National Seminar on Women in Panchayat Raj held on 27-29th April 1995 at Bangalore
Item
- Title
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National Seminar on
Women in Panchayat Raj
held on 27-29th April 1995 at Bangalore - extracted text
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National Seminar on
Women in Panchayat Raj
held on 27-29th April 1995 at Bangalore
Women in Panchayat Raj :
Perspectives from Different States
Uma Resource Centre
Institute of Social Studies Trust
No.42, Sree Shyla, 15th Cross,
4th Temple Street, Malleswaram
BANGALORE 560 003
National Seminar on
Women in Panchayat Raj
held on 27-29th April 1995 at Bangalore
Women in Panchayat Raj :
Perspectives from Different States
Uma Resource Centre
Institute of Social Studies Trust
No.42, Sree Shyla, 15th Cross,
4th Temple Street, Malleswaram
BANGALORE S60 003
Contents
Page Nos.
Introduction
1
Keynote Address by Dr.Vina Mazumdar
10- 13
Concept, of Women's Empowerment - A Framework
By Srilatha Batliwala
14- 30
Occasional Paper Series No. 1: Challenge And Opportunity:
A Study Of Women Panchayat Representatives
In Karnataka
31 - 65
Occasional Paper Series No.2: Women In Panchayat Raj:
The Case Of Rajasthan
66 - 129
Occasional Paper Series No.3: Women In Decision Making:
A Study Of Gram Panchayats In Maharashtra
130-165
Occasional Paper Series No.4:
Panchayats
166-207
Himachali Women And Gram
Occasional Paper Series No.5: Political Empowerment Of Women
In A Unique Social Context: A Study In Kerala
208-246
Occasional Paper Series No.6: Women In Panchayat Raj:
A Study In Wesf Bengal
247-298
Occasional Paper Series No.7: Women And Panchayats: The
Tamil Nadu Experience
299-306
Occasional Paper Series No.8: Women In Panchayat Raj
In Orissa: A Study From The Field
307-338
Valedictory Address by Mr.LC.Jain
339-341
List of Participants
342-348
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9
WOMEN REPRESENTATIVES IN DIFFERENT STATES:
A STUDY IN CONTRAST
Introduction
This report presents research studies on the situation of women Panchayat members, carried
out in eight states, under the aegis of the LIMA project. They were carried out over a period
of about four months and were presented at a national seminar organised by ISST in April
1995 at Bangalore. While ISST has been engaged in studying the situation in Karnataka,
groups in seven states were approached to undertake field based studies on a representative
sample of women members. Most of the groups approached combine considerable field
experience with a deep understanding of gender issues and as such the studies reflect not
only the brief time span over which they have been conducted but also the rich insights
gathered over several years of effort in the field.
State
Organisation
Represented By
West Bengal
SUTRA
Stree Aadhar Kendra
Institute for SocioEconomic Development
Development Dialogue
Tamil Nadu
Pondicherry Science Forum
Subash Mendapurkar
Neelam Gorhe
Balaji Pandey,
Kamala Mohapatra
Abhijit Dasgupta
Ruma Banerjee
Sudha Sundararaman
Himachal
Pradesh
Maharashtra
Orissa
Individual/Groups
Rajasthan-Informal Network of Activists, Kavita Srivastav.
Kerala-Radha, Institute of Management in Government.
Contrasts and Commonalities Across States
By end 1994, Panchayat elections had been held in 17 states. A few states had held their
elections before the passage of the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments. However,
seats had been reserved for women, a reasonable number (30%) in Orissa and Maharashtra,
1
token reservation for women in Himachal Pradesh (one out of a five member Gram Panchayat,
two out of ten). The fact remained that thousands of women had been elected to the
Panchayats. There were, however, fascinating variations between states. Not only in the
social contexts but in the political scenarios faced by women representatives. We knew for
instance, that in backward, tradition-bound Rajasthan, women had come out in large numbers
to vote, to canvass for other women, to contest in elections. Most of the activists in one NGO
(SWRC in Tilonia) had quit their regular jobs to contest in the elections. But, in equally
tradition-bound Himachal Pradesh, with sparsely populated villages scattered over a
predominantly hilly terrain, ‘consensus’ was the operative word. A contest between two
women candidates brought dishonour to the village, claimed the men whose favourite pastime
seemed to be choosing acceptable women candidates for their Panchayats. In West Bengal,
where there is a close relationship between party and Panchayat, how were the women (for
whom 30% of the seats had been reserved in the May 1993 Panchayat polls) faring? Was
the leftist pre-occupation with class inequalities subsuming those based on gender? Kerala,
the most advanced state in the country when you look at standard indicators for women s
development; Kerala, with its history of matrilinearity and matrilocality and a people obsessed
with politics, provided valuable insights into the possible future for women representatives.
What next, after women representatives become articulate and aware as they are in Kerala?
And harking back to the past, we looked at Tamil Nadu which is still dodging holding the
Panchayat elections. Did women remember the Panchayats at all, did they see themselves
participating actively in them? At ISST, we have been studying the doyen of women’s
reservation - Karnataka - for the past few years and juxtaposed our learning here with what
we heard about other states. Maharashtra was an entirely different cup of tea with its history
of a vibrant women’s movement and progressive thinking. Orissa, again, is backward; the
condition of women there is nothing to write home about. And yet it was the first state to hold
elections that brought about 28,068 women in the Panchayats in 1992. At the time of printing
this report, panchayats in Orissa have been dissolved by the new state legislature under the
flimsiest of pretexts.1
From this varied "panchayatscape" in different parts of the country, UMA sought to consolidate
a body of knowledge and opinion which wouid be the springboard for further action to
strengthen women representatives. The twin objectives of the Resource Centre of network
ing and providing a forum for interaction between different groups were also fulfilled.
Approaches to Studying Elected Women Representatives
While a set of guidelines was suggested to the groups, the details of approach and
methodology were left to each group. It would have been ideal if a larger number of states
could have been covered. That was not possible in the time available. Fortunately, however,
1.
"Orissa to Dissolve All Panchayats Bodies", Deccan Herald (Bangalore), 31 July,
1995
2
the eight chosen gave a fairly good regional representation. Different approaches to the study
have highlighted a gamut of experiences. For example, the Rajasthan paper is mainly about
the elections to the Panchayats from the woman’s point of view. People’s narratives have
been taken into account, case studies of candidates were documented by local workers who
had intimate knowledge of the candidates, their families and all the nuances of the contest.
The area of study covers eleven districts. Interviews have also been conducted of three
mass-based organisations, one literacy network, six voluntary agencies and one government
programme in these districts. The Tamil Nadu study acts as a control experiment, highlighting
awareness levels about Panchayats in the absence of elections and presents effective ways
of eliciting free and frank opinions from women about development issues. The study is based
on a series of workshops conducted in three districts of Tamil Nadu, focussed group interviews
as well as through the use of questionnaires.
The Maharashtra study of a state with a vibrant women’s movement, suggests strategies and
tactics to overcome the obstacles to women’s participation. It also highlights the problems
that arise when there are constant countervailing pressures to resist disparities and injustice
based on gender. The Himachal paper is an indepth study not only about the practical
problems faced by elected women representatives, but also presents a critique of the
Himachal Pradesh Panchayat Raj Act. The Karnataka study emphasises the crucial role
played by supportive networks for the elected women representatives. It has attempted a
preliminary analysis of the Karnataka Panchayat Raj Act looking for errors of omission and
commission that exacerbate the difficulties of elected women representatives. It is hoped
that this will lead to a debate on the gender sensitivity of the various state acts. While experts
are busy examining the various state acts from other angles - legal, elected representative bureaucracy relationship, devolution of power to local bodies and so on, little attention has
been focussed this far on giving the Acts a feminist perspective. This is a critical exercise if
meaningful participation of women members is to be ensured and if the Panchayat bodies
are to set trends towards value-based politics.
The Kerala study is more in the nature of a backgrounder and has been presented along with
the results of a field study in and around Trivandrum by the UMA Research Team. The
discussions at the seminar on the Kerala study led to a serious debate on the extent to which
women could actually become "practitioners" of political power and decision-making. The
standard development indicators (literacy, education, sex ratio, job access etc.) are far more
favourable to women in Kerala than in the rest of the country. Women had considerable
socio-cultural power in Kerala until a few decades ago because of the unique system of
matrilinearity and matrilocality which operated, however, under peculiar and regressive
caste-based traditions. But the system did succeed in placing Kerala women in a relative
position of advantage in comparison with other Indian women. The practices of matrilinearity
and matrilocality declined from the middle of the century due to various legislations as well
as due to pressures of modern living, a shift from joint to nuclear families and so on. Power
was vested in Kerala women in a different guise, as political power, when the District Council
Act reserved 20% of the seats for women. The 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments
3
ensure women’s access to political power. In general, women in Kerala are more aware,
articulate and literate than women in other parts of the country. Yet they continue to be
dominated and deprived in the political sphere. These aspects have been discussed in
Section I of the UM A Occasional Paper Series No.5 What next, when women representatives
become articulate and aware?
The West Bengal and Orissa papers are also supported by field based studies conducted by
partnering NGOs. The Orissa survey covered elected women representatives from five
districts - Cuttack (coastal Orissa), Phulbani (southernTribal), Angul (central Orissa), Bolangir
(western Orissa) and Keonjhar (northern Orissa). In West Bengal, three districts were chosen
- Dinajpur, Bhirbum and Murshidabad - and the experiences of fifty women members
recorded.
Issues for Debate and Agendas for Action
This section presents the issues debated during the three days of the national seminar and
the agendas for action suggested by the participants. The occasional papers which describe
the research papers from the different states as well as the rich discussions on them are
presented with this report.
Perceptions of Women's Participation: Give them a small wedge and they
will push open the door...
If the expectation is that women will play the role of responsible, well-informed, principled and
articulate public figures, it is asking for too much too soon. In the first place, hardly any
politician in the country - male or female - would answer to this description. All the studies
reveal that many women are proxy candidates, they are not able to make their presence felt
at meetings, that they are ill informed about procedures and functions of the Panchayats.
With the odds stacked against them, this is hardly surprising. What is surprising is the fact
that any form of facilitation be it shortterm (as in the trainings given by SUTRA, Stree Aadhar
Kendra, ISST and other programmes including government sponsored programmes) or long
term (as in the case of Mahila Samakhya, the WDP orthe NLM) women undergo a remarkable
and rapid transformation and make spirited attempts to assert themselves. This has been
reiterated in several of the papers. Give them a small wedge and they will push open the
door. They can be little doubt that participation in politics has added a new dimension to their
lives showing them a way out of isolation and powerlessness.
The processes unleashed by the 73rd and 74th Amendments have given the much needed
legitimacy in the public mind, to women as politicians. This is brought home with great clarity
in the description of the Rajasthan election processes when women came out in public in
4
large numbers as voters, supporters and candidates.2,3 In Himachal the political roles of
women elicit disapproval from the community which prefers 'consensus' while choosing
women representatives and from family where young men protest at their mother's participa
tion.4 This countervailing pressure Is itself a recognition that women in politics have come to
stay. The study in Karnataka also reveals how the fact of women members going to meetings
is being slowly accepted by the communities.5 It is critical that a whole new set of yardsticks
for women’s participation be developed. Such yardsticks must be based on a just and
humane approach that takes into account the hurdles against her effective participation. The
debate on the issue of women’s participation must be informed by a set of yardsticks
developed through a humane and just approach that takes into account the hurdles against
her effective participation.
Enabling women's effective participation by providing facilities
o
In the course of her work as people's representative, a woman has to incur expenses which
she can ill-afford. These are emphasised in the Himachal paper - forgoing her daily wage to
attend meetings, incurring expenditure on trips to meet officials and so on. In the Maharashtra
study, a possible solution is offered. Once a month on an appointed day, a Gram Kacheri at
which all officials are present in the villages enables women to put up their cases. Many of
the papers describe how women members are not being paid sitting fees.
A set of demands including regular and compulsory payment of sitting fees, holding of Gram
Kacheri in every village at regular intervals, transport and childcare facilities for women
members, and related issues need to be taken up for immediate action.
The Gram Sabha and Women Representatives
This is a clause in the Panchayat Acts which is observed more by the breach. Acts do little
to enforce the holding of well attended Gram Sabhas. Efforts are described in the Himachal
study to persuade women to attend the Gram Sabha in numbers. The Orissa paper describes
how the Orissa Act stipulates that the quorum for the Gram Sabha should be a tenth of all
voters but an adjourned meeting, does not require any quorum. What is even more farcical
is that the written submission of a third of the members is required to convene the Gram
Sabha. Facilitation programmes for women members should emphasise the need for women
to attend the Gram Sabha in large numbers.
2.
DMA Occasional Paper No. 2: Rajasthan, Bangalore, ISST, 1995.
3.
UMA PRACHAR, July, 1995.
4.
UMA Occasional Paper Series No.4: Himachal Pradesh, ISST, Bangalore, 1995.
5.
UMA Occasional Paper No. 1: Karnataka, ISST, Bangalore, 1995.
5
Documentation And Dissemination Of Information, Role Of The Media
Recording and quantitating psychological and sociological changes have always been difficult
propositions. Documenting the experiences of women representatives provides an exciting
challenge in this direction. These experiences should be widely disseminated to ensure
national attention. The Rajasthan study has used people’s narratives as documentation. This
group of activists have been regularly providing the Press with accounts of people’s struggles.
While articles and features on Panchayat Raj abound in the national and local media
(particularly newspapers) the issue of women’s participation has not received suffi
cient media attention. This can become a rewarding agenda for action for activist,
research and media groups. The Karnataka paper touches upon the need for alternatives
to current media forms and pre-occupations which take little or.no cognisance of events from
the perspective of the poor and the disadvantages. Agendas for action can include the
mapping of commonalities and variations in the experiences of women representatives across
the states. The experiences of elected women representatives are powerful tools for
strengthening them. They should also be provided access to information on the Act, rules,
government and executive orders on Panchayat functioning.
The Role Of Political Parties In Panchayat Raj
.)
There can be no doubt that the Panchayat Raj Institutions are and should be political bodies.
Women are poorly represented in party hierarchies and the resistance of party structures to
women has been well studied.6,7
Ostensibly, elections to the Gram Panchayat in some states are partyless as in Himachal
Pradesh and Karnataka. However, parties are a covert and powerful force making the claim
for partyless elections somewhat farcical. Measures should be taken for declaring
elections to Panchayat Raj Institutions at all levels as party based and at least a third
of all party positions should be reserved for women.
This will also help build up resistance to corrupt party politics by village communities since
such a measure will bring politics to every doorstep.
In Karnataka, the Taluk and Zilla elections were finally held only when the Assembly elections
brought a different party to power in the state. However in Maharashtra, the prospects for a
liberal and open-minded approach to gender issues have dimmed with the advent of the Shiv
Sena - BJP dominated government.
6.
Susheela Kaushik, Women and Panchayat Raj, New Delhi: Har-Anand, 1993
Hazel D’Lima, Women in Local Government: A Study of Maharashtra, New Delhi:
Concept Publishing, 1983
6
Again, in Kerala and West Bengal, dominated by the left parties, little space is available for
women. In these states, the party is omnipresent, its diktats being transmitted down a fairly
rigid framework to the village level. This framework constricts the freedom of the Panchayats
which are then far more likely to be implementors of government schemes than viable
institutions of local self governance. However, if gender issues are adopted as a party plank,
there is the possibility that they will then permeate most levels of policy and action.
The studies reveal women’s aversion to dirty politics which disrupts harmony in the villages
(Himachal Pradesh). They also reiterate a warning about the ease with which women can
be co- opted into a criminalised political set-up. The Maharashtra paper presents a
promising agenda for action in its description of how a two warring party factions were
persuaded to take up a common platform through the formation of a women’s san*
ghatana.
The Caste Factor In Politics
The caste factor makes its presence felt through the traditional ‘jati’ or caste Panchayats. In
one sense, the commonality in nomenclature between these traditional bodies and the brand
new institutions of self governance has given rise to considerable confusion in public
perception. For instance, one women adhyaksha in Karnataka when asked what she would
do if there was a problem in her village, said she would go to the (caste) Panchayat. In one
incident in Rajasthan, a young man was hanged by the ‘jati’ Panchayat for getting involved
with an ‘upper caste’ woman. Incidents like this one abound. Public awareness needs to
be created about the lack of legitimacy of the caste Panchayats and stringent action
should be taken against those that take law into their own hands. Events like this one
also underscore the need for legitimately elected Nyaya Panchayats. Failing this, the social
justice committee of the Panchayat must be strengthened. Most State Acts have the proviso
of at least one woman member in this committee. Not only should women be part of all
standing committees, all women members should serve, in addition, in the social justice
committee if it is to have any relevance at all.
On the positive side, the very fact of a large number of women entering politics point to the
possibilities of breaking down these age-old barriers. Women from all castes have perforce
to work on the Panchayats although some of them may live in segregated colonies outside
the main village (DMA Occasional Paper Series No.1: Karnataka). The Rajasthan Panchayat
elections saw cases of SC women canvassing for votes in "upper caste" houses. However,
in Orissa which has a high tribal population, “upper caste" women seem to be preferred as
candidates.
On Training Programmes For Women Members
In a sense, the political legitimacy that women representatives have acquired is underscored
by the plethora of training programmes for them. The need for programmes designed from
7
the woman's point of view in which she plays the pivotal role is emphasised in the Karnataka
paper which describes initiatives taken by government and the voluntary sector. One
innovative methodology favourable in terms of both reach and resources is the GRAMSAT
programme. For the scale of training required, this is an idea worth pursuing. While some
felt that the’arena of training should be shifted from the national institutes, others felt that it
would be better to form coalitions with these institutions since they have the resources and
the reach. NGOs doing gender related work have a major contribution to make here. Another
important agenda for action is to develop checklists and indicators for the gender efficacy of
training programmes.
Looking At Panchayat Acts With Gender Lenses On
At the Legal Literacy session in the UMA MELA, a pithy comment was made "If the brinjal is
itself worm-infested, any dish cooked with it is bound to be rotten"! Similarly if the Panchayat
Acts are themselves gender-blind, there can be little hope for the meaningful participation of
women. The Karnataka paper attempts a preliminary analysis along these lines, in terms of
nomenclature and language, ensuring that women are sufficiently represented in any quorum
for any procedure mentioned in the Act, that they are represented in all standing committees.
The Himachal paper also presents a critique of the Himachal Pradesh Panchayat Raj Act.
Debates on the weaknesses of the State acts, both general and gender specific should be
generated. Basic studies with a gender perspective of not only the Acts but also rules,
government orders and all follow-up legislation on Panchayat Raj need to be taken up. The
functioning and appointments to related bodies like the State Election Commission and the
Finance Commission should be investigated, understood and publicised.
Linking Elected Women Representatives To Support Systems Of Women's
Collectives
The experiences from various states have highlighted the strengthening role that is played
by women’s collectives. They also sound warnings about vested interests trying to cut off
this source of support as in the case of the antagonism between the Mahila Mandals and the
Panchayats in Himachal Pradesh and the deliberate exclusion of women from the collectives
in electoral politics by village powerbrokers. However, women’s sanghatanas (Maharashtra),
NGOs and activist groups (Rajasthan), Mahila Samakhya Sanghas and the National Literacy
Mission (Karnataka) have played positive roles vis-a-vis the elected women representatives.
Providing information links between elected women representatives and the women’s move
ment and to women at large is an important area of work. The importance of building up
networks at district, state and national level cannot be emphasised enough. Groups that are
successful at district and state levels feel powerless at the national level in the absence of
such support.
8
It was also felt that there were too many committees at the village level that drew attention
and energy away from the Panchayats. The possibility of women entering such bodies
including the male dominated ‘jati’ Panchayats needs to be investigated.
Socio-Political Change: Markers And Milestones
The study of women representatives in the various states provide fascinating glimpses into
a process of socio-political change unleashed by women’s new political roles. Locating these
changes in the context of women's empowerment leads to valuable insights as to directions
for future action. From this point of view, the case of Kerala would appear the most
challenging. The elected women representatives in Kerala are literate, aware and articulate.
A sizeable number have independent economic means.8 Political awareness is generally
high among people, caste and class disparities impinge far less in day-to-day transactions
than in other states. And yet a political role for a woman is not respected as legitimate activity.
Women are still dominated, subjected to verbal abuse, character assassination and various
other tactics to inhibit their pubic roles. While we set about assuming, somewhat naively, that
literacy and awareness are the magic ingredients, the case of Kerala must give us pause.
There are more hurdles to cross. Himachal and Rajasthan are both societies shackled by
patriarchal traditions. And yet one wants women candidates only through consensus while
in the other electoral processes have given women’s lives a whole new dimension. The
re-emergence of fundamentalist forces in Maharashtra can turn the clock back by several
decades in a state with a vibrant history of women’s struggles. In West Bengal, the Panchayat
Raj bodies have since 1978 developed along lines that leave the newly elected women
representatives little space for action.
On the flip side, women are now in a position of strength not only because of their newly
acquired political legitimacy but also because of the growing strength and reach of the
women’s movement.
Old battlelines have blurred and new ones have been drawn, earlier goals have been reached
while new lodestars appear on the horizon to spur women forward. The struggle goes on.
8. UMA Occasional Paper No. 5: Kerala, ISST, Bangalore, 1995
9
This is a text of the Keynote Address delivered by
Mazumdar
Dr. Vina
Locating women’s political parties in Panchayats in the context of the Indian
women’s movement, Vina Mazumdar said in her keynote address...
I will speak a few words, just to refresh people’s memories, because I And,
institutional memory is becoming a thing of the past, particularly within the ranks
of the bureaucracy today. And that institutional memory sometimes even extends
to the memory of their constitutional obligations. Now we do not want the same
thing to happen to our movement. We must not lose our own memory. Because
some 10 years bjick Upendra Bakshi warned us at some meeting that if you do not
learn how to deal with the memory of politics, the politics of memory will defeat you
ultimately. So we have to deal with the politics of memory by trying to preserve our
own memory. So 1 would just take you back to a bit of history, what is at the back
of this idea, which many people find very fantastic- of 1 /3rd reservation lor women
in the Panchayati Raj bodies. Those of you who have had time to look at the Report
of the Committee on the Status of Women in India, will remember that there was a
history at the time of Independence- there was a debate as to whether there should
be reservation for women in all the elected bodies, State Assemblies and Parliament.
And it was the women's movement of that time which turned it down. We fought for
equality and we do not want reservation. This was an issue on which the Committee
itself was very exercised, because a lot of political workers down the line from
different states had spoken to the Committee about the obstacles, the resistances
they faced in getting into the representative system. And many of them did plead
for some system of reservation. Within the Committee there was a tremendous
diversity of opinion, but the majority stood by the original principle of the women’s
movement...that is, no reservations. We fought for equality and equality is what we
want. In rural areas, there was already an existing system in most states. There
was a provision for at least one seat being reserved, so if no woman was elected then
somebody used to be nominated. In a few states, there were two reserved seats; but
when we consulted all the experts on Panchayati Raj at that point of time ( people
who had worked on community development programmes, as well as on Panchayati
Raj ), they all said unanimously that rural society has not understood that
Constitution of India guarantees equal rights to women.
So the Committee decided to make an original recommendation saying that the
provision for one of the seats reserved for women in Panchayat to be filled by
nomination was mere tokenism. Instead, we should consider creation of statutory
women’s Panchayats with an integral connection with the Gram Panchayats, so that
they are not considered threats to the Gram Panchayat system. The elected
President or Secretary of the Statutory Panchayats, women’s Panchayat should
come and sit on the general Panchayat and in that way we could at least ensure
10
that something about the voice of women In rural areas would be heard. Because
these women would be genuine representatives of the women’s groups in the rura
areas. Well, that was a recommendation which was promptly shelved.
The second point in the last 20 years history when this issue came up again for
discussion was when the National Perspective Plan for Women was taken up by the
Department of Women and Child Development and several national women s
organisations found many sections of it somewhat dubious and it asked for a
national debate. One such debate was organised by the organisations themselves
in 1988 The NPP had advocated down the line 30% reservation, and, the magic
formula’has stayed in people’s memory. One-third reservation for women in all
elected bodies, from Gram Panchayats and Municipalities, right upto Parliament is
still talked about. In the debate organised by the women’s organisations the
reservation formula at the Parliament and the State Assemblies level was outrigh
rejected. I want to keep before you its continuity. There is something within t e
Indian women’s movement which keeps them constantly turning down special
privileges and reservations. But the same group said "we want reservation at the
Panchayat level, because this is where the existing system is just not functional .
This is what is important. I will come to basic reasons a little later.
That is where we left it in 1988 - outright rejection of reservation in Parliament and
State Assemblies but recommendation of elected officials to the local bodies. !n the
original draft of the NPP, and in its initial years, these seats were to have been filled
by nomination. This was completely rejected by the organisations and they demand
that "we want reservations in Panchayats, but to be filled only by election and not
by nomination". And from there we come to the 73rd Amendment. The gap is not
very long, just about 2 years. What I want to do now, is to try and explain to the
non participants or non members of the women’s movement, those "irrational
choices" made by women rejecting reservation in some bodies but wanting it. It is
something nobody really understands. I want to Interpret this. I am trying to
highlight for you the changing context of Indian politics within which this dialogue
and debate has been going on. The Committee on the Status of Women in India
advocated election of women to the Panchayats, and not nomination of women to
these reserved seats. The existing reserved seats in Panchayats, to be filled by the
elected office bearers of the women’s Panchayat, would be characteristic of that
time for the most important thing was that there was no women’s movement. When
the report was being written we did not find the evidence of any movement in the
country. Thee was a veiy strong belief in the members of the Committee that the
Indian state still accepts the Constitutional mandate.
Even if we were being naive, we did believe very strongly that whatever we were
analysing, finding out and placing before the nation would get a hearing and would
get some remedial action. Thus, it was under this basic understanding of the
11
political situation that what the Committee sought was to break through one. of the
major problems of invisibility and marginalisation of a large number of women, and
amongst that majority are the rural women who form the outright majority. This
was the first objective.
The second aim was to reach the message of Constitutional rights to the rural society
which had remained ignorant of women's rights. To that I have added my own
observations, ignorant of children’s rights.
The context changed rapidly within six months of the submission of the report. The
emergency was declared which shook our erstwhile belief in the character of the
Indian state. It was fortunately re-inforced by the elections of 1977, when we went
into euphoria. But by the late 80s our faith was again shaken. The Muslim Women’s
Act had been passed 2 years earlier. There were other reasons why we could no
longer think that the people running the government at the top were aware of what
these Constitutional obligations were. So, it is in this changed context and our
shaken faith in the credibility of the government that the other important change
took place - the rebirth of the women's movement. We could now dream from a
point of strength. In 1974, we were dreaming from a point of absolute weakness.
The only point of strength was the scrap of paper called the "Constitution of the
Indian Republic". We had nothing else, we could only quote Mahatma Gandhi at
all occasions. But by 1988, we had a much greater strength - the women’s
movement was very much alive. Secondly, in rural women we had discovered
strength, an enormous range of knowledge, and their capacity to generate popular
will when they were organised. Their new perspectives on management of natural
environment and their ability to resolve social tensions were well recorded. In
addition, credit was given to women’s studies and there was a deepened under
standing of what they call the "structures of patriarchy". Thirdly, we definitely
wanted to arrest the centralising trends of the Indian political system. These were
the primary aims, given the context of the political situation in the late eighties, that
the women’s movement had to grapple with. In the present context, I think using
some phrases coined by many other commentators and analysts would do - "India
under siege", "the weakening of the Indian state", "the onslaught of the globalisa
tion". Globalisation is not a new phenomena. Globalisation is something with which
we have been familiar for the past 150 years. You can correct me if I am wrong.
What globalisation did to women everyone knows. The present pattern of globalisa
tion has certain new features. It is an unchecked, unregulated, uncontrolled kind
of globalisation, in which no one was pushing and everybody is talking about it as
if it is irreversible and irresistible. But we know very well that there have been these
kinds of trends earlier. It is the absence of regulations, the absence of accountability
of the bodies which seem to be pushing this irreversible and irresistible force and
this is the dangerous element. The increased strength of fundamentalism of many
issues ( not just religious or cultural or ethnic fundamentalism, but also economic
12
t
fundamentalism), where no debate is permitted, and democratic fundamentalism,
where again no debate is permitted, is what is dangerous. All these movements, by
and large, have demonstrated a trend to be hostile. This is not just the case in India,
but it is the same in different parts of the world. But the grassroot base of the
women’s movement has widened since the eighties. And the grassroot base seems
to be generating much more energy. Some of us thought we had pioneered the
movement. There are others who complain of fatigue, but the fatigue disappears
the moment you get down to the grassroots. And this widening base also widens
the possibility of strengthening women’s participation, making it effective more than
ever before. Why has everybody been getting worked up and agitated about women
in Panchayatl Raj? Let us not pull our punches. Let us be bold. The task of
defending the Indian democracy has descended on the women’s movement. It has
acquired the task of strengthening Indian democracy and its foundations. It has
taken on the task of defending the Indian Constitution as it is meant to be. And
thirdly, it has the task of asserting effective accountability. In today’s world
accountability is a disappearing phenomenon. But we can’t have that. If we want
to have a democracy, accountability has to be enforced. And, who is going to enforce
it? For 20 years we have been arguing about top-down development. Why do we
keep thinking about political accountability? It does not work, it has never worked.
The more centralised is the State, the more weaker is the State. That is why our
national pride has taken such a beating - because the Indian state has not been
able to defend its priorities before the global onslaught. I think changing from
polemics to hard headed pragmatism and the job of enforcing accountability is really
feasible at the grassroot level. So when we hear the case studies from the states,
we will get some examples how, unlettered but active, rural women can enforce
accountability. Thank you.
«
13
Concept of Women’s Empowerment - A Framework
This is the text of Ms. Srilatha Batliwala's presentation at the ISST Seminar.
Ms. Srilatha Batliwala is a Fellow at the National Institute of Advanced
Studies, Bangalore.
This is a framework - it is not my framework - that we evolved working through
discussions all over South Asia, with women’s groups and NGO’s, working with a
stated goal of women’s empowerment with a large group of women’s activists getting
together and tiying to define women’s empowerment by understanding ‘power’ itself
(power being the key operative phrase, see Diagram 1). To put it very simply it is
clear that the source of power in society really comes from access, but more
importantly control over resources of various kinds. In the traditional Marxist
analysis we talk about land and labour and capital and we have modified this
somewhat. In today’s world the sources of power really come from the control of
material resources which, of course, include land, labour, human resources, control
of labour and intellectual resources which have in today’s environment become a
very, important source of power; because, the control of information and access to
knowledge accrues a tremendous amount of power. Now, based on differential level
of access and control over resources and power it gives to two different segments of
society, you have emerging a power structure. And of course, it is extremely
important to stress that power is dynamic, it is not static. It is not monolithic, it is
inter-relational. Now what is a key factor in understanding power structures is to
understand how they sustain and perpetuate themselves, how they get the par
ticipation and the support of every member of the society and of every person within
that structure and, how they get their acceptance and participation in it.
Initially when a new power structure is coming into position, the use of force or the
stress of force plays a very important role in gaining the acceptance of particularly
the lowest rung in that hierarchy. Thereafter, however, a much more potent weapon
is generated and used which we call ideology. An ideology becomes a much more
powerful instrument through which every member of the society is co-opted to
participate and play their role in that power structure. Now we see this operating
in the form of the various fundamentalist ideologies that are emerging (as Vina
Mazumdar pointed out about the rise of economic fundamentalism and religious
fundamentalism). We see this also operating in co-option of the oppressed caste and
incidents of oppression through the use of ideology. We see this operating in the
case of gender from gender discrimination to the ideology of patriarchy. Power
structure also has institutions and sub-structures like the State through which they
sustain their hold over the entire society. And some of the key institutions through
which, for instance, the ideology is transferred, to ensure the subsequent genera14
(
tions acceptance of these existing power structure, Is the family. Since the family
is the primary unit of socialisation and patriarchal ideologies are transferred by the
mother to the children, this goes very far in helping us understand the phenomenon
of women being women’s worst enemies. And women themselves are being co-opted
into their oppression through the ideology of their oppression which is being
perpetuated by religion, education, media and various other economic, political and
legal structures.
Now if this is an understanding of power, it is by no means a comprehensive one
because this was really developed to simplify issues rather than mystify them. Now
if this is power, what is empowerment and even more specifically what is women's
empowerment?
To put it very simply, if we want to simplify it, then it feels as if the goal of women’s
empowerment or what women’s empowerment is really all about, is first and
foremost, to challenge and transform the Ideology of patriarchy, which women and
men have internalised, which the whole society operates on, one of its dominant
Ideological strain. Another will be to enable women or any of the disadvantaged
powerless groups to gain access and control over material and knowledge resources.
And the reason why we did not include human resources here is because there is
still a debate going on whether we want women’s empowerment to simply result in
women gaining the same kind of power over men’s labour, for instance, and
reproducing an exploitative and egalitarian relationship. So suffice to say it involves
training, access and control over those material and knowledge resources which
have hitherto been denied to them.
Finally, the longest task, in a sense, is to transform the very institutions and
structures of gender subordination which perpetuate gender subordination and
inequality. This could be paraphrased to read, transform information and structures
which perpetuate various forms of subordination and inequality based on ethnicity,
race, caste, class and religion. Now if these are the goals of empowerment, let us
run through quickly what are some of the processes that it entails. It is clear that
empowerment cannot be sustained unless it becomes a collective process. So
mobilisation of women and of oppressed people into collectives, which can then
become a political force, is a veiy important characteristic of the empowerment
process. Empowerment processes are generally, though not always, externally
induced for the simple reason that there is a trigger required to set the process in
motion and since one of its key aspects is challenging the dominant ideology which
has been internalised, you require, very often a trigger from outside. Now the trigger
can be something as unintentional as a total literacy campaign, it can be the
reservation in Panchayat Raj or devolution of powers to Panchayat Raj. It must
enable the people involved in that process to access a whole range of new ideas,
knowledge and information and new ways of analysing their existing realities. The
15
process of empowerment would enable women to re-examine their lives, recognise
the sources and structures of power of their own subordination and initiate action
to challenge the existing ideologies as well as structures and institutions. Empower
ment is not a linear process. There are backward and forward gains and setbacks.
It tends to go in a spiral where greater levels of consciousness lead to more concerted
actions, and greater gains, in terms of resources Impacting on institutions and
structures. Very importantly, empowerment must as a process aim to generate new
notions and new understandings of power, and of the use of power, so that one does
not end up replicating old models and old abuses of power. And Importantly, it
must lead to a kind of globalising consciousness arid awareness where local issues
and their linkages with global issues become clearer to people. This is very
important perhaps for NGO’s because we tend to delimit knowledge inputs to very
utilitarian and very localised ones, because the assumption is that, this is very
useful to people. They assume that they do not want to know about a war in Iraq
or in Rwanda. But in fact, that means a kind of control of knowledge, of information
and of analysis, which then an elite group arrogates to itself. Very importantly, as
Vina Mazumdar has been stressing for the last two days, empowerment is a political
process fundamentally, and, it seeks to transform struggles into a political force by
organising people and emerging as a mass movement.
Now, what are some of the transformations that we see in the process of empower
ment and its key characteristics (See Diagram 2 on "Transformations in gender
constructions through empowerment" ). You move from positions of silence to
gaining a voice. This is the language in which women themselves often express it.
When you say what has this process done to you, they say, "we know now we have
a voice, we shall raise it".
The transformations that come about are many - from uneducated, unquestioning
individuals, to becoming questioning individuals, who value their own knowledge
and learn; from accepting the gender division of labour to questioning the gender
division of labour, through individual and collective struggles; from having restricted
mobility and the right to move about only if escorted by men, to gaining much greater
autonomy and fierce mobility, for example, attending meetings, going to the district
offices without the escort of men; from being socialisation agents who perpetuate
the dominant ideology in the way they raise their sons and daughters, to becoming
agents of change in the manner in which their children are socialised; from being
economically oppressed and exploited, to being at least organised; from being
politically passive to active in the political process; from having limited worldview
and circumscribed understanding of issues, to a global view and understanding of
issues.
16
I said that the process of empowerment is not a linear process. This was a model
which a group of Filipinos tried to develop, to explain how the proccess goes. (See
Diagram 3: "Empowerment: The Proccess")
You move from the individual or the family unit (in which women too are participat
ing in collectives and groups, to an expanding sense of identity within the locality,
village or neighbourhood. From there the local collectives and groups federate and
organise at larger levels, maybe at district or province level and that is when they
start becoming a real mass movement, with political repurcusslons at larger levels,
and thereafter, to the national level and then into impacting at the international
level. Now at the same time that women are attempting this movement outward,
there is a counter force that is operating that is pushing them back - pushing them
back to the individual and household clearly indicated in all the incidents that came
up in the state case studies - "sit at home", "don’t go to the meeting", "why are you
bothered about these issues" etc. The attempt to push them back to village level
collectives so that they are not a threat is a very natural part of the process and has
to be resisted.
As regards the experiences of the women in the Panchayat (See Diagram 4: "Breaking
Barriers"),the women are moving out of the family and the household into the Gram
Panchayat and in some cases the Zilla Panchayats. This could perhaps lead to a
larger number of women becoming part of state and national legislatures. And then
they will represent their own issues and become a part of the global and international
decision-making process. And the counter-force will try to restrict them and push
them back.
In the case of the Panchayat Raj Institutions themselves what is the empowering
potential that they offer if we take this as the working framework of empowerment?
What do the PRl’s represent in this process? Now in the first model you saw that
the political structures are one of the important ways in which a given dominant
ideology perpetuates itself. So obviously women gaining access in large numbers
to political structures and becoming a part of political decision making process is a
key step towards empowerment. And perhaps that is the most Important potential
that Panchayat Raj Institutions provide by giving women access to political struc
tures and political powers. I am using the word access ctnd not control because
right now it is access.
Now to transform access to greater levels of control within the system is one of the
key challenges. Secondly, this process is providing a possibility for women to gain
access to new material and knowledge resources. If Gram Panchayats have decision
making power over certain development resources in the region then for the first
time there is a possibility for women to play a role in the way the resources are
allocated.
17
They also gain the possibility of getting information, getting an understanding of a
whole new range of issues, even though there is this counter force which is trying
to prevent them from doing so, which has come out very clearly in the state case
studies, for instance, in the case of accounts.
It also provides an entiy into a non-traditional space, in the sense of legitimising
women’s entiy into non-traditional spaces. And it has also helped to break this
private-public dichotomy. It is also redefining what is private and what is public.
It has created a possibility where an issue of alcoholism related wife beating becomes
public issue not a private one.
Finally, it has created a possibility for erosion of traditional gender roles and
caste-class roles and hierarchy through the facility of reservation. Now based on
the presentation of the last two days these are the key barriers that all of you have
identified, to women’s participation in Panchayat Raj Institutions. The gender
division of labour in households continued to restrict the time women can give and
also places an additional burden on them. One could almost postulate that the
burden on women is becoming a quadruple burden from what used to be a triple
burden. If these women who are now overburdened fail, you will be proving that
women are not capable of being able political participants. But there is no shift or
easing of any of the other burdens they cany. And incidentally we need to address
this not only at the household level, we also need to look at it by saying even basic
services are not being provided. Sb when you look at the time allocations for fuel
gathering, water fetching, getting fodder, cooking and child care, these are the areas
the policy has completely failed to address. We have to think beyond this simplistic
reallocation of duties and the policies should provide these basic needs to people.
We have seen the economic status of women and the opportunity cost of their
participation is the key factor. Subash Mendapurkar has brought this up by telling
us how much it costs to be a member, to be Pradhan and the vulnerability of women
in this context. Their isolation is obvious especially in situations where it finally
works out that there are one or two women members among 10 or 12 Panchayat
members, thus hindering their participation. Their low levels of mobility are mainly
because their economic limitations, their lack of requisite information and skills (if
at all) and because of the lack of access to information and skills which they need.
Neelam Gorhe talked about "negotiating skills" and the need to make them more
effective. Then there is a whole problem of internalised self image, lack of self
esteem, confidence, internalised stereotype which works from within as a barrier.
Most important perhaps is the lack of support systems which further isolate women
and further reduce her self image, restrict her mobility and so on. So these seem
to be the key barriers to women’s empowerment that have emerged from your case
studies. Where does this leave us in terms of the issues that have emerged?
18
ISSUES
1.
Subhash Mendapurkar raised the fundamental issue of what is self governance
and these institutions are to be seen as political or developmental bodies.
2.
Are there linkages between these institutions and other bodies, movements
and existing associations in the district, for instance, what is the relationship
between a Mahila Mandal and a Gram Panchayat?
3.
The whole question of resources and whether or not development issues really
comes under the control of the PRIs.
4.
The caste, community and gender politics that operates
5.
The role of political parties
6.
The whole question of co-option - co-option of oppressed group representatives
into the dominant group agenda. The co-option of women into the patriarchal
agendas.
7.
The limitations of the Act itself which many of you have critiqued in your papers,
which need to be addressed in terms of legal strategies
8.
A whole range of technical and administrative issues - functioning of the
secretaries, finances and so on
9.
Question of Gram Sabha and the question that arises in the context of the
Gram Sabha being a key filler in ensuring the democratic nature of these
institutions.
10. Finally, the role of NGO’s vis-a-vis these institutions - the questionable pattern
of the role, possibilities, the limits, what we should be doing and what we should
not be doing.
11. Perhaps closely connected to this is the whole question of training. It is
pertinent to see what is being seen as the training need and what is the
perspective within which training is being done. Is it necessary at all, is there
a need for more guidance and information or is this training messing with their
minds (especially those kinds of training where you are trying to reconstruct
personalities and so on). The content and methodology of training is very
important.
I have worked out in detail the steps or the sequence in the empowerment process.
This is a whole framework worked out from experiences. It is not a theoretical
framework developed by looking at some theories. But apart from this, we have also
19
tried to work out the contents of educational and transformational process- that is,
training process, which need to be addressed when we say we are dealing with
empowerment.
STEPS IN THE EMPOWERMENT PROCESS
*
Identify the poorest and most oppressed women of a selected geo-political
region, urban or rural.
♦
Train activists/change agents to be aware of the structures and sources of
power and the role of gender; and equip them with the skills to mobilize, learn
from and raise the consciousness of such women.
*
The change agents help women create a separate ‘time and space’ for
themselves as disempowered women, rather than as beneficiaries or
recipients of welfare or development programs; these forums should enable
women to evolve from an aggregate of individuals into a cohesive collective.
♦
Facilitate women to collectively question their situation and develop
critical thinking; look at themselves and their environment in new ways;
develop a positive self-image and recognise their strengths, including existing
knowledge and skills; and explode sexist myths and misconceptions.
♦
Women gain access to new kinds of information and knowledge, as well as
a critical understanding of the structures of power;
*
Formation of strong collectives through which individual and collective
problems are identified and prioritised;
*
Learning to function effectively as a collective, including collective decision
making, action, critical reflection, accountability; •
*
Confronting oppressive attitudes and practices within and outside the home
and family, changing attitudes and practices within themselves, their families
and communities - including socialisation of their own sons and daughters;
♦
Collective actions/struggles for change, developing new strategies and
methods, including forming strategic alliances with other groups of exploited
and oppressed people;
*
Acquire empowering skills - Eg: vocational, managerial, literacy and
numeracy, basic data collection skills for conducting their own surveys, etc. which build the autonomy and power of poor women.
20
♦
Access resources and public schemes/services independently, demanding
accountability, and lobby for changes in laws, schemes and programs which
are inaccessible or inappropriate;
Negotiate with public institutions and systems (banks, government depart
ments, etc.) independently;
Set-up and collectively manage alternative services and programs when
ever necessary;
Build federations of women’s collectives at local, regional, national and
global levels, through which poor women can continue to challenge power
structures and. further empower themselves for the well-being of society as a
whole.
THE EDUCATIONAL CONTENT OF WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT
Societal Analysis: analysis of institutions through which dominant ideologies are
transmitted and reinforced including the family, religion, and media; existing social
hierarchy and inequalities by caste, class, religion, region (urban and rural), country
and world; social, economic and political structures which perpetuate exploitation
and oppression.
Gender Analysis: patriarchy, the role of institutions (especially family) and power
structures in social construction of gender; how gender is mediated through class,
caste, religion, region, etc.; postition and situation of women within these; role of
socialisation in perpetuating gender discrimination; feminism and the origin, history
and Impact of women’s movements locally, nationally, and globally.
Political Awareness/Education: systems of governance, political structures, their
role and functions, the role of the poor in political processes, past and current
political movements, their ideologies and strategies; analysis of various ideologies
and movements from a gender perspective; women’s participation in political
structures/movements (e.g., women’s role in liberation struggles).
Legal Literacy: human rights, women’s rights, rights of the child,
democracy/democratic rights; awareness of legal rights and laws affecting women
- including laws regulating marriage, divorce, inheritance, rape, sexual harassment,
violence against women, dowry, land and forest laws, labor laws, etc.; rights, duties,
and functioning of judiciary and police, how to seek legal redress, legal aid facilities,
etc.
Health, Reproductive Rights and Sexuality: structural analysis of ill-health,
causes of women’s low health status, ‘common diseases’ (cause, treatment and
21
prevention), ‘immunisation’, women-specific health problems, child health, nutri
tion awareness; reproduction, contraception, analysis of family planning programs
from a gender perspective; reproductive health problems and reproductive rights of
women; women’s sexuality, sexual relations, and control over their bodies.
Economic Issues: awareness of economic environment, systems, and structures;
women’s existing skills, occupations and economic situation; needed changes
including women’s credit and savings schemes, avenues for self-employment,
vocational training and skill-upgrading, alternate markets, marketing skills, bar
gaining and negotiation, economic struggles (for minimum wages, higher prices).
Environmental Education: natural resources and eco-systems, water cycle,
deforestation and its impact, soil degradation (including salination), air and water
pollution and their health hazards; environmental regeneration strategies including
social forestry, alternative energy sources and technologies (smokeless stoves,
bio-gas, etc.), water and soil management, alternative agricultural techniques, etc.
