to compromise. At one point, the young boy said, “But all men drink, so what is the difference?”

Furthermore, the women of Mahila Panch observed some strange behaviour from the child during the hearing. Initially, the little boy was very friendly, running around actively. However, once his father arrived he quietly hid behind his mother and grandparents, shrinking away from the crowd. The women used this as evidence that the boy must fear his father, proving that the husband indeed acts badly towards both mother and child in their home.

The decision came for a divorce, and now the boy lives with his mother only. She was paid full compensation thanks to the efforts of Mahila Panch.

Please help us in supporting these women's efforts. Their hard work is just beginning - any small amount will help to generate more crop from the upcoming harvest. You can't imagine how far a small donation will go. Thank you again for your enthusiasm!

This past year there was an unfortunate drought in Gujarat. The monsoon season did not bring the expected rains which were needed to yield any substantial produce. Therefore, the women of Tilakwada SS did not take part in any cotton collection. The forecast for the upcoming monsoon season, however, is very promising. Heavy rains are expected and so the women have been busy preparing. They have therefore invested some funds for a very exciting future!

-Successfully released mortgaged land for three women. This allows them to work the land, and profit fully from the crops which are grown. They will no longer have to pay off dues -Purchased manure and distributed it equally among the women who work the land as a part of SS. They did so with no profit and no loss. Therefore, with the coming rains the women will be well prepared to grow the best quality and amount of cotton possible. -The women are continually growing and selling the vegetables which they grow organically with no pesticides. The vegetables are also providing food to the women who grow them in the meantime.

We are very excited for the upcoming monsoon and following harvest. We appreciate all of your ongoing support and remind everyone that each small amount will help these entrepreneurial women tremendously. Thank you again, Vikalp Women's Group

A lot of progress was made with the Tilakwada savings account. Over the past three years, money was invested so that women BPL (Below Poverty Line) could buy back their land around time of Akatri, of harvest (Feb/March). In the first year, 53 people were given 1 acre of land with an 80% return rate of the money. In the second year, 19 people received land, this time with full return rate. In the third year interest was charged, and one individual was able to pay back the money borrowed plus interest. From these results, the women of SS decided to begin an initiative of lending money with interest to the women members of Mangal, from the 24 villages involved in SS. The women from SS will lend money to various women in the villages who are involved in the Mangal. If one women needs money, her friends must first vouch for her and share in the responsibility of paying back the money received, plus 10% interest. This agreement between women will be recorded and so this way the SS has confidence in both full return of funds and profit. Already in three years, their funds have doubled from 1 lakh 50 thousand to 3 lakh. The women of SS expect their profit to significantly increase from this project. In this way, the women of these communities are able to handle the money themselves, preventing the men from misusing it for things like alcohol. This is effectively altering the power dynamics, empowering the women to take a stronger stance. The money saved by women is more effectively used, putting it into investments such as children’s education, purchasing and effectively growing crops.