• “When woman, whom we call abala (weak), become sabala (strong), all those who are helpless will become powerful” a clarification by Gandhiji at All India Women’s Conference (1936) was the hallmark of a nationalist movement that relied on women to serve as its face.
• The vibrancy of the Indian women’s movement is acknowledged worldwide.
• However, its gradual transformation has received much less attention.

Women evolution in India

• Nationalist movement: the salt satyagraha and the Quit India movement.
• Ecofeminist movements: Mrinal Gore and her women protesters carrying rolling pins and protesting against the price rise.
• Examples: Chipko and Nirbhaya, Shaheen Bagh and Sabrimala protests of more recent years.
• Chipko: one of the earliest ecofeminist movements in the world broadcasting pictures of women clinging to trees to protest logging.
• Quiet revolution of the 1970s: It probably did as much to enhance attention to women’s specific needs as street protests. It includes-
• The Self-Employed Women’s Association began to unionize women in the informal sector leading the advocacy for reforms in legal and social protection for women workers;
• Feminist advocacy highlighting sex-selective abortion and discrimination in inheritance patterns led to legal reforms; and
• Women’s formal and informal collectives have worked hard to reform and implement laws against sexual harassment in the workforce and in public spaces.
• 73^rd Amendment to the Constitution: It was passed, reserving one-third of seats in panchayat and leadership positions in local bodies for women.

Impact of these movements

• Grassroots organising for legal and policy reforms.
• State-led organisations for economic empowerment — each have addressed various dimensions of women’s lives.
• Nationalist movement: set the stage for the acceptance of women’s leadership in politics.
• Their very presence created space for women’s increased participation in electoral politics, setting the stage for grass-roots mobilisation.
• Civil society mobilisation around legal and policy reforms directly affecting women’s lives tried hard to remain non-partisan and build a rights-based agenda as a bulwark against persistent patriarchal institutions.
• However, this right-based agenda ultimately sought to reform state policies and legal institutions.

Government programs and its deficiencies

• Mahila Samakhya: It was explicitly designed to mobilise women and sensitise them about their rights.
• Its relatively ineffectiveness in enhancing vocational skills and entrepreneurship
• National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM): Reliance on high-interest loans from moneylenders has declined. In some states, there is a slight increase in incomes (largely men’s wage incomes), often because NRLM participation was layered with MGNREGA.
• However, there is limited evidence of increased incomes due to entrepreneurship or women’s empowerment within the household.

Self-help groups (SHGs) in India

• About 12 million SHGs, consisting of 10-15 members each, are organised under the aegis of government programmes in the Indian.
• The Economic Survey notes that today there are about 1.2 crore SHGs in India, most of which are all-women.
• These SHGs are typically supported and mentored by Community Resource Persons paid by the state.
• Function: mainly as thrift and credit institutions, where members deposit small amounts of savings per month and can borrow in an emergency.

Challenges

• The SHG movement’s potential for enhancing women’s incomes has been underutilised.
• Most of the activities of SHGs are limited to micro-credit.
• Limited evidence of increased incomes due to entrepreneurship or women’s empowerment within the household.
• Sometimes SHGs have been used as a political weapon by ruling governments. For example, the use of SHG women in Kerala during the Sabarimala protests.

The growth of SHGs has brought a large number of women into the public arena. If a strong civil society-led women’s movement continues to thrive, SHG members may be able to draw strength from government programmes that empower them economically and civil society institutions that empower them socially and politically to create a formidable force for India’s development.