Development Education: prevailing concepts of development, critiques of these,
existing development resources, how they are distributed, where they are available,
how to access them, how to lobby for more appropriate programs.
Adult Literacy and Non-Formal Education for Girls: literacy, numeracy, and
post-literacy for women and men, non-formal schools for girls who cannot attend
formal school.
22
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GOALS OF WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT:
CHALLENGE PATRIARCHAL IDEOLOGY
*
TRANSFORM INSTITUTIONS AND STRUCTURES OF GENDER
SUBORDINATION AND INEQUALITY
ENABLE WOMEN TO GAIN ACCESS AND CONTROL OVER
MATERIAL AND KNOWLEDGE RESOURCES?
r
a
4
27
f
SOME IMPORTANT FEATURES OF THE EMPOWERMENT PROCESS
♦
•
I he empowerment process must mobilize women into collectives, breaking
individual isolation and creating a united forum through which women can
challenge their subordination - raising women’s consciousness of the ideology
which legitimizes male domination and understand how it perpetuates their
oppression.
♦
empowerment is externally induced by forces working with an altered
consciousness - external change agents
♦
enable women to access a new body of ideas, knowledge, and information .which
changes their consciousness and self-image and encourages action...a dynamic
educational process.
*
impacts at many levels by enabling women re-examine their lives critically,
recognize the structures and sources of power and subordination, discover their
strengths, alter their self-image, access new kinds of information and knowledge,
acquire new skills, and initiate action aimed at challenging existing ideology and
gaining greater control over resources of various kinds.
*
empowerment is a spiral, changing consciousness, identifying areas/issues for
change, planning strategies, acting for change, and analyzing action and
a
28
<
outcomes, which leads in turn to higher levels of tonsciousncss and well-honed
and executed strategics.
♦
generate new notions of power, and experiment with new ways of exercising
power.
*
lead women - and the ‘new men’ - to address global concerns and issues - the
cnviionment, war and militarism, human rights, violence and conflicts between
ethnic groups, races, religions, etc.
♦
becomes a_pplitical force i.e., an organized mass movement which challenges
and tiansforms existing power structures. The process of empowerment should
ultimately lead to the formation of mass organizations of poor women, at
regional, national, and international levels.
♦
maintains a. supra-political stance to prevent the co-option and dilution of the
empowerment process by pervasive patriarchal forces.
(
«
a
29
WIIH HER MEN?
LOSSES:
♦
CANNOT CONTROL WOMEN’S LABOUR, INCOME, SEXUALITY,
REPRODUCTION AND MOBILITY
*
CANNOT ABDICATE RESPONSIBILITY FOR HOUSEWORK AND
CHILD CARE (CHANGES IN GENDER DIVISION OF LABOUR)
*
CANNOT VIOLATE/ABUSE WOMEN WITH IMPUNITY
ERADICATION OF BIGAMY, POLYGAMY AND OTHER ANTI
WOMEN PRACTICES
*
NO GREATER RIGHTS TO INHERITANCE, FAMILY ASSETS, ETC.
GAINS:
*
STRENGTH AND REINFORCEMENT FROM THE OTHER HALF OF
THE HUMAN RACE IN SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC STRUGGLES
*
WOMEN AS EQUAL PARTNERS - NOT SUBORDINATES
*
SHARING OF WORK AND RESPONSIBILITIES
♦
RELEASE FROM PSYCHOLOGICAL BURDEN OF OPPRESSOR’S
ROLE
*
LIBERATION FROM GENDER STEREOTYPING
*
NEW POSSIBILITIES FOR LIVING AND WORKING
30
E
»
Resource Centre
Occasional Taper Series 9(p.l
Challenge and Opportunity:
A Study of Women Panchayat Representatives
in Karnataka
Prepared by
UMA Resource Centre
e
e
UMA Resource Centre
Institute of Social Studies Trust
"Shreeshyla", No. 42, 4th Temple Street,
15th Cross, Malleswaram, Bangalore - 560 003.
1995
Acknowledgements
We are grateful to Dr.K.S.Krishnaswamy, Advisor, ISST for his valuable guidance
and encouragement and to Srilatha Batliwala, Anita Gurumurthy and B.K.Anita of
the WOPRA Unit at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) for helpful
discussions during the preparation of the questionnaire.
The field studies for this paper were carried out by M.Mundgod, Manimakalai Raja,
Sourabha Gowda and K.R.Sreevidya. Malini Venkatadri assisted in the preparation
of the questionnaire and data analysis. The study was co-ordinated by Revathi
Narayanan. Valuable inputs for the section on "Discrimination Against Women in
the Karnataka Panchayat Raj Act 1993" were provided by Sanjay Bavikatte and
Arvind Narain, students at the National Law School of India University, Bangalore.
We thank the participants of the Seminar on ‘Women in Panchayat Raj: Perspectives
from Different States’, April 1995 for their rich and varied contributions to the
discussions.
UMA RESOURCE CENTRE
0
e
Table of Contents
Page Nos.
Section 1
1
Introduction
1.1
Women In Karnataka : A Brief Overview
1.2
Political Participation of Women in Karnataka
1.3
About this Study
[31-37]
31-34
34-36
36-37
37
Section 2
Field Study in Bijapur and Tumkur Districts
[38-50]
2.1
Design of the Study
2.2
Description of Sample Studied
2.2.1
Caste and Class
2.2.11
Age and Literacy Levels
2.3
How do These Women Perceive Themselves and Each Other
in The Context of Being Panchayat Raj Representatives?
43-44
2.3.i
Exposure to Media and Information.
44-45
2.3.11
Gender Relations and Family Dynamics
2.3.111 Finances of the Panchayat, Relationship with Officials
2.3.iv Centrally Sponsored Schemes
2.3.V
The Gram Sabha
2.4
Leadership of The Panchayat
2.4.i
Influences of The External Enabling Mechanisms
38-39
39-40
40
40-43
G
45
46
46-47
47
48
48-50
Section 3
Discrimination Against Women in the Karnataka
Panchayat Raj Act 1993
[54-60]
Section 4
Training Initiatives in Karnataka
4.1
The GRAMSAT Programme
4.2
Training by the Voluntary Sector
[51-53]
56
56-60
Section 5
Conclusion
[61-64]
5.1
Role of Party Politics
63
5.2
Caste / Class
63
5.3
Indirect but Important Issues
63
5.4
Movements for Social Change
63
5.5
Giving a Feminist Perspective to the Panchayat Raj Act
64
Section 1
Challenge and Opportunity:
A Study of Women Panchayat Representatives in Karnataka
1.
Introduction
The 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments have created political space for
women by providing that a third of the seats in local bodies all over the country be
reserved for them. This presents women with unprecedented opportunities for
political participation and decision-making. It also provides a unique opportunity
to those committed to the empowerment of women to record and study a fascinating
process of social change that is inevitable in the new circumstances mentioned here.
Political participation is conceptualised as "public membership of citizens ‘sharing’
justice and orienting their action toward a "public or a common good". As an activity
it is associated with maintaining relationships in the community, fostering co-opera
tion among individuals and groups and encouraging the settlement of disputes
through public communication (1). This activity must be carried out in a democratic
framework. Democratic participation necessitates confidence in one’s ability, a
feeling of self esteem and efficacy. These traits develop further through participation
(2). Collective and meaningful political activity is guided by the exercise of informed
choice by the majority of citizens to achieve the common weak It also argues for
inclusive and non- confrontationist political processes based on consensus and
understanding. It is this vision of politics that needs to be reiterated time and again
in the present vitiated and corrupt political atmosphere in the country. It is hoped
that the inclusion of a large number of women in political decision making processes
will herald a return to an era of "clean" politics.
The participation of women in large numbers in political processes is a major step
towards inclusive politics, an attempt to draw the marginalised and disadvantaged
into decision-making processes, guided by the need to make optimal use of human
resources for the common good. A vibrant society and body politic must be guided
by the principle of developing human potential to the fullest extent possible, by
creating systems that are accountable to the people who constantly demand
accountability from public representatives. Studies on women’s empowerment
♦ Numbers in parentheses indicate references listed on page 47.
** All paragraphs in italics are highlights of the discussion that followed the
presentation of the paper.
31
♦
show that a strong indicator of women’s rising consciousness expresses itself in
direct
foSns. such as standing for (local body) elections demanding
accountability from elected representatives and government officials (3).
Debate and action on women and politics need to be guided by the principle: of a
mutually beneficial relationship between the two. In other words, Jus . a*> th
participation of women is good for political processes, so too is participation
beneficial to women. However, in the absence of appropriate political role models^
the dangers of co-optation of women, as first time politicians, into a corrupt system
need to be borne in mind. Trends to such co- optation need to be identified and
resisted.
The 73rd and 74th Amendments represent a bold step in the right direction The
picture, however, is not altogether a rosy one. Despite the provisions mandated by
the Constitutional Amendments, the principles of local self governance have been
considerably distorted in the formulation of the Karnataka Panchayat Act 1993 both
in content as well as in process. Characterised by overemphasis on the role of
bureaucrats, by a blurring of functions between the three tiers - Gram, Taluk and
Zllla Panchayats, and several other lacunae, the Act does not exactly inspir
confidence as to the State government’s intentions. These aspects have been
commented on in several excellent articles (4,5,6). Since 1990, Panchayat Raj hi
Karnataka would appear to be the plaything of politicians and political parties in
the State. However, with the advent of the Janata Dal government in the state and
their professed commitment to Panchayat Raj, changes for the better are in the
offing. The long delayed Panchayat elections have been conducted smoothly in t e
state (Tables 1 and 2 show the results of the Zilla and Taluk polls). Gram Panchayat
elections on a non-party basis were conducted in December 1993. Tables 3a and
3b give the outcome of the Gram Panchayat polls. Further, since the same party is
in a majority, in the state legislature as well as in the Panchayat bodies, there can
be no conflict of Interests that would vitiate Panchayat Raj processes in the state.
The state government has further demonstrated its commitment by appointing a
high level expert committee to examine controversial portions of the Act and suggest
measures to make it fufiy reflective of genuine local self governance. The report of
the Committee is awaited. The State Finance Commission has been set up. The
Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, Sri.M.P.Prakash, has in a recent
interview to a national daily (Times of India, 15.4.1995) admitted that the taxation
scope of the new local bodies is very limited and said that the government should
see that more funds should be devolved to them. The 1995 ordinance to the
Karnataka Panchayat Raj has removed certain anomalies in the reservation for SC
and ST sections. An earlier stipulation of a minimum of 15% for SC and 3% for ST
irrespective of their population in a particular area, had led to about 1072 Gram
Panchayat seats remaining vacant. The ordinance also stipulates reservation for
32
backward classes In two categories A and B. Within each category a third of the
seats is reserved for women.
All three tiers of local governance are now in place. However the Gram Panchayats
that were elected in December 1993 will finish their term about 15 months before
the Taluk and Zilla Panchayats to which elections have taken place as late as March
1995. The Gram Panchayats have not had the opportunity to function efficiently
in the absence of the two upper tiers. It would be desirable if the term of the Gram
Panchayats is extended to synchronise with the term of the Taluk and Zilla
Panchayat. If not, there is a danger that, in effect, the five year term of the Karnataka
Panchayats will be truncated to a three and a half year term.
Professor Gulati: I don't know why we should worry about the lack of synchronisation
between the term of the Gram Panchayats and the Taluk and Zilla Panchayats. The Gram
Panchayats should be autonomous and whatever provisions that make them so should be
strengthened. After all, what happens if one level is superseded?
Table 1: Zilla Panchayat seats reserved for Women
Total No. of Zilla Panchayats-20
Category
SC
ST
BC(a)
BC(b)
GEN
Total
Total seats
Women
165
63
47
22
243
89
63
19
401
142
919
335
Adhyakshini*
Upadhyakshini+
2
2
3
3
7
7
2
2
*
SC - Kolar, Gulbarga
BC(a) - Dakshina Kannada & Kodagu
GEN - Shimoga, Bellary, Chickmagalur
+
SC - Mysore, Bangalore Rural
BC(a) - Hassan, Bidar
GEN - Tumkur, Uttara Kannada, Raichur
33
e
Table 2: Taluk Panchayat seats reserved for women
€
No. of Taluk Panchayats - 175
SC
Category
ST
Total
GEN
BC(b)
BC(a)
1
Total seats
Women
Adhyakshini
Upadhyakshini+
601
261
11
11
169
104
3
3
3340
1343
59
59
1453
537
26
26
223
52
4
4
894
389
15
15
Table 3a: Gram Panchayat seats of elected candidates
No. of Gram Panchayats - 5640
Category
SC
ST
BC
GEN
Men
Women
10318
7221
1585
5293
15771
10504
16679
11055
Table 3b: No. of Gram Panchayat seats as on 18/11/1994
Total
Men
Women
1.1
Total
Filled
Vacant
80627
45322
35305
78426
44353
34073
2201
969
1232
Women in Karnataka: A Brief Overview
Karnataka gets its name from ‘Karunadu’ meaning lofty land - much of Karnataka
is a high plateau. It is situated on the western edge of the Deccan Plateau and is
bordered by Maharashtra and Goa in the north, Andhra Pradesh in the east and
Tamil Nadu and Kerala in the south. The west of Karnataka opens out into the
Arabian Sea. The two important river systems of this state are the Krishna and its
tributaries in the north, and the Cauvery and its tributaries in the south.
A glance into the rich historical past of Karnataka would throw light on the status
of women then and the reasons for their status now.
The Mauryas -
Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’ makes no mention of women.
34
The Satavahanas -
A very patriarchal society.
The Kadambas
Though women did not enjoy total freedom, they were not
exploited.
The Gangas
Sati was widely practised and the birth of a son was
important.
The Chalukyas
Women were given access to education, but prostitution
was practised and courtesans were honoured for their
accomplishments.
The Rashtrakutas-
Women were granted the right to inherit property of the
husband.
The Chalukyas
Queens not only ruled independently but also fought bat
tles independently. Courtesans flourished in their profes
sions.
The Kalachuris
They brought with them the system of child marriage,
popularised Sati and totally ignored women’s education.
Socio-religious reform movements
Basavanna was the only socio-religious reformer who
taught equality between men and women.
The Vijayanagar Kings Perpetrated the social malpractices of their predecessors.
Klttur Rani Chennamma
spoke for the women in her times.
The Wodeyars -
Women led a rather protected life, though prostitution
flourished.
The Dewans
Expanded female education but the public were not
motivated enough.
Through all the rulers and a few Queens one can see that the history of women in
Karnataka has been an eventful one.
35
In 1923, women were granted the right to vote in Municipal Elections but women’s
participation in social life was taboo. This continued right up till Independence
where very few women took up jobs such as teaching and nursing but did not pursue
it as a career. There are profiles of women who have made remarkable progress not
only in social, economical and political life but in the field of Art and Literature as
well. Yet these women do not represent the general status of majority of the women.
A few socio-economic indicators have been chosen to assess the actual status of the
common women.
Sex Ratio: The sex ratio of the state is 961 - better than the All India ratio of 929.
Two districts have positive sex ratios of 1051 (Dakshina Kannada) and 1013
(Hassan) - 1991 census.
Literacy: Despite the introduction of the Compulsory Primary Education Act in
1961, the literacy rates are alarmingly low. The female literacy rate is 44.37% and
male literacy rate is 67.25% (1991 census). Among women, the urban literacy rate
is 65.74% and the rural literacy rate is 34.76%.
Education: Dropout rates are high among girls and grow higher up the education
ladder.
Work Participation: There has been a marginal increase in female work participa
tion both in urban and rural Karnataka, since the 1981 census. Tumkur has the
highest proportion of workers. Among female workers, 49.06% are agricultural
labourers, 26.01% cultivators, 21.92% are engaged in other work and 3.01% in
household industry.
Marriage: A very important institution, it is arranged both in rural and urban areas
with a few exceptions. Lot of bargain takes place at the time of marriage. Dowry is
almost a must in most parts of the state. Child marriage is punishable under law
with the female marriage age fixed at 18, but in practice, child marriages are
customary in practice in several districts.
Prostitution is not legalised, but the devadasl system which initiates young girls
into prostitution is still in vogue in Belgaum, Raichur and Bijapur districts. The
Karnataka Government has taken measures to rehabilitate devadasts through the
Women and Child Development Department and there are a few indications to show
a marginal decrease in young girls being initiated into this cult.
1.2
Political Participation of Women in Karnataka
The democratic form of Government ignored reservation for women in the Legislative
Assembly and in the council. Very few women took an active part in the political
36
life and won elections. If and when cabinet berths were offered to women they were
granted only the ‘soft’ departments. Though the State has conducted elections and
constituted the Government, no woman member has ever headed the Government.
In 1983, for the first time in the world, Karnataka’s Janata Dal Government led by
Ramakrishna Hegde with Abdul Nazir Sahab as Panchayat Raj Minister, took a
revolutionary step when it provided 25% reservation for women in local self
governance. This reservation extended to rural illiterates, SC’s, ST’s and devadasts
as well. The farsightedness of the Karnataka Government set a trend which has
now compelled the Union Government to enact the 73rd and 74th Amendments.
The 1993 Karnataka Panchayat Act allows 33% reservation for women in all the
three tiers of local self governance and women are now in the thick of politics - at
the grassroot level at least (36,983 seats reserved for women). However, as the paper
indicates, reservation is only the first step. A lot more needs to be done to empower
women in this new arena.
1.3
About this Study,
This study is based on observations and interactions with women members of the
Karnataka Gram Panchayats, during the period 1994 to early 1995. Elections to
the Gram Panchayats in Karnataka took place in December 1993. The paper is in
three sections. Section 1 attempts to understand the nature and extent of participa
tion by women members of the Gram Panchayats, their perceptions of participation
and the problems faced by them. Observations are based on a field study conducted
in December 1994, January-February 1995 in a few Panchayats of 2 districts Bijapur in the north and Tumkur in the south.
Section 2 briefly outlines some of the provisions in the Karnataka Panchayat Raj
Act that are inimical to the true and meaningful participation of women in local
bodies.
Section 3 presents a brief description of the initiatives taken by the state government
and the voluntary sector to strengthen the participation of women.
37
Section 2
FIELD STUDY IN BIJAPUR AND TUMKUR DISTRICTS
In this section, the results of a field study, undertaken with the objectives stated
below, are presented.
Objectives:
4
1.
To study the political awareness, perceptions and participation of elected
women representatives in selected areas of two districts, Bijapur and Tumkur.
2.
To understand some aspects of the condition and position of these elected
women representatives.
2.1
Design of the Survey
Two districts have been selected for our study - Bijapur in the north of Karnataka
and Tumkur in the south. Bijapur is one of the most backward and neglected areas
of the State while Tumkur, because of its proximity to the State capital, is relatively
advanced in terms of development parameters. Tumkur district also differed
substantially from Bijapur in the fact that it has been a thrust area for the work of
the National Literacy Mission in the past few years.
Within each district, two taluks were selected. Of the two, one was near district
headquarters while the second one was some distance away from district head
quarters. In each taluk, two Gram Panchayats were chosen, one with a male
adhyaksha and one with a female adhyaksha. All the women members of each of
these Panchayats were interviewed.
This selection was made with a view to identify possible influences on the elected
women representatives of proximity to district headquarters and the nature of
leadership.
After a study of these eight Panchayats, it was decided to investigate the role of a
powerful change agent in women’s lives, like the Mahila Samakhya Programme, on
the level of awareness and participation in the political processes.
Fortunately, for us, the Mahila Samakhya in Bijapur has a record of vibrant action.
They have taken keen interest in the Panchayat Raj processes and a large number
of Sangha women (about sixty) have been elected members of Gram Panchayats.
Of these women, ten were interviewed for the purpose of the present study. Each
of these women belonged to a different Gram Panchayat, since it has been the
38
practice that each village sangha fields candidates for one seat in their respective
Gram Panchayats.
2.2
Description of Sample Studied
In the first round, 23 elected women representatives of Gram Panchayats from
Bijapur and 23 from Tumkur district were interviewed. In the second round, 10
Mahila Samakhya Sangha women who have been elected to 10 different Gram
Panchayats were interviewed. The practice has been to field one woman candidate
from each sangha for the respective panchayat.
The following table gives information on age, literacy, caste and occupation of the
respondents.
Table 4
Parameter studied
Bijapur
Tumkur
Total:23
Total:23
7
5
6
5
11
7
4
1
46
8
3
8
10
6
Bijapur
Mahila
Samakhya
Total: 10
e
AGE
25-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
2
2
2
4
CASTE
Scheduled Caste
Scheduled Tribe
Other Backward Community
General
4
7
?
LETEEIACY
Illiterate
17
Literate
6
** Going to Mahila Samakhya run night schools
13
10
3
y**
39
I
OCCUPATION
Own Cultivation
Agri. Labourer
Household work
Artisan
Service industry
Others
7
13
7
8
0
0
1
2
7
0
1
0
5
5
2.2.i Caste and Class
Most of the 46+10 respondents are poor, some abjectly so. Hardly any of them have
domestic animals, some have small land holdings which are barely cultivable.
Respondents belonging to the SC, ST and OBC classes, live in separate "Harijan
colonies situated at some distance from the main village. Discrimination is overt,
these people are not allowed to "trespass" into the village or to quench their thirst
from the main village well. However, surprisingly, all the respondents maintained,
in response to our queries, that no discrimination is practised at the meetings with
respect to seating, sending of notices and so on. While we have observed from earlier
interactions with groups of women representatives that generally women members
mingle freely with each other irrespective of caste considerations, such factors have
in some cases prevented SC women from contesting for positions reserved for them.
What is interesting is that the SC, ST and backward class members, who are
physically segregated from the rest of the village, sit side by side with the so called
"upper caste" members in the meeting. Further, what we discerned from our
respondents is an acceptance of their segregation in day-to-day living. In some
places, the Sangha women of the Mahlla Samakhya programme, who are almost
always from among the SCs or STs, have been encouraged to use the common water
source in the village. They have done so successfully in some cases and broken
through the stranglehold of caste/class stereotypes. Working in the Panchayats
provides the opportunity and space for women to work against various forms of class
and caste discrimination.
Vina Mazumdar: On the point mentioned about caste and class barriers decreasing
because of women participating in Panchayats. It will not happen automatically, some
intervention is needed.
2.2.H Age and Literacy levels
Within our sample, there is a greater trend towards a lower age group (25-45 yrs,
18 out of 23) in Tumkur than in Bijapur district (12 out of 23). This is borne out
40
I
by the statistics for the district. (Table 5 - Age of Gram Panchayat members in
Tumkur district)
Table 5: Age of Gram Panchayat members In Tumkur District
Data for 1693 trained women out of2093 women representatives in Tumkur district
Age
Total
Women
21-25
26-30
31-35
36-45
46-50
51 and above
336
986
791
725
242
321
267
555
422
283
84
82
This trend is heartening in that it possibly indicates an increasing acceptance in
rural societies of women, in the younger age group with child bearing and domestic
responsibilities, breaking out of stereotyped female life roles. The older women in
village societies have traditionally been accepted in the "senior citizen" or advisoiy
role to the community by virtue of age and experience. Further, we have found in
other interactions with bodies like the Panchayat Parishat Mahila Vibhaga and State
level local body politicians that the emergence of younger women leaders is favoured
because of their presumed abilities and the energy they can bring to being people’s
representatives. Interestingly, however, among the 10 respondents from Mahila
Samakhya, 4 are in the 55-64 age group and 6 in 25-54 age group. This tendency
towards a higher age group among these respondents could be because they are
selected by the Sanghas. There is also an expressed preference in these and several
other circles for women who are literate being elected as Panchayat representatives.
However, whether applying literacy as a criterion, will actually serve the purpose of
listening to the voices of the marginalised remains doubtful. For example, one
respondent in Tumkur (Vasantha Muralidhar of Hebbur Gram Panchayat) has a BA
degree and is the Adhyaksha of her Panchayat. The other women members of the
Panchayat had several complaints about her attitude and general reluctance to
involve herself in the actual work of her Panchayat. Further she refused to attend
training programmes and also directed people who came to her with problems to
the EDO’s office. The concerns here are that the larger number of poor women who
are illiterate will go unrepresented and the Panchayats will be dominated by the
upper caste women who have a better chance to achieve literacy. In Bijapur district,
women’s literacy levels are veiy low in comparison to Tumkur district. Further the
women in Tumkur have been exposed to the district wide drive of the National
Literacy Mission. In general, we found the respondents in Tumkur far more aware
4
41
L
and articulate than In Bljapur. However, the most articulate and aware were the
respondents who were members of Mahila Samakhya Sanghas.
In our sample we found that 6 out of 23 were literate among the Bljapur (general)
respondents while 10 out of 23 were literate in the Tumkur sample. In the third
group (Mahila Samakhya Sangha respondents), 7 out of 10 were literate and were
going to the night schools run by Mahila Samakhya. Interestingly, however, among
the illiterate women who formed over 60% (30 out of 43) of the total number of
women studied, we found a greater receptivity to training and learning. Tara Bai
Gajakush of Mulsavelgi Gram Panchayat in Slndgi Taluk in Bljapur when asked
who would be a better administrator, the man or the woman reacted - "If you give
us training, then we are definitely going to be better than the ‘menfolk", The lack
of exposure to learning is an impediment to understanding the system of effective
functioning and the illiterate respondents expressed their concern about this fact.
In one Panchayat in Bljapur Lakshmi Bai of Beraladinni Gram Panchayat in
Bagewadi Taluk who received a book on "Rights and Duties of Elected Women
Representatives in Gram Panchayats" at a training programme, used it to prove a
point at the Gram Panchayat meeting. She, like other women, in her Gram
Panchayat had not received the sitting fees. She took the booklet to the Gram
Panchayat and demanded the fees she was entitled to. She immediately got the fees
with retrospective effect. We came across one Panchayat where members pooled
their sitting fees to go on a picnic at some later date. However, the women members
were not told why they had not been given the sitting fees, nor were they aware
about the plan for the picnic.
In one case, we also found an elected woman representative who was illiterate relying
heavily on her son who had studied upto PUC (Tulaja Bal Kapali, Adhyaksha of
Honnutige Gram Panchayat in Bljapur). So much so that he attends Panchayat
meetings with her and sometimes instead of her! He is just about 18 years of age
and could not possibly be knowledgeable about the workings of the Panchayat but
clearly rules the roost. According to the mother, he refuses to help his father, who
is an agricultural labourer, because of his education.
The importance of literacy and exposure to other facets of life for the elected women
representatives cannot be overemphasised. Not only does representation on the
Panchayat Raj Institutions provide women with an immediate Impetus to acquire
literacy skills, it also provides a channel for the energy and enthusiasm of neo
literates to use and improve their skills.
Again it has been proved often enough that certain kinds of knowledge and
information imparted while acquiring literacy skills can be powerful tools for
empowerment. The story of Sitamma - "Si.tcimm.ci Kcithe and the anti-arrack
42
struggle in Nellore Is now almost a legend. During the survey, we tried to probe the
awareness of the respondents about various movements for social change, especially
those Initiated by women. As expected, awareness was extremely low. This is not
surprising since there has been no conscious or concerted effort to understand,
document and disseminate these struggles to the larger public by mass media and
other vehicles of information dissemination in the country. Further, media coverage
of women’s Issues are marked by a lack of objectivity and by perspectives that are
unsympathetic to the hardships faced by women (7). One of the respondents had
started an anti-arrack movement in her village. Neelamma, a member in the
Mallasandra Gram Panchayat in Tumkur took courage and collected two hundred
women to fight the arrack menace in her village. She found the source of entry of
the arrack into the village. She stopped the jeep that brought the arrack and helped
people who depend on this for a living, take up other occupations. It was a big
victory. But eight months later, to her dismay, the menace has made a comeback.
With renewed vigour, she has now submitted a petition to the DC to put an end to
it.
It is extremely important that information about mobilisation and organisation by
women for social change like SEWA, Chipko and the Nellore anti-arrack movement
be publicised and made available to elected women representatives. Awareness of
such action, taken up by women, will enhance the courage and confidence of elected
women representatives and serve as powerful tools of empowerment. Such infor
mation will also provide women with knowledge about the ways and means to
achieve social change. The value and power of collective action by women can be
emphatically conveyed to them through such empowering information.
2.3
How do these women perceive themselves and each other in the context of
being Panchai/a t represen ta tives?
All the respondents have attended nearly all the meetings of their respective
Panchayats. Other factors like age, caste, literacy levels and distance of their homes
from the meeting venue seem to have no bearing on this parameter within the
sample. This goes to indicate the seriousness with which women have taken on
their new roles. When asked if they speak at the meetings, nearly all the women
replied in the affirmative. However, when asked to elaborate, many of them could
not do so.
Subash Mendapurkar: The Himachal Pradesh Act states that the Gram Panchayat
meeting is a public meeting. So we sent Mahila Mandal women to sit in the meeting; at
first people objected till they realised that they could not do so since there was provision
in the Act for the public to attend. Even if the women just sat like pieces of furniture, it is
an empowering experience for the women and it also becomes a control mechanism on the
way decisions are made at the meeting, and on the kind of decisions made.
43
0
0
e
When asked who takes the decisions at meetings, many of the women replied without
hesitation that the Adhyaksha should take the decision. This seems to betray a
lack of participatory and consensual processes at the meetings. However, tell-tale
evidence to the contrary came from the responses to other questions. Several of the
respondents, when asked, what the qualities of a good adhyaksha are, said "He must
listen to everybody, take everybody’s views ..." It would appear that while the women
representatives are aware that they must take part in the meetings by attending
and speaking, many of them are hesitant to do so. This diffidence stems from a lack
of knowledge and experience, the atmosphere at the meeting and often the attitude
of the made members which does not give women space for participation. However,
levels of participation in meetings do show a clear positive trend as we go from the
Bijapur (general) to Tumkur to Bijapur (Mahlla Samakhya) respondents.
With the more disadvantaged among our respondents, their Inability to see them
selves in a different light after they are elected to the Panchayats was obvious. They
seemed to accept the unsympathetic evaluation of the community about themselves
and their performance or rather non-performance. It was evident that they had
never "dared to dream" as one of our researchers put it. They wanted next to nothing
for themselves, how would they be expected to have a vision for their village, for
other women? Some of the respondents did not even consider walking four
kilometers for one pot of water a problem. They have not had the energy to do
anything but accept the back-breaking hardships of their lives.
When asked what they would do for women as Panchayat members, several
respondents listed toilets for women as a priority. What came through in most of
the interactions was the concern of the elected women representatives for meeting
the basic needs and living conditions in the village. The other priority area was to
improve the economic status of women by giving them some kind of vocational
training.
2.3.i Exposure to Media and Infoimation
Respondents in this study have had little exposure to mass media. Few of them
listen to the radio and only a minuscule number possess television sets. A very
small number read newspapers. They are almost totally reliant on whatever garbled
information is available in the neighbourhood. This is a direct consequence of being
sidelined by stereotypes where women’s education and access to information are
not priorities. Again, it must also be borne in mind that the press and audio-visual
media toe the highly centralised Government line. They hardly ever reflect the true
picture of the country particularly of the rural areas. Development issues are
regarded as soft issues; people’s problems and struggles are largely ignored by these
agencies which are hardly able to act as any kind of vehicle for social change.
44
The mass media and audio-visual technology can be exploited for the purpose of
creating awareness about Panchayat Raj. This should however be initiated by
people’s groups and not as Government slanted programmes. This can be taken as
an agenda for grassroot NGO’s working for women and Panchayat Raj. Activists
can play a substantial role in providing information on development issues. A recent
Delhi-based initiative for the creation of a development communication network that
includes activists, development researchers and media persons called CHARKA is
an encouraging step in this direction.
2.3.H Gender Relations and Family Dynamics
Many of the respondents ascribe a prominent role to the men in their families (18
out of 46) or village patriarch (25 out of 46) who told them about reservations, helped
them file their nominations and in a few cases conducted Panchayat business in
their stead. Only 3 elected women representatives, who are literate, filed the
nominations on their own. Of the 10 Mahila Samakhya respondents 6 were helped
by their Sanghas and 4 by village and family elders.
Despite the dependency created by these factors, none of the respondents have
problems attending the meetings, none cited family problems or responsibilities
coming in the way of their attending meetings. It would appear that the constitu
tional provision of reservation has given legitimacy and created some kind of
acceptance of women’s participation in politics at the micro level of family and
immediate community. One positive trend is that all the respondents said that they
had been sent notices well in advance and that the Panchayat meetings were held
at a convenient time. However, political participation cannot be defined as attending
meetings which bare fact hardly makes any demands on women’s time or effort.
Attempts were made to probe further by asking the respondents if women came to
them with problems.
In a few cases, and those among the most articulate respondents (Bljapur, MS), it
was reported that village women do come with problems which they sort out by
themselves or through the intervention of the Gowdaru or village headman. The
latter continues to function as a rural power centre. When asked whom they would
approach in case of a problem in the village, many women mentioned the village
headman. There is a strong need to break this traditional stranglehold of power if
space is to be created for the Panchayats to function as representatives and leaders
of the community. The major problem in the last one year of the existence of the
Gram Panchayats has been the resistance to decentralisation and the political
upheavals in the state. The delineation of the role, responsibilities and funding of
the Gram Panchayats has been erratic to say the least. Confusion and a lack of
transparency have been the order of the day.
45
2.3.iii Finances of the Panchayat, Relationship with Officials
Most respondents were vague about the finances of the Panchayats. In one
Panchayat (Jail Darga, Bijapur), different answers were received to the question on
the amount of money received by the Panchayat. While the Adhyaksha gave a figure
of Rs.69,000. two elected women representatives claimed figures of Rs. 1,30,000 and
nil, while a journalist in the village reported the figure of Rs.25,000/-. The
exaggerated role played by the officials like the BDO, the Panchayat Secretaries and
village accountants, particularly in the handling of finances, is a matter of grave
concern. Many respondents are not aware that they can demand complete
transparency and accountability in financial matters. What is encouraging though
in terms of awareness levels, is that several respondents expressed dissatisfaction
with the Secretaries of their Panchayats. In many cases, the women expressed their
reservations at the role played by the Secretary. In one case (Gangamma of Kulill
Gram Panchayat in Bijapur), the respondent said that the secretary was old and
Inefficient and they had "chased" him out! It is clear that the lack of transparency
about finances and powers of the Panchayat leads to the Secretary assuming a larger
than necessary role.
Again, the situation in the state has been an unnatural one with the Gram
Panchayats having had to function for about 15 months without the Taluk and Zilla
Panchayats. It remains to be seen if the situation will improve with the recently
concluded Taluk Panchayat and Zilla Panchayat polls. The present study also
shows that elected women representatives in Tumkur district had interacted far
more with the EDO and Tahsildar than those in Bijapur. Respondents in Tumkur
rated government officials in their areas as approachable. In contrast, some
respondents in Bijapur were not even aware that such people could be contacted
for information and assistance. In one case, respondents reported that the BDO of
Tiptur in Tumkur district has played a positive role in encouraging Gram Panchayat
activities.
2.3.iv Centrally Sponsored Schemes
There is some knowledge among respondents about the myriad government spon
sored schemes. However, in reply to a question as to whether they preferred the
Panchayat funds being disbursed within the scheme structure or whether they
would like untied grants, many respondents preferred the former. On further
probing, we found that they were extremely wary that untied funds would be
cornered by a powerful village elite. Their answer was based on a realistic estimate
of the situation prevailing in the village.
Respondents seemed completely unaware that the centralised scheme structure, as
is prevalent today, is equally bad if not worse and susceptible to leakage of finances
46
and corruption of the officials concerned. This Is a reality that is not faced squarely
by most of the training programmes that we are aware of. Government schemes are
touted as the near-ultimate solution and the idea conveyed is that it is the ‘sacred’
duty of Panchayats to implement these schemes! The scheme structure which is
over-centralised, over- bureaucratised and inefficient is hardly ever questioned.
Strong initiatives are needed to counter this kind of systematic disinformation and
misinformation and to create space for genuine local level planning.
2.3.v The Gram Sabha
This problem could be sorted out to some extent and village priorities accurately
assessed if the Gram Sabhas are strong. Although Gram Sabhas have been
conducted in some Panchayats. they seem to have been poorly attended and have
hardly been reflective of village problems and priorities. Respondents claimed to
have attended one, two and sometimes even three Gram Sabha meetings. On
further probing, many respondents did not seem to know the difference between a
Gram Sabha and a Gram Panchayat meeting. Only a few were able to accurately
describe the Gram Sabha proceedings. There is a strong need to strengthen the
Gram Sabha functioning perhaps through mandatory provisions for quorum and
procedures. The Karnataka Act '93 does not specify the need for a quorum. Thus
a small and non-representative group of people can be deemed to constitute a Gram
Sabha. There should be a quorum and this should be defined as acceptable
only if 50% of the participants are women.
Subash Mendapurkar: There are systematic efforts across the country to underplay the
role ofthe Gram Sabhas in the amended Acts; also an overpowering role has been assigned
to the bureaucracy. These are points that can be taken up for discussion. We have seen
that taking part in the Gram Sabhas is very empowering for women. There is 10% quorum
for the first meeting but no quorum for an adjourned meeting. However, whichever way
you look at it, women are not heard and the Gram Sabha is not effective in controlling the
Gram Panchayat and demanding accountability from it.
Tripathi: There is a 10% quorum in Orissa. In Parliament, MPs don’t want the word
"quorum" mentioned when important national issues like women and children are taken
up for discussion because an embarrassingly small number of them are present. In the
Gram Sabha, the action plan is generally passed in the second meeting where no quorum
is required, the Sarpanch and his "henchmen" get everything passed.
A very good point raised tn this paper is that within every quorum a minimum
number for women should be specified.
47
2.4
Leadership of the Panchayat
Hardly any variations were noted in the responses between the elected women
representatives in Panchayats with a male adhyaksha and those with a female
adhyaksha. It would appear that such differences would surface only when the
Panchayats become more active and more involved in social action. The Panchayats
have this far not been involved in any innovative or controversial activities or those
that call for resolutions of conflicting Interests.
2.4.i Influence of External Enabling Mechanisms
What comes through in this study, is the clear influence of external enabling
mechanisms like the NLM and change agents like the Mahila Samakhya Programme.
The NLM in Tumkur has provided a backdrop of knowledge, community acceptance
and positive Interventions for women representatives - the NLM has played a stellar
role in the training programmes for women representatives of Gram Panchayats in
Tumkur district. The Mahila Samakhya programme has enabled a heartening
number of women from among the poorest sections of rural society to participate
meaningfully in political processes. These women, are for the most part, articulate
and strong as representatives of their communities. Further the ‘Sanghas’ provide
Just the kind of supporting network that is needed to give the elected women
representatives confidence and strength. Our study in Bijapur also reveals the
important role played by the Mahila Samakhya programme when we see the contrast
between respondents who have not been touched by the programme and those who
have been part of it within the same district. Clearly enabling mechanisms to
strengthen the participation of elected women representatives lie in these directions.
The Mahila Samakhya programme in Karnataka has been conspicuously successful
in enhancing the awareness and self esteem of women. The processes of the
programme have contributed significantly to the empowerment of poor women. This
is particularly true in Bijapur district where the programme worked closely from the
early stages in 1989 with the women representatives of the Bijapur Zilla Parishad.
This, in turn, led to the grooming of Mahila Samakhya Sangha members as potential
representatives when the Gram Panchayat elections were held in December 1993.
About 60 Sangha women won the elections, ten of whom have been interviewed for
the present study. Not only are these women articulate and aware of their rights
and responsibilities towards the community, they are also aware of the strength of
collective action.
Srilatha Batliwala: When the Mahila Samakhya programme was started in 1989, the
Mandal Panchayats (with 25% reservation for women) were in existence. The Sangha
women saw the Mandals as a source ofpower and it was a very real goal for them to capture
power in the Panchayat Raj Institutions. The nature ofthe Sangha women's participation
48
is not just one of enhanced awareness because ofgreater confi lence. Their entire perspec
tive is different. They feel that women’s agenda is apolitical agenda and that politic
activity is very much a part of the empowerment programme. Discussions m the Sang as
centred around the relationship of the Sangha with the elected women representative,
whether she would get co-opted by the system, what was her accountability to the Sangha
that supported her and so on.
The effects of the NLM initiatives in Tumkur district have not been as direct. What
is of interest is that the NLM personnel were closely involved with government
sponsored initiatives during 1994- 1995 for Panchayat Raj training. It was the first
district to undertake large scale training programmes for elected women repre
sentatives conducted by the district officials, the NLM personnel and a Bangalore
based NGO, SEARCH. Proximity to the State capital has also led to greater
awareness among people.
However, the latest trends from Tumkur are discouraging.
discouraging, For
ror totally
torany extraneous
reasons, the NLM programme has been wound up and the personnel who ha
acquired considerable skills in working with elected women representatives have
been posted to other departments. This is a matter of grave concern. Even more
distressing is the fact that a programme which had involved women in a big way
has been given up.
- indicates
’
sthe crucial role played by collective
The present study thus clearly
programmes for empowerment of the disadvantaged groups. Several grassroot
are working towards the creation of such enabling environments in their
groups
field of work.
Balaji Pandey: A very strongpoint has been made in the paper about the need for support
groups for women representatives like the Mahila Samakhya Sanghas. We must provide
a good base for the elected women representatives. They will have a mutually reinforcing
relationship.
The participation of elected women representatives can then be further strengthened
through information based programmes about procedures, finances, and other
elements of local governance. A positive role by the media, the emergence o
alternative media forms for wider and meaningful dissemination and more involve
ment in local governance of grassroot groups are all desirable if genuine local
loc
governance is to take place.
The study has also brought out the fact that regardless of the situation P^^nt
today, the awareness and participation of women in governance can grow leading
to positive changes in caste, class and family relationships.
49
♦
In fact, I usca m o
s
and hurry up. wfen the
r
fUp^hyakshaofthe Zilla Parishad. I think I can say with a clear conscience that! worked
for 5 years. I had no training. But if we have someone to guide us (Margadarsha )
we need less time.
Recently we had an Ambedkar Jayanthi celebration m Bijapur and eiectedwome
representatives were invited and honoured. One Lambani lady received from the Ml^er
a portrait of Dr.Ambedkar and a certificate and all kinds of things. Her hands were so
full she did rwt know how to get down from the stage. She handed the portrait to the
Minister saying "Here, hold it"... while she got down. She managed the situation quite
well!
In another case, one member of the Gram Panchayat was the servant of an^he^^
The master wanted to put up apetition for extra land to the Panchayat and he kept telling
the other man to take care of it. The servant told him, "Look, here I may be your servant,
you pay me to look after your cattle and so on. I will do that work. But anything to do
with the Panchayat, you can talk to me at the Panchayat office".
50
>'
>•
Section 3
*
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN IN THE
KARNATAKA PANCHAYAT RAJ ACT 1993
The Karnataka Panchayat Raj Act has been the subject of much controversy since
its passage in 1993. The main criticism levelled against the Act is that it is in
contravention to the spirit of the Constitutional 73rd Amendment. (4,5,6)
For the purpose of this study however, we concentrate on clauses in the Act that
are inimical to the meaningful participation of women. The gender blindness of the
Act stems from both acts of omission as well as of commission. Discrimination can,
to a large extent, be identified only when this Act, applied in the field is not potent
enough to break patriarchal structures and customs. However it has not been
possible to do the exhaustive empirical study needed to establish such data. What
is attempted here is the identification of such Sections of the Panchayat Raj Act
which could be legally considered as discriminatoiy. The entire effort is based on
the underlying principle of whether or not it is ultra vires to Article 14 of the
Constitution of India.
Article 14 in part III of the Constitution which deals with fundamental rights reads
"Equality before law:- The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law
or equal protection of the laws within the territory of India".
The guiding principle of the Article is that all persons similarly circumstanced shall
be treated alike both in privileges conferred and liabilities imposed. Equality before
the law means that among equals the law should be equal and should be equally
administered. Equal treatment of non-equals is considered as bad as unequal
treatment of equals.
Every socio-economic parameter studied Indicates the poorer status of women with
respect to men in Indian society. The reservation of a third of the seats in the local
bodies, under the Constitutional 73rd and 74th Amendments, seeks to rectify this
imbalance by giving women a greater voice in the decision-making processes. There
have been several demands for Increasing the reservation to 50% which would more
truly reflect the proportion of women in the population.
A few clauses in the Act that are overtly discriminatory against women are listed
here.
Chapter III Clause 5.7 states that when two thirds of the total number of members
of any Gram Panchayat have been elected, the Gram Panchayat shall be deemed to
51
have been duly constituted under the Act. It is necessary to modify this clause to
state that of this 2/3, a third shall be women members.
Chapter III, Clause 8 refers to the appointment of an Administrator or Administrative
Committee on failure to elect members of the Gram Panchayat. There is no provision
for reservation for women members in this Administrative Committee.
Chapter III clause 22 which deals with what Acts will be termed as corrupt practices
should include in sub-clauses (ill) and (iv) that appeal to refrain from voting for
somebody on the basis of sex and attempts to promote hatred on the basis of sex
be termed as corrupt practices. At present, religion, race, caste, community or
language are listed and there is no mention of discrimination on the basis of sex.
Clause 34 should include promotion of hatred on the basis of sex as an offence
extending to imprisonment or fine. Since such a provision is not provided under
clause 34, it is discriminating to the extent that if the aforementioned promotion is
indulged in which is highly likely in a patriarchal and conservative rural society.
society,
women have no recourse to action.
Clauses 49 52 and 53 which deal with the number of members required for a
different course of action. These are all discriminating in as much as they make no
mention of the requisite number of women within the deemed quorum. As per the
present Act, a woman Adhyaksha can easily be disqualified and removed from office
by two third the number of members who could all be men. It is essential that the
quorum required for any important course of action should have as far as possible,
the same composition and proportion as the Gram Panchayat at its fufi strength.
This may not always be possible in some cases where there is only one member
belonging to Scheduled Tribes in the Panchayat.
The above provisos deal with the functioning of the Gram Panchayat. Similar
changes are suggested for the relevant clauses pertaining to the Taluk and Zifia
Panchayats.
