WOMEN

Until a year ago, Selvi*, a 38-year-old from Tirunelveli, worked as a salesperson in a small textile shop in Chennai. "One of the male supervisors, who is related to the shop owner, would verbally abuse the women staff and misbehave with them. The instances of such abusive behaviour kept increasing. One day, I spoke up and told him it wasn't fair for him to act that way. He became furious and started verbally abusing me. It escalated into an ugly confrontation, and I was thrown out of my job," says Selvi. As the sole breadwinner of her family, Selvi struggled…

A report by the three-member Justice Hema Committee, established by the Kerala government in 2017 to examine the issues faced by women in Malayalam cinema, was released on August 19th. The report has sparked discussions about the sexual harassment experienced by women not only in the film industry but also in various workplaces. When the allegations of multiple instances of sexual harassment and abuse in Chennai’s famed Kalakshetra broke in 2023, we looked into the functioning of the Internal Complaints Committees (ICC) in Chennai's educational institutions. The roles and responsibilities of ICC apply to all organisations that have 10 or…

As a very young working professional at my first job, I was once required to take a long leave to be care-giver to two family members. A much older male colleague, knowing my situation, started calling me every day, making me feel highly uncomfortable. Each time the landline rang, my heart would thud in my chest, and my legs would get wobbly. I had no one to turn to, to ask for help or advice. Finally, gathering all the courage I could muster, and summoning my sternest voice, I told him I did not want to talk to him. In my…

One of the most important goals under NEP 2020  is to achieve universal foundational literacy and numeracy in primary schools by the year 2025. The Ministry of Education started the National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (NIPUN) Bharat in July 2021. The goal is to enable children to attain basic foundational skills by the time they reach Class III. The Ministry aims to achieve this by 2026-27. Read more: Students detained in spare classroom: Who pays when school fees become unaffordable? Pratham's Leader Mother for NIPUN Maharashtra programme Pratham, an NGO established in 1995, has been working…

Armed with their mobile phones, notebooks and pens, a group of enthusiastic women walk along the lanes of a housing board colony early in the morning. They go door-to-door asking residents pertinent questions about safety, quality of basic amenities and housing infrastructure among other things. While they are generally received warmly, they occasionally encounter hostility, particularly from men. These women, who are community workers, conduct safety audits facilitated by the Information and Resource Centre for Deprived and Urban Communities (IRCDUC), a voluntary organisation focussed on housing for the poor. As residents of the resettlement site where the audit is taking…

After 45-year-old Shanthi S was evicted from her home in Suryanagar and moved to the resettlement site in Perumbakkam, one of her biggest concerns was making ends meet after losing her job. A single parent with two children, Shanthi worked as a domestic help in and around Kotturpuram before being resettled. Travelling back to work was not an option as she couldn't leave her kids home alone all day. The loss of livelihood has been a significant issue for residents of resettlement sites like Shanthi since 2017. This problem is considered a primary cause of the rising incidents of domestic…

Anita Devi lives in Nand Nagri, a densely populated area in north east Delhi, conspicuous by its narrow lanes, lack of open spaces and congested atmosphere. About 20 odd kilometres further north stands the huge Bhalswa landfill, where Shaira Bano earns her living as a waste picker, the ‘koode ka pahad’ (mountain of trash) looming large and leaving an imprint on her daily life, as on the lives of so many other women. Anita and Shaira — two women, separated by the distinct urban landscapes they inhabit and the circumstances of their lives, but nevertheless united by one thing: bearing…

In recent years, the resettlement sites in Chennai have become areas of concern due to many infrastructure and safety challenges affecting their residents. People in resettlement sites like Perumbakkam, Semmencherry, Kannagi Nagar, and other places grapple with problems of inadequate water supply, deteriorating housing quality, insufficient police presence, lack of streetlights and so on. In Part 2 of the two-part series on women-led safety audits of resettlement sites, we look at the findings of the recent audits and recommend improvements and policy changes.         Here are some of the key findings of the safety and infrastructure audits in the resettlement…

Safety is a fundamental necessity for all, particularly for women, children, young people, elders, persons with disabilities, gender-diverse groups, and other vulnerable sections of society. This basic need fosters a sense of inclusion and enables active participation in family, community, and societal activities. Enhanced safety promotes mobility, physical and mental wellness, employability and financial independence. It supports autonomy in decision-making, including decisions related to reproductive health. It also encourages increased social engagement and participation in governance. Improved safety in personal, professional, and community spaces works as a catalyst for empowerment and reduces systemic gender disparities. In Part 1 of a…

As Priya* woke up at 5:30 am, she took the final sip of her coffee and was about to begin her morning prayers when she received a call from an unknown number. A few years ago, she wouldn't have bothered to answer. But now, as a community worker in a resettlement site, calls from unfamiliar numbers have become a routine part of her daily life. A woman could be heard crying at the other end. Priya asked her to calm down and speak clearly. The woman informed her that her husband was beating her up and had locked her inside…