Village life pivots around women. And – at the same time – they are often pushed to sidelines, quietened, ignored. Here we look at how and why that happens, and champion those working to change it. We would also feature LGBTQ individuals and communities who are all too often overlooked in rural India.
Gender
Salem marriages bane of Malabar girls due to dowry problem
Caught in an unenviable situation where dowry demands are unreasonably high due to increased inflow of money from gulf jobs, girls in rural Malabar are virtually compelled into unequal marriages, often with disturbing consequences
Solapur farmers turn lives around with crop diversification
With recurrent droughts, landowning marginal farmers of Solapur in Maharashtra were forced to work as wage laborers till they switched from cash crops to horticulture and millets for an economic turnaround
Kanas villagers make water safe through simple interventions
Water from ponds and tube wells made safe for consumption through simple and easy to maintain solutions have reduced water-borne diseases in coastal Odisha and has enabled village women to utilize the saved time more productively
Cooking imposes heavy burden on rural women
The simple act of cooking takes on a difficult dimension due to lack of easy access to fuel and water, forcing women in rural India to walk long distances to get them, increasing drudgery and leading to health hazards that call for immediate action
Woman mason rebuilds life after devastation of Cyclone Phailin
Stepping into the exclusive male preserve of masonry, Damayanti Patra of rural Ganjam has shown exemplary determination to overcome personal tragedy and natural disaster to secure a sustainable vocation
Mising weavers intertwine technology with traditional skills
Living in flood-prone areas of Assam with no alternate sustenance options, women of Mising tribal community have upgraded their traditional handloom weaving skills, and have adapted to market needs for a lucrative livelihood
Rural women start bank for economic transformation
Started by women in Chhattisgarh villages from their personal savings, the Sakhi Mahila Bank has not only boosted rural women’s income but also their confidence and economic independence
Anita Devi of Anantpur works magic with mushrooms
From an impoverished village woman to mushroom farmer and successful entrepreneur, Anita Devi has inspired hundreds of women in Nalanda to adopt the profitable venture of mushroom cultivation
Widowed by silicosis, women of Odisha village await justice
Young men, who joined a pyrophillite grinding factory dreaming of a better future, succumbed to silicosis, leaving families struggling for survival and justice