In the present Act, it is mandatory to have at least one woman member in only one
of the three standing committee i.e the Social Justice Committee. Similar mandatory inclusion of women is necessary in the Production and Amenities Commit
tees. Mention may be made here of one case in Mysore district where chairpersons
of all standing committees were women who functioned very efficiently (personal
communication).
While the Act mandates the holding of at least: one Gram Sabha every six months,
Sabha. In actual practice, village
no mention is made of what constitutes a Gram
(
meetings attended by about twenty people; are passed off as Gram Sabhas. If the
Gram Sabha is mandated by the Act which is legally binding, why can a quorum^
PA
52
Ij-S !
not be specified for a Cram Sabha? Further this quorum should have at least 50%
of its members as women.
53
Section 4
TRAINING INITIATIVES IN KARNATAKA
Several Initiatives have been taken up for strengthening the participation of women
representatives, through training and facilitation programmes, by the State govern
ment as well as by voluntary agencies. Elections to the Gram Panchayats were held
in December 1993. Since that time government initiatives for training have come
mainly from the Department of Women and Child Development of the State
Government.
At the outset, an ambitious and well-designed state wide programme to reach all
the 35,305 women from 5640 Gram Panchayats was drawn up by the department
and SEARCH, a Bangalore based NGO support organisation. This proposal did not
get the support it deserved and was whittled down to smaller programmes run at
the district level. Programmes are under way in six of the 19 districts.
One of the most active, enthusiastic and efficient programmes has been conducted
in Tumkur district where the district authorities, the National Literacy Mission
Volunteers and SEARCH conducted training programmes for 1693 women and 1708
men. The district authorities have also done extensive work to create a com
puterised data bank on information about elected women representatives and to
prepare written material for the programmes.
What has been distressing though is the lack of interest, until recently, on the part
of the Ministry of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj. As at the National level,
the attitude prevalent seems to be "You want to help elected women representatives,
get the Women and Child Ministry to do it". There is hardly any attempt to view
elected women representatives (and more so, the most disadvantaged of them who
are in the Gram Panchayats) as necessary to the success of the Panchayat Raj
experiment in the country. Nor is there sufficient appreciation or sympathy for the
main intent behind the reservation for women under the 73rd and 74th Constitu
tional Amendments. While individual bureaucrats are certainly supportive, these
concerns do not seem to have percolated into general thinking at Ministry levels.
Time and again, it has been reiterated by those committed to local governance that
Women and Panchayats, in a mutually beneficial partnership, can play a vital role
in improving the present vitiated and warped political scene in the country.
At the national level, ‘training’ for Panchayat representatives have been limited to
three big Institutions - National Institute of Rural Development (NIRD), the Indian
Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) and the Lal Bahadur Shastri Academy of
Administration (LBSAA). Similarly, the Ministry of Rural Development and
54
Panchayat Raj, Government of Karnataka, has recently taken a decision that
training for all Zilla Panchayat representatives will be taken up by the Institute of
Social and Economic change (ISEC) and for the Taluk Panchayat level by the State
Institute of Rural Development (SIRD). No effort is being made to reach the Gram
Panchayats at the present by the RDPR Ministry, since the numbers are very large.
Training programmes at these big Institutions, (which have incidentally been in this
field of activity for several years) are tailored to the needs of participants who have
prior knowledge and experience in the subjects under consideration. Further, they
tend to be more subject oriented and less people oriented. Almost inevitably, they
are groping in the dark when it comes to gender issues and gender sensitive handling
of themes.
Unhappily there seems to be a distinct polarisation on gender issues with no one
quite knowing how to bridge the divide.
Srilatha Batliwcda: There are a large number of trainers with a good understanding of
gender concerns particularly in Karnataka. However they are scattered in NGO’s across
the State. Further, it is often difficult to find a common meeting point and methodology.
The result is that their expertise remains lost to large scale State sponsored training efforts.
The Government does not seem able to provide a commonplatform for thispool ofexpertise;
whether this is by accident or intent, it is hard to tell. The other problem is the poor
availability of appropriate resource and training material. Many NGO’s are now working
to produce such material.
Time is also a constraint for the Ministry, which with all laudable Intentions, wants
to ‘train’ at the earliest, the elected Taluk and Zilla Panchayat representatives so
that the Panchayats can start functioning as soon as possible. What is disturbing
is that most of the funds available for facilitation programmes are concentrated in
the efforts of the big Institutions. A matter of concern is that this will become one
more Government effort, into which large amounts of resources and public money
are pumped in, which passes women by. Unless some serious soul-searching is
done about these programmes, it is hard to see any but minimal returns for women.
Further, these programmes being Government sponsored and funded they are
unlikely to question the sometimes negative role played by ‘Sarkar’ with respect to
the Panchayats.
What are the solutions? It is imperative that the training becomes more broad based
and involves expertise which has been built up in the voluntary sector. Special
eflforts are needed on the part of both Government and the voluntary sector, to
conduct the programmes in a gender sensitive way, to make them more vibrant and
innovative if they are to serve any meaningful purpose.
55
Vina Mazumdar: About indicators for training, who will do training and so on..., certainly
not people like us who have opted out of the political system. The best is to ask dynamic
elected women representatives to train others and we should watch and document. The
question is will they have the time to do it?
4.1
The GRAMSATProgramme
In February 1995, the Department of Women and Child Development, Government
of Karnataka, tried an innovative experiment to conduct programmes for elected
women representatives through a one-way video, two-way audio channel provided
by satellite technology. Known as GRAMSAT, this programme was beamed from
Bangalore to training centres In 19 districts where groups of women representatives
had assembled along with resource persons for four days.
An expert panel at Bangalore responded to queries and doubts expressed by the
participants. The department had taken special efforts to make the expert panels
as representative as possible. Voluntary agencies, activists, experts on women’s
issues and senior bureaucrats made up the panels on different days. The video
programme itself was an excellent mix of information, role plays, stories and games
which Illustrated the different important aspects of Panchayat Raj. Several NGO
workers and media persons with experience in dealing with gender Issues were
Involved in the programme. About 600 women representatives all over the state
were involved in the programme. The experiment has also demonstrated how
technology can be used to good effect and for larger reach using less by way of
resources. It can serve as an excellent support programme for training efforts.
4.2
Training by the voluntary sector
Several voluntary agencies have been Involved in Panchayat Raj training in the past
fifteen months. Only a few are mentioned here and have been picked mainly to
illustrate the different kinds of approaches to training. Organisations like SEARCH
have played a major role in Government sponsored initiatives. Some organisations
like Concerned for Working Children (CWC) and VISTHAR have taken up Panchayat
Raj training at grassroots level for the groups they are working with. At CWC’s
project in Basrur, Dakshina Kannada, women were assisted in standing for
Panchayat elections. The Mahila Samakhya programme which is run in 5 districts
(Mysore, Raichur, Bijapur, Bidar and Gulbarga), encourages ‘Sangha’ women to
learn about Panchayat processes and to stand for elections. In the five districts, a
total of 135 ‘Sangha’ women have been elected to the Panchayats. Hengasara
Hakkina Sangha (HHS), a legal forum for women in Karnataka has been working
on the gender implications of the Karnataka Act and has Included Panchayat Raj
awareness for women as part of their programmes for legal literacy.
56
ISST, Bangalore has been conducting programmes for elected Gram Panchayat
women representatives in 8 Gram Panchayat clusters - two each in the four districts
of Mysore, Kolar, Gulbarga and Uttara Kannada. An average of 2-3 camps for each
area have been conducted in the past year. Table.6 gives some details about the
participants. Of the 130 odd women, only seven were members of the earlier Mandal
Panchayats. The majority are first time entrants into politics. As such, training
has had to adapt itself and be effective for people with no experience in politics
whatsoever.
Table 6: Particulars of UM A Trainees
1.
Age
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
20-30
30-40
40-50
50-60
60 & Above
23
65
30
17
1
2. Education
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Illiterate
Literate
Standard (1-4)
Standard (5-7)
Standard (8-10)
PUC
Graduates
47
2
32
21
23
2
9
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Own Land
Agricultural labour
Housewife
Artisan
Service industiy
Others
Not working/Old
44
14
67
1
2
8
3. Occupation
57
4. Reservation
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Scheduled Caste
Scheduled Tribe
Other Backward Com.
General
Christians
Muslims
36
14
52
30
3
1
5. Whether Member OfMandal Panchayat
1.
2.
Yes
No
7
128
In a sense, the experience of ISST in undertaking these programmes helped us
understand the problems and pitfalls inherent in this exercise at a general level.
On the positive side, National interest has been focussed on elected women
representatives, making the training efforts for them a legitimate and respected
activity. Inherent problems all over the country have been the dearth of appropriate
resource and training material and of experienced resource persons. Little material
exists that has a gender sensitive and women focussed approach to knowledge and
Information. Similarly, most training professionals have had little opportunity to
understand problems faced by women and to develop gender sensitive mindsets.
As such, training programmes, in general, have presented both challenges and
opportunities to create innovative material and to upgrade training skills. Interac
tions with the women representatives have been a continuous and rewarding
learning process. Factors that would strengthen the participation of women repre
sentatives are several and wide ranging. Whatever the content, apy group interac
tion or programme for women helps them build up confidence.
What is heartening is the eagerness of women to attend both Panchayat meetings
as well as training programmes. Many trainees in the ISST group keep in touch
with each other after the programmes. Participants, who are also members of a
credit group of MYRADA (an NGO in Mysore), have a feeling of unity and are also
willing to understand and sort out the problems of other women. Women respond
most to methodologies like role plays, experience sharing and mock meetings. In
one camp, Kenchamma, an Upadhyaksha of H.D.Kote Taluk in Mysore, shared her
problem with the group. A ‘coolie’ by profession, she became the butt of cruel jokes
when she tried to carry on with her work after being elected Upadhyaksha. How
was she going to eat, to support her family if she did not work; this was the only
58
V•
work she knew, she told the group. This story was repeated in several camps and
moved the participants greatly identifying as they did with Kenchamma’s problems.
This simple story became a powerful way to illustrate the dichotomy in the life of a
poor woman who becomes a Panchayat member. Thus there is a need to keep
constantly innovating and looking for information and methodologies that appeal
to the trainees.
Vasanth Nachane: The Dr. PV Mandik Trust is doing training in the Konkan region.
There is no need to spend too much money on training. Local social workers well versed
in the local language, folklore etc. can come forward as resource persons. Local people can
be trained. We spent only about Rs.10001- per camp. Participants brought their own food.
Money for travel was not provided if it was a 2-day camp, one meal was provided by the
local people.
Another interesting initiative at 1SST was the organising of a MELA for about 200
elected women Gram Panchayat representatives. Not only did this provide a
common forum for representatives from different districts, it was an opportunity to
discuss issues like political participation, health, environment and legal literacy.
These subjects were handled by resource persons known for their gender sensitive
handling of issues. The entire exercise turned out to be a valuable learning
experience for both the organisers as well as the participants. (8,9)
From UMA documentation of GRAMSAT programme in Tumkur and Kolar districts:
Programmes like the GRAMSAT and the UMA Mela captured events in the language and
idiom ofthe women representatives of the Gram Panchayats. The women express compli
cated concepts simply, pithily, in everyday language. They take their positions as Gram
Panchayat representatives quite seriously. Watching a woman member being dragged out
of the meeting by her husband in the GRAMSAT video, participants were indignant and
wondered why the other women had not protested. They feel their lack of literacy skills
keenly. However the resource person emphasised that they had very valuable knowledge
although they were illiterate. As one woman representative succinctly put it, "If we are
aware ofissues, we will remember the song on the Panchayat that our friend sang; a literate
woman may have to refer to her book". Their spirit and enthusiasm are infectious, stories
abound demonstrating the courage of women members who boycotted an engineer who
had swindled Panchayat funds of an illiterate woman Adhyakshini who remained
unmoved by her problems and got the Secretary to read every document to her and many
more. The hurdles are also many. One woman talked about how articulate women
members are ignored by the Adhyaksha who treats the husbands of the illiterate women
members to booze so that they get the wives to support him in the Panchayat. Another
participant posed the following problem to the group. The Adhyaksha of her Panchayat
had built his house on Panchayat land. She wanted to know what could be done. The
answer came from another member - to call a meeting of the Social Justice Committee.
59
Some women who were not satisfied with the performance of the Secretaries of their
Panchayats suggested that they be given training.
An area of concern. Is that, It is all too easy to let programmes for women
representatives dwindle into information based and packed events that take little
or no cognisance of the problems and fears of elected women representatives.
To guard against this eventuality, a system of checks and balances should be evolved
through serious and systematic networking among voluntary agencies. Similarly,
material produced as training and resource material should be constantly and
rigorously evaluated through field Interactions.
In an exhaustive study conducted by the Centre for Education and Documentation
(CED), Bangalore, the availability of teaching and training material appropriate to
the literacy and learning ability levels of disadvantaged groups has been studied
(10). Drawing up a list of five categories, the authors demonstrate how hardly any
material is available to upgrade the skills of illiterate and neo- literate women.
Methodologies need to be evolved for the identification, preparation, testing and
dissemination of good material. This can become an exciting agenda for the
voluntary sector with the government supporting in terms of finance and infrastruc
ture.
60
Section 5
Conclusion
As mentioned in Section 2, principles of natural justice are as much offended by
the equal treatment of nonequals as by the non equal treatment of equals.
Women have become non equals, disadvantaged and dispossessed, in relation to
men through centuries of domination in patriarchal societies, through systematic
neglect of their abilities and potential. Reservation in political decision-making is
but one step towards equal participation in social change and processes.
The present study does lead us to conclude that the participation of women at the
present moment could be improved upon considerably. There are a host of
contributory factors, many of which are beyond the control of the individual
representative. The silver linings are also many.
Yardsticks to measure the participation of women must be evolved through a
systematic and gender sensitive evaluation of the situation of rural women in this
country. The study shows that women, irrespective of caste, class, literacy and
domestic duties are enthusiastic about attending meetings and training program
mes. By attending meetings and establishing an identity other than that of the
domestic drudge, women representatives have already begun to change stereotyped
images. Many of the respondents in this study, as well as those we spoke to in other
interactions during the past two years, saw no problems in reconciling domestic
and political duties. Most of them would like to stand for elections again (present
and other studies); one lady even aims at becoming Prime Minister! (Not in present
study).
Meeting procedures, the scope of the Panchayat, roles and responsibilities of
members remain areas of mystery but this can be attributed in large measure to
the confusion, lack of transparency and information about the entire Panchayat Raj
set up. Systematic and sincere efforts to strengthen the participation of women can
do much to improve the situation, as also the experience as members for a longer
duration.
At another level, the Panchayat Raj Act and rules issued subsequently, need to be
examined carefully to see in what ways they deter meaningful participation of
women. For example, there is a proposal that the term of the Adhyaksha and
Upadhyaksha should be restricted to twelve or twenty months of the five year term
with rotation among the members. This would give very little scope for women
Adhyakshas and Upadhyakshas to learn the ropes. As mentioned in Section II of
this paper, detailed field studies should now be undertaken to examine if the
61
provisions of the Act help or hinder the participation of women representatives and
changes should be made in this light.
New and innovative institutional support structures need to be created to strengthen
women’s participation. One of the problems that surfaced during the Gram
Panchayat elections was violence and intimidation of women representatives. In
some cases, they were prevented from filing their nominations for the posts of
Adhyakshini and Upadhyakshini by powerful village elite and local politicians. In
such cases, the affected woman representative, particularly if she belongs to the
poorer sections, has little or no recourse to action. District level kendras where
women representatives can file complaints about harassment and interference in
the performance of their duties could be established. Needless to say, sufficient
care must be taken to see that these kendras do not become just one more mindless
and insensitive cell.
Radio is a medium that could be exploited to advantage to give Information to women
representatives in far flung parts of each district. District broadcasting stations
could play a positive role in such efforts. A 15 minute "Panchayat Vani" slot could
post information about the functioning of Panchayats, about training programmes
and so on.
This study has also clearly brought out the need for nurturing support systems for
women members like Sangha collectives, the literacy mission and other mass based
groups.
In the areas of preparation of training and resource material and developing
alternative media networks, exciting new agendas for action by NGO’s have been
created.
Several concurrent initiatives could play critical roles. For example, there is a move
to launch a nation-wide campaign to raise the awareness of women voters in the
country, initiated by the Indian Association of Women’s Studies (IAWS) as its action
component. The hope is that women will vote and lobby effectively for issues
important to women. Such a campaign, if it succeeds, can provide support to
women representatives who wish to contest from general seats in the next round of
elections. Raising the awareness of women voters will also provide the necessary
checks and balances for elected representatives.
Lack of gender sensitivity over decades of economic and development planning has
led to women being economically handicapped. From this fact, arises a whole set
of factors leading to discrimination against women. The Panchayat Raj experiment
would have failed if it does not lead to economic betterment at the village level,
equally of men and women, through sustained and equitable local level planning.
62
Apart from service to the community, women must derive, from their participation
in political decision-making, opportunities to better their economic status.
Concerted and mass based efforts, as a social movement, to create vibrant grassroot
Institutions, are needed in which women can be instruments of change towards a
Just and equitable society.
5.1
Role of Party Politics
Different approaches of Congress and Janata to Panchayat Raj Institutions have led
to changes in implementation of the Panchayat Raj Act.
The Taluk and Zilla elections which were fought on party basis were far more orderly
and smooth than the Gram Panchayat elections which are not party based in
Karnataka. "People wanted the same party in power at State and local bodies so
that things would get done" - Suman Kolhar.
5.2
Caste/Class
An incident from the UMA training camp in Uttara Kannada - An SC woman
Adhyaksha who was poor and illiterate, was unable to understand what was going
on during the sessions at the camp. The other women, some who were members of
her own Panchayat, took special pains to help her understand what was going on
and to answer her queries. In fact their attitude to her was extremely encouraging
and protective.
5.3
Indirect but Important Issue
Data on women representatives is very poor, also delayed, sometimes near enough
to the end of the terms as elected women representatives and is usually not gender
disaggregated. Sources are usually the Ministiy of RDPR and the Election Commis
sion. Unless district authorities send in data fast it becomes dated and irrelevant.
For women representatives the data collected should be such as to ensure mean
ingful interventions to strengthen their participation.
5.4
Movements for Social Change
Most women (respondents) had not heard about any such processes. The question
is whether such women are deliberately being kept out of the Panchayat Raj
Institutions, whether there are hardly any such movements in Karnataka or whether
information and media coverage of such issues is so minimal that hardly anyone
gets to hear about them. Probably a mixture of all three factors.
63
5.5
Giving a Feminist perspective to the Panchayat Raj Act
Women’s groups and groups working for women in Panchayats should get together
with legal experts to give the Act a feminist perspective. Empirical studies are
needed to see what can be put into the Act that will weaken and ultimately break
down patriarchal structures and positions that hinder the true participation of
elected women representatives.
64
References
Panda, Snehalata, Gender, Environment and. Participation in Politics, New Delhi
MD Publications Pvt. Ltd., 1995
Milbrath, and Goel, Political Participation: How and Why Do People Getlnvolved
in Politics, Chicago: Rand Mcnally College Pub. Co, 1970. p.6
Batliwala. Srilatha, Empowerment of Women in South Asia: Concepts and
Practices, New Delhi : FFHC/AD, 1993
Krishnaswamy, K.S., "Karnataka’s New Step Backwards", Economic and Politi
cal Weekly, 1 May, 1993
Chandrashekar, B.K.. "Backwards, forwards... Karnataka Panchayats and the
73rd Amendment", Frontline, 2 July. 1993
Jain L.C., "Sharafat ka Takaza: Fundamental Duties of the State", Paper
presented at the Workshop on Panchayats, New Delhi: Rajiv Gandhi Foun a-
tion, 19-20 May, 1993
Status Report on Women’s Education and Development, Status of Women in
Karnataka Project, Government of Karnataka. (1993-1994). From omens
Policy Research Advocacy Unit Library, National Institute of Advanced Studies,
Bangalore
Joseph, Ammu, and Sharma, Kalpana, eds„ Whose News? The Media and
Women’s Issues, New Delhi : Sage Publications, 1994
UMA PRACHAR, January 1995
UMA Mela Report, Bangalore : Institute of Social Studies Trust, 1995
Rao, Usha, and Vijayendra, T„ The Status of Documenta tion for Activists tn
Kannada., Bangalore: Centrefor Education and Documentation. December 1994
65
UfMA ‘Resource Centre
OccasionalTaper Series 9{p.2
Women in Panchayat Rdj:
The Case of Rajasthan
Prepared by
A Group of Activists in Rajasthan
UMA Resource Centre
Institute of Social Studies Trust
"Shreeshyla", No. 42, 4th Temple Street,
15th Cross, Malleswaram, Bangalore - 560 003.
1995
About the Document
This document is a part of a larger study on Panchayat Raj elections carried out in
the State of Rajasthan in 1995. It has resulted in the creation of several documents.
The study of women’s participation in Panchayat Raj was carried out with ISST
support. A large number of people got Involved in the study- we owe our thanks to
them.
Source:
The primary source for almost all documentation were the candidates themselves.
However, those who wrote out the information or transmitted it orally to us are as
follows :
Bharat Gyan Vlgyan Samltl, Jaipur Jawahar (Bharatpur)
Mehmood Khan ( Alwar )
Harikishan Yadav ( Alwar )
Om Pal ( Alwar )
Roshan ( Alwar )
Dharma Veer Mewati ( Alwar )
Urmul Trust, Bikaner
Guman Singh
Suman Kanwar
Tulsi Ram
Kapil Gaur
Dilip Bidawaat
Mukhram Patwal (Hanumangarh)
Mahaveer Singh
Mahaveer (Sumana)
Badargiri
Sharvan Kumar
Puma Ram
Vihan, Jaipur
Suraj Chaturvedi (Bharatpur)
Hakim (Alwar)
District Women’s Development
Agency ( Jodhpur)
Sushila Vohra
Kishan Kanwar Shekhawat
Nirmala Surana
Lalita Mohnot
Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sanghathan
(Bhim)
Shankar Singh
Ladu Singh Rawat
Social Work and Research Centre
(Tilonla)
Ratan Devi
Norati Devi
Chotu Lal
Teja Ram
Suraj
Glrdhari
Subhash
Prayatna (Dudu)
Prayas ( Pratapgarh)
Laxmi Narayan
Hemraj Kheradi
Sudhir Katyar
Ankur ( Jhadol)
Prayatna (Udaipur)
Wagad Jan Jagriti Sansthan
(Dungarpur)
Jagdish Pandya
Chitra Dangi
Mohan Dangi
Gautam Rawat
Alok Dwivedi
Satya Narain Ameta
Kisan Morcha (Alwar)
Dharma Veer Arya
Samanvaya Samitl (Devil)
Durga Dass
Ravi Hemdari
Individuals
Hitendra Upadhayay
Jitendra Upadhayay
Azam
Coordination and Compiling
Jaipur
Sawal Madhopur
Ajmer
Kavita Srlvastava
S. Ramanathan
Purwa Yagnlk Kushwaha
Kxishnavatar Sharma
Mamta Jaitly
Funding
Typing Support
Urmul Trust, Bikaner
Charkha, N. Delhi
UMA Resource Centre, ISST,
Ajay Sharma
Gupta
Bangalore
Table of Contents
Page Nos.
Section 1
Introduction
[66-68]
The Context
[69-76]
2.1
Rajasthan: General Information
69-70
2.11
The Context of Women: Defining Rural Women’s Spaces
70-74
2.111
Women’s Mobilisation and State Policy for Women
74-76
Section 2
Section 3
PanchayatRaj in Rajasthan
[77-89]
3.1
Background of Panchayat Raj in Rajasthan
77-79
3.11
Critique of the State
Panchayat Raj Act 1994 and Election Rules 1994
79-89
Section 4
Parties and Elected Women Representatives:
Observations from Panchayat Samiti Macro Data.
4.1
Rural Electorate in the State
4.11
Panchayat Samlti
4.111
Voter Turnout
4.1v
Percentage Votes and Parties
4.v
Seats and Parties
4.vi
Election of Women Block Members and Political Parties
4.vii
Electioili of Pradhans and Parties
[90-94]
90
90-91
91
91-92
92
.
92-93
93
4.viii
Women Pradhans and Parties
4.1x
Conclusion
93-94
94
Section 5
Field Study of the Elections
[95-114]
95
5.1
Objective
5.11
Methodology
95-97
5.111
Selection of the Study Area
97-98
5.1v
Observations
98-114
Section 6
Support Structures and Directions for
Elected Women Members.
4
[115-121]
115-118
6.i
Post Election Scenario : Identifying the Support Needs
6.11
Responses
6.iii
Support Institutions
118-119
6.1v
Codification of Women’s Political Experiences
119-120
6.v
Widening the Ambit and Experimenting with Methods
that Strengthen Democracy at the Grassroots
120-121
List of Tables
[122-129]
118
Section 7
9
Section 1
INTRODUCTION
The Seventy third Amendment Act through its policy of reservation has legitimised
the entry of women in mainstream politics throughout the countiy. The recent
Panchayat Raj elections held in the State of Rajasthan in the months of January
and February 1995 were of historical significance for this State. For the first time
there was a widespread involvement of women in the electoral arena and politics.
In a state considered to be the most feudal and backward state of the country,
according to the modern society’s indicators of development,this was unique. On
the basis of the demographic indicators of sex ratio and population growth, and
indicators of poverty, literacy and per capita income, the state is the most backward
in the countiy. Similarly feudal practices like the revival and glorification of Satt in
1987, mass nuptials of children on akha teej every year, and increasing incidence
of female infanticide, the denial of Chaupal- the "public space" in the village for
women, and ignoring the women in any public decision making, establish the social
backwardness and deprivation of women in the Rajasthani society.
*
In this context what meaning could rural women and the society at large have given
to these elections which made compulsory 38,791 seats of a total of 1,19,419 to be
only filled by women, and especially by a large number of SC, ST and poor women?
It is interesting to note that in the last state legislative elections held in December
1993, only 9 women MLAs were elected in a house of200 representatives, indicating
that the space for women was shrinking in politics.
It is our contention that reservation for women in Panchayat Raj Institutions,
and the recent election has legitimised the public domain the male bastion
of mainstream politics and governance for ordinary rural women in Rajasthan.
The election has also acted as a catalytic agent on a mass scale for strengthen
ing the process of the stepping out of rural women from their homes for
public/community activity. In other words it has increased the visibility of
women in the public realm.
It has been observed for the last ten years that there is less resistance from the
women themselves and their families and communities towards them coming out
of their homes for public activity. It is by and large rural women who have been
responding to programmes of government Including the Total Literacy Campaign.
It is they who have been mobilising and protesting against issues relating to basic
needs of food, water, work, housing, other community problems and physical
atrocities against women. You have existence of more women’s groups existing in
the State than mixed groups or men’s groups.
66
It is not within the scope of this paper to address the questions related to why women
are responding more to these activities? Is there a general acceptance of family and
society to women coming out of their homes? What is the nature of the struggles
that women have to face with both themselves and the community today when they
are intervening in the public space? It would not be befitting for us as researchers
to generalise on the basis of a mere election. However, the manner in which the
process of elections has acted as a catalytic agent is Important to understand and
forms a basis to plan ahead.
The instruments of participation in an election are culturally considered unaccep
table for women in Rajasthan. Ideally an election consists of candidates and
supporters not just stepping out of the house, but meeting and communicating with
a cross section of people thus being under the gaze of the public, moving about in
the company of galr mard (strange men), building public opinion, taking decisions
and strategising for the elections, visiting government offices. Joining parties (al
though we may disagree with the ideology and functioning of parties but parties are
essential for the existence of the present system of democracy), addressing and being
addressed on wider issues of society and development, entering a public contest
and the power structure, becoming a decision maker and an information source.
How far did women challenge feudal and patriarchal norms and use the above stated
tools in order to take on the new role from which they were kept out over the ages?
Did women respond as a homogenous group or was it a differential response across
caste and class and regions? What was the response of women’s groups and
voluntary agencies towards the election?
The process of entry has opened up several avenues. However, it has not been a bed
of roses. Women were often proxies for the men in the election. Similarly, bold women
were defeated. In the post election scenario the men have not yet been able to come
to terms with the presence of women as their equals or superiors. Either women
have surrendered to the men or the powerful, due to fear of not knowing what to do
or out of sheer exasperation and isolation, or are fighting in an isolated way the
forces of co-option at the village level.
Nevertheless, the process of entry, and the entry itself, will have a long term impact
on the situation of women. Whether this will transform the public domain and in
particular the Panchayat Raj Institutions, throw up alternative conceptions of power
and authority in society needs to be addressed simultaneously with looking at how
this process will have an impact on the self and social image of women along with
gender relations in society. However, the following paper only looks at the latter in
the limited experience of elections.
67
The paper is divided into seven parts. Section 2 gives a description of the socio
economic context and the situation of women and women’s development in Rajas
than. Following which Section 3 gives a brief history of Panchayat Raj in the state
of Rajasthan and looks at how far the state Panchayat Raj legislation will facilitate
women and the functioning of Panchayat Raj Institutions. Section 4 consists of the
observations of the macro data of the election, Mainly on how women have faired in
relationship with parties. Section 5 is the field study, which captures the textures
and experiences of the election. The depth of the experience has been constructed.
Section 6 tries to look at the needs of these elected representatives, the support
structures available to these women and the direction that will have to be taken in
order to sustain the energy that has been unleashed in these elections. Section 7
has a list of tables.
*
68
Section 2
THE CONTEXT
Rajasthan: General Information
Rajasthan is the second largest state in the countiy accounting for more than 10.4
percent of the geographical area but with a relatively low population density. Its
share in the country’s population is only five percent. Most of its approximate 44
million people reside in rural areas making for a figure of over 33 million people in
the 33,000 villages of the state. The state has over 25 percent Scheduled Castes
(SC’s) and Scheduled Tribes (ST’s). The break up being 17.29 percent SC’s and 8.84
percent ST’s. The state is distinct from the rest of the country due to two aspects,
regular drought and a histoiy of feudalism.
Two thirds of Rajasthan lies in the arid and semi arid region where drought is a
recurrent phenomenon. Most of the population is engaged largely in subsistence
agriculture where the general productivity is low. In economic terms, Rajasthan has
all the indicators of being a "backward” State.
Agriculture and livestock are the two predominant occupations in the state. The
annual precipitation varies between 100 cm in the south-west to about 16 cm in
Jaisalmer. Given the low, erratic and variable rainfall in many parts of the state,
the dependency on livestock as a safety-net is very high. The state accounts for
about 13.5 percent of the total livestock of the countiy. The state has well developed
pockets of agriculture in Ganganagar and Chambal commands, and as a contrast
in districts like Jaisalmer there may be little agricultural production for years at
stretch. The occupation structure in the state is predominantly agriculture based.
Nearly half of the cultivated holdings belong to the small and marginal farmers in
the state.
Growth of population in the state has been among the highest in the country.
Population growth rates for the state were, on an average, five percent higher than
the national average during the last three decades. Consequently, the share of the
state in India’s population has Increased from 4.4 percent in 1961 to 5.2 percent in
1991. In spite of the population growth however, the rural population in the state
has declined from 84 percent in 1961 to 77 percent in 1991. The bulk of the growth
in the rural population between 1971-91 has been in the arid western and northern
Rajasthan.
The literacy rate in the state is very low as compared to the rest of the country.
According to the 1991 census the overall rate is 39 percent, male 55 percent and
female 21 percent. However, the literacy rate varies between 23 percent in Barmer
69
district to 52 percent in Ajmer district. The rural literacy rates vaiy between 19
percent in Banner to 45 percent in Jhunjhunu.
The sex ratio for Rajasthan is far below the Indian average- it is 913 compared to
929 for the whole of India. The sex-ratio in the state has declined from 919 in 1981
to 913 in 1991- a trend that has been observed for the country as a whole.
The extent of poverty in Rajasthan varies depending on the criteria used for
estimating it. From the maze of estimates of poverty in Rajasthan, one aspect that
becomes clear is that there was a rapid fall in the rural poverty between 1970-1 to
1977-8. Since then, the poverty ratio in the state has either declined very marginally
or the ratio has remained more or less constant. According to one study, an estimate
of the head count ratio of poverty at the common poverty line of Rs 42.74 reveals
that the southern Rajasthan comprising the districts of Banswara, Dungarpur,
Sirohi and Udaipur continues to be the poorest region of the state. Over 58 percent
of the estimated population in 1987-8 according to this calculation were below the
poverty line. In the south-eastern region comprising Bundi, Chittor, Jhalawar and
Kota about 33 percent, and in the western and the north-eastern region about 32
percent of the population in 1987-8 were below poverty line (Vidyasagar).
2.H The Context of Women : Defining Rural Women's Spaces
Historically the state was almost entirely under the domination of the Rajput noble
lineages, and this was officially dismantled at the time of Indian independence.
Rajput rule gave communities in Rajasthan a social and economic structure distinct
from other states as they were kin based and stratified according to their occupa
tional distance from the royal Rajput lineages.
♦
J
In the Rajput state the power over land and the people was intimately connected
with the interests of the brotherhood, or in "... the shared male substance which
allowed it to rule over the land " (Ziegler 1978,). Rules of the Rajput code of ethics
(dharma) stressed above all, the solidarity of the brotherhood. In this context the
women were seen, on the one hand, as subordinate to and dependents of the
brotherhood and the rulers. At the same time they were venerated as status symbols
of brotherhood and were therefore objects of male protection. The violation of women
more so than of other dependents (servants for example) of a particular brotherhood
was cause for great concern by its members as above all, it symbolised subordination
of the brotherhood to the victimising group, Rajput or non-RaJput. Here we find that
women’s bodies became tools in the battles of honour and conquest between
brotherhood and consequently the priorities of Rajput women became determined
by the status concerns of patrilineal brotherhood. A further example of this feature
could be seen in the custom of Jauhar. As depicted in Rajput folklore and oral
history, in cases of military defeat at the hands of the conquering Rajput lineage.
70
women committed Jauhar (mass immolation), as a means to preserve the status of
the defeated and "shamed" brotherhood.
The patriarchal and kin based feudal ethics of the Rajputs still strongly influences
the way life is organised in most villages in Rajasthan including tribal regions. For
most women this entails a structural subordination to their husbands and his kin,
reflected in varying forms of seclusion and exclusion, for example, in the varying
restrictions on mobility, prescriptions of attire, controlled access to food and
decision making. Although the way of life of a Hindu woman and those of peasant,
scheduled castes and tribal women is different in terms of the way labour may be
valued in their societies. The latter group of women toil through the day in the fields
and are burdened with the physical hardship of survival. This is one of the reasons
for these communities to have bride price and not dowry. However in all these
communities women do not have a control over property, they are all patrilineal,
they do not have a control over their labour, fertility and sexuality.
It may be argued nevertheless that sexual mores of these communities is different
from caste Hindu communities. Women and adolescent girls of adivasi groups have
the choice to select their own marriage partners. Although in all the non-Brahmin,
banlya, vatshya castes child marriage is the norm, (although the girl only goes to
her in-laws house after puberty). Whatever be the community or age of marriage
amongst SCs or STs or OBCs, pheras are permitted only once. Although cohabitation
is permitted with another man (on leaving the husband or if husband has died or
the two do not live together). This system is called nata ( not re-marriage). This
custom is prevalent in those communities where bride price practice exists rather
than a dowiy. A woman while still married can have a nata arrangement only after
Jhagra is paid by her new spouse. The status of a nata woman is inferior.
Women are largely defined in terms of their marital status and reproductive
capacities. A survey conducted in 1988 in about 40 villages of Jaipur district
(unpublished reports Jaipur district WDP, 1988) on how village women are described
by their own communities revealed that a normal woman is one who has married
once and has borne sons. Women who had either lost their husbands, had entered
a nata arrangement, "abandoned" by their husbands, one of the wives of their
husbands, infertile, whose womb only produced daughters, being much older than
her husband or married to a very old husband did not fit into the category of "normal"
woman according to the communities.
Sheer survival of women, due to the preference for a son instead of a daughter is
revealed by the appalling statistics of sex ratio. As stated earlier the Rajasthan
average shows 913 to a thousand males. But certain districts show a much lower
average. Dholpur 796, Jaisalmer 811, Bharatpur 848, Sawai Madhopur 867 are just
some illustrations. ( Census reports 1991 ).
71
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It will therefore not come as a surprise that out of the 27 districts in the country in
which female literacy rate is less than 10 percent, 15 districts are from Rajasthan
itself. The overall female literacy rate is 21 percent for the state of Rajasthan
compared to 39 percent for India. The female literacy rate for the state varies between
8 percent in Barmer to about 34 percent in Ajmer district. The overall rural female
literacy rate is 12 percent. It varies between 4 percent in Barmer to 22 percent in
Jhunjhunu (Statistical Abstract. 1993). The Uteracy rate amongst ST women is 2
percent. There are more than 800 villages in the state where not a single person is
literate and more than 5458 villages where there is no literate woman. This
comprises for 14 percent of the villages in the state. (Shekhar. B. 1993)
Rural women in Rajasthan are known for leading a life full of hardship. Toiling
through the day, organising day to day survival needs of fuel, food, water and fodder.
With depleting natural resources of water, forests and commons, the burden on the
women has Increased. To give one instance in the heart of the desert, close to where
the world’s largest canal, the Indira Gandhi canal is located, drinking water is a
serious problem. Women in the Lunkaransar tahsil of Bikaner district have been
protesting for the last several years with the district government that they should
also be supplied piped water from the canal. Even today in summer these women
leave home in the morning and return only by evening with two pots of water (Urmul
*
Trust reports).
According to the 1991 census, 27 percent of the women are considered as workers
as compared to 49 percent of the men. While there is a 6 percent increase in the
work participation rate of women since 1981, the rate for men has dropped by 2
percent. This Increase is largely due to the urban female main workers category.
Women participation rate of female marginal workers is much higher than the male
workers, (majority of the women are working as cultivators, agriculture labourers
or as live stock rearers), which reiterates the double burden borne by women in
society in the form of domestic work and income generating work. A fairly large
number of women are working in categories that are male dominated, showing the
economic hardship and their flexibilily to adapt to new fields.
9
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Participation rates of rural women is higher than urban. Unlike in other states
unemployment rates of women are not higher than that of men, perhaps due to
better land - person ratio, high migration of male members to neighbouring statesOver one fifth of rural women in the prime working age 15 to 44 years are available
for work even though they are not reported as working or as unemployed. Over 77
percent of women are engaged in domestic chores of which the most Important is
gathering fuel wood and Water. Women are paid less than men for similar work. The
average female earnings tend to be 60 to 70 percent than that of the men. ( Kanta
Ahuja and Ranjana Kumari 1990)
72
By and large women have had no place in the public decision making process. Only
those who wear a "pagart" have a legitimacy of entering the public space. In most
villages of Rajasthan, women are not even allowed to step on to the "chaupal", the
central space in the village where village meetings are held and where men mostly
of upper caste sit and discuss politics. In several villages even today women cannot
wear shoes and walk in front of the house of the Thakur (the Rajput chief).
Thus it should come as no surprise that far from being elected as panches, women
do not sit in any decision making in the village or theJatl samaj. EachJatl is governed
by aJatl samaj which is constituted across villages. It is at this site where decisions
regarding inheritance, marriage payments, nata, Jhagra, adoption are taken and
controlled by customary law. Their point of view is represented by the men of the
household. Women also do not make independent decisions regarding voting.
Generally the vote is a Jatl, community or a family vote. Thus there is no question
of a woman’s right to an independent vote.
Women's participation in the Gram Panchayats in the last thirty years has also been
insignificant. The two nominated women members (usually the wife of the Sarpanch
who lost Jin almost every Panchayat never sat in the meetings and the Panchayat
register would reach their house for signatures. The predominantly male govern
ment functionaries have become the new "patrons" of the democratic set-up. who
dispense favours. The rural women hardly Interact with these state functionaries
and if they do, it is to seek favours and not for demanding their right.
What was the space that women did have in Rajasthani society? The above picture
does not take into account the strengths and skills that women have in resource
management, the survival strategy they display and their understanding are of an
order that surprises most outsiders. This image can be sought in Rajasthan folk
literature both in the oral and printed texts. Her image here is of one who is adept
in composing songs, dialoguing in verse, is knowledgeable about soil, agriculture
seasons etc. It is not that the tradition has been dead and there is nothing to draw
from that source. Many rural women historically have found space to challenge
oppressive forces although they are not visible in history.
There has been little documentation of women’s protest. The story of the women of
the Blshnot community of Khejarla village (Jodhpur district) more than 250 years
ago where they defied the orders of the Jodhpur Darbar to cut the trees in their
village. When the slpahls insisted on cutting the trees, they clung to them and
hundreds of women were killed in the process. It finally dawned on the Jodhpur
darbar that the women’s commitment towards preserving the flora and fauna was
above their lives.
73
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*
«
Similarly the Bhakti movement In Rajasthan (which is still a live tradition) have
expressions through verse that assert women’s rights and that they should lead a
life of their own. While Meera is very well known, there have been other saints too,
whose expressions are alive even today.
2.iii. Women's Mobilisation and State Policy for Women in the State
The above description has given a static image of rural society. However, today rural
society is undergoing a change due to several interventions. And they may not be
perceived through the above stated set of indicators. It is Important to know whether
rural women’s lives ( across caste and class) is undergoing a change? What is the
nature of this change? Is it perceptible? Has it thrown up challenges to gender
relations in Rajasthani society? While media, technology Inputs, transport facilities
have played an important role in opening up rural society .their have been other
factors also.
Like in the rest of the country, so in Rajasthan, women have mobilised around a
variety of issues from the mid-seventies. During the seventies (after International
Women’s Year) In this state, it was the urban middle class women who came on the
streets and took up issues relating to rape and dowry. They protested against State
and the community and tried to build a public opinion on these Issues.
It is only in the eighties that we see rural women’s expressions and fora and thus
the stirrings and emergence of a movement at the village level in certain pockets of
the state. While some Voluntary Agencies of central and southern Rajasthan were
the pioneers in this case, but a significant leap to this process was given by the state
sponsored Women’s Development Programme (WDP).
It is important to add here that the Government till then looked at women as objects
of welfare and compassion and only geared itself up during the period of meeting
the sterilisation targets. The Sixth National Plan had included a chapter on Women
and Development, although the main line chapters did not take cognisance of the
factor of gender. The Sixth State Plan had no such shift in policy of women. However,
in 1982 the state government attempted to formulate a policy frame for women’s
development on the basis of the National Plan. This policy outlined the need to look
at women as equal partners with men in the family. While this would strengthen
the institution of family, it would at the same time recognise that women have
independent Identities, needs, problems and inspirations. ( Maitreyi Dass, World
Bank Papers 1991).
The WDP had a Government - Voluntary Agency partnership, right from the time of
its inception to its planning and implementation, it was a feminist programme for
rural women built on the premise that state patronage and legitimacy was needed
in the context of Rajasthan if women’s empowerment had to be done with speed and
74
on a large scale. It was started in six districts in 1984. The objective was to bring
about a shift in women’s self image through collective processes and building
communication fora for women at the grass root level. It was the first broad network
of rural women across districts.
It was also in the eighties that two other significant events happened that helped
mobilising rural women. The first was the expression of rural women’s solidarity
through the organising of a Mahtla Mela in Tilonia village. In the eighties, two issues
were of primacy to the women’s question. The first being the stepping out of women
from their homes in order to meet other women as an expression of women’s
solidarity (the creation of fora). The other was the articulation of women’s issues,
as till then their was hardly any knowledge as to what were the issues of rural
women. The Tilonia Mela was unique in the opportunity that it gave to rural women
to express a sense of solidarity. It also threw up a range of women’s Issues and
strategies that needed to be adopted.
The second issue of the eighties was the revival and glorification of Satl that
happened in Deorala ( Rajasthan ) in 1987. The challenge to the pro Sati discourse
and the Rajputs who organised themselves to glorify Satl was done by women’s
groups ( including rural women) from all over the state. Women came on to the
streets and mobilised themselves on the issue of women’s Identity and women’s
dignity. This was the first time that women in such large numbers marched through
the streets and forced a public debate on this issue.
By end eighties attempts to form a fora for women across the State was experi
mented with. It was called Rajasthani Mahtla Manch. Limitations of working within
one’s own institutional structure was being felt and there was a desire for networking
and building other support systems. However it did not manage to involve a large
number of rural women. The leadership remained in the hands of urban middle
class women. By this period Voluntary Agencies who were raising women’s questions
had also begun proliferating. It was by this time that the women’s component had
become an Important criterion for funding, as well as that the women’s question
had become a explicit question in society. Interestingly all State programmes or
policy had begun addressing women. The focus from women had also been extended
to girls and girl’s education.
Thus by the nineties it had become acceptable to all intervening agencies (State and
NGOs) that women needed to be looked at. Infact they all want "women’s groups"
to implement their programmes. Be it family welfare, education, new agriculture
technique, or fodder development. The symbol and language of all programmes
whether Government, or NGO or a mass based organisation has become the same,
which is not to say that the objectives and the meaning are the same. However, this
has led to a paradoxical situation. Poor, lower caste rural women are prepared to
come out of their homes today and the resistance from family and the community
75
9
is less than before. This is of intrinsic value looking at the situation of women
historically. Today you can bring five thousand women to a meeting in Southern
Rajasthan and the recently organised desert women’s festival had about 1300
women from the backwaters of Western Rajasthan. Similarly in those districts where
the TLC programme was successful it was due to the women who came out in
thousands to the centres. However it was very clear that they were coming out with
the hope that "their" issues would be taken up at some point.
What has caused this shift ? The reasons could be several, including that there has
been an impact of all these programmes, that now makes it easier to bring women
out and that the scenario of survival is getting grimmer due to increasing pressure
of economic hardship and now the families also feel that if the women are in the
front and demand collectively then something will be done by the machinery, or is
it that working class women were always in the fore but were not visible to us.
However, there are very few groups who are really developing strategies that address
poor women’s own Issues. For instance, the famous WDP programme has become
a very different programme since the nineties. It has now become a Top - Down
Government delivery programme rather than being rooted in the field and working
on women’s problems of increasing liquor shops in the state, or increasing privatisa
tion and Inaccessibility to health services or encroachment of community land etc.
It has also not attempted to work creatively around other objectives like bringing
women together around their knowledge and experiences of joy. Neither has it
responded creatively in terms of support structures or begun addressing wider
issues in society. Most of the informal fora for women created at the village level
have fragmented. The village level worker, the sathin is unsure of her own position
in the programme, she would instead like to become a permanent government
worker. Thus her initiative at mobilising women on their issues has also dropped
Similarly most voluntary agencies are bringing women together around vertical
programmes of the State. (Rajasthan is a unique state where several educational,
health, child care services, natural resource management programmes of Govern
ment are being run though a Government - NGO partnership). But hardly any are
carrying forward the energy generated. Neither is there an attempt at really rooting
women’s issues and women’s groups on the ground or building support systems for
supporting issues that village women raise at the grassroot level.
6
It can also be stated that the middle class leadership in Rajasthan also seems to
have fragmented with a great deal of differences. While there are many more working
class women and women from small towns in the leadership, however, meeting the
next challenge of the movement, "beyond the stepping out of their homes" still needs
to be worked upon. It will consist of building rural women’s networks that function
with their own initiative, taking up the women’s question in every aspect of their
lives, responding actively to what is happening around them, throwing up alterna
tive concepts and methods of work, building a variety of support groups.
This is the context in which the women Panchayat Raj members will enter the scene
in Rajasthan.
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Section 3
PANCHAYAT RAJ IN RAJASTHAN
3.i
Background of Panchayat Raj in Rajasthan
Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh were the only two states that adopted the framework
recommended by the Balwant Rai Mehta Report on Panchayat Raj in 1959 itself,
and adopted a three tier Panchayat Raj Institution in the state. Rajasthan was the
first state to legislatively enact the recommendations, more so, on the birthday of
Mahatma Gandhi to fulfill his desire for a Gram Sivarajya.
The Rajasthan Panchayat Act however, was formulated as early as 1953. The
Rajasthan state was an amalgamation of all the former princely states. Most of these
former princely states had framed laws to establish statutory Panchayats. The states
with the year in which they formed the legislation were: Bikaner 1928, Karauli 1939,
Udaipur 1940, Bharatpur 1944, Jodhpur 1945, Sirohi 1947 and Jaipur 1948. After
independence in order to effect a common law for administrative purposes the
Rajasthan State Act was passed in 1953. The 1953 Act and later the 1959 Acts
continued with various Amendments. The latest being the Amendments in 1992.
Many believed that Rajasthan was least prepared for democratic decentralisation
as envisaged in the Balwant Rai report. The native Maharajahs and the Jagtrdars
had nurtured a strong feudal relationships, and often, the Jagtrdars were more
powerful than the Maharajahs. The subjects were therefore dependent upon the
Jagirdar for even the rudimentary services. Also, having been outside the colonial
rule, the native states were almost entirely out of the struggle for freedom, and hence,
unorganised along political lines until independence. The Government of India Acts
of 1909, 1919 and 1935 facilitating the emergence of the local and the provincial
governments elsewhere in the country had entirely by-passed Rajasthan. Whereas,
many of the native states had formed their own rules of Panchayat.
But, its various perceived ills appeared to have facilitated the excellent nurturing of
the Panchayat Raj initially in the state. Its economic backwardness coupled with
the absence of an organised political and economic organisation facilitated the
development of Panchayat Raj in the state. The Rajasthan Act and its performance
till 1965 was considered to be excellent but since then these institutions were
systematically crushed.
The Congress party which did not have a strong grassroot political organisation felt
threatened by the "king-makers" who emerged out of the non-partisan Panchayat
Raj Institutions. The Panchayat leaders instead of depending on the state level
77
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leaders for patronage and financial support, developed their own support bases,
and obtained financial resources from the development programmes within the
jurisdiction of the Panchayat Raj. Consequently, the Panchayat elections were
frequently postponed after the defeat of the Congress party in 1967, and also they
were subject to manipulation by the state level organisations and leaders. Although
the tenure of a Panchayat was only three years, only five elections to the Gram
Panchayats were held between 1960 and 1994. The first in 1960, the second in
1965, the third in 1978 the fourth in 1982 and the last one in 1988. The election
of the Panchayat Samitis i.e. the Pradhan took place in 1961, 1965 and 1982. This
shows the blatant violation to the law by the successive State Governments.
The arbitrary postponement of elections sapped the vitality of the Panchayat
Institutions and the elected representatives lost touch with the people. It is often
stated in the political circles that the one person who was really committed to
Panchayat Raj in the State was the Ex Chief Minister Shiv Charan Mathur. He was
a Zila Pramukh in his district before he entered the Vidhan Sabha. Twice when he
was in power he held elections. Once in 1982 and the second time in 1988. He was
also the inspiration behind the Sarpanches Sammelan from all over the country in
1986.
While, the politicians undermined the institution that they helped to create, the
bureaucrats were unwilling to be a part of the Panchayat Raj Institutions. There
was no cadre of the Panchayat Raj department, and the officials were often drawn
from the line departments of the state. The bureaucrats were unwilling to accept
that the uneducated grassroot leaders were capable of handling the development
functions. This combined with the tussle between the IAS and the RAS for
supremacy, cheered no doubt by the politicians from the sidelines, led to the
withdrawal of the IAS officials from the block level.
One more reason for the withdrawal of the IAS officials was that the development
paradigm of the state had shifted from overall rural development to a narrowly
focussed agricultural development, relying upon modem techniques and methods.
As an analyst had argued, the "modernisation imperative" of the state was not
national welfare but national security. Consequently, less funds began to be diverted
to the Panchayat Raj Institutions; suffocating them in the process. As mentioned
above, the Panchayat Institutions relied on the meagre support of the State, rather
than their own sources of income.
The problems of the Panchayat Raj in the state were analysed by committee after
committee with no result. The Sadiq Ali committee was appointed in 1964, and
Girdhari Lal Vyas chaired the high powered committee on Panchayat Raj in 1973.
The latter’s recommendation to strengthen Zila Parishads by devolving more powers,
resources and personnel were not given any serious attention. The emergency in
78
1975 deflected attention from Panchayat Raj. During the Janata party rule in the
post-emergency phase, a national level committee headed by Asoka Mehta was
appointed. Before its recommendations could be acted upon the Janata Party fell
from power. For long the Panchayat Raj Institutions were in a state of limbo until
they were resurrected by the 73rd Constitutional Amendment.
3.H. Critique of the State Panchayat Raj Act 1994 and Election Rules 1994
.The Act governing the establishment and functioning of the Panchayats, modelled
on the 73rd Constitutional Amendment, in the state of Rajasthan was passed by
the State Assembly on April 10, 1994, and it came into force on April 23rd 1994.
With this the previous two Acts that governed these Institutions, the Rajasthan
Panchayat Act, 1953 and Rajasthan Panchayat Samitl and the Zlla Parishad Act,
1959 were replaced by a single Act. The Act, as mentioned above was modelled on
the 73rd Amendment, and Infact, had endorsed it. It made no effort to go beyond
the 73rd Amendment. In the places it has gone beyond it is not in any way to
strengthen the Panchayat Raj Institutions, but the State Government, as in the case
of the " two child norm" as a condition for election to these bodies.
It can be said quite openly that the State Government controls all the powers of the
Panchayat Raj Institutions at present. That this Act was organised in haste and
passed through the assembly as a mere formality to meet the deadline of the
Constitution, is obvious as it does not specify the critical issues. The Act is a bare
frame which stands as a facade for Panchayat Raj. However, the substance of
Panchayat Raj is missing. Such an act seems to put all the debate on self governance,
autonomy and the third stratum (which took place in the aftermath of the Seventy
Third Amendment) on the back burner. The public once again has been taken for a
ride. It was only the pressure from the Central Government, the withholding of the
funds from them that forced the Government to hold elections.
What follows is a general critique of the Act. We have not looked at only those
dimensions that may specifically affect women. We feel that it is important to
understand certain salient features of the Act in order to know how the legislation
empowers the Panchayat Raj Institutions and the elected representatives ( women
and men) in order to strengthen ordinary rural people’s control and access over
decision making in their lives. However, we also feel that a genderised legislation
ought to emerge after the women begin participating and debating on it. The
legislation ought not to have only a provision or two about women but its framework
ought to emerge from a social relations perspective i.e. a combined gender, class
and caste perspective.
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3. ii. A. Establishment of a Panchayat
As in the past, so It is in this Act, the Panchayat, Panchayat Samiti, and Zila Parishad
bodies are established by the State Government ( Section 9,10, 11). The precise size
of a Panchayat is not stated although this Act does say that a population not
exceeding 3,000 will have nine wards.
In the early years of the enactment, after 1953, the Panchayat size was large between
3,000 to 8,000 persons. But with formation of a three tier structure these
Panchayats were reduced to 1500 - 2000 persons per Panchayat. However, this size
underwent a change gradually and in 1992 the process of reconstituting the
Panchayat was initiated. The minimum population of the Panchayat was stated as
being 2000 (on the basis of the 1981 census), however there was no stated policy
on the upper limit. But since there was this policy that a village will not be broken
up, several villages with more than 8000 to 10,000 persons were also declared
Panchayats. Interestingly a village with over 15,000 persons is usually declared a
municipality. However when the reconstitution was taking place many of the
municipalities reverted to being Panchayats as they felt that the Panchayats had
more powers. Lunkaransar which has a population of more than 19,000 persons
(1991 census) continues to be a Panchayat and one Panchayat has a population of
over 26,000 persons. Obviously the reconstitution of the Panchayats is a political
decision and there is no clear rule related to the size of a Gram Panchayat. It is
dependent on the pressure that can be put on the MLA and others in the State
Government that decides on a Panchayat size and being declared one.
Today we have total of 9,187 Panchayats as compared to 7,358 in 1992, 237
Panchayat Samitis and 31 Zila Parishads.
3. ii. B. Representation in the PanchayatBodies
The Panchayats in the new Act, consists of only the ward members as members of
the Panchayat. However, the membership to the Panchayat Samiti and the Zila
Parishad has changed. Now the membership consists of only directly elected
members. However, earlier their were four types of members in the Panchayat
Samiti. 1) persons holding the office of the Sarpanch. 2) elected members from
gramdaan. villages and the MP and MLA who had full voting rights 3) co-opted
members 4) associate members, who could be the president of the coOperative
society. The Zila Parishad consisted of MPs, MLAs, the collector, co-opted members.
Except for the collector they all had voting rights.
The new Act has removed the place that executive heads of the lower Panchayat Raj
Institutions had in the higher Panchayat Raj Institutions (Section 13 and 14 of the
Act). The Sarpanches who constituted the Panchayat Samiti (block) body in the last
80
I
Act have not been given a position in the Panchayat Samitl. Similarly the Pradhans
have not been given a place in the Zila Parlshad. On the contrary, the MLAs
representing a Panchayat Samitl wholly or partially have retained their seat, and a
right to vote for all motions but, the removal and the election of a Pradhan and UpPradhan (Section 13 (b)).
Similarly, under Sections 14 (b&c), all MLA's and MPs (Lok Sabha members elected
from the area and the Rajya Sabha member registered from that area), continue to
be members of the Zila Parlshad with a right to vote on all matters except, the election
and removal of the Zila Pramukh and the Up-Zila Pramukh.
Removing the representation of lower functionaries in the higher levels of Panchayat
Raj, and imposing the representatives of the second and first tier of political
hierarchy, has led to a speculation that the Act had paved the way for the control
of the third tier. The public opinion was exercised by this attempt to muzzle the
Panchayat Raj Institutions, even prior to its inception. It was also felt that this would
only facilitate a top- down communication and not necessarily a bottom-up; thus
defeating the very spirit of the democratic decentralisation envisaged in the 73rd
Constitutional Amendment.
The Panchayat Raj minister and the Chief Minister however, argued that the
Panchayat Samitl representative would now play the role of the Sarpanch in the
Panchayat Samitl, and the Zila Parlshad representative would play the role of the
Pradhan. This was done in order to take away the excessive control that Sarpanches
and Pradhan’s exercised within the Panchayat Raj Institutions. On the contrary, by
taking away the powers of the Sarpanch and the Pradhan in representing their
constituency in the higher levels of the Panchayat Raj Institutions, the Act has
weakened their power, and undermined the institutions they represent.
3. ii. C.
The Functions and Powers of Panchayat Bodies
The Act does not clearly specify the functions, and the powers that the State
Government would transfer to the Panchayat Raj Institutions. The Act however, for
the first time provides executive powers to the Zila Parlshad. Powers to execute tasks
were earlier vested only with the Gram Panchayat and the Panchayat Samitl.
According to Government documents the division of responsibility between the three
layers of the Panchayat Raj is as follows:
Gram Panchayats will be the implementing agency.
Panchayat Samitl will be the supervisory agency.
Zlla Parlshad will perform the advisory role.
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Both the Panchayat and the Panchayat Samiti were executive bodies in the earlier
Act with the Panchayat Samiti being the most powerful of all the bodies. Maximum
funds, through various schemes was received by it. The Panchayat Samiti had a
wide range of activities and also had a big staff to perform them, but the financial
flexibility attached to it was minimum. This time too only Up service has been given
to the function and powers.
The functions and the powers of the Panchayat Raj Institutions at the village, Block
and the Zila level are given in Sections 50, 51 and 52, and listed separately for each
of them in Schedules I, II and III. These are long lists of functions each institution
will perform but the precise powers of each of these are not mentioned. The subjects
allocated to the Gram Panchayat are listed under 33 heads, and those of the
Panchayat Samiti and the Zila Parishad under heads 30 and 19 respectively. These
items, are by and large the same as given in the XI schedule of the Constitution,
and very little thought has gone into defining the exact nature and scope of these
activities across the three levels.
For instance the Act mentions that the PHC’s will be established by the Zlla Parishad.
Will they control the transfer and postings of stafi? This has not been made clear.
There are major problems in the division of labour across the three levels. For
instance, as part of Khadl and Village Industries work, Panchayats will organise
seminars and exhibitions, but the identification of the skilled artisans will be done
by the Zlla Parishad. Similarly as part of Rural Housing, the identification of the
homeless will be done by the Zlla Parishad, a task which the Panchayats are capable
of doing.
As another report had pointed out, fisheries is listed as item number five in the XI
Schedule of the Constitution. It is also listed as item number five in the Schedule I
of the Rajasthan Panchayat Act, and described as "Development of Fisheries in the
Village(s)''. Under Schedule II of the Act, item number seven is listed as "Promotion
of Fisheries Development". How are these functions assigned to two different levels
of Panchayat bodies different? And what would be the exact nature and scope of the
Gram Panchayat in this context? (PanchayatRaj Update, November 1994). It appears
that these lists were prepared without any thought, and more to complete a formality
of listing the activities.
3. ii.D The Role of the Gram Sabha
In the 1994 Panchayat Raj Act of Rajasthan, the Gram Sabhas continue to have an
advisory role to the Panchayats. It is also mandatory to convene two Gram Sabhas
annually with a quorum of one- tenth of the members of the Panchayat. This
provision was incorporated in the 1992 Amendment to the previous Panchayat Raj
Act. However, this Amendment remained only on paper, as the administrators and
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not the elected representatives were controlling the Panchayat Raj Institutions.
However, the 1994 Act ( Section 3) while retaining the necessity of convening the
Gram Sabhas has negated the spirit of the 1992 Amendment. The 1992 Amendment
had stated that if a Sarpanch would not convene two successive meetings (with the
necessary quorum) then he would have to automatically vacate his post. The
punitive dimension attached to the 1992 Act has been removed in the 1994 Act.
Thus removing the responsibility from the Sarpanch to ensure and make people’s
participation possible. However, the Act goes on further to state in the next line “that
no quorum shall be necessary for a meeting adjourned for want of a quorum” (Section
3.4). This latter point shows that still only lip service is being provided to the
importance of the Gram Sabha. That the Panchayat needs the Gram Sabha as its
base is still a far dream for Rajasthan.
Provision has also been made for the formation of a vigilance committee by the Gram
Sabha to supervise the Panchayat works an report to it. It will consist of non elected
members. However, no details have yet been given as to what the relationship of
this committee will be to the Panchayat. Will they hand over all records to it?
Interestingly as compared to the previous Act it has introduced a new clause that
the minutes of the Gram Sabha meeting would be kept by the Gram Sevak under
the supervision of the Vikas Adhikari or the nominee.
3. ii. E. Relaxation of the literacy norm as a criterion ofeligibilty of Sar-
panch and the powers of the Gram Sevak.
As compared to the previous Act (1953), this Act has relaxed the norm of literacy as
a condition for becoming Sarpanch. It was stated that this was being done as a very
large number of candidates were SC, ST, and women. It was felt that this would
limit the number of people who would contest the election. This was looked upon
as a very healthy support for the participation of the disadvantaged groups. Thus
the Act further gave the responsibility to the Panchayat SecretaryfGram Sevak) to
keep possession of the records and registers and be responsible for maintaining the
accounts of the Panchayat (Section 78). This decision was taken so as not to burden
a non literate/educated elected representative with maintaining and keeping
records and accounts. Although they also state that the Sarpanch has the overall
responsibility of maintenance.
Giving away the possession of records and the maintenance of accounts is to reduce
the powers of the Sarpanch and also to make the process of work inefficient. The
Gram Sevak may not hand over a record under some pretext. The state does not
have a system of one Secretary to one Panchayat but a group of Panchayats have
one Secretary. The Secretary does not spend more than three to four days in one
Panchayat every month. So when the Panchayat or the Sarpanch may want the
records the Gram Sevak may not be available.
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3. ii. F. The Role of the Nyaya Panchayats
Till 1976 the Gram Panchayats carried out the role of Nyaya Panchayats and settled
both thefauzdaii and diwant cases. The chair person of the Nyaya Panchayat could
impose a fine upto Rs. 250. There was no provision of appeal but revision could lie
with the munstf court and a first class magistrate in criminal cases. In 1976, the
Judiciary was separated from the executive. As it was felt that the Nyaya Panchayats
must be autonomous bodies and the Gram Panchayat must focus on work related
to "development", Nyaya Panchayats were separated from the Gram Panchayat and
one Nyaya Panchayat was set up for a cluster of five Panchayats.The members of
the Nyaya Panchayat were usually nominated. They were either village elders or
ex-govemment employees, educated people, not more than 4 to 5 members formed
a Nyaya Panchayat. However no financial resources were given to them, no
secretaries were allotted to them and they were made dependent on the Gram
Panchayats. The latter refused to support them. For years, the secretaries were not
paid. Later Nyaya Panchayats were removed altogether and Nyaya Sub -Committees
were formed in the Gram Panchayat itself. These were also dissolved.
This Act too has made no mention of Nyaya Panchayats being set up at the Gram
Panchayat level. It has been argued that there is a correlation between Justice and
development, and Panchayats should have the powers of the administration,
judiciary and development. The Nyaya Panchayats have drawn adverse reports, and
the Ashok Mehta Committee report gave an unfavourable opinion on them. However,
it had been pointed out that with the emphasis on settling disputes at the
Lok-Adalat, the Panchayats should have been given the powers of dispensing nyaya
as well. The 1989 report of the Law commission made out a favourable case for the
Nyaya Panchayats. However, in spite of the Prime Minister’s assurance to bring
nyaya within the fold of the Panchayats, it was left out of the 73rd Amendment.
This we feel is a setback for women and the poor as the courts and the police are
very oppressive and insensitive. This system is both time and money consuming
and too distant from the village.
Although it is often argued that the formal system of Justice is more sensitive,
detached, fair outside the local realm of politics, people have a better chance of
Justice than in local Panchayats. In response, it is said that the chances of the rich
and the powerful lobby pulling strings is as much in courts as at the village level.
However, the Nyaya Panchayat can be one of the options for the people who are
seeking justice. Why should they be completely negated?
3.H. G. Finances of the Panchayat Bodies
The Panchayats at present receive a meagre grant of Rs. 4 per person annually while
the Panchayat Samitl receives Rs. 0.25 per person from the State Government. The
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Panchayat Samiti and the Gram Panchayats in the earlier Act had the powers to
impose taxes like vehicle tax, education sub tax, commercial tax, toll tax, and were
entitled to some share of the land revenue collected by the State. These taxes were
also imposed on its people. However, they would never recover the money. Apart
from this the Panchayat had/has the ownership of the village grazing land, the
village residential land and the village forest to raise revenue. But today the village
forest is nonexistent, the village grazing land has been encroached upon or converted
for other use. Thus the Panchayats had no funds of their own. The agenda of all
that they could do was vast but they were gradually reduced to becoming implement
ing bodies of the centre or the state sponsored schemes. The eighties saw the JRY
fixation of the Panchayats which continues even today.
The new Act of 1994, Section 64-70, talk of funds to these Institutions and the
powers of imposing taxes by these Institutions. Each body has to meet the cost of
its administration, including salaries, allowances, provident fund etc. It also adds
that the expenditure on establishment should not exceed thirty percent of the total
expenses.
All the three Institutions have the power to impose taxes. The Panchayat has the
maximum powers to impose taxes. There has not been much difference in the powers
of taxation as compared to the earlier Act, except for the Zila Parishad who have the
powers to impose taxes for the first time. They can also charge a rate for water from
the sources that come under their Jurisdiction and upto five percent stamp duty on
sale of property and half a percent on the market fees referred to in the Markets Act.
According to certain sources, if each Zila Parishad enforces stamp duty then it can
earn Rs. 20 lakhs per annum.
The State Finance Commission was set up in mid 1994 according to Section 118 of
the Act. It will lay down the principles of how much money State Government should
allocate for the Panchayat Raj bodies. However, no recommendations have been
made yet. In the past, several proposals had been made. For instance, Khara
Committee gave suggestions to increase the grant to Rs. 20 per person.
3.H.H, The Powers of the Bureaucracy
Although, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is placed at the disposal of the Zila
Pramukh, under Section 35 (C); the Act weakens the powers of the Pramukh
elsewhere. For instance, under Section 84 (3) the CEO is empowered not to
implement any of the decision of the Zila Parishad, or its committees, which in his
opinion is inconsistent with the provisions of the Act or any other law. He can refer
it to the state government for necessary directions. This is true of the Vikas Adhlkart
vis-a-vis the Panchayat Samiti as well.
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The Panchayat bodies do not have any say in the appointment and transfer of any
officials in the Panchayat bodies, including the Class IV employees [Section 79 (3)].
The emergency powers of the Vikas Adhlkart and the CEO (Section 85) will enable
them to Intervene at any level, and take control of any matter of the Panchayat
Samitl and Zila Parishad if, in their opinion, it is necessary for the welfare of the
larger public.
i
,
3.H. I. The Powers of the State Government
Sections 92 to 107 in Chapter IV of the Act, deal with the powers that State
government has over the Panchayat bodies. According to Section 92 (1), the State
government shall be the chief superintending and controfiing authority in respect
of all matters concerning the administration of the Panchayat bodies, and may
cancel any resolution or order passed by it. The government reserves the right to
dissolve the Panchayats if it is not satisfied with their performance. Under Section
100 (e), the government can institute an enquiry on any matter against any member,
chairperson, deputy chairperson of the Panchayat bodies. It also reserves the right
to delegate the powers of enquiry to any authorised person. According to the
provisions of section 38, the State can remove any member of the Panchayat bodies.
According to Section 105 (2), no bye-laws made by a Panchayat Samitl or Zila
Parishad shall take effect unless they are sanctioned by the State Government. In
case of any dispute between two Panchayat bodies, and as well as a Panchayat body
and the local authority, the state will act as the final arbiter [Section 107 (2)], and
its decision shall be binding, and not questioned through legal recourse.
The goal of self governance and autonomy of these Institutions that form the third
stratum is completely negated. This Act does not specify the powers and thus the
minimum that the Panchayat can do under its jurisdiction. However, the maximum
that the State Government can do is clearly specified. It is clear from this that the
legislators spent more time not in visualising the precise way in which each of these
Institutions ought to evolve but more time in knowing and spelling out its powers
over these bodies.
3.H. J. District Planning Committee
This will form draft plans of development for the whole district. The Zila Pramukh
has been made the chairperson of this body. At least four fifths of the members will
be elected from amongst the elected members of the municipalities and the
Panchayat Raj Institutions in proportion to the urban rural proportion (the rules
for election have not been stated). The rest of the members will be nominated. They
may be State Government representatives, MPs, MLAs, Voluntary Agency Repre
sentatives. The district committee functions will be dependent on the State
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Government’s orders. The Committee will plan the sharing of natural resources
between urban and rural areas and infrastructural development.
IILii.K. The Two Child Norm- Eligibility Conditions for Contesting Elections
In October 1992, the Rajasthan government promulgated an Ordinance, that one
year after the implementation of this Act, any elected representative who would have
an extra child (more than two or more children) in this period would be disqualified
from being a Panchayat Raj representative. This ordinance was heralded by the
population control lobby in the state, and the Family Planning Foundation of India
claimed credit for the introduction of this ordinance. Although, this ordinance could
not be implemented, as there were no elections; this rule found its way in a modified
form; viz., removing the one year grace period, in to the 1994 Act. In other words,
according to this Act, any one having an extra child (two or more) after April 1994
would be disqualified from standing for elections. (Section 19.1). This law was also
passed for the Municipalities and urban local bodies.
While agencies like the Family Planning Foundation hailed Rajasthan as the
progressive State and as the trend setter, others protested very severely against this
provision. The Janwadi Mahila Samiti, Delhi, filed a case in the Jaipur High Court,
for repeal of this provision. Several organisations including the Rajiv Gandhi
Foundation asked the state to repeal this provision. The main arguments against
this provision were that it militated against the democratic rights of the people;
particularly the poor, women and the youth. It was argued that women who had no
role in decision making on child bearing would become a victim of this legislation.
The experience of other states shows that most of the women who do get elected are
of the reproductive age group (15 to 45 years) and they would be debarred. It was
argued that there may be an increase in female foeticide and infanticide or even
abandoning a woman under the pretext that she was carrying somebody else’s child.
The male youth also felt that this would bring back the older generation of people.
They were very enthusiastic about the Panchayat Raj and saw a role for themselves.
They felt that they would also be the victims of this legislation being in the child
begetting age group.
Consequent to these protests, the state relaxed this provision for the urban local
bodies elections in October 1994. It refused to negotiate this provision in the case
of the Panchayat institutions. In mid December, a fortnight before the elections were
announced in the BJP Party Sammelan on Panchayat Raj, the CM made a firm
announcement that this law would remain and there was no going back on it. But
Just before the 1995 elections on the 29th of December, the Government brought
in an ordinance and changed it. The argument of the CM was that, "on public
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demand we are relaxing this law for this election, as it has not been disseminated
enough and from November’95 it will become effective".
The political implications of enforcing this rule resulted in its withdrawal. The BJP
felt that the Congress party may use this rule against it in the election. Also, it could
not obviously have used double standards for urban local bodies and rural local
bodies. Given, its desire to expand its constituency in the rural areas, it obviously
did not want to provide the Congress a stick to beat it with. This seems to have
weighed more in the repeal of the rule than any other factor.
3.H.L. Reservation Rules
The 1994 Act ( Section 15) announced proportionate reservation for the OBC’s in
the same manner as was made compulsory by the Seventy Third Amendment Act
for the SCs and STs. However in the month of July it changed this law and gave the
OBC’s a reservation quota of a maximum of fifteen percent dependent on the
reservation of the SCs and STs. The reasons for the change was that OBC population
totals were not available in the census and therefore it created a new formula for
their reservation. The constituencies would be selected by lottery. The reasons given
for the relaxation should not be looked upon at face value. It was argued from the
other side that the reservations on the basis of actual population could have been
made possible on the basis of the voters list. All it needed was a cut off date for
updating the voters list and then the population of the OBC’s could have been
totalled. After all the OBC caste list of fifty four castes had been made available, it
was felt that the BJP had succumbed to the upper caste pressure and to the
established political characters who were very angry with reservations and felt that
they had no place to go.
However, no debate could take place in the monsoon session of the Assembly as the
assembly adjourned sine - die in two days and the ordinance was ratified as were
the six ordinances that were passed in seven and a half minutes.
3.UM. Parties and Panchayat Elections
The Act Is silent on whether parties would openly participate in the Panchayat Raj
or not. However, when the State elections rules were published in August 1994 it
was decided that for the election of only the Pradhan and Zila Pramukh, the
candidates could use party symbols. But once again prior to the election the State
Congress Party, now with a new and popular leader, said that it would fight the
election upto the Block level on a party basis. It also requested the State Government
to bring about a change in the rules about fighting all elections on the basis of Party
symbols. The Janata Dal also urged this. The BJP was undecided about this and
were dllly dallying till the end. It almost decided that even if their party would get
Involved they would not use symbols in the election. After much thought the
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Government changed the rules and announced at the last minute just before the
announcement of elections that parties could use their symbols for the Zila Parishad
and the Block level elections, but not for the Gram Panchayat election.
3.H.N Election Process
Yet another change brought about towards the end was that the election to all the
four seats, ward member, Sarpanch (head of the Gram Panchayat) Panchayat Samitl
Sadasya and the Zila Parishad Sadasya, would not take place together. The election
would take place in two phases. In the first round the election for the Panchayat
Samlti Sadasya and the Zila Parishad Sadasya would take place, on the basis of
party symbols. In the second round, the election of ward members and the
Sarpanches of the Gram Panchayat would take place. Thus instead of casting the
four votes together with two polling parties in one booth, it was changed to one
polling party per booth with the two ballot papers given in one go.
The process of reservation was a straight forward process. The rules of selecting a
constituency area or ward as per the norm for reservation were quite clear and there
were no problems. It was a transparent process. However, there were two problems
in the method of reservations for two types of posts. One related to the selection of
one third of the total constituency areas and wards for the executive posts of women
Sarpanch, Pradhan and Zila Pramukh. Here, instead of a reservation formula
following the same pattern of first lots be picked up for one third of the total SC
constituency or Wards, then lots be picked up from one third of the total ST seats,
then the OBC lots and then from the rest, the lots be picked up for the required
number of general seats, the norm was changed. From the total, they selected at
random by picking up lots for one third of the seats. This created confusion. In one
block of Bikaner district out of the ten Sarpanch women seats all went to the SCs
and only one seat got reserved for general women category. This manner of picking
up lots for the reservation of women to the executive posts resulted in a case being
lodged challenging this formula as unconstitutional. However, this was defeated in
court. Similarly the OBC quota reservation was on the basis of lottery. In some
places, those wards or constituency areas got selected where there was not a single
OBC household and the candidate had to come from outside of that area and fight
the election.
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Section 4
PARTIES AND ELECTED WOMEN REPRESENTATIVES
Observations From Panchayat Samiti Macro Data
4. i
The Rural Electorate in the State
For the Rajasthan State as a whole, approximately 66 percent out of a total rural
population of about 341 lakhs were the electorates who were to decide the fate of
the Ward Panchs, Sarpanchs, Panchayat Samiti members and the Zila Parishad
members of the Panchayat Raj. The male voters constituted about 53 percent and
the female voters constituted about 47 percent of the total electorates. The SC’s
constituted about 17 percent, and the ST’s were about 14 percent of the total
electorates. Table l(a & b) (for all tables, please refer to Section 7) provides details
of the electorates as a proportion of the rural population across the districts, and
as well as the composition of male and female electorates.
It may be observed from the table that Pali district followed by Bikaner district had
the highest proportion of rural population as electorates. In Pali district, ap
proximately 77 percent of the rural population were eligible to vote in the Panchayat
elections, and in Bikaner district about 74 percent of the rural population were
eligible as voters. The least was in Banswara and Jaisalmer where only 60 percent
of the rural population were eligible or listed as voters. In Ajmer, Banswara,
Dungarpur, and Rajsamand districts, the male and female voters are almost equal
in number.
It may be observed from the table that in Ganganagar district, roughly 36 percent
of the electorates are composed of SC’s. Ganganagar district has the highest
concentration of SC population in the entire state. The agricultural prosperity of the
district may explain the large number of SC population in the district. Interestingly,
in Bikaner district neighbouring Ganganagar district, only 9 percent of the electorate
is composed of SC’s. In the Southern Rajasthan districts; viz., Udaipur, Dungarpur,
and Banswara, over 50 percent of the electorates is composed of ST’s. Banswara
district has about 76 percent of the ST’s in its electoral rolls.
4.H Panchayat Samiti
The total seats in the Panchayat Samiti is 5,257, and 1,743 seats were reserved for
women. Of the total seats reserved for women, about 56.45 percent were general
seats, 17.78 percent were reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) women, 14.75 for
Scheduled Tribe (ST) women, and 11.02 percent was reserved for Other Backward
Caste (OBC) women. The Table No.2. gives details of the total number of Panchayat
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Samiti constituencies by reservation across the district of Rajasthan. It may be seen
from the table that the highest number of constituencies is in Jaipur district,
followed by Alwar district. The least number of Wards is found in Jaisalmer district.
These 5,257 Panchayat Samiti members would in turn elect 237 Pradhans for the
entire state. Of these there would be 80 women Pradhans- 13 SC women Pradhans.
14 ST women Pradhans, 9 OBC women Pradhans and the rest from the General
category. Table No. 2 provides details of the number of Pradhans in each district,
and as well as the details of the women Pradhans by reservation.
4.iii Voter Turnout
For the Panchayat Samiti elections in Rajasthan as Table No 3 reveals, about 64
percent votes were considered valid. About 54 percent of them were men voters and
about 46 percent were women voters. In all the districts of Rajasthan less than 50
percent of the women had cast their votes to express their preference for their
Panchayat Samiti members. The highest turn out of women, ie., about 50 percent
was in Sikar district, and the least was in Jhalawar district, ie., about 40 percent.
In all the districts, less than 60 percent of the men had cast their preference for the
Panchayat Samiti ward members. The highest turnout was in Barmer district, about
59 percent, and the least turnout was in Dungarpur district, about 50 percent.
4.iv Percentage Votes and Parties
Of the total valid votes polled in the state as a whole, the Congress party was
marginally ahead than the BJP. About 36 percent of the total votes were polled in
its favour, and about 34 percent was in favour of the BJP. The independents secured
about 29 percent, and the balance was received by other parties in the State. Across
districts, Alwar and Bharatpur showed a distinct preference for independents who
secured about 57 percent and 61 percent respectively of the total votes polled in the
district. In Hanumangarh, Dholpur, Jhunujunu and Sawai Madhopur as well the
independents were preferred over the candidates from the national parties.
Banswara district preferred the Janata Dal over other parties. In Rajsamand district,
the BJP was marginally ahead of the Congress in the proportion of votes polled.
However, across the district of Rajsamand, Congress received the highest proportion
of votes. In Chittorgarh district, BJP secured the highest proportion of votes.
The Congress party did well in the western Rajasthan region- its traditional
catchment area. Barmer. Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Bikaner, Nagaur and Churu showed
a preference for the Congress party over BJP. Interestingly, Ajmer district, with a
maximum number of literate population in the state preferred BJP over the Congress
party. The southern Rajasthan, mainly Chittorgarh, Kota, Udaipur preferred BJP
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over the Congress party. Kota and Bundi districts, were overwhelmingly in favour
of the BJP party, and about 70 percent of the total votes were cast in its favour.
4.v
Seats and Parties
Translated into number of seats of the Panchayat Samitl, the BJP managed to pip
slightly ahead of the Congress, although it had received marginally less proportion
of votes than the Congress. It managed to get about 55 seats more than the Congress
party. In terms of proportion, the BJP managed to wrest about 39 percent of the
total Panchayat Samiti seats in the State whereas, the Congress managed only about
38 percent of the total seats. The independents and other parties won about 22
percent of the total seats (see Table No 4).
In Bharatpur, Alwar, Banswara, Hanumangarh and Tonk districts, the inde
pendents and other parties managed to get 50 percent or more of the total Panchayat
Samiti seats. In Tonk district, the independents secured about 73 percent of the
total Panchayat Samiti seats in the district. In Bundi and Kota districts, the BJP
got about 70 percent of the total Panchayat Samiti seats. The BJP did well in Ajmer,
Baran, Chittorgarh and Udaipur dlstricts-the southern and eastern portions of the
State, where the BJP had long ago wrested control from the Congress party. The
Congress managed to retain its control in the western Rajasthan region.
4.vi
Election of Women Block Members and Political Parties
As mentioned above, 1,743 seats are reserved for women, the Congress party was
ahead of the B JP in the overall number of seats secured. The Congress party secured
about 41 percent of the total seats reserved for women, and the BJP secured about
37 percent. The independents and others secured about 21 percent of the total seats.
In the reserved categories, viz., the reservation of women’s seats for SC, ST
and OBC the Congress Party had a substantial lead over the BJP. In OBC
women’s seats the Congress party had secured about 47 percent of the seats
compared to 33 percent of the BJP. SC women in the Congress had won 44 percent
of the seats, and the BJP had won only 35 percent, and among ST’s the Congress
party had won about 44 percent of the seats whereas the BJP had won 36 percent.
Restated, for the entire state the Congress Party still managed to retain its hold
among the SC, ST and the OBC women, whereas, it conceded the positon to the BJP
in the General women seats (see Table No.5).
For the women’s seats overall, the pattern across districts is similar to that obtained
for all the Panchayat Samitl seats in the State. To elaborate, the independents and
other parties had secured an advantage in Alwar, Bharatpur, Banswara and
Hanumangarh. Whereas, in Tonk district overall the independents and other parties
had done well, in the election to the women Panchayat Samitl members, the
Congress party was preferred. However, in Sawai Madhopur, the independents were
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preferred over other mainstream parties. In Kota district however, the Congress was
a washout, and this was across all women’s seats in the Panchayat Samiti. In
Banswara, the Janata Dal was preferred over other parties.
4.vii Election ofPradhans and Parties
In the election ofPradhans to the Panchayat Samiti, the anti-defection law was not
applicable. This benefitted the ruling BJP. In spite of obtaining only 34 percent of
the votes, and 39 percent of the seats in the Panchayat Samiti it managed to get
120 Pradhans out of a total number of 237 le., about 51 percent were elected. The
Congress managed to elect only 87 Pradhans, ie., about 37 percent whereas, there
are only 30 Pradhans who are independents and from other political parties, ie.,
about 13 percent. While the infighting within the Congress party made its job easier,
the advantage of being a ruling party also facilitated the BJP.
In Tonk district, where the independents and others in spite of securing about 73
percent of the total Panchayat Samiti seats, could not get a single Pradhan elected.
The spoils were shared equally between the BJP and the Congress party. However,
the two Pradhan posts reserved for women were taken by the BJP- a general and
an OBC candidate. In Baran district as well, the independents have been co-opted
into the BJP, and they helped get 6 out of the 7 Pradhan posts. The two Pradhan
posts reserved for women-General and ST- were also taken by the BJP. The Congress
party managed to secure only one post.
In Ajmer district, the Congress in spite of securing about 30 percent of the total
Panchayat Samiti seats was not in a position to get even a single Pradhan elected.
The three Pradhan posts reserved for women- two general and one OBC- were taken
by the BJP. Of the 8 Pradhans to be elected in this district, the Independents and
other parties managed to get one Pradhan elected, and the rest was secured by the
BJP. In spite of faring poorly in Alwar district, in terms of the votes and the Panchayat
Samiti seats secured, the BJP managed to wrest 5 out of the 14 Pradhan seats in
the district.
4.viii Women Pradhans and Parties
For the women Pradhans overall, the BJP managed to wrest more than 50 percent
of the posts in its favour. In 11 out of 31 districts in the state, they had managed
to get all the women Pradhans elected out of their party. The Congress however,
could get all the Pradhan seats only in 7 districts of the state. The party could only
get 28 of its women’s candidates elected as Pradhan out of a total number of 80
Pradhans. It is interesting to note here that in its pocket borough of western
Rajasthan, composed of its traditional supporters; viz., the Jats, it managed to get
all the Pradhan seats in Barmer, Jodhpur, Bikaner, Churu, and majority of the seats
in Nagaur district. However, in Jaisalmer, Ganganagar and Hanumangarh, the BJP
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managed to wrest the seats from the Congress. The Janata Dal managed to get all
their women candidates elected as Pradhans in Banswara district (see Table 6).
It may be seen from Table 7 that the Congress party had a marginally favourable
result in the case of the SC women and OBC women only. The BJP has more than
50 percent of the women Pradhans in the general category, and about 50 percent
of ST women Pradhans. In the remaining SC, ST and OBC Pradhans it has more
than 50 percent of the Pradhans elected from it. Given the details in the table above,
it can be stated that the ST leadership has conclusively been taken away by the
BJP, whereas it has managed to forge slightly ahead of the Congress party in the
SC and OBC groups as well.
4.ix Conclusion
Analysis shows that for the first time large numbers of rural women have got elected
on party tickets. This will obviously change the character of the parties. It is now
dependent on the women to change the structure of the parties from within. But
what is very interesting is that the BJP which till now did not have a rural base in
Rajasthan, got an opportunity to strike roots through women and tribals.
9>
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Section 5
THE FIELD STUDY OF THE ELECTIONS
5.i
Objective
The objective of the study was to get into the depth of the experience of the elections
particularly of women. To examine as to who were the women who stood for
elections. Were they wives, daughters and relatives of those in power? Why did they
stand? What was their involvement in the election? What were the problems they
faced as women ? What was the response of the community? etc.
5.H
Methodology
It is our opinion that no outside researcher can study the election unless they are
based there for a sufficient period of time to understand the dynamics thrown up
by the politics and the interest groups of that region. Thus we did not do this study
ourselves. The information source were friends who belong to the area and are
related to some voluntary agency or mass organisation. They were involved enough
to understand the various layers and were able to put some distance to that
situation and did the major job of putting facts together. Thus there may be a bias
as elections are events in which every body takes some position about the election
and the candidates. Many of the people who were our source were writers involved
in the election process and have ended up writing about it. But we felt that we could
take care of this bias.
Our method of studying politics and election has mainly been of looking at people’s
narratives. All of us who have the experience of being village based in Rajasthan
know that politics is one subject where ordinary people, mostly men have a deep
knowledge and interest. It seems like collective history and experience in which
everybody has something to say. This is due to the fact that men have the fora to
not only talk and thus codify that history and transmit it from generation to
generation, but also are active decision makers in that politics. Yes it has been the
active arena of upper caste men and not the lower caste and the tribal. However,
the latter may be passive decision makers. They do take the decision as a group,
as to whom they are allying with. Secondly they do have access of that knowledge
as they are part of that fora that men have, even if they may not have the space to
actively contribute. The fora that are being referred to are the chaupal/hatahal
(central public space in the village) and the Bazaar, now even in small villages. The
ctommon site in most periods of the year and in most parts of the State, is to have
men congregate in the day and evening and share the gossip of the day. This is also
true for poor and lower caste men who may not sit on the same level as the upper
caste. They sit at some distance and may not hold forth but will be there as listeners.
95
9
However, during the course of interactions (training, workshops and informal chats )
we realised that most women are not the carriers of this collective history and may
only know a little. The reasons may be because of the number of villages that form
their Panchayat, caste wise breakup, the Jati of the Sarpanch and his political
situation. The reasons are obvious. First of all they are daughters- in- law in their
place of residence. Since they have come from another village, that Itself puts them
at a disadvantage! different vantage point) of picking up information. The first fifteen
years of the reproductive period keeps them busy with chores of child bearing and
rearing apart from taking care of survival. The older women and those living in their
natal homes, by this logic should be better infoimed, which to some extent was true,
but then not necessarily the dynamics of the politics or that of the party, or of the
Institution may be fully understood. Some women may know of it from an experience
of a different sort. If she has had to struggle for a piece of land or as part of
Development beneficiary scheme, and has had to visit the various functionaries and
institutions then she will know of the dynamics. How do women get Inducted to this
information? There are fora for women like the ’well’ or going for work together.
Information does circulate between them through these meetings but they remain
on the margins of this process of both constructing and carrying the history. Those
women who have had the input of some intervening agency, for whom looking at
politics may have been of some importance for their intervention, are also better
Informed. The kinds of questions people are asked accordingly widens their
framework of knowledge.
d
The method of the study chosen was the case study of candidates. That is
construction of the story of an election through a candidate. The reasons were
obvious. Election information can be rhetorical, and full of opinions that the only
way that we could get concrete information was by demanding little! study the
election of one candidate of your area). Through that we felt we could capture some
textures of what was happening and understand the changes. We also felt through
this we could get the candidates and their supporters and family members to speak.
Some guidelines consisting of a list of questions were circulated. The questions were
divided into four parts. Although the writers were told that they could abandon the
questions and evolve their own if needed.
9
The first part consisted of questions relating to the constituency. The geographical,
caste, class composition of the ward / Panchayat / Panchayat samiti / Zila Parishad.
A brief history of the Panchayat or Panchayat Samiti. Elections in the past, role of
the diverse caste and Interest groups, the funtioning of the Panchayat, the role of
the Government functionaries, the relation of the Panchayat with the MPs and MLAs
of that area and development through the Panchayat. Finally the context of the
present election.
96
The second part consisted of information related to the candidate. The interest group
the candidate belongs to, decision making process of the candidate, whether
standing independently or on a party ticket, the political background of the family
and the candidate, understanding of development issues, about PRIs and the 73rd
Amendment Act.
The third part consisted of the election politics, the different interest groups, their
candidates and their relationship in their election, the supporters of the candidate,
the method of campaign, who did they meet, money spent, alliances struck for
election purpose, problems etc
The last section consisted of the questions related to the polling process. Voters’
lists, filing nomination, organising agents, polling station, parties, counting, decla
ration of results and the aftermath.
However, by the time we got our stories, the elected representatives had begun
working and in many instances we got to know a bit about how they had started
working, the problems faced by Elected Representatives etc.
The case study became the means of beginning the documentation of the election.
All kinds of stories were registered and reported. Some came in the oral form others
were documented.
S.iii Selection of the Area of Study
We wanted to have a glimpse of the election on a wide scale. Thus instead of doing
an indepth study in one area we spread ourselves as much as we could in order to
study representative regions of the State. For instance the situation in western
Rajasthan is very different from the rest of Rajasthan. Western Rajasthan on the
one hand has the world famous IGNP canal, which has mixed communities living
near it, peasant and pastoralists. The canal has changed the agrarian pattern in
some places. Secondly, many communities remain as feudal as ever and to have an
understanding as to what meaning was given to reservations for women would
definitely be different even within that area. Southern Rajasthan is the Adivasi belt
of the State. Till now the representatives of the Adivasi population have been the 20
to 25 percent upper caste people who have been governing the five tribal districts.
Thus the election pattern would be different here as compared to other areas. The
eastern districts of Bharatpur and Alwar have a distinctive Muslim population called
the mevs who are an interest group in themselves and govern the politics of that
area. Apart from the fundamentalist forces on both the sides, Hindu and Muslim
manipulating the religious emotions, no election is unaffected by this situation. The
status of mev women is unique. They are barely a few hundred of these meonis who
have graduated. How would they respond to this? The central district of Ajmer, a
highly literate district has a large number of important voluntary agencies working
in the region including the SWRC who took a decision of entering the election fray.
97
6
e
This definitely changed the election scene in one block of the district. We decided
to understand the situation here.
Similarly we took up certain areas which were unique due to existing struggles of
local people, for instance, the struggle of the oustees of the Bisaipur dam that is
coming up in Tonk district, the Alwar district Klsan Andolan against the Industrie
beconhng the privileged sector, and the peasants and workers struggle with the
State on wages and transparency of information in the Rajsamand district.
However the final selection of an area could happen only if there was a Pers°n
interested in getting involved with the study, keen on coordinating the work, and
as far as possible giving in writing the facts of the area. The person could make any
kind of selection of the candidate.
We managed to spread our study to twelve districts. Our information was from the
villages of the districts of Bikaner, Jodhpur, Hanumangarh, Chittorgarh, Udaipur,
Dungarpur, Ajmer, Rajasamand, Alwar, Bharatpur, Sawaimadhopur, Jaipur.
In this way we managed to study closely the election of about fifty women candidates,
which included about four of Zlla Parishad, sixteen Panchayat Samiti Sadasya,
seventeen Sarpanches and thirteen ward members, fifty percent of who were SC
and ST women. The study also looked into the election of about fifteen male
candidates, which included Adivasi, SC and OBC. Collection of basic information
regarding all the Elected Members of four complete Gram Panchayats in Udaipur
district was also carried out. Apart from case studies, several stories were cofiected
from these areas.
Apart from that we studied the intervention of about three mass based organisations,
one literacy network, six voluntary agencies and one Government programme in
these districts.
A total of thirty eight thousand seven hundred nlnty one women were elected(see
Table 8). Out of which thirty three thousand five hundred sixty six constituted ward
members, over three thousand women Sarpanches and approximately seventeen
hundred fifty block members. There were eighty Pradhans of the blocks, about three
hundred thirty Zila Parishad Sadasyas and ten Zlla Pramukhs.
5. iv Observations
Our observations cannot be generalised for the entire State or even for an entire
district. It would also not be possible to speak for the thirty eight thousand women
who are now in power. Our observations speak of the depth of the situation. They
are merely suggestive of the trends that are emerging now that women have a place
in politics.
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A. Who Were The Women Who Stood For Election?
Age group
As studies of most States show, in the State of Rajasthan too, most of the women
who won or entered the fray were between 25 years and 40 years, who are still
the reproductive age group. It is important to add here that since the age of a majority
of the rural women is always an approximation, the question relating to age is o
get an idea of the age group of women who are being given a public role. Till now 1
was the "kakts", the ”Buas", the women who were over fifty, who in most cases had
stopped menstruating, who did not have the day to day responsibility of looking
after the home, were the ones who were legitimately allowed to indulge in
"Panchayati" and were often seen resolving disputes in the village. It is often said in
the village that the woman who has stopped menstruating is like a *mard (the ma e
being the "normal" and the female body being the abnormal one till she stops
menstruation) Thus, who was the village society trusting to play a public role in
today’s context? Were the ‘kakis’ challenged?
A study of four Gram Panchayats of Jhadol block of Udaipur district shows the
average age of the women of each Panchayat who got elected ( all figures have been
rounded upto one) (Refer to Table 9).
The average age of the women of the four panchayats as revealed by the table is only
33. In comparison that of men is 40 years. Average age of the Panchayat members
is around 36 years.
The age may vary from region to region. For instance, from our own limited evidence
of the candidates who stood from Alwar district for the Zila Parishad elections, the
average age was 35 years. The age of the candidates who stood for the Panchayat
Samiti election ranged from 28 years to 53 years, the average being 31 years. The
average age of Sarpanches being 35 years and that of ward panches being 43 years,
(from 23 years to 65). Although these figures do not provide a real picture but it can
be said with some conviction that a lot of younger people (25-40 age group) got an
opportunity to contest the election. In the case of women It wasn't Just the "kakis"
that people sought.
The implications will have to be observed. We do not have the ages ofJust the winning
candidates thus we cannot say that these are the precise averages of those who won
the election. However, it is important to understand the argument often made that
the younger they are the more they will be controlled by the family and the elders,
due to being younger and the domestic roles and responsibilities of that age group.
They may not travel on their own and may have to depend on their menfolk, as
society does not permit younger women to travel on their own. In the same logic it
99
may be stated that they win not be doing independent work. It may be convenient
for them to hand over work to their husbands or the brothers-in-law and they wi
take over.
Literacy and Educational Qualifications
Our sources have often reported that the candidates are ’literate’ . In Rajasthan
often a person who can only sign is caUed "Uterate". Secondly, those women about
whom it is claimed that they are fifth pass can probably only recognise alphabets
and may have relapsed to illiteracy due to lack of the use of their skills. Thus it will
neither be a reliable exercise to reach a conclusion from our data about literacy
skills nor will it be of any help. At one level it can be stated that a Sarpanch needs
to have literacy and numeracy skills. It is important to have this skill for the self
-confidence of an elected representative. But whether this will give actual control
over the functioning of the Panchayat is very questionable for those who have come
in for the first time. Maja of the Shetkari Sangathana who was a Sarpanch in Dhulia
district, was highly literate and was a school teacher before becoming a Sarpanch.
She found it very difficult to comprehend the 20 types of records of her
Panchayat.and would fall back on the Panchayat secretary’s discretion for com
prehension. Thus we do feel that analysing this variable at this point of time will
not enrich us.
Yet it can be stated without hesitation from our limited evidence that there is a
difference in the literacy skills of candidates who have been elected as Zila Parishad,
Panchayat Samiti members and that of Sarpanches and Ward panches. For Ward
Panches, literacy was not considered an important criterion at all either by the
people, nor was it a condition for qualifying in the rules. As stated earlier, the new
Act relaxed the criterion of literacy skills as a condition for the qualification of the
Sarpanch’s candidature. Although for the Panchayat Samiti and Zila Parishad
member’s post, this was kept intact.
However, we do have evidence that in those situations where ordinary people had
a chance to put up a candidate they saw to it that the candidate was hoshiyar ,
which included having literacy skills but this was not the central criterion of
"hoshlyart". In these situations they went out of the way to get the woman who was
educated/literate back to the village. This was in the case of Nimuchana Panchayat
Samiti Sadasya, where Krishna, an SC was cafied back from Delhi( for the reserved
seat), or Madhu Bharadwaj Sarpanch, Palawal Jatan was called back from Jaipur.
In the case of Shabana of Laxmangarh, Alwar district (now deputy-Zila Pramukh),
people pressurised her to stand for the Zila Parishad member election as she was
highly educated, an M.A. They felt that the few educated women mevs must get a
chance to stand. But in all these instances literacy skill was combined with that of
class. Even in the case of rural Bikaner district where literacy skifis are very low
100
amongst women of all castes, whenever a group challenged a situation, a "consen
sus" candidate was being forced upon them by the powerful in the village ( the
powerful would be the proxy Sarpanch).The Scheduled caste group put up a
candidate who was worthy of that post and literacy once again became a skill that
they sought. This can be seen in the case of the Sarpanch elections of Peenpera,
Rambagh and the Panchayat Samiti Sadasya of Baluri. But in all these cases the
men of the families belonged to the service classes and were definitely not poor (in
broad terms the middle class of the village). Thus it was not the criteria of an
educated woman but also the class, the family she belonged to which made them
seek her.
People do consider the post of the Sarpanch as important and therefore may
complain that they have a Sarpanch who is \inpadh" and her husband is the actual
Sarpanch. This was also stated by the Pradhan of Bassi Panchayat Samiti. According
to him the block had only one woman who was worthy of being a Sarpanch as she
was the oniyione who was educated and had a good deal of initiative. Others were
Sarpanches in namesake only. There is in any case a class bias for who makes a
good Sarpanch.
It is difficult to conclude that there is a direct correlation between literacy as a critical
criteria for selection and the younger age group of women coming in the fray for the
Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samiti members and Sarpanch. (It is those under 40
years who have greater chance of being literate). This could be explored further in
the future studies.
Socio-ecoiioinic background and the interest group they represented.
No generalisations can be made about the class of the women who stood for elections.
However, with higher stakes for (he post, (he chances of the person being " better
off', and not belonging to the poorer classes were more. Since the election is a
contest between power groups, it is important to also know which interest group
the person y^is representing, or the backing that the candidate had. So even if the
candidate was poor or SC or ST ( due to the policy of reservation) the interest group
could be that of the upper caste, rich, of a particular party, or that of the previous
power holders of the village or they could be the new ones that have come into being
due to the presence of Voluntary Agencies/ mass based organisations.
. It was for the ward panch election where a lot of women stood, who were quite poor,
without any backing of a village group and did not succumb to pressure of the
community to withdraw. This was also reflected in the other elections but to a veiy
small degree.
In village Bavli of Mohali Panchayat, district Sawai Madhopur, a Jatav (SC)
dominated village, despite the pressure of her whole family and community that Sita
-
...
.*■ •
t•
.•
‘
101
I
i
bai ought not to stand against Kevli Bai for the Ward panch election, the former
could not care less and she fought the election.
Similarly in village Palawal Jatan. Dakha devi a poor Jat, despite one half of the
Jat community having decided to put up a Meena woman as the candidate for the
Sarpanch elections and the other half had decided to support another candidate,
insisted that she did not care about community decisions but would stand for the
elections and she got 33 votes.
However, the elections for the three posts of Sarpanch, Panchayat Samiti and Zila
Parishad members was different. Our experience of the Sarpanch and the Panchayat
Samiti member shows that these two posts had the highest stakes. The seat of the
Sarpanch has always been a very important one and that of the Panchayat Samiti
although being contested for the first time, this seat was looked upon as being
important in terms of voting for the Pradhan or being a contender for the Pradhan.
The Zila Parishad being at a distance and till now having not been an impoitant
institution of the Panchayat Raj, did not have the same stakes.
The relatives of traditional power wielders definitely did not keep out of the elections.
The general category seats for women had the wives and daughters of the already
powerful fight the elections. However, our limited evidence shows that there has
been a major entry of women in the election whose families have a service class
background, linked to Government service or some programme of a Government or
an NGO. These families had no background of politics. In those where Development
agencies were active several development workers! of Government and NGO ), Total
Literacy Programme workers, who may be poor, but competent also got a chance
but they had the backing of the voluntary agency/mass organisation whose workers
they were. Thus though they may not be privileged in terms of money but they are
privileged in terms of exposure, and knowledge.
B. Whose Decisions: Women As Candidates ?
There was a diversity in the consciousness of women and the family and community
towards women’s entry and decision making into the electoral arena. The response
was along a broad spectrum.
Husbands being the defacto elected representatives...
There were some stories of the husbands being the defacto candidates in the election,
managing the whole campaign and even printing the banners in their name. For
instance in the case of Mukesh Sharma’s wife, who stood from rural Alwar on a
Panchayat Samiti Sadasya seat remained un-named through out. After she won
the election it was Mukesh Sharma who wore the garlands and was busy with
jttbiliaiions with his male friends till somebody realised that her signature was
102
Ih f
rC*1
/
needed by the polling officer. It was then that they sent for her. She came with her
face covered, signed and went away.
f
So was it with Dariya Kanwar of Baluri Panchayat, Bikaner district. Amar Singh her
husband fielded her as the BJP candidate for the Panchayat Samiti. She did not
step out of the home even after winning the election. The people say that Dariya
Kanwar practices purdah and docs not even know where the dlggi for water is
located. In fact the story circulates that she did not know what to do with the ballot
paper and brought it home, instead. When Dariya Kanwar won the election there
was not a single woman present and when the news of her victory reached the village,
Amar Singh was surrounded by men and it appeared as if he had won jfhe election.
He had conducted a high velocity campaign and had spent more thanlRs. 2 lakhs
on the campaign.
Similarly in the case of Makra Dev Block Jhadol, District Udaipur. The ex-Sarpanch
Pratap Singh lost the Zila Parishad elections on a B JP ticket and was keen on having
his hold in his Panchayat so he put up his first wife, Kamala Devi as the candidate
for the Sarpanch post. His second wife was very keen to stand for the elections. She
is literate, knowledgeable and bold as compared to the first wife who does not step
out of the house. She also began attending the local women’s group meetings before
the elections were announced. However, she was not given a chance to stand in the
elections. Kamala Devi won the election. Definitely Pratap Singh wanted total control
over the Panchayat thus did not even trust his second wife who seemed to have
some opinion of her own, to fight the election. Initially the people had expressed a
desire that they had wanted a "pad/iM/k/ti" (educated) woman as the Sarpanch. It
was the second wife who therefore stood a better chance and the two opponents of
Kamla who were literate. However, the BJP campaigned aggressively for Kamla and
she won.
A wife contesting her own husband during the election
As it was in the case of Rehmati (a poor working class woman) of Kakniawaas, Ajmer
who fought Mullahjl her husband in the ward member election. According to her,
Mullahji had fought several elections in the past and this time she had decided to
stand so he should have respected her wishes. However, when he filed his
nominations, she refused to withdraw her candidature and campaigned for herself.
She was also clear that her vote was her own and Mullahji’s vote was his own and
they both had the choice to do what they wanted with it. She lost the elections and
so did Mullahji. But the experience was fun and of tremendous learning. She plans
to fight the Sarpanch election next time.
103
A situation where the husband gave full moral support to his wife
*
Thirty year old Archana Bohra (M.Com. pass) of Ajmer was very keen on standing
for the Panchayat Samiti member elections from the village of her in-laws, Rupangarh, which is her permanent place of residence. Rupangarh seat for the Panchayat
Samiti member was reserved for a woman of general category. Her husband was not
keen that she stand for elections. He felt that they were a non political family, very
respected as his father was teacher and politics was not a respectable occupation.
She convinced him and took him to the BJP office and registered as a BJP party
member. The BJP group in her village who also felt that she was the deserving
candidate proposed her name for the party ticket. However, the Ex- Maharaja of
Kishangarh and former MLA Jagjit Singh managed to get the ticket for his wife,
Kamlesh Kumari. Archana was very angry and decided to stand anyhow and
confront the Maharaja of Kishangarh. She stood as the BJP rebel candidate. All her
posters and banners had this line of being a rebel candidate. In her campaign she
spoke of the high handed ways of the ex-maharaja of Kishangarh and warned them
that he would be controlling the constituency if Kamlesh Kumari got elected. On
losing the election to Kamlesh Kumari she was not disturbed. When a large group
of villagers reached her house in Ajmer and asked her to stand for the Sarpanch
elections she agreed. She won the election comfortably this time. The ex-maharaja
of Kisahngarh hated her guts. He is her arch enemy today as Kamlesh Kumari has
been elected as the Pradhan and in effect he is the proxy Pradhan. But she has been
working with a good deal of energy and enthusiasm despite being under his censure.
When asked as to what gave her the guts to face such opposition she felt that she
had not only the support of a lot of ordinary villagers but also the complete trust
and support of her husband, Just being by her side has been a very critical factor.
Assertion by communities of traditional power wielders through ivomen
The election was also an opportunity for communities who have always been out of
the power structure to assert themselves through the women candidates. For
instance in the election of the Gram Panchayat of Peenpera. Sukhamani, an SC of
Gopaliyan, Bikaner district, refused to succumb to the Thakur’s pressure of his wife
coming in unopposed. The Thakur had called a meeting of all caste representatives
of only the main village of the Panchayat and decided that the woman Sarpanch
should be a nominal one. After all they could not allow the women to handle the
matters of the Panchayat. Therefore Rukma Kanwar the wife of the Thakur was
decided as the consensus candidate.
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104
The poor Rajput men felt Rukma Kanwar would be an ideal candidate for them as
then she would have to step out of her home and this would elevate the status of
their women who due to poverty had to step out of their homes for work.
The Nalks (SCs) of Gopaliyan were very worried about the candidature of Rukma.
They knew the Thakurs’ ill feelings towards the SC and the poor. They decided to
challenge this and they also had a better candidate with them. Sukhamani who was
higher secondary pass and the adult education worker, was a willing candidate and
decided to confront the Thakur. She was also supported by the local NGO Urmul
Trust which prevented the Thakurs from doing a disinformation campaign.
Pressure was brought on her to withdraw her candidature. She was asked to save
the Thakurs’ izzat. However she and the Nalks refused. Knowing that even if all the
voters of Gopaliyan would vote she would not win. She still said let the ballot boxes
decide this issue. The Thakur also brought in the BJP MLA of the area to force
Sukhmanl to withdraw. They also decided to use the caste issue aggressively. No
upper caste would be able to drink water in the house of a SC. Sukhmanl Instead
decided to talk on issues of employment, water scarcity and even got a hand bill
printed. Sukhamani lost by 422 votes. However the SCs have decided to continue
challenging the Thakur.
The same was the case of Shanti Devi, Sarpanch ofSandla Panchayat, Tonk district.
Sandia village along with sixty six others shall be partially or totally submerged
when the Bisalpur dam will be fully constructed. The oustees have been struggling
with the State for a fair rehabilitation. Shanti Devi is one of the most vocal persons
of her village on this issue. Despite the fact that these Panchayats do not receive
any funds for development as they will be submerged soon, the elections were fought
with the same intensity and fervour as elsewhere and the issue of the election was
the negotiation with the State on issues of compensation and rehabilitation. Sandia
being an SC reserved seat had another contestant who was put up by the upper
caste. Shanti Devi was supported by a majority of the SCs who felt that although
all castes are equally affected, several upper caste families had managed to get
compensation. The SC’s felt that they must have a representative who would
genuinely take up their point. The SC’s were pressurised by the upper caste to bring
in the other candidate but they refused to succumb and Shanti Devi became the
winner. Several such stories were collected where the reservations gave the op
pressed caste an opportunity to contest the traditional power wielders.
Wanting to establish a point in the election...
Ratan Devi of Silora block stood as an independent candidate for the Panchayat
Samlti seat election as she wanted to establish the point that an independent, other
than congress and BJP, (the two main parlies of her area) also has and can retain
105
a separate identity in politics. There is a tradition that independents lose their
identity soon after the election. They usually join the party which grants them greater
favours. After winning the Panchayat Samiti member election, Ratan was put under
great pressure by the Ex-Maharaja of Kishangarh. He wanted her to change her
decision of being a contender for the Pradhan seat as he feared her defeat. Ratan
was not very keen on the Pradhan seat. But she did not wish to vote for either
Congress or the B JP so she decided that the best way to abstain from voting was to
vote for oneself. The Congress who had only five seats were very keen that Ratan
fight as their candidate, she refused this proposal and said that she would fight as
an independent only. The Congress in the end decided not to put up any candidate
and vote for Ratan instead. Ratan lost the election to Kamlesh Kumari the BJP
candidate.
In contrast Kamala Chaturvedi of Kishangarh Joined the congress as the Silora block
Pradhan seat was reserved for a woman and she wanted to become the Pradhan.
She felt that the Panchayat Samiti member had no role and if she wanted to really
function at the block level, then an executive post was important. Since the Pradhan
vote was an indirect vote, a vote cast by all the directly elected members of the block
she felt that she needed the support of a party to get sufficient votes for the seat.
Kamla lost the Panchayat Samiti member election by only four votes.
Both Ratan Devi and Kamla Chaturvedi are members of different voluntary groups
working in that region.
Getting involved in the election...
In the majority of the cases the women who stood for election had their names
proposed by either their families or a group in the village. Even if the decision was
the husband’s, the family’s or the community’s the manner in which the women got
involved was amazing.
Maya Yadav, of Bharatpur district is the wife of the Ex-Sarpanch Roop Singh of
Dhilavati Panchayat. Since he had his eyes on the Dhilavati seat, he wanted one of
his persons in the Panchayat Samiti. So he got his wife a Congress party ticket for
a Panchayat Samiti constituency seat. Maya although the wife of a Sarpanch never
got involved in any of his public affairs. She used to say initially that she was fighting
the election because Sarpanch Sahab had asked her to. So she hardly got involved
in her own campaign in the beginning. It was her family who went canvassing from
place to place but she gradually got involved and went without covering her face
and visited eveiy house twice to woo her voters. Maya lost the election but the
election has left her with an even stronger conviction that she must contest again.
She says that now that she has learnt about politics she will contest again and show
the world that she can also win an election.
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Chanda fought the Ward Ranch election from one of the wards of Harmara village.
One day before the election she was put up by one of the Sarpanch candidates so
that she would be his "vote " in the Deputy Sarpanch election incase he won the
Sarpanch election. Her only condition for standing for the election was that she
must not lose her self respect (which was that she must not lose the election).
Chanda saw no reason as to why she should have campaigned for herself. She in
any case does not move out of her house. However, she was very depressed after
losing the election and did not take food for two days. She had reached the
conclusions that she had lost because the people who had put her up had also put
up the other woman and had taken her for a ride.
In contrast Ghisi Bai who was elected as an unopposed SC member from one of the
wards of Nallu Panchayat, Ajmer district was not interested (in the least) about the
Panchayat meetings. Although she attends every meeting and is very clear on the
issues that the Panchayat ought to take up for her village, she is not in least the
impressed by her post. Instead she kept expressing her unhappiness of having to
attend meetings, as on one occasion she had to pay two workers thirty rupees each
to work on her farm as she could not be there. She felt that no Panchayat meeting
was worth such a sacrifice. When an effort was made to impress upon her that an
SC woman ward panch is a rarity, she reacted sharply and said " So should I die
for name and fame? " . It was only out of a sense of duty that she was coming for
the meetings. She wasn’t enjoying them.
It is Interesting that both Chanda and Maya were put up by players in politics who
saw these women as instruments for themselves. However, these women very
quickly saw themselves in it and built an identity with that role. The point being
made is that whoever may have taken the decision what meaning did these women
give to the election. In contrast Ghisi Bal’s experience speaks of how a Panchayat
will need to be sensitive to women's needs in order to involve them more creatively.
C. The Campaign ( A Strength Giving Exercise)
Mobility
The election was also an exhilarating experience In terms of the mobility that It gave
to the women. Santra. a SC woman from Harmara village, who campaigned for Ratan
Devi said that the campaign had a sense of freedom about it. Because you could
legitimately leave the house early in the morning, you could walk into people’s homes
freely, insplte of being SC nobody stopped you from entering their house. Then she
would come back late evening but would not be blamed for neglecting the household
by her absence.
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Even if the women did not take the decision of standing for the election, the curiosity
of the voter in some places to know the candidate he was electing brought them out
and gave them mobility.
It was on demand of the male voter that in some places the candidate had to
campaign publically. For instance in the case of Shabana of Laxmangarh block,
when she was approached by the villagers to fight for the Zila Parishad election, she
put a condition before them and her family that she would only stand for election
if they gave her the permission to move around without the purdah. They agreed to
this which resulted in men and women becoming very curious to see the face of a
mev women. They came from great distances to see her. Or in the case of Ratan, the
Panchayat Samiti candidate from Harmara whose door to door campaign brought
out her opponent, Sharada Tank whose husband was then the Ex-Sarpanch and
is now the Sarpanch, was a proxy candidate. Had it not been for Ratan Devi she
would not have had to step out. But she was forced to go and meet the voters as
Ratan was doing an intensive campaign. It was not sufficient to be the Sarpanchki-bivl. The other BJP candidate Laxmi Vaishnav also had to move out of her house.
Similarly in the case of Sheela of Gaduawaas Alwar, she was not keen on moving
out of her house but due to the people’s curiosity about her she had to get involved
in a public campaign. However, when she did move out it was with a group of women
and she only went and met the women of her village.
This was the general case. Women candidates due to reasons of propriety moved
with women from their family and were most comfortable about meeting the women
folk in the campaign.
Both the dimensions of moving with women folk and meeting women, brought
women out in groups for the first time in such large numbers in the male dominated
election campaign.
The moving out of the home and campaigning as a candidate or as a supporter is a
major shift in women’s image. Generally the development workers who go about
door to door are called " roti phirti randa" meaning the crying widows who go from
place to place bothering everybody. With women having the legitimacy to go door to
door and demand people’s time and attention even if it be for just a short span, is
an important experience in terms of the road it opens for women to play such roles
later.
Addressing women as voters
For the first time women voters were addressed in their homes in the election. Till
now the men would take the decision and inform the women as to who they should
cast the vote for. Since women were only comfortable with talking to women, all
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women candidates who campaigned met them. This further involved more women
in the election. Due to women being more comfortable with a low profile campaign
as the male gaze is difficult to take or did not have the confidence to be in the public,
there were very few who addressed rallies and meetings. The Zila Parishad can
didates from our study were the only ones who addressed public rallies. For most
of the others, Sarpanches and Panchayat Samitl members at the most they may
have had small meetings in mohallas or villages, otherwise it was mainly a door to
door campaign. The entry of women will probably change the nature of campaigning
as compared to the usual methods where only men campaigned.
The strength of the reservation thus turned out to be that it simply did not
involve the thirty three percent women (i.e. the thirty eight thousand and
more women) who got elected. It also brought out many more in the political
process, as candidates, supporters and as voters who needed to be addressed.
Promises made by women
Yet another dimension of the election was that many of the women did not know
enough about what to "deliver” as they were not sure as to what would be under
their Jurisdiction. And they also lacked the confidence to make false promises.
Although the male supporters may have made promises of bringing in "vikas" on
behalf of the women, by and large the women, if they met the voters they said that
they would keep in touch even if they lost the election. Which meant that they will
keep the relationship going. Probably this was the only dimension that seemed to
be in their control. This was brought out in the election of several candidates
including Shakuntala the Zila Parishad candidate who stood on a Congress ticket
from Jodhpur and won the election. She was absolutely unsure of the role of the ZP
Sadsaya that she preferred to be honest and say that "I will keep in touch and show
my face to you”.
Alcohol and other expenses in the election...
Did women candidates supply alcohol during the election? This is a critical question
as it was observed in this election that more alcohol was distributed in these
elections than in the MLA election. The night before the electon called ,rKatla- ki-raat',
distribution of alcohol is like a ritual. The consumers are mainly men. Although
there is no correlation between consuming the alcohol supplied by a candidate and
casting the vote for her/him, supplying it is looked upon as a necessity for the
election. The State Election Commissioner issued a code of conduct for election
which takes serious cognisance of this fact. However, nobody even knew about the
code and could not care less.
In those instances where a woman candidate was representing an interest group
rooted in the village, community, party and the election was outside her control.
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alcohol was distributed liberally by her supporters. For instance Munni Devi stood
as the BJP candidate from Bhadoon in Ajmer district. It was alleged by the villagers
and the Congress candidates that alcohol was liberally supplied by the BJP. When
she was asked about this she said that she did not distribute alcohol of her own
accord. However, if her party did then that was their business. She had her
conscience clear as she had neither spent the money nor supplied the bottles herself.
Archana Bohra of Rupangarh in Ajmer who stood for the Sarpanch election with the
co-operation of the villagers saw to it that the other party did not distribute alcohol.
They made committees in every Mohalla so as not to allow alochol to enter the village.
But in the Panchayat Samiti Sadasya election they could not prevent it and the
opposite party distributed alochol. She also spent ten thousand rupees in block as
compared to having spent nothing in the Sarpanch election.
Madhu Bharadwaj. Sarpanch of village Palawal Jatan was asked how much money
she spent on the election. Her reply was " I spent (used) my tongue not money."
By and large the representatives who stood from mass organisations
organisations and
and voluntary
voluntaiy
agencies were very cautious about expenses and far from distributing alcohol, many
did not even spend money on banners and posters. In some cases, due to their
presence, alcohol was not distributed at all in that area for the election.
However, many women who stood for the elections took loans as they hired Jeeps
for the campaign and to transport people on the polling day. Kanku Bai, Sarpanch
of Badkochra, Ajmer district, used to be a vegetable seller. She is very poor. One
group in the village did not want the ex-Sarpanches wife to win, they therefore asked
her to stand for the elections. Kanku was asked to contribute ten thousand rupees
for the election for hiring of jeep, for posters, banners. She took a Ioan. Kanku won
the election and she has stopped selling vegetables. She now sits at home and her
husband an alcoholic and her son run the Panchayat
Dev bai who stood for the Panchayat Samiti seat from Bhim block, spent less than
Rs. 200 for her elections. She was horrified when she heard from one candidate
during the time counting was in progress in Rajasamand, that the woman had
pawned her farm to fight the election. She was worried that if she lost the election
then she would never be able to get back her land. If she won then there was some
chance of earning money while in power. It is a well known fact that the expenses
incurred during elections are taken back from the money that comes for development
works in the Panchayat.
Fascination for the election procedure.
Since the process of election was a new thing for all the members, almost all the
candidates who stood for election whether "educated" or "illiterate" spoke of the thrill
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and the fascination associated with the way ballot boxes were sealed or the manner
in which they were opened for counting. These may appear trivial in terms of the
more serious subject of politics. However, it is a fact that social mores kept women
out of the electoral arena, and it was the first time that they were given Importance
by the election machinery. The formality of the exercise was not intimidating, instead
it satisfied their curiosity.
D. Did Women's Groups Emerge As A Force In The Election?
Was there a significant assertion by women's groups of whatever kind that exist?
Did these groups throw up an alternative method of contesting the election?
Especially at a time when more and more women are stepping out of their homes,
was a direction given by these groups for these women as to how to relate to power
structures.? We present here our limited interaction with such groups.
It was observed that although voluntary agencies and programmes like WDP have
helped in the formation of women’s groups, they did not automatically emerge as
an interest group to contest the election or ‘collectively bargain’ with candidates.
What was observed was that the women’s group activist that seemed most visible
in the election was not the ordinary village woman, except may be for the ward panch
election, but it was the worker of the voluntary agency or the sathin as in the case
of WDP that seemed to contest the election ofSarpanch, Panchayat Samiti Sadasya
and Zila Parishad Sadasya. All these workers ( whether sathin, a dal, a nonformal
education teacher or a middle level worker of the organisation) are local people
belonging to that same area.
The emphasis in the elections was definitely on the Individual rather than the group.
This goes against feminist values in one sense. Thus it is important to ask the
question whether this is an inherent aspect of electoral politics or that the women’s
groups lacked a vision and therefore did not find collective expression in politics.
Elsewhere in Rajasthan, organisations of peasants and workers who fought the
elections as a group were able to make the election rally around an issue. Why was
this not possible for women’s groups? We have taken two groups to understand this
point. The WDP in only three districts of Jaipur, Jodhpur and Ajmer and the SWRC
group in Ajmer district.
SWRC was by far the only NGO to have Jumped into the election and become a
politically Interested party in their area. (Some mass based organisations did play
that role). All the workers resigned from the NGO and decided to participate in the
elections as supporters, candidates etc. They emerged as the third front (neither
Congress nor BJP) in the Silora Block of Ajmer district. All their candidates had
given the same preference of election symbol and coincidentally they all got it. Thus
Ill
the third front also had a common symbol " bad -ka -ped" to represent itself in the
elections against the "haath" of the Congress and the "phool" of the BJP.
However, the more active group in the elections that emerged in terms of strategising,
planning was that of the SWRC workers than of their village groups. The Navyuvak
Mandal (the youth group )was still active in some places and spontaneously became
an interested party in the election. However, the women’s groups except in one or
two places was fragmented in the elections.
We have stories of ball Bai of Boharu, Ajmer District contest Sunder Bai in the
election to their ward. Both were SC members of the Boharu Mahila Group
supported by SWRC, for the last ten years. It was decided by some of the members
of the group that Sunder bai would stand. However, Lali Bai was told by her family
that she should stand, and she says that she herself was curious about the elections
so she decided to stand opposite Sunder Bai. She did not feel that there was anything
wrong in opposing Sunder Bai, after all it was only an election. Sunder Bai won the
election.
For many of their women candidates (who were workers) it was the collective
experience of working as a team in the campaign, with their groups of supporters
that was of intrinsic value. For instance Naurati bai ( an SC) who daringly stood for
election from a general constituency for the block seat knew that she could never
win. So for her the campaign with four other workers was not one of having to prove
herself. Instead it turned out to be a collective exercise of carrying out a strict
campaign according to the code of conduct. It further helped her to explore the
issues of women and the community in that area. The encounter with Hindu Muslim politics during the election in her area made her realise that this was no
more an urban phenomena but moving rapidly to the rural areas.
All the workers felt that it was the first time that they talked to everybody of a
particular village. Since NGOs usually only work with the deprived groups they felt
that this was the first time that they went around the whole village. In the words of
Sushila "the election took me by force to every member in the community. I feel I have
rediscovered my area of work." Sushila lost the election.
There was yet another interesting dimension in terms of values in politics. Kamala
Chaturyedi, a development worker and an Ex-SWRC worker came to fight the
election on a Congress party ticket from the same area as SWRC. Her reasons to
fight the election were public. She wanted to become the Pradhan of the Block. The
differences between Kamala Chaturvedi and the SWRC became a public issue in the
election. So much so that they did not mind seeing a third party win, but not either
of them. Interestingly neither won and the BJP candidate won the election. The
values reflected in this altercation between the SWRC and Kamala was like that of
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any other political group. Neither group showed an alternative method of sorting
this problem.
WDP has been in existence for the last ten years and,is now active in 21 districts of
the State. The sathins are in only 9 districts. Today about fifty,percent of the sathlns
have unionised to demand being recognised as Government employees ( they are
honorary village level workers) and hike in honorarium, they are presently paid a
paltry sum of Rs, 250/- per month.
Several sathins were picked up by a particular interest group in the village and then
the core group ceased to be just the women’s group (if there was one). In such a
case the election was managed very differently. In Ajmer district 6 sathins ran for
the Panchayat Samitl seat on Party tickets; five on BJP tickets and one on a
Congress ticket. They saw nothing wrong in joining a mainstream party and fighting
the elections on public demand.
The President of the Sathin Union, 75 year old Kesar Bua, fought the elections on
a BJP party ticket and won. According to Kesar Bua she was approached by the
whole village and she agreed to stand.
It was the same with Lail Bai who stood on a BJP ticket for the Panchayat Samitl
Sadasya seat from Ajmer. She says that the local BJP asked her to stand on their
ticket. She agreed when several villagers also persuaded her. After all it was the
wish of the village.
Similarly Shakuntala of Jodhpur who stood for the Zlla Parishad seat on a Congress
ticket, was a Sathin for nine years before she Joined Lok Jumbish, a State Education
programme. She is a very sincere and serious worker. Her father is an old Congress
man. So when she was approached by the Congress she agreed. For her election
many sathins and village women joined her campaign and went from village to village
with her. But the election was controlled by the party and she had senior congress
leaders address her election rallies.
Goga Bai a sathin of Jodhpur district was elected unopposed as Sarpanch of
Panchayat Agolai. Here there was a convenient pact between the BJP and the
Congress group. The Congress candidate who lost the block seat was given the
Deputy Sarpanch seat so that they would not have to contest for the sarpanch seat
and Goga Bal could come in unopposed as the BJP backed candidate. When this
decision was taken Goga Bai and other women were not present. Although Goga
Bai had made up her mind about fighting for the election and also announced it,
she did not consider it important to be in the decision making. She left it to her
husband and son to negotiate for her. Her husband who is a compounder in the
Government dispensary is more active than her in the role of the Sarpanch.
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Mohini of Jaipur district was initially approached by the BJP backed group to be
the candidate for the Sarpanch post in Naila. However, very soon they changed their
minds. They realised that Mohini had played a major role in supporting Bhanwri
Devi in her battle to get justice after her gang rape. So it was considered a
disqualification. Mohini is a very bold and fearless person. Her close connection
with the Bhanwari case was not good for them. No other group in the village came
around actively to put her up as a candidate. Mohini herself did not take the initiative
to bring the women’s group together.
It is very clear that the parties picked up those women who could bring them votes.
It was not because of her work with women that they wanted her, but because her
image would get them votes, and they could have a defacto control over her.
Most of the sathlns who stood in the elections felt that the elections were about
winning. If they get into the power structure, they could work more effectively in
bringing about a change in women’s lives. Thus it was not important to take other
village women along with them in this process.
However, there were some other instances reported about how WDP Sathlns refused
to stand for elections despite public pressure because they felt that other women
should get a chance. All powers must not be vested in just one woman. Munni Devi,
a sathtn of Jaipur district refused to stand for election. She preferred to suggest the
name of some other women as she felt that she had already got tremendous
opportunities and now it must go to others.
Why was there was no desire to work on an alternative method of electoral politics
amongst women’s groups? Obviously the so called group had a very different political
consciousness and preparation for these elections. It is not that they are not clear
on issues. From time to time they have come together to bargain for water or wages.
However, over the years most of the women’s groups of WDP and of many voluntary
agencies who we met, have gradually been depoliticised. Most voluntary agencies
and the WDP have begun delivering Government programmes. As such the priorities
are changing and politically conscentising a village group and strengthening them
as pressure groups, is not the agenda any more. These groups are used by every
programme to deliver their goods.
Secondly, the support structure ( whether voluntary agency or WDP ) have by
themselves undergone a change and therefore they have not been supportive in
providing the leap needed to function as a group in electoral politics and after.
The women’s movement in Rajasthan needs to seriously look into this and dialogue
with all groups that have been working with "women" so as to evolve feminist ways
of intervention in electoral politics with the grass root women. While the election
has expedited the process of legitimising women’s entry, made them more visible in
the public domain, the direction that they ought to be giving the women about
participation in mainstream politics is still wanting.
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4
Section 6
SUPPORT STRUCTURES AND DIRECTIONS
FOR ELECTED WOMEN MEMBERS
6.i
Post Election Scenario: Identifying the support needs
In the last six months of being in power, the elected women representatives have
thrown up a variety of issues. The first three months consisted of a great deal of
enthusiasm to work. For instance;
As in the case of Koeli (a very poor SC belonging to Nimuchana, Alwar) soon
after she became the Sarpanch she took up the issue of vacating encroach
ments. The first notice she issued was against her husband and father-ln- law as
they were defaulters too. She did not want to be considered partial.
Archana Bohra, Sarpanch Rupangarh, Ajmer, gave a notice to the liquor shop
to pay the dues to the Panchayat for two months.
Kanku Bal, Sarpanch, Lotiyana. Ajmer, got a resolution passed in her
Panchayat about villagers vacating the encroachments alongside the road that
runs through the village. She took a group of labourers with her and went from
door to door breaking the encroachments.
The Sarpanch of a village in Bhilwara, on coming into power called the Gram
Sabha meeting and they passed a resolution that the liquor factory that was
being planned by the State Government should be canceled on public demand.
The people of that area had been struggling against the installation of the
factory for the last several months. The Panchayat adopted the resolution of
the Gram Sabha and sent it to the State Government. The Chief Minister gave
into public pressure and cancelled the setting up of the liquor factory.
But the problems of the elected representatives have Increased to such an extent
that if they are not heard or no action is taken then there is a fear that they may
just give up the struggle for these issues.
In a meeting of the elected members, mainly ward members of western Rajasthan
they came up with the following problems...
"We are not informed about the date and the timings of the meetings. How do we
extract it from the Sarpanch and the Gram Sevak?"
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"We are not given a chance to speak in the meeting."
"If we are given a chance to speak nothing comes of the issues we raise.
"Even if a resolution is passed as part of a solution to a problem, nothing happens
as the Sarpanch says it is not in his!her control to expedite it. People have genuine
problems of drinking water, the PHC etc."
Madhu Bharadwaj, Sarpanch in Jaipur district said...
"I do not know whom to go to with my problems. I feel alone and isolated. I feel like
handing over the post ofthe Sarpanch. Thepeople are dissatisfiedwithyou as nothing
is in your control. We have no powers. They expect you to get employment for them,
repair their handpumps. These schemes come from the Panchayat Samiti. What
could I do if Employment Assurance Scheme was not sanctioned for our Panchayat?
When I told them, let us all go and do a day long dharna andpressurise the Panchayat
Samiti to give us the scheme, they said it is your job to run to the Panchayat. They
want their names in the Below Poverty Line list. What can I do? 1 he State Govern
ment needs to release orders for making fresh list.
The Gram Sevak is never available to give the records. He comes only three days a
month. He misguided me on the road construction works. I did not know that the
Panchayat works are not given on contract. On his suggestion I gave it away on
contract. I do not know how to fill a muster roll and he refuses to help me. The EDO
is unhappy as I organised the "Open forum" in the village and in the presence of so
many villagers and members ofwomen’s groups from outside we spoke oftheproblems
in the village and criticised the Panchayat Sam iti.
The Ward Punches are all waiting for me to go wrong. When we had our first Gram
Sabha more than a hundred and fifty women came. We were about two hundred
people, but not the required quorum. I had gone door to door calling the people for
the Gram Sabha. The women responded but the anti group wanted to see me
embarrassed. The Gram Sabha did not take place. In the next Gram Sabha we only
had fifty people. As the quorum was not necessary I did not bother about contacting
too many people. I was really feeling let down after the first.
My family members were supportive initially. But now my mother-in-law has also
begun to complain that I do not do the household work. As villagers begin coming
from five in the morning. I have to attend to them and my children and the house. I
have no choice but to keep doing both together. My husband is irritated with me as
I keep borrowing money from him. I have to make so many trips to the Block
headquarter and Jaipur. The Panchayat has no money. I don’t get a travel al
lowance....
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I wish I had not stood for these elections and I had been happy in my small world
looking after my children, doing my job of teaching. I want to hand over the
Sarpanchai....”
Ratan, Panchayat Samiti Member...
"No meeting of the block council is organised. Why were we elected if they did not
want us to do anything. No role has been given to the Panchayat Samiti members.
Members of only one party got into all the standing committees”.
Maina...
"In my Panchayat none of the women ward members come to the meetings . Their
husbands attend it. How do we keep them out ?"
Archana...
"It is impossible to speak to the Pradhan. Her husband is the one who attends all her
calls."
Mohini (Ward Panch)...
"I was beaten by Nara Ram when I prevented him from beating his wife. I am a
ward member and the Sarpanch is not interested in getting this sorted. I raised it in
the Gram Sabha, and the members said this is not the place to raise personal issues
and waste the precious time of the Panchayat. If they cannot be sympathetic towards
me then they will never help other ordinary women. The other members also tried
but in vain".
Nirmala ( Sarpanch)...
"I was attacked by the anti group when we called the gram sabha. Luckily I was
bodily lifted by some villagers and saved, otherwise I would have been beaten up like
some of the villagers. More than three hundred women did a dharna and the police
would not lodge the FIR. With great difficulty we got it lodged. We went right upto
the CM in Jaipur I am a BJP party member, demanding justice but nothing has
happened yet."
Kanku Bai ( Sarpanch and Lali Bai P.S. member)...
"In any meeting, that we have the BDO tells us that we should bring cases for
sterilisation, open Savings Bank accounts for women and see that women become
literate."
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On the other hand is also a situation ( which probably may be the case of the
majority) where the women elected have surrendered to their men folk in the family
and the Panchayat are doing what they say and are not bothered with learning any
thing new. In the month of July ’95 when the SDM came to conduct an enquiry of
fraud payments of works carried out in ’92-’93. Narbada Bai, Sarpanch of Asan
Gram Panchayat behaved very aggressively with the villagers. She pulled out her
shoe to beat one of the villagers who had come for the enquiry and then tore his
shirt. She was not alone in doing this. All the Sarpanches of that Block had gathered
there demanding of the SDM that such enquires ought not to take place, and that
adjustments have to be made in the records.
6.ii
Responses
The elected members need a forum outside their village and also one in the village
to overcome their sense of isolation.
Secondly, they have to learn about procedures particularly about filling records.
Even if the responsibility be that of the Gram Sevak they have to know how to fill
all the records.
Without group pressure the Sarpanches will also not be able to deliver to the people
as bargaining needs to be done with the State Government for most of the things.
All the elected members have to act effectively if the meeting norms are being violated
as in the case of husbands participating in the meeting etc.
If the people’s democratic right is being taken away by the elected members then
there has to be struggle against these representatives.
The elected representatives must be given decent travel allowance in order to work
effectively.
The Government machinery does not see these representatives any more than their
functionaries to implement their family welfare programme
6.iii Support Institutions
This new situation will give an opportunity for new institutions to emerge. No
organisation or institution or network is as yet equipped to address this new
situation that has arisen due to so many wom£n in Panchayat Raj Institutions. What
exists at present is as follows :
C
118
Governmental
It is quite clear that the agency for support and training ought not to be Just
Government. Rajasthan has a Training Institute on Panchayat Raj called the Indira
Gandhi Institute of Panchayat Raj and Rural Development, in Jaipur which has
taken on the responsibility for training all the elected members. They have con
ducted two day training for Pradhans, Pramukhs and Sarpanches till now. There
are a great deal of limitations in their methods and information. The way they have
been looking at Panchayat Raj representatives and particularly the women is as only
functionaries to implement programmes of Government, especially, Family Welfare.
Non Governmental
Some voluntary agencies, networks and programmes like WDP have been organising
sammelans (like international women’s day) and workshops with the members in
their area of work and trying to give them inputs. These have been erratic. The
support that is needed at present is not just of information but of providing a
continuous forum so that they can air their problems, build a sense of solidarity
with each other and inculcate a strong sense of right and wrong. As the entire culture
of politics of the Panchayat Raj is filled with corruption, a different ethos has to be
inculcated. This would mean building a system of reinforcement for these women
as well as monitoring and providing inputs whenever needed.
Neither is any group addressing these women full time nor are the voluntary groups
equipped and most are not interested in negotiating with power structures and
taking up issues of struggle. They can only advise as far as information inputs are
needed. As such they themselves have to simultaneously build an attitude of doing
such support work and then equip themselves with the required skills.
Parties
The institution of parties have mostly used women. Only time will tell as to what
will be the fate of these women who have joined parties and been elected on their
ticket. Since parties are now a necessary component of rural politics and the
Panchayat Raj it is important to look at them as those needing intervention and as
intervening agencies. It is important for groups to interact with them and know their
plans and ideology for work with women. At the same time, knowing the manner in
which parties have functioned it will also be important to be on guard and preempt
their moves.
6.iv
Codification of women's political experience
It is not sufficient to address just the elected representatives, but other village
women and men also have to be involved. If we wish to see women’s relationship
119
with politics as spontaneous then we should have dialogue with other women and
widen our ambit to women’s interaction with other public Institutions too. This
dialogue is important as we must keep alive the experience of women in the public
sphere. Such that it goes down in the oral history and it becomes a part of the folk
lore. It is important that effort is made to codify these experiences in a form and
language that is familiar to the ordinary women.
6.v
Widening the ambit and experimenting with methods that strengthen
Democracy at the grass roots...
Finally what is most important is to initiate other experiments and interactions that
will strengthen democracy at the grass roots. The Panchayat edifice is in shackles
and thus the reconstruction has to begin from below in which all the villagers will
need to participate. People’s spaces (particularly that of women) to negotiate for
themselves will have to be created. It is necessary to look for alternative strategies
for collective articulation of people's voices and secondly a search for issues that
have an appeal to people across all categories. And a search for fora. Two types of
Interventions have been suggested
Intervention in the jati Panchayat
Since most of women’s issues related to, marriage payments, divorce, violence,
inheritance etc are sorted in thejati Panchayat it is important to Intervene in this
structure. Thejati panches are all male and now that women have entered the Gram
Panchayats they must enter and begin taking an active role in these Panchayats
too, In Udaipur district of WDP, between 1987 and 1991 several cases were sorted
by the sathtns in the Jati Panchayat. They were officially not panches but due to the
legitimacy of being a sathin would go and attend aJa ti Panchayat meeting and bring
in the women’s point of view. Gradually the women who were seeking justice also
started entering these meetings. The sathins were given rhe name nyotinis ( the
female judges), informally by the panches. With the legitimacy of women in the
Panchayat Raj Institutions it should now be extended in other public fora and
institutions.
Creating new fora: Public hearings
At present in the State an experiment with a mode called the Public Hearing is being
tried by a mass based organisation called the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan
(MKSS). A public discussion and a social audit of Development Expenditure is
carried out in an open forum. Making a plea for an informed debate, the MKSS has
demanded transparency of all specific information relating to expenditure on
development and use of community resources. It publically presents this specific
information and elicits responses. It has also requested the local and district
120
functionaries to participate in the debate generated during these hearings. Except
for one hearing the officials have not participated at all. The five hearings have had
a tremendous Impact. The people have openly spoken of corruption and given
personal testimonies. They have also demanded recoveiy of the money pilfered and
putting it back in the village. The people have demanded accountability from the
power wielders and declared that their role is to socially audit development
expenditure. Therefore specific information has to be provided to them.
The impact of this campaign has been tremendous. The Chief Minister made an
announcement in the Vldhan Sabha that people and Elected Representatives had
a right to access all information relating to development expenditure of the last five
years on applying to the Panchayat and Block. While enquiries have been instituted
after each public hearing, the FIR’s are lodged and money is recovered. In one Block
the Gram Sevaks and all the elected representatives have organised themselves and
refused to show records. They insist that they will not allow a social audit. The people
are willing to take this struggle to any extent to get their democratic right. These
hearings have resulted in an authentic participation of the people in the affairs of
their Panchayat.
121
9
Table No.l
District
9
C
3
Total General SC
ST
OBC
General
seats Women Women Women Women
OBC
ST
SC
AJMER
160
35
8
1
8
70
18
3
17
ALWAR
306
60
18
8
12
124
36
20
28
BANSWARA
168
10
2
46
0
15
7
87
1
BARAN
117
20
7
9
3
38
15
18
7
BARMER
198
45
9
3
8
81
22
8
22
BHARATPUR
201
42
13
2
9
83
29
2
20
BHILWARA
211
45
11
5
10
78
27
16
19
BIKANER
110
23
9
0
6
46
16
0
10
BUNDI
96
18
5
7
1
32
12
15
6
CHITTORGARH
226
35
13
15
11
80
23
35
14
CHURU
165
34
12
0
8
68
26
0
17
DAUSA
133
19
10
13
2
39
18
26
5
DHOLPUR
94
21
6
2
4
36
13
3
9
DUNGARPUR
125
12
0
30
0
21
5
56
1
GANGANAGAR
159
28
20
0
6
53
39
0
13
HANUMANGARH
141
27
14
0
6
55
24
0
15
JAIPUR
315
64
17
11
11
122
36
28
26
JAISALMER
49
10
3
0
3
21
5
3
4
JALORE
161
30
10
6
8
61
23
6
17
JHALAWAR
126
22
8
5
6
46
14
12
13
JHUNJHUNU
190
45
9
0
8
83
21
4
20
JOOHPUR
207
48
12
0
8
84
24
7
24
KOTA
97
16
8
5
3
33
15
10
7
NAGOUR
273
56
21
0
13
119
37
0
27
PALI
192
38
13
3
10
79
23
10
16
RAJSAMANO
119
24
7
3
7
46
10
10
12
SAWAIMADHOPUR
232
36
18
21
2
72
35
38
10
SIKAR
216
51
10
0
10
95
21
6
23
SIROHI
89
15
5
8
2
26
12
16
5
TONK
122
21
8
7
5
42
17
13
9
UDAIPUR
259
34
4
47
2
55
10
96
11
TOTAL
5257
984
310
257
192
1903
633
548
428
122
Table No. 1(a)
All women Pradhans
District
Total
Ind & others
Cong
BJP
Ajmer
3
3
0
0
Alwar
5
2
1
2
Baran
2
2
0
0
Banswar a
3
0
0
3
Barmer
3
0
3
0
Bharatpur
3
1
1
1
Bhilwara
4
4
0
0
Bikaner
1
0
1
0
Bundi
1
1
0
0
Chittor
5
4
1
0
Churu
2
0
2
0
Dausa
2
1
1
0
Dholpur
1
1
0
0
Dungarpur
2
0
2
0
Han u man garh
1
1
0
0
Ganganagar
2
2
0
0
Jaipur
4
3
1
0
Jaisalmer
1
1
0
0
Jalore
2
0
2
0
Jhalawad
2
2
0
0
Jhunjhunu
3
0
1
2
Jodhpur
3
0
3
0
Kota
2
1
0
1
Nagaur
4
0
3
1
Pali
3
1
2
0
Rajsamand
2
0
2
0
S. Madhopur
3
3
0
0
Sikar
3
2
0
1
Sirohi
2
1
1
0
Tonk
2
2
0
o
Udaipur
4
3
1
0
Total
80
41
28
11
123
C
4
Table No. 1(b)
District
BJP
Cong
Ind
BJP
Cong
Ind&
other
BJP
Cong
Ind&
other
Ajmer
100.00
0.00
0.00
87.50
0.00
12.50
55.26
29.61
15.13
Alwar
40.00
20.00
40.00
35.71
28.57
35.71
17.35
30.95
51.70
Baran
100.00
0.00
0.00
85.71
14.29
0.00
31.55
19.05
49.40
0.00 100.00
12.50
12.50
75.00
47.37
27.19
25.44
Banswara
0.00
Barmer
0.00 100.00
0.00
12.50
75.00
12.50
33.68
58.42
7.89
Bharatpur
33.33
33.33
33.33
22.22
66.67
11.11
J6.23
28.80
54.97
Bhilwara
100.00
0.00
0.00
63.64
18.18
18.18
48.76
46.77
4.48
0.00 100.00
0.00
50.00
50.00
0.00
30.77
52.88
16.35
Bikaner
Bundi
100.00
0.00
0.00
50.00
0.00
50.00
69.47
28.42
2.11
Chittor
80.00
20.00
0.00
71.43
28.57
0.00
60.00
39.07
0.93
Churn
0.00 100.00
0.00
14.29
85.71
0.00
30.57
60.51
8.92
Dausa
50.00
50.00
0.00
80.00
20.00
0.00
50.00
23.08
26.92
Dholpur
100.00
0.00
0.00
75.00
0.00
25.00
45.56
17.78
36.67
0.00 100.00
0.00
20.00
60.00
20.00
43.20
53.60
3.20
Ganumangarh 100.00
0.00
0.00
66.67
33.33
0.00
30.07
42.48
27.45
Ganganagar
100.00
0.00
0.00
42.86
42.86
14.29
22.22
22.96
54.81
Jaipur
75.00
25.00
0.00
53.85
46.15
0.00
47.83
40.47
11.71
Jails aimer
100.00
0.00
0.00
66.67
33.33
0.00
35.29
49.02
15.69
0.00 100.00
0.00
42.86
42.86
0.00
34.01
49.66
16.33
Dungarpur
Jalore
Jhalawad
100.00
0.00
0.00
100.00
0.00
16.67
50.43
48.70
0.87
Jhunjhunu
0.00
33.33
66.67
25.00
50.00
25.00
25.67
36.36
37.97
Jodhpur
0.00 100.00
0.00
33.33
66.67
0.00
39.70
50.7
9.55
Kota
50.00
0.00
50.00
60.00
20.00
20.00
69.57
27.17
3.26
Nagaur
0.00
75.00
25.00
18.18
72.73
9.09
29.66
52.09
18.25
Pah
33.33
66.67
0.00
50.00
40.00
10.00
45.00
39.00
16.00
Rajsamand
0.00 100.00
0.00
42.86
57.14
0.00
57.80
49.54
(-)7.34
S.Madhopur
100.00
0.00
0.00
90.00
0.00
10.00
32.72
28.57
38.71
Sikar
66.67
0.00
33.33
50.00
25.00
25.00
30.05
46.01
23.94
Sirohi
50.00
50.00
0.00
60.00
40.00
0.00
31.75
36.51
31.75
Tonk
100.00
0.00
0.00
50.00
50.00
0.00
11.72
15.26
73.02
Udaipur
75.00
25.00
0.00
72.73
27.27
0.00
52.53
41.25
6.23
Total
51.25
35.00
13.75
50.63
36.71
12.66
39.30
38.22
22.48
124
a
Table 3 : Voter Turnout
District
Total
Votes
Valid
Votes
% Votes
Polled
Total
% of
Women
Polled
Percent Votes of Parties
% of
Men
INC
IND
Polled BJP
AJMER
696387
443907
63.74
47.24
52.76
43
36.48
20.42
ALWAR
1277448
929678
72.78
46.07
53.93
17.43
24.51
56.57
BANSWARA
641352
391231
61.00
47.44
52.56
26.6
28.34
18.12
BARAN
450056
291209
64.71
42.21
57.79
37.77
25.94
36.28
BARMER
846747
497054
58.70
41.42
58.58
38.04
47.95
14.01
BHARATPUR
830453
593286
71.44
44.48
55.52
12.72
20.35
61.45
BHILWARA
888056
538736
60.66
45.84
54.16
42.53
43.87
13.48
BIKANER
551652
340709
61.76
43.59
56.41
30.35
43.38
19.87
BUNDI
409968
253909
61.93
48.27
51.73
45.91
38.89
14.56
CHITTORGARH
836162
530907
63.49
44.43
55.57
47.54
41.66
10.71
CHURU
723378
525906
72.70
47.77
52.23
36.19
46.11
16.31
DAUSA
584756
396660
67.83
45.14
54.86
35.27
25.36
38.62
DHOLPUR
389434
287570
73.84
42.21
57.79
27.86
20.57
48.56
DUNGARPUR
505599
268081
53.02
49.8
50.2
44.19
46.14
9.03
GANGANAGAR
725388
446784
61.59
44.89
55.11
27.4
32.25
37.93
HANUMANGARH
675076
517753
76.70
44.69
55.31
22.08
23.68
50.51
JAIPUR
1327500
913914
68.84
48.24
51.76
38.08
35.87
25.16
JAISALMER
175083
105896
60.48
43.5
56.5
39.48
44.55
15.98
JALORE
664242
406856
61.25
44.73
55.27
32.1
40.83
27.07
JHALAWAR
538529
325973
60.53
40.24
59.76
40.5
40.12
19.36
JHUNJHUNU
891224
599916
67.31
48.82
51.18
22.37
30.22
46.87
JODHPUR
929453
560944
60.35
47.08
52.92
38.73
45.43
15.84
KOTA
406230
252426
62.14
42.51
57.49
45.54
37.65
16.09
NAGOUR
1245823
833824
66.93
48.07
51.93
33.89
42
23.2
PALI
893367
479991
53.73
47.88
52.12
43.25
39.32
17.42
RAJSAMAND
499494
280315
56.12
47.74
52.26
47.18
46.33
6.2
SAWAIMADHOPUR 998573
674463
67.54
48.52
51.48
26.57
26.21
46.36
SIKAR
987333
683298
69.21
49.63
50.37
25.98
37.78
31.22
SIROHI
364154
193036
53.01
48.69
51.31
39.31
43.05
17.64
TONK
525460
360030
68.52
45.63
54.68
37.81
40.19
21.99
UDAIPUR
1096126
573489
52.32
45.42
54.58
45.54
41.58
15.7
TOTAL
22574505 14497751
64.22
46.21
53.79
33.59
35.9
28.62
125
Table 4 : Parties & Seats, Over are all results
Total
BJP
Cong
Ind &
others
Panchayat Samiti seats
Proportion of seats won by
BJP
Cong
AJMER
152
84
45
23
55.26
29.61
15.13
ALWAR
294
51
91
152
17.35
30.95
51.70
BANSWARA
168
53
32
83
31.55
19.05
49.40
BARAN
114
54
31
29
47.37
27.19
25.44
BARMER
190
64
111
15
33.68
58.42
7.89
BHA RATPUR
191
31
55
105
16.23
28.80
54.97
BHILWARA
201
98
94
9
48.76
46.77
4.48
BIKANER
104
32
55
17
30.77
52.88
16.35
BUNDI
95
66
27
2
69.47
28.42
2.11
CHITTORGARH
215
129
84
2
60.00
39.07
0.93
CHURU
157
48
95
14
30.57
60.51
8.92
DAUSA
130
65
30
35
50.00
23.08
26.92
DHOLPUR
90
41
16
33
45.56
17.78
36.67
DUNGARPUR
125
54
67
4
43.20
53.60
3.20
GANGANAGAR
153
46
65
42
30.07
42.48
27.45
HANUMANGARH
135
30
31
74
22.22
22.96
54.81
JAIPUR
299
143
121
35
47.83
40.47
11.71
JAISALMER
51
18
25
8
35.29
49.02
15.69
JALORE
147
50
73
24
34.01
49.66
16.33
JHALAWAR
115
58
56
1
50.43
48.70
0.87
JHUNJHUNU
187
48
68
71
25.67
36.36
37.97
JODHPUR
199
79
101
19
39.70
50.75
9.55
KOTA
92
64
25
3
69.57
27.17
3.26
NAGOUR
263
78
137
48
29.66
52.09
18.25
PALI
200
90
78
32
45.00
39.00
16.00
RAJSAMAND
109
63
54
-8
57.80
49.54
-7.34
SAWAIMADHOPUR
217
71
62
84
32.72
28.57
38.71
SIKAR
213
64
98
51
30.05
46.01
23.94
126
40
46
40
31.75
36.51
31.75
367
43
56
268
11.72
15.26
73.02
257
135
106
16
52.53
41.25
6.23
5063
1990
1935
1138
39.30
38.22
22.48
District
W
SIROHI
4
TONK
UDAIPUR
TOTAL
Panchayat Samiti Seats
126
1
Table 5 : Women Block Members and Political Parties (Percentages)
District
Women General Seats Women SC Seats
BJP
Cong
Ind
BJP
Cong
Ind
Women ST Seats
BJP
Cong
Ind
Women OBC Seats
BJP
Cong
Ind
Women Total Seats
BJP
Cong
Ind
65.71 25.71 8.57
AJMER
18.33 23.33 58.33
ALWAR
50.00 30.00 0.00
BANSWARA
60.00 30.00 10.00
BARAN
37.78 53.33 8.89
BARMER
14.29 26.19 54.76
BHARATPUR
44.44 53.33 2.22
BHILWARA
26.09 47.83 26.09
BIKANER
77.78 22.22 0.00
BUNDI
CHITTORGARH 65.71 34.29 0.00
32.35 58.82 8.82
CHURU
68.42 21.05 10.53
DAUSA
52.38 19.05 28.57
DHOLPUR
33.33 50.00 16.67
DUNGARPUR
32.14 39.29 28.57
GANGANAGAR
HANUMANGARH 11.11 22.22 66.67
42.19 46.88 10.94
JAIPUR
40.00 50.00 10.00
JAISALMER
26.67 56.67 16.67
JALORE
50.00 31.82 18.18
JHALAWAR
24.44 28.89 46.67
JHUNJHUNU
41.67 54.17 4.17
JODHPUR
81.25 6.25 12.50
KOTA
26.79 55.36 17.86
NAGOUR
52.63 26.32 21.05
PALI
50.00 50.00 0.00
RAJSAMAND
SAWA1MADHOPUR 8.33 33.33 55.56
35.29 37.25 19.61
S1KAR
53.33 40.00 6.67
SIROHI
42.86 47.62 9.52
TONK
61.76 35.29 2.94
UDAIPUR
50.00 37.50 12.50
11.11 27.78 61.11
50.00 50.00 0.00
42.86 42.86 14.29
11.11 77.78 11.11
30.77 15.38 53.85
27.27 72.73 0.00
55.56 44.44 0.00
60.00 40.00 0.00
46.15 46.15 7.69
16.67 75.00 8.33
30.00 30.00 40.00
33.33 33.33 16.67
0.00 0.00 0.00
40.00 45.00 10.00
7.14 42.86 42.86
58.82 35.29 5.88
33.33 66.67 0.00
20.00 70.00 10.00
12.50 87.50 0.00
44.44 33.33 22.22
41.67 58.33 0.00
62.50 25.00 12.50
42.86 38.10 19.05
46.15 53.85 0.00
85.71 14.29 0.00
11.11 27.78 55.56
30.00 30.00 30.00
40.00 60.00 0.00
37.50 50.00 12.50
50.00 50.00 0.00
0.00 0.00100.00
25.00 50.00 25.00
23.91 19.57 10.87
44.44 44.44 11.11
0.00100.00 0.00
0.00 0.00100.00
40.00 40.00 20.00
0.00 0.00 0.00
85.71 14.29 0.00
73.33 20.00 6.67
0.00 0.00 0.00
38.46 38.46 23.08
0.00 50.00 50.00
30.00 70.00 0.00
0.00 0.00 0.00
0.00 0.00 0.00
27.27 63.64 9.09
0.00 0.00 0.00
0.00 66.67 33.33
60.00 40.00 0.00
0.00 0.00 0.00
0.00 0.00 0.00
80.00 20.0 0.00
0.00 0.00 0.00
33.33 66.67 0.00
0.00100.00 0.00
33.33 28.57 38.10
ERR ERR ERR
25.00 75.00 0.00
0.00 85.71 14.29
48.94 46.81 2.13
50.00 12.50 37.50
8.33 16.67 75.00
0.00 0.00 0.00
100.00 0.00 0.00
12.50 75.00 12.50
33.33 33.33 33.33
60.00 40.00 0.00
0.00 83.33 0.00
100.00 0.00 0.00
45.45 54.55 0.00
37.50 50.00 12.50
0.00 100.00 0.00
50.00 0.00 50.00
0.00 0.00 0.00
50.00 16.67 33.33
33.33 33.33 0.00
45.45 45.45 9.09
33.33 33.33 33.33
37.50 50.00 12.50
33.33 66.67 0.00
25.00 62.50 12.50
25.00 50.00 25.00
100.00 0.00 0.00
15.38 69.23 15.38
40.00 50.00 10.00
42.86 57.14 0.00
0.00 50.00 50.00
10.00 70.00 20.00
0.00100.00 0.00
20.00 40.00 40.00
0.00 100.00 0.00
59.62 25.00 15.38
16.33 25.51 58.16
29.31 22.41 8.62
56.41 33.33 10.26
29.23 61.54 9.23
19.70 24.24 53.03
43.66 53.52 2.82
28.95 52.63 15.79
77.42 22.58 0.00
60.81 36.49 2.70
29.63 61.11 9.26
47.73 31.82 20.45
45.45 21.21 30.30
30.95 64.29 4.76
37.04 38.89 22.22
12.77 29.79 51.06
43.69 46.60 9.71
37.50 50.00 12.50
24.07 59.26 16.67
41.46 48.78 9.76
27.42 33.87 38.71
39.71 54.41 5.88
78.13 12.50 9.38
28.89 53.33 17.78
48.44 37.50 14.06
51.22 48.78 0.00
15.58 31.17 50.65
30.99 40.85 21.13
40.00 56.67 3.33
31.71 53.66 14.63
52.87 43.68 2.30
39.43 38.62 21.04
35.16 44.19 19.03
36.19 43.58 11.67
32.81 47.40 19.27
37.46 41.31 19.10
TOTAL
CM
Table 6 : Women Pradhans & Parties
All Women Pradhans
District
Total
BJP
Cong
Ind & other
Ajmer
3
3
0
0
Alwar
5
2
1
2
Baran
2
2
0
0
Banswara
3
0
0
3
Barmer
3
0
3
0
Bharatpur
3
1
1
1
Bhilwara
4
4
0
0
Bikaner
1
0
1
0
Bundi
1
1
0
0
Chittor
5
4
1
0
Churn
2
0
2
0
Dausa
2
1
1
0
Dholpur
1
1
0
0
Dungarpur
2
0
2
0
Hanumangarh
1
1
0
0
Ganganagar
2
2
0
0
Jaipur
4
3
1
0
Jaisalmer
1
1
0
0
Jalore
2
0
2
0
jh alawad
2
2
0
0
Jhunjhunu
3
0
1
2
Jodhpur
3
0
3
0
Kota
2
1
0
1
Nagaur
4
0
3
1
Pali
3
1
2
0
Rajsamand
2
0
2
0
S.Madhopur
3
3
0
0
Sikar
3
2
0
1
Sirohi
2
1
1
0
Tonk
2
2
0
0
Udaipur
4
3
1
0
Total
80
41
28
11
128
Table 6(B) : Women Pradhans & Parties
Women Pradhans Percent
Total Pradhans Percent Panchayat Samiti % of seats
Ind &
Other
District
BJP
Cong
Ind
BJP
Cong
Ind &
Other
BJP
Ajmer
100.00
0.00
0.00
87.50
0.00
12.50
55.26 29.61
15.13
Alwar
40.00
20.00
40.00
35.71 28.57
35.71
17.35 30.95
51.70
Baran
100.00
0.00
0.00
85.71 14.29
0.00
31.55
19.05
49.40
0.00 100.00
12.50 12.50
75.00
47.37 27.19
25.44
Cong
Banswara
0.00
Barmer
0.00 100.00
0.00
12.50 75.00
12.50
33.68 58.42
7.89
Bharat pur
33.33
33.33
33.33
22.22 66.67
11.11
16.23 28.80
54.97
Bhilwara
100.00
0.00
0.00
63.64 18.18
18.18
48.76 46.77
4.48
0.00 100.00
0.00
50.00 50.00
0.00
30.77 52.88
16.35
Bikaner
Bundi
100.00
0.00
0.00
50.00
0.00
50.00
69.47 28.42
2.11
Chittor
80.00
20.00
0.00
71.43 28.57
0.00
60.00 39.07
0.93
Churu
0.00 100.00
0.00
14.29 85.71
0.00
30.57 60.51
8.92
Dausa
50.00
50.00
0.00
80.00 20.00
0.00
50.00 23.08
26.92
Dholpur
100.00
0.00
0.00
75.00
0.00
25.00
45.56
17.78
36.67
0.00 100.00
0.00
20.00 60.00
20.00
43.20 53.60
3.20
Hanumangarh 100.00
0.00
0.00
66.67 33.33
0.00
30.07 42.48
27.45
Ganganagar
100.00
0.00
0.00
42.86 42.86
14.29
22.22 22.96
54.81
Jaipur
75.00
25.00
0.00
53.85 46.15
0.00
47.83 40.47
11.71
Jaisalmer
100.00
0.00
0.00
66.67 33.33
0.00
35.29 49.02
15.69
0.00 100.00
0.00
42.86 42.86
0.00
34.01
49.66
16.33
Dungarpur
Jalore
Jhalawad
100.00
0.00
0.00
100.00
0.00
16.67
50.43 48.70
0.87
4 Jhunjhunu
0.00
33.33
66.67
25.00 50.00
25.00
25.67 36.36
37.97
J Jodhpur
0.00 100.00
0.00
33.33 66.67
0.00
39.70 50.75
9.55
50.00
0.00
50.00
60.00 20.00
20.00
69.57 27.17
3.26
0.00
75.00
25.00
18.18 72.73
9.09
29.66 52.09
18.25
i ,-i-ri
I ^samand
.‘33.33
66.67
0.00
50.00 40.00
10.00
45.00 39.00
16.00
0.00 100.00
0.00
42.86 57.14
0.00
57.80 49.54
-7.34
''l Z Madhopur
100.00
0.00
0.00
90.00
0.00
10.00
32.72 28.57
38.71
if Jikar
’ Sirohi
66.67
0.00
33.33
50.00 25.00
25.00
30.05 46.01
23.94
50.00
50.00
0.00
60.00 40.00
0.00
31.75 36.51
31.75
* | Tonk
100.00
0.00
0.00
50.00 50.00
0.00
11.72
15.26
73.02
Udaipur
75.00
25.00
0.00
72.73 27.27
0.00
52.53 41.25
6.23
Total
51.25
35.00
13.75
50.63 36.71
12.66
39.30 38.22
22.48
1
■"1
I:..-
129
Resource. Centre.
Occasional ‘Paper Series 9^p.3
Women in Decision Making :
A Study of Gram Panchayats in Maharashtra
Prepared by
Stree Aadhar Kendra
UMA Resource Centre
Institute of Social Studies Trust
"Shreeshyla", No. 42, 4th Temple Street,
15th Cross, Malleswaram, Bangalore - 560 003.
1995
)
This Study was conducted by Stree Aadhar
Kendra, Pune and presented by Dr. Neelam
Gorhe at the ISST Seminar.
Research and Report prepared by Jill E.
Simmons and assisted by Sangeeta Gandhe.
Hirabegum Mulla & Vidya Kulkami
[Foreword, Section 2, 3, 4, 5]
Section 1 has been prepared by Roopa
Thlrumalai of the Uma Resource Centre.
Table of Contents
Foreward
[130-131]
Section 1
Maharashtra: Past and Present
[132-135]
Section 2
Maharashtra: A Profile
[136-153]
2.1
District Profile
136-137
2.2
Profile of Women Gram Panchayat Members
137-139
2.3
Political awareness and Perceptions
139-148
2.4
Participation in Gram Panchayats
148-153
Section 3:
Discussion of Maharashtra Paper at ISST Seminar
[154-155]
Section 4:
Training and Organisations involved in the process
[156-158]
Section 5:
Conclusion and Recommendations
[159-165]
Foreword
With the passage of mandatory 30 percent reservation for women in the Panchayat
Raj system, women taking part in the decision making process has become the focus
of national attention. Women’s issues are not only being looked at as a grassroots
problem, but they are being pushed into the institutionalized framework of the
Indian political system. Four years have passed since the introduction of 30 percent
reservation for women in Maharashtra. Both governmental and non-governmental
organizations (NGO’s) are beginning to research on women in Gram Panchayats.
The Institute of Social Studies Trust (ISST) has taken an interest in the Panchayat
Raj system throughout the country and women’s place within that system. There
fore,they have called for a research seminar for eight states of our countiy to present
their story of women’s quest for decision making. ISST requested Stree Aadhar
Kendra to conduct a research project on women in Panchayat Raj in Maharashtra.
Stree Aadhar Kendra (SAK) is a non-profit women’s development organization in
Maharashtra with centres in several districts in the state. SAK works to promote
the cause of women both through grassroots programmes and the governmental
system (that is,legislation and courts).
In response to the ISST research request, SAK developed a research project on Gram
Panchayat women in three districts of Maharashtra. The purpose of this research
is to establish an idea of the experiences of Gram Panchayat women, their
perception of politics and their role in it. The reservation for women in the Panchayat
Raj system is intended to draw women to play an active role in their local government
and to create a space for women to introduce their perspectives and issues. The
objectives of the interviews conducted by SAK was to examine the following:
1. The women’s sources of social and political information.
2. The women’s awareness of the political system, its processes and schemes.
3. The women’s definition of politics and women’s place within it.
4. The active participation of women in Gram Panchayats.
5. The perceptions of other Gram Panchayat members to women’s political participa
tion.
130
The field research was conducted through personal interviews. A structured ques
tionnaire was used for the interviews. However, the questions were sometimes
altered on a case to case basis. The interview consisted of 69 questions focusing on
four main topics.
1. biographical information
2. political awareness and opinions
3. participation of women members in the Gram Panchayat
4. activities of the Gram Panchayat
Out of a total of 32 Gram Panchayat women, 12 were from Pune district, 11 were
from Latur district and 9 were from the Osmanabad district. The women Gram
Panchayat members in Pune district were selected through SAK contacts. The
women Gram Panchayat members in Latur and Osmanabad were also identified
through SAK contacts and random selection.
The Information and analysis contained in this report will focus primarily on the
women’s political awareness and participation. Political awareness and participa
tion are the basis for increasing the contribution of women in local self-government.
Women are very rarely asked to consider what comprises their political system,
much less their place within it. Active political participation requires these con
siderations from the women involved. Without political awareness, passive political
participation to simply fulfill the 30 percent reservation is possible, but the intended
constructive, empowering participation is imposslble.lt is important for the Indian
Government and NGO’s to get an idea of the political awareness and participation
of current Gram Panchayat members. From that knowledge, an action plan can be
developed to help increase the benefits received by women’s participation in the
decision making process.
This preliminary research intends to show a few experiences of women who are now
Panchayat members, and therefore.the decision makers for the women of their
village. Following this introductory research, SAK plans to expand its research into
more detail to include a wider cross-section of women in Gram Panchayats.
131
Section 1
MAHARASHTRA: PAST AND PRESENT
Historical Background
The State of Maharashtra has always been a forerunner of reform movements, be it
social, educational or political. Women have broken the shackles of tradition and
worked relentlessly for the betterment of the plight of women. Outstanding among
them is Pandita Ramabal Saraswatl who laid the foundation of a movement for
women’s liberation. She can indeed be considered as the symbol of modem Indian
womanhood. Educated in Sanskrit at a time when women were barred from learning
the Hindu scriptures, choosing to many only at the age of 21, when child marriage
was the order of the day, her world wide tours, lectures to international audiences,
all gave Pandita Ramabal Saraswatl a unique place in the annals of Indian
womanhood. She was publicly honoured with the title Pandita, spoken of as a
modern day incarnation of Saraswatl, the Goddess of learning.
Savithribai Phule was another woman who contributed greatly towards women’s
education in the 19th century. Savithribai was the first woman teacher in modem
Maharashtra. She along with her husband Jotiba Phule set up a school for girls.
Inspite of being continually maligned by orthodox sections of the society, they
continued relentlessly in their mission of educating the women folk. They en
couraged women of all castes to attend their schools.
Ramabal Ranade was another notable contributor to the women’s movement. She
took part in several women’s organisations and worked actively for equal political
rights for women. Ramabal also made fiery speeches supporting the extremist
politics of Tilak.
x
.
.
When Anandibai Joshi received her degree in medicine in 1886, she became the
first Indian woman to do so. Thus, the women of Maharashtra set a trend of
progressiveness as early as the 19th century. They have inspired countless small
and big revolutions which have changed history and society.
The Panchayat Raj History
The Panchayat Raj history Is another good example of their progressiveness. The
Panchayat Raj System in Maharashtra has been in place since 1962. Maharashtra
is the only State in which the Panchayat Raj System has been based on direct
elections since its inceptions. Most other states based their Panchayat Raj Systems
on Nominations. Maharashtra in 1990 was well ahead of the 73rd and 74th
Amendments. It implemented the 30% reservations for women within the Panchayat
Raj System. It was also the first state to implement the mandated Panchayat Raj
132
Reforms. The first legislation passed in the post-Independence era was in 1958.
This was called the Bombay Village Panchayat Act 1958. This Act remains in force,
to this day, except for a few amendments. Under this Act the village Panchayats
were assigned the task of collection of land revenue and maintenance of land
records.
On May 1, 1960, the state of Maharashtra was formed. The state government
appointed a Committee on Democratic Decentralisation. This Committee headed
by Vasant Rao Nalk studied the subject of Panchayat Raj in all its aspects and made
a model proposal for the state. It was on the basis of the recommendations of this
committee that Maharashtra Zilla Parishads and Panchayat Samitis Act 1961 was
enacted and in May 1962 Zilla Parishads and Panchayat Samitis were first con
stituted. Maharashtra became the eleventh state to adopt the Panchayat Raj System
in the country.
The Panchayat Raj setup was reviewed from time to time by committees appointed
by the State. The two important committees were the Panchayat Raj Review
committee of 1970 (Bongirwar Committee) and the Panchayat Raj Review Committee
of 1984 (Patil Committee). On the basis of the recommendations made by these
committees, some changes have been made in the Panchayat Raj System in
Maharashtra without altering the basic features of the same. Instead of adopting
a new Panchayat Act, the Maharashtra State Assembly has amended the existing
Bombay Village Panchayat Act 1958 and the Maharashtra Zilla Panchayat and
Panchayat Samiti Act, 1961.
There are certain unique features of the Panchayats and the most striking one
related to women are the all women Panchayats. Maharashtra has the distinction
of being the first State to elect an all women Gram Panchayat in 1984. The credit
for this achievement goes to the citizens of Manje Rai Panchayat in Indapur Tehsll
which is the first all women Panchayat. At present there are approximately 16 all
women Gram Panchayats within the state. Take for instance, the tiny village of
Brahmanaghar, nestling among the hill slopes of the Sahayadri. This village was
earlier totally cut off from civilisation due to inadequate communication and most
of the people lived in poverty. Poverty forced the menfolk to take up jobs in the cities
which exposed them to modern liberal thoughts and ideas. And as many of the
villagers were once members of the leftist Lal Nishan Party they were also introduced
to the concept of empowerment of women. Hence, the people of the village decided
to elect an all women Panchayat in their village. The Panchayat consists of 7 women.
They are all typical village women, none of whom have studied beyond the seventh
standard but have attended some adult literacy classes. Sulochana Sana, the most
articulate among them has also attended a first aid training course and accompanies
the doctor when he visits the village. She is enthusiastic about the role women will
play in the development of the village. Pushpalata Dhumal, another elected member
133
from a slightly well-to-do family, says, improving the sewage system and building a
water supply tank are part of her agenda. This shows that women of this tiny village
have taken their Job seriously and are confident of making it a success. Thus, the
women of Brahmanghar village have broken out of the confines of their homes and
stormed into a traditional male bastion to form an all women Panchayat. (Indian
Express 6th December 1994)
Govemmen t Initia tives
After the National Commission for Women was set up, Maharashtra was the first
state to follow with a state legislation setting up a State Commission for women in
January 1993, followed by a separate department of women and child welfare.
The Maharashtra government has announced a policy for women and child develop
ment which is a step towards gender equality. The basic objective of the policy is
to create equality in the economic, social, political, cultural and constitutional
sectors. The highlights of the policy includes eliminating violence against women,
ensuring equality in both the spirit and letter of the law, improving women’s
economic status, appropriate use of media, increased participation in local self
government, and, enhancing community participation in government activities.
To ensure empowerment of women, a provision in the policy states that 10% of all
government and Gram Panchayat land at the village level and 10% of the Panchayat
income will be placed under the control of local women’s committee, headed by the
elected women representatives.
Another aspect of policy which should be encouraging to women is that, if 75% of
women in a Gram Sabha vote for closure of country liquor shops, the government
will ensure its closure. Also, the cess on liquor will be raised and will be channelised
for welfare programmes for women and children. The policy states that it is an
"attempt to provide women a rightful place in society as partners with men in
shaping the destiny of the state and the nation". So much for well-intentioned
documents. One needs to watch how seriously it is really implemented.
Is Maharashtra taking a step backward with the present change in government?
The BJP-Shivsena election agenda proclaimed that women need protection not
reservation. They are playing with the two phrases of "Stree Mukti" and "Stree
Shakti". "Stree Mukti" connotes women’s rights and emancipation, whereas "Stree
Shakti" signifies the glorification of women’s traditional subordinate roles, and looks
askance on women participating more meaningfully in society. It is difficult for a
village level woman to grasp the nuances of the two phrases correctly resulting in
a confusion in her mind.
134
At a training programme conducted, by Dr.P.V.Mandllk Trust, when women were
asked the question, "How many of you would like to become a Sarpanch?", one
woman got up and said "I would not like to become a Sarpanch as women should
not become Sarpanches". The trainer felt that this woman had been Influenced by
her party diktats. Incidentally she belonged to the party presently in power. In
such a situation the very concept of women’s empowerment seems to be in danger.
However, despite these incidents, the fact remains that the state will have over
60,000 women members in the Panchayats (refer to Society for Promotion of Area
Resource Centres, May Update 1995). Also, Maharashtra will have the first batch
of elected Mahfia Sarpanchs heading 4921 Gram Panchayats. A notable feature is
that many younger women with the bare minimum of literacy skills have jumped
into the political arena. These rural women seemed enthusiastic about the oppor
tunities offered to them. Their priorities are education, clean drinking water, health
centres and transport. However, enthusiasm alone and courage to enter politics is
not sufficient for women to effectively participate in the political processes. This is
illustrated in the study conducted by Stree Aadhar Kendra, described in the
following sections of this paper.
Looking at the situation of women representatives in Maharashtra is like watching
a complex jigsaw puzzle fall into place. And sometines, the inherent contradictions
are so many, that the pieces do not quite match. An advanced state where social
issues are concerned, there is a history of women breaking the shackles of tradition
and participating with a lot of zest and enthusiasm in progressive movements.
Maharashtra has several major victories regarding women’s representation in the
Panchayat Raj System. But there are also incidents like the Jalgaon sex scandal
which nullify the effect of this progress. Watching the women representatives of
Maharashtra will be a rewarding exercise for any student of social and political
history.
135
Section 2
MAHARASHTRA: A PROFILE
The State of Maharashtra is spread over about 307,713 sq.kms. It has a population
of 79 million and a sex ratio of 935 women for every 1000 males. The literacy rate
is 64.87%. This data is based on the census of 1991. Also by the year 1993
Maharashtra has achieved 100% electrification of its villages.
2.1
Dis trict Profi les
2.1.1 Pune District Profile
Pune district has an area of 15,642 sq.km. According to the 1991 census, Pune
is the second most populated district in Maharashtra, with a population of
5,532,532. Per square kilometer, the population density is 354 comprising 69
households. Pune district has 14 talukas and approximately 1,844 villages. The
district literacy rate is 71 percent, male 80.56 percent and female 59.77 percent.
Pune’s rural literacy rate is 60.75 percent, male 74.76 percent and female 46.28
percent. The male female ratio is 933 women per 1000 males. Pune district has
46 percent of its population working in agricultural cultivation or labour. There
are 12,575 km of road throughout Pune district.
2.1.2 Latur District Profile
Latur district was carved out of Osmanabad district in 1981. It has an area of 7,157
sq.km. According to the 1991 census, Latur’s population is 1,676,641. Per square
kilometer, Latur’s population density is 234 comprising 40 households. Latur has
seven talukas. The district literacy rate is 55.76 percent, male 70.47 percent and
female 39.74 percent. Latur’s rural literacy rate is 51.63 percent, male 67.18
percent and female 35.35 percent. The male/female ratio is 942 women per 1000
males. In Latur district, 79 percent of the population is working in working in
agricultural cultivation or labour. Infrastructure throughout the district consists
of one rail line and 4,295 km or road. In September 1993, Latur district was hit by
an earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale. Throughout the district,
thousands died or were injured. Many villages, particularly in the Ausa taluka were
completely destroyed.
2.1.3 Osmanabad District Profile
Adjoining Latur district, Osmanabad has an area of 7,563 sq.km. It’s population
is 1,276,327. Per square kilometer, Osmanabad’s population density is 167 com136
prising 31 households. Osmanabad has 11 taluks and approximately 1,554
villages. The district literacy rate is 54.27 male 68.39 and female 39.16.
Osmanabad’s rural literacy rate is 51.23, male 65.18 and female 35.80. The
male/female ratio is 937 female per 1000 males. In Osmanabad district, 82 percent
of the population is working in agricultural cultivation or labour. Osmanabad
district was also greatly affected by the 1993 earthquake. The district suffered from
extensive village damage and human loss, primarily in the Umerga taluka.
2.2
Profile of women Gram Panchayat members
2.2.1 Biographical information
Taluka
Pune:
All 12 women live in the Havell taluka
Latur:
All 11 women live in the Ausa taluka
Osmanabad: All 9 women live in the Umerga taluka
2.2.2 Age range
Pune:
27-73, average 39
Latur:
25-60, average 43
Osmanabad: 25-60, average 42
2.2.3 Caste/religion
Pune:
1 Brahmin; 9 Maratha; 2 Mali
Latur:
9 Maratha; 1 Rajput; 1 Matung; 1 Lingit; 1 Muslim
Osmanabad: 4 Maratha; 2 Dhungar; 2 Lingit; 1 Kholi
2.2.4 Marital Status
Pune:
10 married; 2 widowed
Latur:
9 married; 2 widowed
Osmanabad: 9 married
Type of family
Pune:
10 nuclear; 2 joint
Latur:
7 nuclear; 4 joint
Osmanabad: 3 nuclear; 6 joint
137
2.2.5 Head of household
Pune:
10 husband; 1 nephew; 1 herself
Latur:
6 husband; 3 herself; 1 son; 1 father-in-law
Osmanabad: 7 husband; 1 brother; 1 brother-in-law
2.2.6 Number of Children
Pune:
ranged from 0-5 children, average 3 children
Latur:
ranged from 3-7 children, average 4 children
Osmanabad: ranged from 0-6 children, average 3
2.2.7 Education
Pune:
8 partial primary; 3 secondary; 1 completed teacher training
Latur:
9 no education; 1 pre-prjmary; 1 secondary
Osmanabad: 6 no education; 3 partial primary
2.2.8 Literacy
Pune: 11 literate; 1 illiterate
Latur:
1 literate; 10 illiterate
Osmanabad: 3 literate; 6 illiterate
2.2.9 Occupation
8 household workers; 2 own agricultural cultivation; 1 service; 1 retired
Pune:
5 agricultural labour; 4 own agricultural cultivation; 1 construction; 1
Latur:
tailor
Osmanabad: 4 agricultural labour; 4 own agricultural cultivation; 1 construction
2.2.10 Household income
Rs. 15,000 - Rs.60,000 - Average Rs.32,500
Pune:
Rs. 1,200 - Rs. 100,000 - Average Rs. 17,500
Latur:
Osmanabad: Rs.4,000 - Rs.50,000 - Average Rs. 17,500
2.2.11 Manages household expenditures
Pune:
8 husband, 2 herself, 2 joint husband/wife
Latur:
4 husband, 3 herself, 2 both husband/wife, 1 son, 1 father- in-law
Osmanabad: 7 husband, 1 brother, 1 brother-in-law
138
The area from which the Pune interviews were taken is prone to urban bias. All the
interviews were from villages within 15 km of Pune city. Also, the women interviewed
were all in some way attached to Stree Aadhar Kendra which increases the
probability of political awareness. Given these factors and the small population
sample, the interviews in no way give the complete picture of women in Pune district.
However, they do tell the story of some women taking part in the decision making
process.
Latur and Osmanabad are adjoining districts and the situation of women is very
similar. Both districts have felt the effects of a devastating earthquake. The
interviews were gathered randomly with the assistance of the Stree Aadhar Kendra
staff in the area. The districts of Osmanabad and Latur are much more rural and
isolated than Pune district. Both districts have generally had a history of little social
activity. The villages, and consequently the women Gram Panchayat members are
virtually untouched by urban influences. The interviews of Latur and Osmanabad
provide a picture of rural women’s experiences in the Gram Panchayat system.
2.3
Political Awareness and Perceptions
Information Sources
Where do you receive information about Indian politics?
Latur
Pune
Newspaper / T. V / Radio
NGOs
Village
Husband
Gram Panchayat
No Knowledge
Osmanabad
2
12
2
1
1
1
9
7
Where do you receive information about women's issues?
NGOs
Newspaper / TV / Radio
Gram Panchayat
No women’s issues
No Knowledge
Pune
Latur
Osmanabad
11
4
1
2
1
1
9
7
139
♦
/
_,±s', h’
Where do you receive.gerier^new^(["^iociai^\^ts*rdallyioccurrences)? *
' Pune
Newspaper / TV / Radio
Villagers
No knowledge
’
* • Latur»
1*0
8
Osmanabad
2
6
5
7
Source of information is a crucial aspect of awareness and consequently participa
tion. Women Gram Panchayat members need to have a source of information.
Without such information, women cannot address women's or their village needs.
In Pune, most of the women interviewed have established sources of political and
women’s information. From their responses, the Pune women seem to be recipients
of enough information to become functioning members of their Gram Panchayats.
However, the women from Latur and Osmanabad indicated they have virtually no
sources political Information or knowledge of women’s issues. Such topics seemed
alien to the women and their dally lives. One woman from the Latur district said
that there were no women’s issues in her village. Five other women said there were
no needs in their village. A lack of access and interest in basic political knowledge
is the cause of low participation in politics. Women, who do not have political
information presented to them, are never confronted with information that asks
them to contemplate their political situation. Dr.Manu Kulkami* UNICEF state
chief- M.P., said in 1994, “Sharing information is power, but withholding informa
tion is superpower”. A lack of access to information feeds the male ridrmrtaated power
structure and the prevailing behaviours erf the Gram PanchayaL
2.3.1 PanchayatRaj information:
When did you learn about the Panchayat Raj system?
Family members
Gram Panchayat
Villagers
Newspaper/TV
NGOs
School
No knowledge
(
Osmanabad
Pune
Latur
3
3
2
2
2
3
7
4
2
2
2
140
Where did you learn about the Gram Panchayat elections?
Pune
S arpanch
Family members
Villagers
School
NGOs
No knowledge
Latur
Osmanabad
5
3
2
5
3
2
4
4
2
2
Where did you learn about the 30 percent reservation for women in the Panchayat Raj
system?
Pune
Newspaper / T.V
NGOs
Family / Villagers
Gram Panchayat
No knowledge
6
5
1
Latur
Osman abad
1
1
2
3
5
1
7
One step beyond general political knowledge, understanding the Panchayat Raj
system and its processes enable women to become productive Gram Panchayat
members. Again, there is significant gap in the political knowledge of the Pune
women and the women in Latur and Osmanabad. All the women in Pune stated
that they had knowledge of the Panchayat Raj system. However, upon follow up
questions, it became evident that six of the women had only very general knowledge.
Two women said that they could not say how they would utilise Gram Panchayat
funds because they had no understanding of the funding to Gram Panchayats. They
added, without funding knowledge, they could not address any of the problems in
the village.
The Latur and Osmanabad women said that they had no working knowledge of the
Panchayat Raj system. Most women were completely unaware of the government
reservation for women in Gram Panchayats. It is very difficult for the reservations
to have the desired effect if women do not even have an understanding of their local
government system, how it works and the special allowances made for them within
the system.
141
I
i
2.3.2 Social activity in village
Are there any women's organisations working in your village?
Yes
No
Pune
Latur
9
3
7
4
Osmanabad
8
1
If there is any injustice going on in your area, who comes forward to help?
Police
NGOs
Gram Panchayat
Villagers
Herself
No one
"no injustice
in village"
Pune
Latur
Osmanabad
9
6
4
2
2
2
1
3
2
1
4
1
6
2
most women indicated more than once source of help accounting for the above
100 percent statistics
♦
In most of the women’s villages, NGOs are present. Much of this active involvement
is a result of the close proximity of Haveli taluk to Pune City and the earthquake
that effected both the Ausa and Umerga talukas. In Latur and Osmanabad, ten of
the women were unaware that there were women’s organisations working in their
village. In general, other village or NGO members would answer the question for
the women.
The women in Pune again seemed most aware of injustice. This awareness comes
from their greater knowledge of political issues, women’s issues and the workings
of the political and legal systems. Much like the lack of women’s issues in the village,
two women indicated that there was no injustice in their village. Such comments
show either an ignorance of village problems or an unwillingness to accept that such
things exist and the need for action. Given the women’s position as Gram Panchayat
member, there were a significantly small number of women who said that they
themselves would address the injustice in their village. One women from the Pune
district said, "if they come to me, I will help them. But if they don’t come to me,
even if I hear about it, what can I do?" There seems to be an apathy among many
of the women interviewed to come out and support the women in their village. It is
much easier to ignore or pass off problems to the police. Much of this apathy is
142
derived from not knowing how to address such problems. Also, the idea that such
problems are solved within the family is still very prevalent in rural India.
2.3.3 Awareness of social movements and government schemes:
Are you aware of any social movements?
Yes
No
Pune
Latur
Osman abad
6
6
2
9
2
7
Are you aware ofgovernment schemes for backward castes, women and rural develop
ment?
Yes
A few
No
Pune
Latur
Osmanabad
4
7
1
2
2
9
7
The third step in political awareness is knowledge of social movements and
government schemes. If the women are aware of the opportunities available to them,
they are much more likely to utilise their position as leader in the community to
solve area problems. However, in this third area of awareness, there is a sharp
decline in knowledge among the women from Pune, as well as Latur and Os
manabad. All the women who indicated that they were aware of social movements
and government schemes qualified their answers by restricting it to only very general
knowledge of historical and local movements. Two women in Pune district indicated
that they were aware of social movements, but upon further questioning could not
name any. While general knowledge of the political system is a tool for increasing
political awareness and initial participation, awareness of government schemes is
a tool for utilising the institutional power given to women who are within the
government framework. Women simply holding 30 percent of the Gram Panchayat
titles does not immediately cause a shift in the Gram Panchayat male dominated
power structure. It is easy for women to feel their role and power as Gram Panchayat
members marginalised because they are unaware of what the issues are and the
tool available to them. It is also easier for men, to comment that women are
‘numbers’ not ‘members’. This remark was made to women Gram Panchayat
members in the Shirur Block of Pune district.
143
2.3.4 Perceptions of women in politics:
Is the reservation for women in Gram Panchayats necessary?
Yes
No
No Comment
Pune
Latur
12
7
Osman abad
5
2
2
4
Many women said it was important yet in Latur and Osmanabad only 5 women are
attending the meetings. When asked why, many of the women could not give a
reason.
Are there enough government schemes for women?
Pune
Yes, but implementation is low
4
No
1
Not aware
of schemes
7
Latur
Osmanabad
2
2
9
7
Do you feel that men or women are better administrators?
Women
Men
Both
No comment
Why?
Pune
Latur
12
7
1
1
2
Osmanabad
5
3
1
2.3.5 Pune:
*
"Women have less addictions".
"Women have more of a sense of duty to the community".
♦
"Women have a real need to make things better".
♦
"If women can take care of the house they can take care of the village".
144
*
"Women are sincere; look at the example of Indira Gandhi".
♦
"Women have an innate ability to take care of people’s needs".
*
"Women have needs that can only be understood by women".
2.3.6 Latur
*
"Women are aware of women’s needs".
♦
"Women promote community development".
"If there are women leaders, the women in the village will feel more free to talk
to them and express their needs".
"Women need a chance at leadership. Men have always been the leaders".
2.3.7 Osmanabad
♦
"There is a need for gender equality in leadership".
♦
"Women will not quarrel".
♦
"Women are better leaders because they are not corrupt. Men are at the root
of all evil. They are very selfish. Men do not care about or pay attention to
women’s problems".
♦
"Women should not be in politics. Women do not have the capacity to take on
leadership".
*
"Women should not be in politics".
In your opinion, what is women’s role in politics?
2.3.8 Pune:
♦
"Women need a place to take their own decisions. A place to take stances on
behalf of women".
*
"Power is necessary for women".
♦
"Women have a role in politics, but must not be inhibited. There is no place for
passive women or women puppets in politics".
*
No comment (3)
145
Embarrassed and confused (4)
♦
2.3.9 Latur:
♦
"Women need to be active and take interest in politics".
*
"Women's role is village development".
♦
"Women must come forward and take an active part".
♦
"All programmes need women in them. Gender equality must be the aim".
♦
"It is time for women to take leadership roles".
*
"50 percent reservation is necessary".
♦
"Women do not have a role in politics".
No comment (4)
2.3.10 Ostnanabad:
*
♦
"Women are not given respect, therefore they are not solving problems. When
women come together to solve problems and combat the corruption in politics,
they are strong". (This women has only attended four meetings in three years.)
"Men do nothing but foster corruption. 10-20 women come together and village
problems are solves". (This woman has never attended a meeting.)
*
"Women are doing proper work in politics but are being ignored. Women need
a strong voice in politics".
♦
"50 percent reservation for women is needed".
*
"Women should not be in politics".
♦
"Women are in politics for status only".
♦
"Women should not be in politics".
♦
"Women do not have a role in politics. They would not do any work".
146
What is your definition ofpolitics?
2.3.11 Pune:
♦
"Service for the weaker people".
"Today’s politics is corrupt and biased. Politics must mean sincere and devoted
efforts for the betterment of society".
♦
"Politics works to meet people’s needs and keep order".
♦
"Two types of politics one is selfish and one is a form of social work. The current
politics is selfish. It is the taking away of each others rights and is a fight for
power. Politics must redefine itself as social work".
♦
"I don’t know".
♦
No definition (2)
2.3.12 Latur:
♦
"Politics means village development". (3)
♦
"Politics is working for people. Work for people who are not able to develop
themselves. Village development is needed on an equal level tor both the rich
and poor".
♦
"Politics means what? How would I know? I’m not allowed to think about it".
♦
"I have no knowledge on that subject and I don’t care" (2)
*
"I don’t know". (2)
2.3.13 Osmanabad:
"Politics means corruption".
Politics is the security of the world".
vrlCy means rural development and the development of the disadvantaged".
Politics means village development".
"Meaning of politics?"
♦
"I don’t know".
147
♦
"I don’t know. The sarpanch dominates our village and does not let us know".
*
"I don’t know the meaning of politics and I don’t care".
The perception of politics and women’s role varied among the women interviewed.
Many of the comments in this area were inconsistent with the women’s actions.
Women who had no knowledge of the Panchayat Raj system, could not identify any
women’s issues and had never attended a Gram Panchayat meeting were claiming
that women should present a united front to address women’s issues and combat
corruption within the political system. Most of the women, when asked, could not
explain their answers or give a definition of politics. An assumption can be drawn
that many of the "feminist" views expressed, particularly from Latur and Os
manabad, were inspired by the interview itself and do not reflect actual convictions
that the women as village leaders are planning to put into practice. One can also
conclude that many of these women do not even view themselves as within the
political system. Therefore, they do not see the inconsistency of their answers.
Actual participation in the Panchayat Raj system is being carried out by only 55
percent of the women interviewed. Excluding Pune district, the participation drops
to 25 percent. Political awareness is the backbone of political participation. It can
be seen that in the women interviewed there is a severe deficit of political awareness,
which inevitably leads to their lack of participation and marginalisation of the 30
percent reservation goals.
2.4
Participation in Gram Panchayats:
General political ties and participation:
Have you voted in any elections?
Yes
Pune
Latur
12
11
Osmanabad
9
Are you a member of a political party?
Yes
No
Pune
Latur
10
2
1
Osmanabad
9
10
According to their responses, all the women are exercising basic political par
ticipation as regular voters. However, the meaningfulness of the consistent
voting is called into question by the lack of political awareness. It can be as
sumed that the women derive much of their voting patterns from outside sources
and not opinions they have developed on their own.
148
2.4.1 Position in community:
Did people come to you with various problems before you were a Gram Panchayat
member?
Yes
No
Pune
Latur
9
3
2
9
Osmanabad
2
7
Do people come to you now?
Yes
No
Osmanabad
Latur
Pune
3
6
4
7
11
1
If the women are requested to help in various village problems, it is a good indicator
both of their role as leaders and their awareness of villager’s needs. In Pune, all but
one women said they are considered someone within the village whom people express
their problems and needs. This communication line between the women and the
villagers establishes a necessary link of information which empowers women in the
actual Gram Panchayat meeting. Women who bring expressed village problems to
the Gram Panchayat meeting have added weight behind their participation in the
meetings. The majority of the women in Latur and Osmanabad are alienated from
village communication and are further set back in political participation. If the
women do not have the confidence of villagers to solve their problems, particularly
village women, they cannot begin to take a meaningful part in expressing the needs
of the village. Until villagers look at their women Gram Panchayat members as
active leaders to address village needs, women will have a difficult time overcoming
the male majority to actively participate.
2.4.2 Standing for election:
How did you decide to stand for election?
Pune
Latur
Osmanabad
7
2
Husband
Family members
Gram Panchayat
members
1
1
6
3
4
Villagers
Own initiative
1
1
6
149
I
Who helped you file your nomination papers?
Family villagers
S arpan ch
Cooperatives
Pune
Latur
Osmanabad
2
4
4
11
9
2.4.3 Did a party support you while contesting?
Yes
No
Pune
Latur
6
6
5
6
Osmanabad
5
4
In Latur and Osmanabad, family members seemed to have the biggest pull among
the women in their decision to stand for election. All but two women indicated that
they did not intend to stand again for election or that they would do so only upon
instruction from family members, primarily husbands. The Pune women showed
less influence from outside forces in their decisions to stand. Much of the personal
initiative in the Pune women can be attributed to their overall higher political
awareness. The personal initiative in the Pune women is a good sign that their
perception of the women’s societal role is expanding to include political activity.
2.4.4 Participation in Gram Panchapat:
Do you attend the Gram Panchayat ?
Attend meetings
regularly
No
No, husband attends
No, other male family
members attend
Attended less than
five times
Osmanabad
Pune
Latur
12
4
2
3
1
1
4
1
1
1
2
In Pune, at first one woman’s husband attended the meetings for her. However, now
she has convinced him to let her attend the meetings. Also, one woman only attends
the first 30 minutes of the meetings because of scheduling conflicts.
150
Do you speak in the meetings?
Yes
No
When addressed
Pune
Latur
8
2
2
3
Osman abad
1
2
*of those women attending meetings
Do other women members speak at the meetings?
Yes
No, not attending
When addressed
Pune
Latur
11
5
5
1
1
Osman abad
1
7
1
* In one Pune Gram Panchayat, two women members never attend.
How do the male members react to women's participation?
Positive
Negative
Indifferent
No comment
Pune
Latur
3
5
4
4
1
Osman abad
3
2
5
6
Have any male members expressed their views of the reservation for women in Gram
Panchayats?
Yes, supportive
Yes, unhappy
No
No comment
Pune
Latur
3
9
1
4
1
Os man abad
3
2
5
6
How does your family feel about you being involved in the Gram Panchayats?
Supportive
Not supportive
At first, not supportive
;•
Pune
Latur
8
2
1
11
9
a- ’
■
i-
....
V
Osmanabad
151
This is the area that most clearly displays the marginalisation of the 30 percent
reservation. Only 55 percent of the women are taking an active part in the Gram
Panchayat meetings. In Latur and Osmanabad, only two of the Gram Panchayats
actually had 30 percent women members. Most Gram Panchayats had only two or
three women to a total of 12-15 members. Beyond a basic lack of participation, the
benefits of women’s reservation are being further nullified by male members
attending for 45 percent of the women in the Latur and Osmanabad districts. These
women have completely disassociated themselves from the Gram Panchayat process
and consequently decision making of their village. None of these women knew even
the basic activities of the Gram Panchayat meetings. Yet, two of these women had
been Gram Panchayat members for 15 years. All the women from the Latur and
Osmanabad district stated that their families were supportive of their Gram
Panchayat activities. However, based on the amount of actual participation, it can
be concluded that much of the family support is solely for standing for the election
not actual participation. Upon further questioning, five women indicated that they
were interested in participating and learning more about the Gram Panchayat, but
said their husband would never allow it. In Pune district, the women are much
more active, but with that activity comes family resistance. More women indicated
that their families questioned their Gram Panchayat participation.
2.4.5 Attendance of training programs:
Have you attended any training programs to help you as a Gram Panchayat member?
Yes
No
Pune
Latur
Osmanabad
6
6
11
9
This Is the essential element of meaningful participation by Gram Panchayat women,
but until now has not been far reaching. Widespread training programs will serve
as a catalyst for women’s empowerment In the political sector. If women, continue
to look at themselves as uneducated and politically unsuitable, they will allow
themselves and other women to be ignored in the village leadership. Training
programs must also reach the general village community. Without confidence and
support to take up leadership, it is difficult for even "politically aware" women to
overcome ingrained attitudes and behavioural patterns of an entire village.
152
io
08296
2.4.6 Opinions of Gram Panchayat membership:
Do you feel it is worth your effort to be a Gram Panchayat member?
Of those attending
Yes
No
Indifferent
Pune
Latur
11
1
2
2
1
Osmanabad
1
Of those not attending:
Pune
Yes
No
Indifferent
Latur
Osmanabad
2
1
5
1
2
3
The Pune district women consistently stood out as the more politically aware and
participatory Gram Panchayats members. However, one woman from Pune said
that it was not worth her effort because of a lack of monetary compensation and
productivity in her Gram Panchayat. She indicated that she would prefer social
work" to "politics". In Latur and Osmanabad, on the other hand, the majority of
women did not take part in the political process. They inherently expressed a
negative or indifferent view of Gram Panchayat work because they have had no
experience as members. Ironically, three women who had never attended a meeting
felt it was worth their effort to be in the Gram Panchayat because of their increased
status within the community. The active members expressed a lot dissatisfaction
because of their inabUity to address community problems. The political corruption
that is commonly discussed at the upper levels of government manages to make its
way into village level government. Whether it is in the form of sarpanch domination
or misuse of funds by members, the corruption inhibits women’s participation and
increases their negative perceptions of political "power". One woman from Os
manabad said, "In my village, village development is the sugarcane and grapes of
the male Gram Panchayat members".
153
Section 3
DISCUSSION OF MAHARASHTRA PAPER AT THE ISST
SEMINAR
The discussion presented the complex situation facing the state of Maharashtra. It
shows clearly that despite a progressive society and provisions for women in the
state policy they have not had far reaching effects. Women representatives have
their share of problems and they are still attempting to solve them using simple
innovative methods.
One common problem prevailing in almost all the states was that of travelling to the
block. A woman has to manage the multiple roles of wife, mother and active Gram
Panchayat member. Many women find it difficult to travel to the block. Also, lack
of adequate funds for travelling has hampered the mobility of women members. But
an experiment in the Pune district attempts to solve this problem. This involves
having a Gram Kacherl in each village. A Gram Kacherl is where all the officers come
to the village on an appointed day and listen to the problems of the women members.
All the women seem to be happy, that instead of their going in search of the BDO
and animal husbandry officers, the officers come to the village. The women are
taking this idea very seriously and make it a point to attend the Gram Kacherl.
Another experiment which Dr.Neelam Gorhe mentioned was to train women to write
different kinds of applications for obtaining loans, to various government officials
about matters regarding Gram Panchayats, inviting somebody for a programme and
so on. For the illiterate women, activists in the village are helping them write out
these applications. A follow-up action on these despatched applications is taken at
every monthly meeting of the Gram Panchayats. However, another participant felt
that letter writing is not an adequate substitute for actually visiting the offices.
When a woman goes directly to the office and interacts with the various officials, it
enlarges her vision and she gradually learns to negotiate and deal with the officials.
Letter writing is not going to give her first hand experience that she will get by visiting
the offices herself. However where actual visits are not possible, this could be the
next best alternative.
A trend that women activists are treating with mixed feelings is that of male
politicians talking "pro-women". The men feel that they will get more political
mileage and media support if they voice their support for women’s empowerment.
Though this trend is creating an awareness among men about Importance of
women’s Issues, the underlying vested interest is obvious. It enables them to get
a ticket for the next elections.
154
Mr.Vasant Nachane of Dr.P.V.Mandllk Trust talked about a provision that has been
recently introduced. It says that a Gram Panchayat will be assisted by a vigilance
committee in its functions. The vigilance committee will have 5 members. The
Sarpanch will be the President and the other members will include a freedom fighter,
a woman member, an ex-soldier and a social worker. This experiment had just
begun, but its fate is not known due to the change in Government.
Such issues are a continuous cause for concern to the activists and trainers involved
in the process of encouraging women’s empowerment.
The following section elaborates on the need for training and orientation program
mes and the organisations involved in the process.
155
Section 4
TRAINING AND ORGANISATIONS INVOLVED IN THE
PROCESS
It is clear that women lack awareness and must be provided with training to
overcome their inhibitions and function effectively in the Gram Panchayat. Aware
ness is the first step towards women’s empowerment. But for reservation to have
the desired effect, many factors need to be looked into.
Initially, women should be motivated to participate. Efforts should be made to instill
a desire in them to involve themselves in politics. They should develop in themselves
a desire to tackle issues concerning the village and women.
It is important to stress upon the women that ‘they’ are the decision makers for their
sisters. Over centuries, women have been socialised to resort to a back-seat, hide
in the background and serve as a perfect foil to their fathers, husbands and sons.
Women hesitate to step out of the secure confines of their homes into a traditionally
male dominated atmosphere.
A trainer or a training organisation thus faces a daunting task. A trainer has to
start with altering the attitudes, perceptions and later proceed to other issues.
i
There are two trends apparent in training programme in Maharashtra. Bigger
institutes which are closer to the government stress on personality development,
while women’s organisation concentrate more on women’s rights and atrocities
against women. The organisations that have done commendable work are
P.V.Mandlik Trust, Society for Promotion of Area Resource Centres, Chaitanya,
Janarth, Yashvantrao Chavan Pratishthan, Mumbai, Indian Institute of Education,
Law College Society and Stree Aadhar Kendra.
One more positive factor is that many educational institutes from Ahmednagar,
Buldana, Akola, Latur-Osmanabad Districts are coming forward to train Gram
Panchayat women. The sociology department of these educational institutes and
the NSS would like to associate themselves with the training programmes. They are
willing to provide 50% of the funds and also premises for training. Two Sugar
factories, Ganesh Sugar Factory in Ahmednagar and Devur Sugar factory in Pune
district have also expressed their desire to train women in Panchayat Raj. But here
again, working out strategies and having a conceptual clarity in the training process
must be taken into account.
«
The goal of Stree Aadhar Kendra is to improve the quality of life for women, promote
places for women in the decision making processes and help them in their struggle
against discrimination, atrocities and social customs. Their training programmes
156
have focussed on the various aspect women need to know to function effectively and
actively as Gram Panchayat members.
During a training programme organised by the Stree Aadhar Kendra in Sangli, the
Minister for Rural Development who was also present was anxious to know why
they had sessions on health and atrocities against women. He was of the opinion
that these problems could be tackled by women’s organisations. Why should these
be discussed at a training programme for women Panchayat members? But at the
evaluation of the training, the feedback received by the organisers was that the most
popular sessions were those on health and atrocities against women. This shows
that women have realised that there are various problems that can be tackled at
the Panchayat level and that they should not restrict themselves to areas of basic
amenities like sanitation. A training programme helps enlarge the vision of women
and enables them to identify issues relevant to their daily lives.
Stree Aadhar Kendra has also launched a training programme within Pune district
and proposes to educate around 1000 women in its first year. It also plans to launch
similar programmes in other districts of Maharashtra.
Another attempt to increase awareness is the news feature service of Stree Aadhar
Kendra by which an article published in one district newspaper is simultaneously
published in 15 other districts. The contents of these articles are on women, health
and women’s rights.
Dr.P.V.Mandlik Trust is an organisation in Maharashtra which gives monetary
assistance for socio-political activities. It has taken up the challenging task of
awakening the women members of Gram Panchayats. It has conducted its activities
in the Konkan region of Maharashtra. They have taken the help of experts in the
field to decide the content and methodology of their programme. They have also
released a series of booklets in Marathi on "Rules and Procedures of Gram Panchayat
meeting", "Effectiveness of Gram Sabhas", "Some important development schemes
to be implemented at village level", all printed in bold type and accompanied by
illustrations. This makes easy reading for the illiterates and neo-literates.
A few guidelines were suggested by Dr.Neelam Gorhe, on content of a training
programme at the ISST seminar. Three basic aspects have to be conveyed to the
elected women representatives.
1.
Their duties and rights as citizens of India
2.
A background information on women’s movement
3.
Their functions as elected women representatives of the Gram Panchayat and
Zllla Panchayat.
157
The sessions must consist of
1.
Women’s rights
2.
History of women’s movement
3.
Health
4.
Negotiating tactics - i.e., talking in meetings, passing resolutions, allocation of
funds and so on.
5.
About the concept of ’’power”
6.
About the Panchayat Acts
7.
Mock Panchayat sessions and other role-plays.
Programmes of this nature would serve as a catalyst in the process of women’s
emergence as an able leader at the village level.
158
Section 5
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The experiences of the women from Pune, Latur and Osmanabad demonstrate
varying degrees of political awareness and participation. The interviews from
demonstrate women with the beginnings of increased social and political conscious
ness. The women have access to political information and have begun to take an
active part in political participation. Latur and Osmanabad are on the other end of
the spectrum. The women do not have any sources of information and are still
inhibited from taking an active part in their Gram Panchayats. Empowerment
requires information. More importantly, it requires access to information. The
December Conference on Women in Decision Making held in Pune concluded with
the slogan: Jaankeri Ek Satta Hal; Satta Ki Jaankeri Hasil Kama Hai! (informa
tion is power. And access to information is power.) Male Gram Panchayat members
will continue to have the upper hand and look like more qualified decision makers,
if they are the only members with sources of information.
The brief glimpse of women in Gram Panchayat clearly displays the structural
empowerment of women intended by the reservation has not yet begun to take place
throughout all of Maharashtra. The reservations create a place for the needs of the
women within the structural framework of politics. This place in politics helps
'’legitimise” women’s issues. However, for this structural empowerment to be fully
attained, the women must be aware of their newfound political power and how to
utilise it. Currently, the reservations do little good for the women in Latur and
Osmanabad who are unaware they exist. Three areas of awareness are needed:
1.
awareness of the political system, its processes and socio-political issues
2.
awareness of women’s issues
3.
awareness of village issues
Awareness is the starting point of women’s empowerment. However, in order for
the reservation of women Gram Panchayat members to reach their full potential,
three other elements must be present:
J
a desire to be in politics and address the village and women’s issues through
the local self-government
2.
a willingness to represent the needs of all women
3.
a village-wide willingness to allow women to be active participants in the Gram
Panchayat.
159
These three elements will only fully result after the aspect of political awareness has
been addressed. Political awareness is needed because it instills in women a desire
for action and instills within the village a willingness to let women take action. It
is therefore vital that NGOs work towards increased social and political awareness
in women.
The structural support provided by active women members in the Panchayat Raj
system is an asset to any work being done in development. In order to make political
resources available to women to be used to their full potential, it is important that
NGO’s relinquish their hesitancy to be involved in the "political process". The
Panchayat Raj system needs to be looked upon as an asset in the quest for
empowerment and development in the village community.
The tool for increased awareness is inevitably education and training. Training in
the sense of a forum for interaction for women to discuss new ideas, concepts and
issues. The definition of training assumed throughout this report is a strengthening
of people’s, particularly women’s, social and political identities. This can only
happen through dialogue. If the training programs are conducted in a "teacher to
student" or ’educated to ignorant" format, the consciousness of the participants will
not be raised or altered. The format of training programs must serve as a catalyst
for raising the self- confidence, altering the self-image and utlimately promoting a
deeper understanding of the power structure within the village and Gram Panchayat.
A deeper understanding of the power structure will lead to an understanding of how
it can be shifted from its patriarchal focus and enable women to have a piece of the
power.
For the Panchayat Raj system to reach maximum utilisation, political awareness
must go beyond the women members. Political awareness of women members is
just the first step in the four step process to increase the awareness of the entire
village. All groups must be targeted before women can find a healthy environment
for their active participation and empowerment.
1.
increased awareness of women representatives
2.
increased awareness of all village women
3.
increased awareness of all Gram Panchayat members
4.
increased awareness of the village as a whole
If awareness programs are focused on only one sector of the village population and
never expand in the entire village community, there will never be a majority to
overcome prevailing attitudes of village politics and women’s role within it.
160
It is important to realise that training women to become decision makers goes much
deeper than straightforward political education. Women taking part in the Gram
Panchayat decision making is not the first step in their development as decision
makers. Women have to become decision makers in other aspects of their lives
before they can take a decision making role in the political arena. Women must
first view themselves as decision makers within their families. Secondly, they must
view themselves as decision makers for their "sisters" of the village, recognising all
women as one common group. Only then will they have the capacity as decision
makers to become productive members of their Gram Panchayats. Women have
been socialised into accepting their role within the patriarchical family, community
and political system. Programs need to be conducted in such a way that will reorder
the Ingrained patriarchal values and foster growth in their personal Identity. The
change in their personal perceptions must reach the point where they recognise
their rights as women and their place within the political system. This involves
altering the women’s self-image to include decision making and consequently
political interests and activity. Self perception development entails not only sup
plying them with avenues for information, but instilling in them a desire for
information. This can only be accomplished by broadening the women’s perception
of the woman’s role, within their own minds, to extend beyond the household door.
Without enhancing the women’s self identity, a women Gram Panchayat member
does not necessarily guarantee gender sensitivity. Some of the women Gram
Panchayat members interviewed stated that they had no interest in politics. Others
stated that they did not bother with political information because it was an area
strictly for men. Several women even stated that women did not have the capacity
to be leaders. Training programs must address the psychology within political
awareness as well as political education. Straight forward education only begins to
scratch the surface. Unless attitudes and perceptions are altered, the activities of
village Gram Panchayats and their women members will not change.
Women’s political participation is an area of interest to all NGO’s, not strictly
women’s organisations. Women have shown countless times to be interested in the
development of the entire village. This trends results from women facing such issues
as water scarcity, sanitation, education, health and housing needs most intimately
everyday. It is only logical then for women to be mobilised in the political process
and to be the primary focus of development training. From a focus on women,
human development will take place on all levels.
In fact, many of the women taking the initiative to act in politics are not focused on
strictly women’s issues. Rather, they are focused on village development issues. It
is important that women’s organisations do no alienate these women or their
convictions. Many women’s issues can be addressed under the umbrella of village
161
development. Women’s organisations must expand and welcome such village
activists into the empowerment of women.
On the other hand, NGO’s not solely focused on women’s issues must also join
women’s organisations in working for political awareness. The empowerment of
women within the family and Gram Panchayat has resulted in an overall increase
in village development. For example, according to Aalochana, in several of
Maharashtra’s all women Gram Panchayats, they have been successful in raising
the educational standards, closing liquor dens and addressing water, fuel and
sanitation problems.
Promoting women as village decision makers requires NGO’s, to recognise women
as decision makers within their own organisations. Many NGO, while advocating
women’s empowerment, continue to be male dominated at the decision making
levels and oppress women by their organisational structure. NGO’s need to follow
the government policy and provide 30 percent reservation within their decision
making bodies. Otherwise, NGOs are not displaying a commitment to women and
their needs and furthermore are loosing a valuable perspective on development
issues.
Large scale political awareness programs would have far reaching effects. However,
such projects cannot be tackled by three or four women’s organisations alone. Other
NGOs must Join in a cooperative effort for training projects. Substantial progress
can only be attained through a unified, multi-organisation coalition. An NGO
coalition must be developed within Maharashtra. In addition, the multi-organisa
tion coalition must be backed by government and have a legitimate place within the
governmental framework to operate.
Furhtermore, political parties must realise the need for political education. Cur
rently, political parties are actively supporting elections in the Panchayat Raj
system. It is necessary that they extend their support to political education.
Regardless of ideological view points, basic political awareness will benefit any
political party. It will enhance the political process and its stability.
For too long the women’s movement has been divided over issues. Religion, caste,
class and other barriers stand in the way of a united women’s front. Time is
continuously being wasted debating issues rather than taking action. For many
years organisations and conference recommendations have called for a united front
to address women’s empowerment. It is time to take concrete action; a united effort
for political training can be a gateway for creating coalitions in other areas of
development. The effort made by three or four organisations is no comparison to
the chorus of a multi-organisational effort focussed on the same goal. Divided efforts
give power to tradition and prevailing attitudes by scattering resources and not fully
162
addressing all the issues at hand. Divided efforts prove Ineffective when looking at
the complete picture. Rather than have one organisation working for women’s
empowerment and another organisation working for a new well in the village, it
would be much more productive for a women’s training program to help village
women address the problem of a new well on their own, within the resources allotted
to them. Furthermore, it would give the women confidence that they have enough
life experience, knowledge and power to address their needs.
It is important for this untied coalition to receive support and backing from the
institutionalised government. The Maharashtra government has already begun to
offer such support to women through the creation of the women’s commission and
the policy on women, but the support and legitimization cannot remain in the high
levels of government. It must begin to reach the village.
It is necessary for discussion on women in Panchayat Raj and their political
awareness to move from broad theoretical recommendations into a concrete action
plan within each state. Based on the experiences in Maharashtra, a framework in
which one such coalition can be created has been developed.
Each district should organise a commission for women. The commission should
consists primarily of local NGO representatives and area women activists. It is
important to keep the commission local and focussed on district women. As one of
its primary efforts, the commission should develop an action plan for district-wide
political and social training.
The action plan should include a combined effort of all NGOs in the area. In its
initial stage, the commission should train at least one women Gram Panchayat
member in each village. Following this initial effort, the commission, aided by
government mandate, should develop a women’s committee within each village. The
commission should create a women’s group in the villages where none exist or work
within the framework of the mahila mandal already in place. The women that have
already received leadership training should be the head of the women’s committees.
Extensive training should then be conducted for the committee women. The training
should be arranged in such a way that the women in turn could undertake the
training of the other women within the village. The emphasis of the training
programs must be on allowing women to discover their own resources and
capabilities. This can only be accomplished through dislogue and interaction format
programs.
Initially, the village training of women should be an NGO organised effort, but
hopefully, with the introduction of such social and political Issues into the village,
everyday conversation can become a tool of training. The women’s committee will
need legitimisation from both the government and NGO’s in order for the village
163
attitudes to be surmounted and full scale village training to take place. It is
important to instill in the women themselves the initiative to stand for election or
become a member of the women’s committee, but they must also have enough
organisational support to overcome the family and village odds.
As part of that organisational support, training must also conducted for other Gram
Panchayat members and the village as a whole. While training of Gram Panchayat
women and a village women’s committee are the Initial target, training cannot stop
there. Government legitimisation of women representatives and women’s commit
tees can only provide so much support to women. It is necessary to begin shifting
the perceptions of the villagers and Gram Panchayat members to include women as
decision makers. Otherwise, current behaviours, such as male family members
Insisting on attending the meetings for the women, will persist.
t
9
Admittedly, such an extensive program is a long and arduous process, but any
attempt to alter balance of power within the village is bound to be Just as great an
effort. Until women can be accepted and accept themselves as decision makers of
their village, 30 percent of the Panchayat Raj system will continue to be marginalised. A 50 percent reservation can only be the aim after extensive political
awareness and leadership training. Fifty percent, or even thirty percent, does little
more than look good on paper if the women are not made aware of their need for a
voice in government. Raising women’s consciousness is the basis for women taking
an active part in the decision making of the family, the village and the Indian political
system.
9
164
References
Centre for Development Studies and Action, "One Year of Panqhayat Raj:
Challenge to Women’s Role", New Delhi, 1994
D’Lima, Hazel, Women in Local Self-Government: A Study of Maharashtra, New
Delhi: Concept Publishers, 1983
Gawankar, Rohinl, "Marathi Stree Shaktiche Rajkami Rup", (The political face
of Stree Shakti in Maharashtra), 1986
Gupta, Om Prakash, Shavan, Vlmlendra,and, Shethl, Sanjay,A Comprehensive
Note on the Latur Earthquake, 1994
<
1
Lele, Medha Kotwal,and, Singh, Simrita Gopal, Women in Local Self- govern
ment in Maharashtra: Implications for the Empowerment of women, 1993
Stree Aadhar Kendra, Women in Decision Making-.Study of Two Constituencies
of Pune women voters, 1994
Stree Aadhar Kendra, Women In Decision Making: Maharashtra Profile, 1995
Swayam Shikshan Prayog, Report on the Workshop of Planning for Panchayat
Raj, 1994
"Preparing for Power", The Times of India, 28 May, 1994
€
165
/
Resource Centre.
OccasionalTaper Series 9(p. 4
i
Himachali Women
and
Gram Panchayats
J
Prepared by
The SUTRA Research Team
ft
I
UMA Resource Centre
Institute of Social Studies Trust
r
"Shreeshyla", No. 42, 4th Temple Street,
15th Cross, Malleswaram, Bangalore - 560 003.
1995
This paper basically examines the issues related to Himachal! women s participation
in Gram Panchayats and also the HP Panchayat Raj Act 1994. The paper is divided
in two parts. Part one consists of three sub-sections, namely (1) socio-economic
context alongwith physical conditions within which Himachal! women in the lower
hill areas live (2) various responses gained through individual Interviews and group
interactions amongst the Women Members of Gram Panchayat (WMGP). (3) conelusion.
Part two is a critique of HP Panchayat Raj Act 1994.
t
The team is grateful to Ms. Madhu Sarin for allowing us to use extracts from her
study "Situational Analysis". The Team also expresses its thanks to Ms. C.P. Sujaya
who intereacted with WMGP's in groups and wrote the evaluation of SUTRA’S
Training Programmes for WMGP’s. We have taken extensive quotations from this
report.
Table of contents
[166-195]
Part I
Section 1 :
Prologue
[166-171]
166
1.1
Situational Analysis
1.2
Distribution of Population
166-167
1.3
Role of Women in the Subsistence Economy
167-169
1.4
Culturally Defined Attitudes Towards Women
169-171
Section 2
[172-175]
2.1
History of Panchayat Raj
172
2.2
Social Movements and Women’s Participation
173
2.3
Drawing Women in Social Movements
2.4
Gram Panchayats and SUTRA’s Intervention
2.5
1991 Election of the Gram Panchayat
2.6
Scenario after the Elections and its Effects
173-174
174
174-175
175
Section 3
Dialogue
[176-192]
176-178
3.1
General
3.2
Economics
3.3
Support Base
3.4
Access to Information
3.5
Gram Panchayat Meetings and WMGP’s Status
182-184
3.6
Acting as Gram Panchayat Members
184-185
3.7
Leadership Qualities
185-186
3.8
Gram Sabha and WMGP’s Participation
3.9
Training
186-187
3.10
Leadership in Panchayat Raj
187-188
3.11
Dealings with Government Officers
188-189
3.12
Resources of Gram Panchayat
189-191
3.13
Finances
191-192
3.14
How would you Visualize Spending Rs. 1,00,000?
178
178-182
182
186
Section 4
Epilogue
[193-195]
Part II
[196-207]
Critique of the Himachal Pradesh Panchayat Raj Act 1994
Parti
Himachali Women and Gram Panchayats
Section 1
Prologue
1.1
Situational Analysis
Prior to its formation as a Union Territory of the country in April 1948, Himachal
Pradesh consisted of 30 princely states which were subsequently merged with the
Indian Dominion. During the reorganisation of Punjab in 1966, most of the hilly
areas of Punjab, were also merged with Himachal Pradesh and it attained full
statehood on January 25, 1971. The state has an area of 55,673 square kilometers
and comprises 1.69 percent of total area of the country. According to the 1991
census, the population of the state was 5.11 million which was only 0.64 percent
of the population of the country. The state is divided into 12 districts with the
population inhabiting 16,807 villages and 58 towns covered by 103 Tahsil/sub-Tahsil.
Geographically, Himachal Pradesh can be divided into three zones. The first, the
outer Himalayan zone, is the most populated area of the State and consists of valleys
and the Shiwalik hills.
The second is the inner Himalayan region consisting of rugged mountains and
narrow valleys with a lower density of population. The third zone is that of alpine
pastures which remain snow covered for about half the year and is veiy sparsely
populated.
. *;
The analysis is based on the experience of our work mostly in Outer Himalayan
Zone which is densely populated and to a lesser extent in the inner Himalayan Zone.
1.2
I
Distribution of Population
As per the 1991 census, Himachal Pradesh was the least urbanised of all Indian
states with only 8.70 percent of its population living in urban areas compared to
the national average of 25.72 percent urban population. Only the Union Territory
of Dadra and Nagar Haveli had a slightly lower urban population at 8.46 percent.
I
Out of the 58 towns in the state, not a single one belonged to Class I with a population
of over 100,000. 37 of the 58 towns belonged to Class VI with a population of less
than 5,000. Only Shimla, Solan and Sirmour districts had a urban population above
166
the state average with 20.43. 12.47 and 10.05 percent of their respective population
living in urban areas.
Thus, Himachal Pradesh is even more a state of villages than the country as a whole.
Further, as per 1991 census, out of 16,807 inhibited villages, as many as 62.78%had
a population of less than 200 each. The larger villages with a population above 1000
are concentrated in the districts of Una, Kullu and Klnnaur. 52.8 percent of the
total rural population of Solan district (Where SUTRA’s HQ is based) lives in villages
with a population of less than 200. In Dharmpur Block of Solan district, a village
would consist of no more than 10 to 15 houses, and these too are spread over a
large area.
Such a scattered settlement pattern, combined with the hilly terrain of the most of
the state with difficult and poor communications, makes village life isolated and
tough. This is particularly so for the house bound women.
Sometimes, days pass without the women so much as seeing a non-family person
and many women spend a large part of their lives either in their maternal / paternal
homes or in their Sasural. This in itself is a crucial aspect of Himachal! women’s
situation. Because of their isolation, they have very limited access to outside
information, particularly about their legal rights and it is all the more difficult for
them to find group support or organize collective action in situation of crises.
1.3
Role of Women in the Subsistence Economy
From the above data, it is evident that the vast majority of rural households in
Himachal Pradesh are engaged in cultivating their own small or marginal farms.
However, due to the lack of economic viability of the majority of land holdings, many
of which consist of small terraces on hilly terrain, the only avenue for economic
betterment is through (non) at least one or more members of the family finding some
non-farm employment, usually outside the village. It is the under employed men in
the household who are on the look out for such employment. In such a context,
women’s participation in agriculture is increasing, rather than decreasing, and in
many households, effectively they have become the main cultivators.
T
The pattern of women’s increasing participation in agriculture is substantiated by
the census data for the state from 1961 to 1981. During this period, the overall
proportion of cultivators to the total workers in Himachal Pradesh declined from
80.68 percent to 65.19 percent. However, in 1991 when we look at the distribution
of male and female cultivators, whereas 56.48 percent of the total male main workers
were returned as cultivators, as many as 96.43 percent of the total cultivators were
female.
167
According to the 1991 census, 33.83 percent of the total population of Himachal
Pradesh was returned as main workers. This represented 47.89 percent of the male
population and 19.71 percent of the female population. Thus, tabulation of women’s
work tends to be under-reported due to the definition of what constitutes as
economically productive activity used for defining ‘work’ for census purposes. A man
or woman doing household duties or making something only for domestic consump
tion (and not for sale) is not doing any work in census terminology. During the 1981
census, for the first time, a new category of marginal workers’ was added. Those
who had worked for less than 6 months or 183 days during the previous year were
included in the category of ‘marginal workers’ (according to 19991 provisional
figures, amongst the marginal workers 89.17 percent were women). Further, among
the ‘non-workers’, 98-67 percent of those engaged in the ‘non-work’ of performing
‘household duties’ were women. Among their ‘household duties’, almost 1/5 th of
the total women were also engaged in cultivation, agricultural labour or forestry.
Although the 1971 and 1991 data is not strictly comparable due to the addition of
the category of marginal workers in 1981, from our studies it is clear that although
there has been a slight decline in the percentage of women ‘main’ workers, there is
a substantial addition of women ‘marginal’ workers. If one dispenses with the
definition of household duties as constituting ‘non-work’ particularly where such
duties include cultivation, agricultural labour etc. then we find that almost half the
female rural population (46.60 percent ) consists of workers - close to the 51.45
percent of rural men workers. The only difference is that whereas only 4.24% of
rural men were listed as marginal workers, as many as 16.37% of rural women were
marginal workers. Further, 92 to 96 percent of rural women workers in all the three
categories were engaged in cultivation. From this, one can deduce that rural women
constitute the bulk of the labour force of the state’s agricultural economy in the
subsistence sector, but they work without any wages, with their work being
considered ‘marginal’ or a part of their ‘household duties’ while the bulk of the new
wage based employment opportunities, in both the agricultural and non- agricul
tural sectors are going to men.
The high percentage of women ‘marginal’ workers reported in the 1981 census is
probably a reflection of the increase of women’s participation in cultivation due to
the men finding other employment. Due to the smallness of land holding and the
seasonal nature of cultivation work, productive employment in cultivation on the
average holding is for less than 183 days a year. Thus, despite their increasing role
in cultivation, women’s work continues to be seen as ‘marginal.’
It does not increase their economic independence or power as they do not work for
a wage but for mere subsistence or survival. In fact while men find some economic
mobility through non-farm employment, women get even more tied to the family’s
land, the bulk of which is owned by men. The coparcenary Hindu Joint Family
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systematically excludes women from the inheritance and ownership of property.
Although this has been remedied in Hindu Undivided Family, very few women claim
their share of their parental family property. Due to their insecurity at their in-laws
home, they are afraid of antagonising their brothers) by claiming their share of the
parental property in case they need to rely on him/them during a crisis.
1.4
Culturally Defined Attitudes Towards Women
There is a considerable cultural diversity among the sub-groups of Himachal s
population. Given the tough hilly terrain and difficult communication between areas
even within the state, different pockets have strong cultural identities which have
had limited exposure to outside influences. The outer Himalayan Zone ( areas such
as Lower Kangra, Solan, Lower Sirmour etc) is inhibited by the descendants of people
from the plains who were driven into the hills a couple of centuries ago due to
persecution by the Moguls. Here one finds a blend of Punjabi and Pahari culture.
The inner Zone (areas such as Kullu, Chamba, Upper Mandi, Upper Sirmour etc.)
has a much stronger ‘Pahari’ culture. However, attitudes towards women among
most of the population are defined by strong patriarchal society norms.
Within this patriarchal framework, a woman’s main value lies in the capability of
her body to produce male offsprings and being a good, uncomplaining manual
labourer. In her own right, she has little identity and is not expected to have any
desire for self-fulfillment. Here sociafization from birth focuses on making her a
subservient to the demands of patriarchy. Her parents Invest little in her develop
ment as she is ‘Paraya Dhan (someone elses property)’ who eventually has to be
gifted in to another home. At her in-laws, she is an outsider, viewed with suspicion
till she established her complete loyalty to her new home and proved her worth by
giving birth to a male child. The strength of this cultural attitude is reflected in the
ostracism of women unable to bear child, she is compared to an infertile cow. People
consider it inauspicious to be with, or eat in the company of, such women. The fact
that it might be the husband who is infertile or unable to produce male progeny is
not recognised by society.
It is not only her body on which a woman has no control. She is not permitted to
choose her own god or goddess either. In some parts of the state (e.g. Sarkaghat of
Mandi district), while in her parents home, the woman must worship the god/goddess of her father’s clan. At her in-laws, she must worship the god/goddess of her
husband’s family but she is not permitted to do even this till she has produced a
son! Thus, even her right to faith in a god/goddess is conditional to her producing
a male child.
Because of this social role assigned to the women, excepting in certain pockets, (e.g.
the area across the Giri river in Sirmour district) her virginity is Jealously guarded
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till she is married off. Her parents’ family honour depends on delivering her to her
home of marriage in an ‘unpolluted’ form. Should, through some accident, an
unmarried girl lose her virginity before marriage, she not only brings dishonor to
her family but becomes unacceptable to most ‘respected’ males. The rest of her life
is often spent as a piece of social rubbish.
In more remote areas such as Chauhar Ghati in Mandi district, the obsession with
pollution of a woman’s body takes a more bizarre form due to rigid caste differences.
Here if a higher caste woman is found to have had a relationship with a lower caste
man, her de-pollution involves an elaborate ritual. A deep ditch is dug in the ground
and the woman is made to stand in it. The ditch is then covered with wooden planks
(with the woman still underneath) which, in turn, are covered with earth. Only after
the earth on the planks has been ploughed is the woman allowed to get out of the
ditch. She has to discard her old clothes and wear new ones before coming out. A
higher caste man having a relationship with lower caste woman does not need to
be de-polluted. In fact, a man does not get polluted no matter how much he indulges
in violating social norms or abusing women. The entire burden of maintaining
cultural values is placed on the woman’s shoulders.
A saving grace of Pah art culture is that a once ‘honourably’ married but later
deserted or divorced woman is permitted to remarry. In fact, remarriage through
the ‘Reef system involves the woman’s new husband having to pay the old one a
certain price for her - a kind of bride price. However, all the negotiations are done
by male members of the two families and the money stays in the control of men.
Attitudes towards widow remarriage, however, are harsh, particularly amongst the
Rajputs of the lower belt, in districts Kangra, Hamirpur, etc. Here, the woman is
held responsible for her husband’s death and made to feel that the rest of her life
is worthless.
r
In Sangraha block of Sirmour district falling across the Giri river, the adult woman
seems to have greater freedom and can walk away from an oppressive husband to
another man. There is no premium on a girl’s virginity either and widow remarriage
is not frowned upon. Possibly because of this freedom, she has greater value and is
treated better. The study quoted above found that in this area, men share the burden
of agricultural, livestock and domestic work more equitably with women than in all
the other 3 districts of Mandi, Solan and Hamirpur.
Unfortunately, with the opening up of interior areas and the dissemination of
dominant values through the formal educational system, women even in such
pockets are being made to renounce the limited freedom offered to them by the
traditional culture on ‘moralistic’ grounds, ‘Educated’ girls look down upon women
leaving oppressive husbands a symbol of‘backwardness’ or ‘illiteracy’. On the other
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hand, the inflow of outsiders into such areas is resulting in increased sexual
exploitation of women due to the more liberal sexual attitudes of the local culture.
This is in no way an indicator of traditional culture placing women on a pedestal.
Even here, the birth of a male child is still celebrated with fervour while the birth of
a female child receives little attention. Marriage of girl children between the age of
10 to 14 is still widely prevalent and there are cases of girls having been forced to
change 3 to 4 husbands by the age of 13 to 14. Such practices have their inevitable
impact on the education and health of young women..
Pollution taboos related to child birth and menstruation are unique features of hill
culture. In most parts of Himachal Pradesh child birth has traditionally taken place
in the cattle- shed with the mother and the new bom being kept there for several
days as they are considered ‘dirty’. Similarly, during menstruation, women are not
allowed to enter the kitchen, cook or serve food, enter the temple or touch men. On
reaching puberty, girls are not allowed to read the scriptures and are made to believe
that they will go mad if they enter the temple during menstruation.
In interior areas like Chauhar Ghati in Mandi district, women are not allowed to
enter the house at all during their menstruation and have to live in a cattle shed
during those days. Should they enter the house for any reason, they have to mud
wash the whole house to purify it.
These values and customs are powerful tools of keeping women manipulable and
subservient and keeping them afraid and ashamed of their bodies. They systemati
cally create a sense of powerlessness among women through a process of internalis
ing these values from childhood. Girls are conditioned not to look up at men, not
to talk back, work without being heard and leam to adapt to their destiny from early age.
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Section 2
2.1
History Of Panchayat Raj
The Panchayat Raj system in Himachal Pradesh, before it achieved full Statehood,
was mainly governed by the Punjab Panchayat Raj Act. This Act was based on a 3
tier system. Himachal had its own legislation on Panchayat Raj in 1968 and the
major components of the Punjab Panchayat Raj Act were incorporated in this
legislation.
Though the Zllla Parishads remained more or less on paper, the elections for Gram
Panchayats were held very regularly. Elections for Block Development committees
were not held as all the Pradhans of Gram Panchayat from the Block were made
members of the Block Development Committee.
The speciality of HP Panchayat Raj Act 1968 was the formation of Nyaya Panchayats.
In the initial years, the members of Nyaya Panchayats were nominated by the State
Government. But since 1978, the Nyaya Panchayats were merged with the Gram
Panchayats.
Thus, the role of the Gram Panchayat from 1978, became two pronged: Development
and administration of Justice under certain clauses of IPC.
Because of this twin role given to Gram Panchayats, the Importance of GP’s in the
everyday life of people increased tremendously.
An amendment in 1978 to the Himachal Pradesh Panchayat Raj Act 1968, em
powered the Gram Sabha to elect the Pradhan and Up-Pradhan instead of being
selected by members of the Gram Panchayat.
Because of this Amendment, the Pradhans and Up-Pradhans became not only
powerful, but their accountability towards the members of the Gram Panchayats
was reduced. It was true that a few of these members of the Gram Panchayats would
undertake arm-twisting tactics to get the things they wanted from Pradhans, but
this was reduced by the Amendment. At the same time it also reduced their
importance.
Concerning women’s participation in the Gram Panchayats. the HP Panchayat Raj
Act 1968, made it mandatory for every Gram Panchayat to have atleast one woman
member. If a woman member could not be elected, then the Gram Panchayat had
to co-opt one woman as a member with voting rights. Thus, it was upto the men to
decide which woman would suit their purpose and fulfill the requirement of the Act.
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2.2
Social Movements and Women's Participation
As mentioned above, the Himachal! topography does not permit an environment for
social movements. Small, scattered and Isolated population villages made it very
difficult for the people to come together for any social movement. Most of the area
was also under a feudal system till 1947 which also restricted any changes within
the social system.
Certain areas under Punjab and other areas under princely rule, had witnessed a
miniscule freedom movement, but by and large, HP remained quiet during the first
half of the 20th century, thus there were neither any mass movements nor any
women’s Involvement in them
In more recent times, due to pressures on development by the Block Development
Office, the government functionaries were forced to form the Mahlla Mandals and
by the end of 70s, more than 50% of the villages in Himachal had a Mahila Mandal.
The alm of forming a Mahila Mandal, was to create an environment for women’s
participation in ‘development programmes’; but as it has happened all over the
country, these Mahila Mandals became part of patriarchal system. In fact, these
Mahila Mandals were used by the government functionaries and local politicians to
strengthen the dominant developmental programmes/projects/processes.
On the other hand it provided women with a reason for getting together. This process
lead to the situation where men started accepting the concept of Mahila Mandals
and they became less inimical to the idea of women getting together without any
social festivity.
In the late 70s, the NGO’s capitalised upon this situation and started actively
working on women’s issues.
Thus, when SUTRA started working in HP in late 70s, it took very little time for them
to organize Mahila Mandals. But the quality of inputs in Mahila Mandals differed
vastly and thus, one got two sets of Mahila Mandals; one organised by the BDO s
to strengthen the patriarchal system and other organised by the NGO’s to initiate
a struggle for creating a space for women in society.
2.3
Drawing Women in Social Movements
Because of this awareness building and group formation of Mahila Mandals (MM’s)
by SUTRA and its sister organizations, women were becoming more articulate and
organised. These women launched various struggles on common Issues; such as
absenteeism of school teachers, lack of proper facilities at school, non-availability
of local revenue officials etc. Actually these were the traditional areas of GP’s. Most
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of them felt threatened by women and this built up hostility between MM’s and Gram
Panchayats over a period of time. This grew more distinct when women launched
an agitation against liquor vends. Most of the GP’s were in favour of opening liquor
vends in their Panchayats. The hostility was further fuelled by State politicians and
bureaucrats by providing cash incentives to GP’s on sale of liquor.
On the other front, the women who were nominated to GP’s carried a feeling that
they were holding the position by courtesy of the Pradhan of the GP. 1 hus many of
them did not want to do anything which might antagonize the Pradhan of GP’s. This
created a big gap between women from MM’s and women from GP s.
Thus there were horizontal as well as vertical hostilities between the people involved
in GP’s and the women involved in MM’s.
2.4
Gram Panchayats and SUTRA's Interventions
For initiating the process of democratization of Gram Panchayat s(GP s), SUTRA
organised legal literacy programmes and conducted residential, awareness genera
tion programmes for the members of MM’s. SUTRA enlarged the meaning of legal
literacy by including duties and functions of GP’s alongwith Nyaya Panchayats with
the basic faith that unless women partake in functioning of the GP s, nothing much
could be achieved. So SUTRA developed posters on various functions and duties of
GP’s and undertook a massive campaign on the same. These efforts created further
fears amongst the male members of GP’s. They threatened and started campaigning
against SUTRA, with the covert support of MLA’s and bureaucrats.
Neither the bureaucracy nor the people involved in GP’s, nor the political parties
were interested in creating an environment for the participation of women in the
affairs of the GP’s and SUTRA’s efforts to motivate members of MM’s to partake in
the affairs of GP’s were isolated.
2.5
1991 Election of the Gram Panchayats
When elections for Gram Panchayats and Block Development Committees in 1991
were announced, we at SUTRA felt that the elections would be held in accordance
with the upcoming constitutional amendments. So, we decided to undertake a
campaign to motivate members of MM’s to participate in the elections. But the
biggest hurdle was the State Govt's silence on the matters of:
.Percentage of reservation for women.
..Constituencies to be declared as reserved for women in GP’s.
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Our efforts to generate interest amongst the MM Members for participating in
elections was like shooting in the dark. Later SUTRA came to know that the State
Govt’s policies of reservation was based on ad hoc system in which:
1.
Wherever there were 5 members of GP’s, one seat would be reserved for women.
2.
Wherever there were 9 members of GP’s, two seats would be reserved for women
(one seat for SC women).
3.
Wherever there were more than 9 members, 3 seats would be reserved for
women (one for SC women).
4.
No reservation for the Pradhan and Up-Pradhan posts were declared.
5.
For the election of Block Development Committees (BDC) 20-22 percent seats
were reserved without any rationalisation or atleast SUTRA failed to under
stand the rationale.
Another factor was the total silence on the constituencies which were to be
reserved. It was revealed only a week in advance of the election dates.
Considering the H.P. geographical structure, a GP consists of 6 to 10 villages with
an average population of200. But SUTRA associated MM’s were not in all the villages
of the GP. In fact, most of the GP’s, had one or two MM’s which were affiliated to
SUTRA and MM’s are based at the village level. The involvement of MM’s in the GP
election was possible only where a reserved constituency of GP held a SUTRA
affiliated MM’s.
2.6
Scenario after the Elections and its effects
Thus, a scenario after elections was something like this: in a typical Gram Panchayat
body, 8 people were involved - (5 members + Pradhan + Up-Pradhan + Secretary) of
which 1 is a woman or alternatively - 10 members (7 members + Pradhan +
Up-Pradhan + Secretary) out of which 8 were men and 2 were women.
To understand the silent features of this scenario and also to understand the
background of Women Members of Gram Panchayats (WMGP’s), we decided to
conduct detailed interviews of 70 WMGP’s. On the other hand, we had completed
the training of these WMGP’s and we organised group meetings to evaluate the
training programmes. Ms. C. P. Sujaya conducted these meetings.
Given are the findings from both these efforts, which we hope, will help us develop
an overall picture ofWMGP of today and probably of tomorrow.
While collecting information from WMGP’s, we focused more on the general aspects
of motivation as well as special aspects like the family’s financial background and
gender relations within the family.
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Section 3
Dialogue
3.1
General...
Given the subordinate position of women in society and the rigid culturally defined
attitudes towards her, support from the family for acquiring a position of‘leadership’
seems to be a paradox and there are still a few Gram Panchayats who have refused
to accept the Government’s order to elect atleast one woman as member on their
Gram Panchayats. How do the family members react to this scenario?
66 WMGP’s out of 70 WMGP’s responded that their family was very supportive and
in few cases the family members even encouraged her to act as WMGP efficiently.
To solve this puzzle, let us first have a look at the age group of WMGP’s.
The majority of WMGP’s are above 50 (25 out of 70). In fact the oldest one was 65
years old. There were 20 WMGP’s who have crossed the age of 40. Thus we have 54
WMGP’s out of 70, who have crossed the age of 40. Only 16 WMGP’s were below the
age of 40 but above 30.
Thus, it seems the ‘family’ is ready to provide support to those women who have
fulfilled not only their all patriarchal duties but have also done with ‘patriarchal’
obligations.
Another explanation could be that out of these 70 WMGP’s, 17 have atleast one
daughter-in-law and 26 have a daughter of more than 12 years of age but who have
dropped-out of school. This also clearly shows that there is someone (a female) who
is taking over, atleast partially, the domestic responsibilities. Thus, for a woman to
get some freedom, another woman needs to be subjugated.
As C.P. Sujaya found out, "the point that arises for consideration here (on the age group
of WMGP’s) is whether the role model of a woman member of the Panchayat in Himachal
Pradesh is going to be an older woman or whether, in view of the very arduous nature of
an average rural Himachali woman’s working day, younger women will opt out of the
race? In addition to hard work, younger women are also under a stricter vigil by the village
community as a whole, and the behaviour and the demeanor that is accepted or excused
on the part of an older woman is not liked or understood when the women is young and
in the reproductive phase. Some of the women - in their late forties and some who were
younger still - were well aware of these pitfalls and dangers."
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But there are cases where no support is forthcoming from the families. The
opposition coming mainly from sons. On MM front too, we have found the same
problem with young sons opposing their mothers participation in MM s.
Premi Devi, a widow of 39 has two sons aged 19 and 17 and no daughter. Her sons
are opposing her work as WMGP on the ground that the domestic work is suffering.
Jai Devi (age 45) has 5 sons and one daughter (youngest). Her eldest son is 22 but
unmarried and the daughter is school going. Her sons are getting upset as the
domestic workload is suffering because Jai Devi is giving lot of time for Panchayat
work.
Zaveri Devi of 45, has a married son and two unmarried daughters. Though Zaveri s
husband who is a Chowkidar in the Panchayat is very supportive to her, her son is
opposing her. The grounds are, "Kya milta hai in Panchayat ke kamose?Muft ka samay
barbad kar rahi ho" ("What do you gain by working for the Panchayat? This is a total
waste of time”).
On the other hand Kamla Devi of 35, has one son and one daughter, both school
going, husband is in govt, service and very supportive of her, but she herself feels
that she should not continue working as WMGP Reason : she is illiterate and she
feels that she is not able to do full justice to her Job.
As
As C.P.
C.P. Sujaya
Sujaya found,
found, "This
"This whole
whole issue
issue was discussed during the Group Interactions.
The sex-based divisions of labour seemed to be unchanged in the scenario presented by the
younger women. They had to make adjustments in order to cope with their new respon
sibilities in the Panchayats - no one else in the household seemed to making any. On the
day of the Panchayat meeting (which is once in a month in some and twice a month in
others), the women got up a "little" earlier (4 a.m. instead of the usual 5 a.m. ?), did all the
house work by 9 or 10 a.m. so as to be in intime for the meeting and remained there till 4
or 5p.m. In addition to this they had to spare time for undertaking visits and inspections
whenever the Pradhan wanted them to do so. It appears that these women were outside
their homes for atleast 10 days in a month on account of work connected with Panchayat.
Many of them seemed to feel that the Pradhan gave them more than their fair share of
work. When asked whether the male members of their families helped them in their
housework, the answer was invariably in the negative. However, here and there, there
seemed to be the beginnings of an awareness on the part of the husband that it was
necessary to lend a helping hand to the wife. The important point to note was that the
women really did not seem to expect this change of attitude on the part of the husband.
They took it all as part of the new arrangements where it was incumbent on them to work
harder and longer both inside and outside the home. As one of them put it, this is our
duty (Farz). One of the women said that her experience of working as WMGP had given
her the idea of taking up public life Ipolitics permanently, but in order to plan for this
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properly, she said that she had already decided to sell her buffalo. When specifically asked
about whether the change should not affect men also, one of the women said that the very
fact that she was not a member of the Panchayat was itself indicative of the extent of the
change that had taken place in the thinking of men!"
3.2
Economics
As it is already mentioned that the HP economy is essentially a subsistence economy
and it is true that very few families are landless and distribution of land holdings
is not directly related to Caste, still the major point in economics Is to study what
kind of‘cash income’ the family has.
We found that 29 families had more than 2 acres of land whilst 32 families had less
than 2 acres of land. 9 families had no land at all. But out of these 70 respondents,
50 respondent had atleast one family member working in the organised sector whilst
only one family had a male working in the unorganised sector. Rest 19 families 15
had land less than 2 acres whilst 4 had land more than 2 acres.
This clearly shows that famihes who have advanced in terms of gaining access to
government or other organised sector jobs, have also developed access to political
power’ may be through their wives.
Of course educational levels also are a major factor in this issue. 30 out of 70 WMGP’s
were illiterate whilst 40 had accesses to some education. Considering their age, it
also seems that the literate women had a good financial background at their ‘malka’
(parental house). This is so, because spread of education in Himachal Pradesh took
place since 1970 and prior to this there were hardly any educational facilities
available to the villagers, specially in the interior villages. Only those people sent
their daughters to schools in the 50s and 60s who were ’highly educated' or had a
sound ‘financial background’.
3.3
Support Base
1.
How did women get involved in Panchayats? Who provided them support?
Whether their support base was the Mahila Mandal or people in general? What
role did political parties play? These were the few questions which needed to
be answered.
56 WMGP’s learned about the Panchayat Elections from villagers (read men). Only
3 WMGP’s learned about the elections from TV/Radio news service. 10 women were
informed by their family members whilst only 1 woman told us that it was she on
her own who learned about the elections. None of the respondents learned about
the elections from Mahila Mandals even though 50 of the women were members of
Mahila Mandals.
178
Does it show that MM members do not give much importance to GP’s? Does it mean
for MM’s, GP’s are untouchable? We experienced this while working for MM’s. Most
of the our active MM members are not yet convinced that GP’s could be a forum for
raising "Women’s issues". The attitude of MM members towards GP’s has historical
reasons as mentioned earlier. Women in general feel that the GP’s are the bodies
for partisan politics and all politics is dirty, as Ms. Sujaya found that, "The women
have no clear ideas, for example, regarding the "politics" of Panchayats and they do not
seem to have spent much time in analyzing and dissecting the real definition ofpolitics,
as distinct from political parties,"
Who prompted them to contest for elections or file nomination papers?
It was found that 35 women received a proposal for contesting the elections from
villagers (read men) whilst 11 women were driven to the fray by their family members.
9 women received proposal from political parties or political leaders of the village.
Only 2 women received proposals from their Mahila Mandals. 11 women took the
decision to contest election on their own.
This is further analyzed by looking into the support received by these women from
various sections of the society.
60 out of 70 women interviewed were members of Mahila Mandals but only 4 women
received exclusive support from Mahila Mandals. 46 women received the support
from villagers (read men) and not from MM’s. 2 women were supported by political
parties. 8 WMGP’s received a joint support i.e. from villagers (read men) as well from
the Mahila Mandals.
Thus, what does it show?
C.P. Sujaya found out that" "One of the striking features ofthe way the women were elected
to the Panchayats was the almost universal recourse to finding a ’consensus’ woman in
the village, thus obviating the necessity for an electoral exercise. Almost in every case, the
story was the same, either there was no other woman who was willing to stand for elections,
or those that did, were persuaded to withdraw. What their elders (males) in the village
wanted them to do. They felt that they wanted to experience the thrill of fighting against
other women and the heat of campaigning. They were aware that when it came to the turn
of men, even those belonging to the Scheduled Castes, there was no question of finding a
’consensus’ candidate! Alternate candidate were found out without any difficulty and the
village did not consider it a matter ofprestige that only one person should stand. But when
it came to the turn of the women, the collective reaction of the village appeared to be that
there should be no contest---- that for women to stand against each other was somehow
not a respectable thing to do! One woman was told that the village would disintegrate’
("tootjayega" in Hindi idiom) ifmore than one woman stood for election. This same woman
was offered Rs. 500 by a villager elder to withdraw her candidature. This woman, now
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secure in her position as a Panch is nevertheless quite bitter about the whole vent - "Aazadi goon mein nahin aayee" (freedom has not yet reached the villages).
A relevant point to note here is that in the older Panchayat Raj System that was
prevalent in Himachal Pradesh
before the introduction of the 73rd Amendment
to the Constitution and the passing of new legislation in the State, women used to
be nominated on the Panchayats, not elected, and the process of nomination may
have, more often than not, involved the location of a "consensus candidate" from
amongst the women in the village or community. The nomination used to be the
privilege of the male leaders of the village or community including the Pradhan of
the Panchayat. What is being played out now appears to be a throw back to the old
modes of functioning. There were only two women out of those who attended the
evaluation meetings who had stood against men in elections to non-reserved seats.
What do these women think about role of political parties in Panchayats ?
28 women out of 70, are connected with certain political parties and 9 women
received proposals from political parties or political leaders to contest the elections,
but only two women sought active support from their political parties. From this
one can deduce that women think very poorly about any role of political parties in
the Gram Panchayats. Why is it so? When this point was discussed, women reacted
very strongly.
We found that attitudes towards the role of conventional party politics in the
Panchayat Raj elections evoked very definitive responses. At the same time there
was a certain ambivalence or lack of clarity in the answers given to the questions
about political beliefs and to what extent elections should be fought on party
platforms. Part of the ambivalence was due to the obvious lack of political education
and awareness that was evident in their untutored responses.
Astonishingly, all the women were unanimously of the opinion that irrespective of
party affiliations, the elected Panches should maintain absolute impartiality and
objectivity towards all sections and groups in the village and community. The women
held very strong beliefs on this issue and expressed themselves very strongly. One
could not help but feel that in a group of similarly placed men the answers could
not have come with such strong conviction and certainty. The women had great
contempt for groupism and cliques that were part of local Panchayat politics. Many
of them spoke scathingly about their Pradhans (male) who wanted to benefit only
members of one or the other party. Where the women seemed unsure of themselves
and faltered in giving answers was on the role of politics in Panchayat elections.
Some of them felt that there was nothing wrong in fighting on party basis; whereas
some others thought that politics was dirty and should not be brought into the firena
at all. Some of the women who favoured politics were party workers and had worked
for quite some time in the party organization at the local level. One of them said that
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she had entered politics after she was inspired by the example of Indira Gandhi.
But many of the women had no experience of any sort of party politics and had never
taken part in any political activity. What was remarkable was that all these women
came together to outrightly condemn the partisan politics of the men. This is yet
another pointer to the possibility of women being able to forge a new path for
themselves in the use of power rather than tread the "male" corridors of powers.
But what about WMGP’s participation in any social movements? How many of these
WMGP’s took part in any sort of social movement even though they were members
of Mahila Mandals or political parties prior to becoming a WMGP ? It is true, as said
earlier that, HP has, in general no background of any illustrious social movement,
but it is also true that in the last decade or so, many village based movements have
taken place, specially around the issues like drinking water or liquor. Has participa
tion in these movements helped the women to become WMGP? Has their active
involvement in political parties encouraged them to take part in any social move
ments?
We found that :
Though 60 women had a membership of MM’s prior to becoming WMGP, but only
14 had a background of participation in any social movement like, anti-alcohol
movement, Jungle bachhao, dharna against corrupt government officials, morcha
against wife beating and atrocities connected with dowry.
Out of 28 women connected with political parties, only 8 women had taken part in
certain social movements.
Thus, 48 WMGP’s had no background of any social movement nor have they taken
part in any social movement. This clearly shows that women who silently accepted
the ‘patriarchy’ are preferred to women who had challenged ‘patriarchy’ by taking
part in social movements.
Thus, when there is a problem related to women, it was obvious that large support
comes from either villagers or Gram Panchayats. It was found that 38 WMGP’s
sought support from the Gram Panchayat whilst 29 sought support from Mahila
Mandals while dealing with women in crises.
What is the level of understanding as far as local problems were concerned. We
found that :
25 WMGP’s were not able to locate any local problem. Lack of various facilities like
drinking water, supply of electricity, lack of balwadis, lack of health services, lack
of veterinary services, roads and small bridges were dominant areas.
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17 WMGP’s felt that the major problem was atrocities on women related to alcohol,
dowry and desertion and majority of these women had a background of social
movement.
This clearly shows that for the majority of WMGP’s, women related problems were
not a centre-stage one. This is understandable as majority of WMGP’s were promoted
and supported by villagers (read men) and very few had participated in social
movements related to women’s issues.
On the other hand it is also true that social services are the dominant features of
women members of Gram Panchayats thinking and not unemployment or poverty.
(In fact only one woman has expressed this as a serious local problem.)
3.4
Access to information
Communication is the biggest problem in Himachal Pradesh as the population is
scattered over the rugged hills. In such a topography, having a regular access to
newspaper is like a full moon night. Villages which are on the roadside and are
connected by buses or very close to roads, do have access to newspapers. Thus, it
is not surprising that 49 WMGP’s do not receive newspaper. 6 WMGP’s do receive
newspaper, but they are illiterate. Thus, these 6 WMGP’s, ask one of the younger
member of family (usually a daughter) to read the newspaper for them. 10 WMGP’s
read newspaper on their own whist 5 WMGP’s do not read newspaper even though
they have access to it.
Due to a subsistence economy and majority of the families of WMGP’s having a
person working in organised sector, possession of a television set or radio set is not
very difficult. Thus we find that 46 families had a television set or radio. But having
a television set or radio does not ensures that the WMGP listens to news regularly.
Only 31 WMGP's informed us that they tried to listen to local news atleast while 15
WMGP's informed us that they do not listen to any news at all.
The major reason for this, seems that, the timing of news - 7 to 9 p.m. is for cooking
and cleaning the post-dinner dishes. How did we expect a woman to sit in front of
the TV set and ignore her chores ?
3.5
Gram PanchayatMeetings and WMGP's Status
As mentioned earlier, the meetings of the Gram Panchayats are held regularly. In
most of the GP’s, there is a meeting every month whilst in few GP’s (specially GP’s
from Mandi district) have two meetings every month, one solely devoted to the work
of Nyaya Panchayat and the other to Gram Panchayat.
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All the WMGP’s have taken part in atleast 75% of the meetings held during the last
one year and they have invariably participated in Gram Sabha meetings. But
generally the Gram Sabha does not get quorum and thus has to adjourn or recall
its members.
Most of Gram Panchayats have fixed dates for the meetings and there is no mention
of any special invitation to be sent to members for the meetings. In few Gram
Panchayats, the Chowkldar has been made responsible for reminding the members.
60 out of 70 WMGP’s expressed that the timing for the meetings was fine with them.
Ten WMGP’s, who have expressed that the timing for the meetings are not convenient
for them, have various reasons, chief amongst them is that they have to walk a long
distance to attend the meeting and thus, wanted the meetings to end by 3.00 p.m.
As far as keeping personal record of the GP meeting is concerned, it is not the practice
prevalent in Himachal Pradesh, but few WMGP’s said that they keep the record of
the meetings with them. Such WMGP’s are 13 out of 70.
As far as signing the Minute Book at the end of the meeting is concerned, every
WMGP is aware about this procedure (atleast, after the training at SUTRA) and do
the needful.
Most Gram Panchayats hold their meetings in Panchayat Ghar and it is a practice
of providing chairs to all the members. There were stray cases where, the SC WMGP
had not been provided chairs, but such are rare cases, and after attending the
Training, this SC WMGP demanded a chair and got it (she had to fight for it).
As far as discrimination based on caste is concerned, except one SC WMGP (the
same one who had to fight for her chair) informed that other members would distance
themselves from her whilst drinking tea. Again she had put up a fight and got Justice.
But this picture is not universal in Himachal Pradesh. In the interior areas of Kullu,
Shimla, Sirmour and Chamba districts, we have been told that an SC WMGP is not
allowed to enter the Panchayat Ghar and participate in Panchayat meetings. She
has to sit in the veranda and listen if she wanted. Of course, further investigation
in this regard are required. Unfortunately, SUTRA had not been able to reach out
to these areas.
But is this the end of the story ? No, even if a woman is allowed to sit in Panchayat
meetings and she is not discriminated against, and is provided a chair to sit on, the
story does not end. How much and in what form have these women contributed
towards the better functioning of Gram Panchayats ? More importantly than this,
Were they allowed to do so ? Were they effective ?
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We have received various responses on this account. The majority of WMGP’s have
said that they were allowed to speak and were heard. 35 WMGP’s ha^d no problem
in making a point or raising an issue during the GP Meetings. Male members did
listen to them and sometimes acted accordingly.
But there are instances where men listen, make a show of paying attention and then
continue their business. This is probably because the woman member is older in
age and culture demands that men pay ‘respect’ to older women.
But there are innumerable instances where male members either make passes at
or laugh when a woman member makes certain points or raises certain issues.
Raising issues like liquor definitely antagonises the men but there are other issues
also where women do get opposition from men members.
Occasionally, the women have complained of men making derogatory or lewd
remarks - "Now it is the time of women's rule. What is the fun in having these meetings
-just listen to women and act"It is the foolishness ofthe government to provide reservation
for women". "You are here just because of reservation. Otherwise you would never have
entered the Panchayat Ghar on your own". Many WMGP’s informed us that when they
try to speak or try to make a point, certain members laugh lewdly.
In such a situation, how do women get support? 32 Gram Panchayats out of 70
have more than one member (31 have two women members and one big Panchayat
has 3 women members). Do these 32 women get support from each other? 18 women
members do get support from other women members. In fact 5 women told us that
both the women members continuously collaborate with each other whilst 13 women
told us that they support each other on an certain issues. 13 Women told us that
their counterparts either do not attend the meetings or Just reach the Panchayat
Ghar to sign the attendance register.
Who are these 13 women ? 9 belong to SC and 4 belong to Aryan castes (such as
Brahmin, Rajput or Khatri). All these 4 Aryan caste women belong to very rich
families.
It seems that participation by SC women is much below the desired level, this is
mainly because most of these women have been driven into the Panchayats under
compulsion. Further investigation is required in this regard.
3.6
Acting As GP Members
Do women feel confident to act as GP member? Yes, all the 70 women told us that
they feel very confident about this role. What kind of work have they done for their
constituencies, then ? It seems, almost everything under the sky.
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Paving the path
36
Provision for Drinking Water
29
Developing pukka drainage systems
12
Construction of rooms for Schools and repairs
24
Path Construction
27
Tailoring Classes
01
Construction of low-cost toilets
01
Construction of Health Centres
02
Johars (surface water collection tanks)
02
Construction of small bridges
01
Provision of old age pension, widow pensions, handicap pensions, etc 01
But most of the women informed us that, though they have undertaken and
supervised the work, the financial dealings were rarely handed over to them. These
were done either by Pradhan himself or alongwith the Secretary. It seems somehow,
the Pradhans and secretaries don’t trust women’s ability to undertake the financial
part of implementing of any schemes ( or they just want to make some money).
3.7
Leadership Qualities
Were the WMGP’s community leaders prior to holding their posts ? 38 women told
us that before they became WMGP’s, women from their villages use to approach
them with various problems whilst 32 women told us that no woman ever ap
proached them for any kind of help prior to their becoming WMGP.
What were these 38 women doing prior to becoming a WMGP? 18 were holding
certain positions in the Mahila Mandals. 8 were connected with certain political
parties whilst 10 were not only connected with political parties but were also
members of Mahila Mandals.
There was one woman who belonged to the richest family in the village and that was
the only reason why other women approached her to seek her help. Another woman
was not only richest in the village but was also Pradhan of Mahila Mandal.
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Thus, it seems that prior to choosing a woman as WMGP’s various aspects have
been considered by men : one of them is that the woman has had other exposures
than the domestic work or is rich enough to have a time to ‘move around.
On the other hand, around 55% WMGP’s had the support of most women in her
village and had a certain experience in ‘problem solving’. This had definitely helped
them to ‘speak-out’ in the GP Meetings.
3.8
Gram Sabha and WMGP's participation
Organising a proper Gram Sabha is the biggest problem for majority of Gram
Panchayats in Himachal. Only 23 Gram Panchayats had a proper Gram Sabha,
where the GP presents the budget, information regarding various schemes and the
Gram Sabha takes the decisions regarding the implementation of these schemes.
But in the remaining 47 Gram Panchayats, no proper Gram Sabha is held. Most of
the time, people were invited under the pretext of selection of IRDP families or
Antodaya families. In such a Gram Sabha, no fruitful discussion takes place either
on the budget of the Gram Panchayat or work done by them.
One woman member told us that, to fulfill the required quorum she collected all the
women from her village (members of Mahila Mandal) and made them sit in the Gram
Sabha for a while.
The apathy of people in general towards the Gram Panchayat and its functions is
rooted in localised politics. The mechanisms that are required to encourage people
to take an active part in Gram Sabha need to be discussed separately.
But what is interesting is that, the women members told us that they feel very
hesitant (Sharam aati hat) to speak in the Gram Sabha as it is full of men.
3.9
Training
58 respondent have attended a training programme conducted by SUTRA. Out of
12 women who had not attended any Training Programme, 2 were members of BDC
whilst 10 were members of Gram Panchayat.
How did this training programme help women in to becoming more effective
members of Gram Panchayats ?
Ms. Sujaya found that, "the main contribution of the SUTRA training was to enhance the
self-image and self-confidence of the women. This was a tremendous sea change. Earlier,
they used to sit silent and nervous in the meetings of the Panchayats. They had so many
false beliefs, so many misunderstandings, so many area of ignorance about themselves
and their roles and duties. They were conscious of their state of illiteracy and lack of
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knowledge of the simplest and most elementary facts regarding the functioning of the
exclusive preserve of the
Panchayat. The thought that all financial matters were the
i
Pradhan and the Secretary of the Panchayat”
3.10 Leadership in Panchayat Raj
Almost all the women expressed the desire for the GP’s to function in a participatory
manner and decisions being taken by a majority. Obviously, this was not happening.
The reasons being as mentioned earlier; the Pradhan and Up-Pradhan are directly
elected and the Pradhan is treated as Chief Executive Officer of the Gram Panchayat.
This not only gives him tremendous power over other members, but because he is
directly elected,he does not feel accountable to other members. Thus, the decision
taking process in the Gram Panchayat is based on the ‘dadaglri’ or Pradhan.
Within this context, what are the necessary qualities of a Pradhan? According to
respondents, the following special qualities would be essential:
1.
He should not be a drunkard
2.
Not be corrupt
3.
Be ready to encourage women to take part In GP’s
4.
He should be above partisan politics
5.
He must respect women
6.
He should have an ability to listen to women members
7.
He should have an ability to listen to the miseries of women and act upon them
But what about Women Pradhans ? Do women feel the situation should change
if there is a Woman Pradhan ? What should her qualities be?
Some of the responses to the above questions are listed below :
1.
Having a women Pradhan would encourage other women members to partake
in the affairs of GP
2.
Women members would receive basic support
3.
Women’s problems/concerns would get priority
4.
It would increase the ‘izzat’ of women
5.
Women members would not hesitate to partake in the meetings.
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6.
Co-operation amongst the women would increase
7.
Women members would not feel left-out'
8.
By having a woman Pradhan, there would be less corruption in the Gram
Panchayats
9.
Men would not be able to suppress women members
10. Social Justice would become a reality
11. An aware woman would be ideal for the Pradhan’s post
12. Dissemination of information for women, regarding various schemes and
financial dealings would become a reality
13. Women's voice would be heard
14. Atrocities on women would decrease
3.11
Dea lings wi th Governmen t Officers
The first government officer the WMGP's have to deal is Secretary of the Gram
Panchayat.
What do the WMGP's think about him ?
33 WMGP’s felt that the Secretaiy is helpful to the members and provides all the
necessary information to them.
37 WMGP’s felt that the Secretary is not only uncooperative, but also does not treat
members with dignity, specially women members.
Most of WMGP's felt that the secretary is corrupt and a drunkard.
Sujaya found that : "The powers, duties and functions of the Secretaiy of the
Panchayat. all the women knew that the Secretaiy was appointed by the Govern
ment, and not by the Panchayat. They knew that he could be removed or transferred
only by the BDO or the Government, but some of them opined that in case of
misbehaviour, the Panchayat could initiate action. Some of the Panchayats had
allocated specific dates for the Secretary’s attendance in their offices, as one
Secretary had about two to four/five Panchayats to look after. The women were well
aware of the difficulties caused by the absence of this official, especially when people
from far off villages came to the office to register births, deaths or to get marriage
or birth/death certificates. Some of the Panchayats had not drawn up the date- wise
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Itineraries. The problem was confounded because the Panchayats imposed ’’fines”
for late registration, whereas the women felt that it was not really the applicants’
fault if the failure to register was on account of the absence of the secretary. Some
of the women felt that Irrespective of its merits and the demerits, the practice of
Imposing these fines had made the people vigilant in the matter and there was no
greater willingness on their part to register these vital events in time. One of the
very few women who had been elected to the Block Samiti and who had obviously
taken pains to find out more about the matter tried to tell the others that they were
charging fines that were in violation of the provisions of the statute. The discussion
became extremely lively at these proceedings by recounting the decision of her
Panchayat to register the births of all girls free of cost! Another woman recalled that
registration of sons’ marriages entailed distribution of sweets within the Panchayat
office.
3.12 Resources of Gram Panchayats
Resource mobilization is the most hazardous task for Gram Panchayats. Because
of the apathy of the people towards Gram Panchayats, raising resources through
innovative methods is practically not undertaken by any Gram Panchayats.
In general the GP’s are dependent on government for grants for undertaking various
developmental work.
Following are few subjects, from where the GP’s raise their resources:
1.
Distribution of Ration cards and Chulha tax
2.
Rent from shops/houses owned by the Panchayats
3.
Death/Birth/marriage Registration certificates
4.
Fines
5.
Tax from fairs
6.
Fisheries
7.
Prison for stray cattle
8.
Animal Bone collection
3.13 Finances
As far as Finances of Gram Panchayats are concerned, women are usually kept in
the dark by the Pradhans. 29 WMGP’s told us that they had no clue about the
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finances of their GP’s whilst 03 women said they had some idea. 38 women told us
that they know enough about the finances of their GP’s.
While interacting with WMGP's, Sujaya found that: Though some of the women had
adequate knowledge about the quantum of money that the Panchayat possessed by
way of bank balances, most of them were not acustomed to questioning the secretary
of the Panchayat on every meeting day about the amount of money lying in the
account. It had not occurred to them that asking such questions would give them
a better handle over the secretary, especially in those cases where the relationship
between the two was already problematic. The few women who practiced this
technique were able to improve their standing, as the secretary could by no means
refuse to give an answer. They knew where the money was lying, whether in the post
office or in the bank, the name of the bank, the contents of the pass-book, etc. But
very few of them (almost none) knew about audit, budget, the role of the gaon Sabha
and its functions vis-a-vis the Panchayat, i.e., to ask for the audited accounts or for
the budget or for the accounts relation to any head/scheme. Here, the biggest
handicap was their lack of literacy and numeracy.
This is also related to the information regarding various schemes. 45 women said
they had no access to get the information regarding various schemes of the
government meant for people in general and women in particular. Only 25 women
said they know enough about various schemes.
Sujaya found that : concerning Schemes for carrying out various developmental
activities in the village. The women knew that the funds came mostly from the BDO,
and the expenditure had to be monitored by the ward Panches in their own areas.
The schemes were mostly by way of infrastructural development, such as bridges,
roads, school rooms, paving of paths, etc. The women had rather hazy ideas about
anti-poverty programs, such as IRDP, JRY, etc. They knew about the Antyodaya\IRDP survey, and how often, serving women were not included in the list.
One of the younger women, who was married at 16 and whose husband was missing
("lapata") for several years was full of anger that both she and two widows in her
village were not included in the IRDP list. They also knew about the new forms that
had come to the Panchayat for surveying the families and were aware that the
responsibility for the identification lay with the Panchayat secretary and the ward
member. Though IRDP was the biggest employment program for the poor families,
the women were not that familiar with the details of the employment opportunities
provided under this program. None of them mentioned other employment-oriented
anti-poverty schemes such as DWCRA or TRYSEM, though a few mentioned JRY.
But overall, their familiarity with employment programs appeared to be much less
than with other social development programs. [This is one of the puzzles of the
contemporary Panchayat Raj scenario. Similar findings have been arrived at in
Karnataka as well, where the most popular schemes with the Panchayat members,
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especially the women, were those associated with housing, sanitation, roads,
drinking water supply, etc.]
Most of the WMGP’s felt that there should be more schemes for ‘self employment’
‘Schemes for strengthening the Mahila Mandals’ ; ‘ land ownership for women;
dairy Development’ etc. But the major concern of WMGP’s was social security for
women. As Sujaya found "At the same time, the women were very conscious of the
increasing destitution in the villages as a serious social phenomenon. One woman
said very succinctly, that "schemes" may come and go, but social security was very
important. They considered the old age pension and widow pension schemes of the
Government as very vital and said that "Jankaari" (knowledge) regarding these
pension schemes was very Important for Panchayat members. The women had
countless stories to tell of parents who had been left uncared for, financially and
emotionally, by their children. In some cases, one parent had died, and these cases
were even worse. ’In most cases, the male children had Jobs, or property, or both,
but they no longer cared for their parents. Many of these destitute women (as well
as men) approached the women Panches for help
Similarly, the women Panches
were involved to a great extent, in the cases of maintenance where the husband
refused to support the wife and the children. Abandoning wives and entering into
marital arrangements with many women was quite common among men in the
cultural set-up. Many of the women Panches themselves were either second wives
or were married to men who had two wives. There was a lively discussion about
specific cases which had come to the attention of these women, where some tricky
legal point was involved, such as the cases where the divorce had taken place without
any provision for the children. Where there was no cash income, the problem of
making the men pay for the upkeep of the wives and their children was also more
severe.
3.14 How would you visualize spending Rs. 100,000?
This was a funny question indeed, as many women did not handle cash either at
home or at the GP level. Still majority of women came out with responses. 28 WMGP’s
felt that the money should be exclusively used for welfare of women while 9 felt that
it should be used for the welfare of the whole village.
27 WMGP’s felt that the money should be used for both i.e. for the welfare of women
as well as welfare of village.
6 WMGP’s failed to respond.
This clearly shows that women wanted to take a balanced view and even though
they had the priority of increasing the resources for the welfare of women, they also
know that overall development of village could also benefit the women.
191
But do women feel that they are better administrators than men ?
Yes, invariably, almost all the WMGP’s felt that women are better administrators,
because:
1.
Women don’t consume alcohol
2.
Women are generally not corrupt
3.
Women are more honest than men
4.
Women are more sensitive towards other s problems
5.
Women have a better understanding of a situation
6.
Women do not discriminate
7.
Women are not cunning
8.
Women are not selfish like men
9.
Women have an aptitude to work collectively. But to do this, women need the
following :
a.
Women must get rid of their ‘sharam’
b.
Women must aspire of higher education, and
c.
Women must receive proper training.
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Section 4
Epilogue
While going through all these responses to the questionaires, one is overwhelmed
with clarity with which women have responded. This feeling is same as Sujaya had
after watching the role plays performed by WMGP’s on video, ’’The overwhelming
impression that viewing these plays leaves one with, is of the deftness and the
competence that the women bring into their performances, considering the fact that
most of them have had hardly any experience of doing any similar activity. Since
the performances are mostly unrehearsed, there are the inevitable gaps and silences
in the middle of conversations, but there is also a natural flow and a sense of
sequence. Some of the dialogues seem to be very long and protracted, and the issues
seem to be laboured at great length, but this also reflects the perceptions of the
women regarding the worth and value of discussions and verbal interactions in the
attempt to resolve disputes or access services.”
While interacting with women members of Gram Panchayats and Block Develop
ment Committees as Trainer, as Motivator, as Gender Sensitized (to an extent)
person, as a person believing in grass-root level democracy I have mixed feelings.
My feelings have become much more intricate as I have seen a band of NGOs
climbing on the running wagon. Through this I have reached a state where certain
issues are getting crystallized; some of them are listed below:
i.
What is the meaning of self-governance? Will Panchayats acquire a position of
bodies for Self-Governance or are they going to be mere implementing bodies?
2.
Without having control over law and order machinery, how much we can
achieve the goal of self-governance?
3.
Are Panchayats political bodies or are they developmental programme im
plementing bodies ? Are we going to use Panchayats to carry out the develop
mental policies propagated for last 40 odd years or is the system going to
provide freedom for the Panchayats to develop its own developmental policies ?
4.
What are the instruments for implementing these policies? Are Panchayats
going to develop totally new set of instruments for implementing their policies
or will they have to depend upon the existing instruments and over a course
of time, become ‘instruments’ themselves?
5.
In today’s context,the way Panchayats are functioning, how much women
would be able to make inroads without compromising with patriarchal values?
In any case, women would be in minority in the Panchayats and all the support
structure developed by the system, for the Panchayats is deeply engrained in
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patriarchal values. With this how much women would be able to cany out the
mandate they might receive ? Or will it be a mandate which they will be forced
to carry out ?
1
6.
What are the mechanisms for developing collaborative relationships between
social organizations (traditional as well as implanted ones) with members of
Panchayats? It is again and again found that the traditional social institutions
such as ’Jatt’ Panchayats or implanted social institutions such as Mahila
Mandals are refusing to develop creative relationships with Panchayats. How
should we proceed ? Simple answers like ‘create awareness amongst women’
are not going to suffice.
7.
It is experienced that the SC elected members through ‘reservation’ have
become more accountable to ‘dominant elements’ of the society Instead of
‘weaker sections’ of the society. Through reservation for women in Panchayats,
what are we going to achieve ? Will achievements differ from the results of
reservation for SC candidates?
8.
What kind of environment is required so that women members of Panchayats
became a vehicle for struggle for gender equity or equitable distribution of
resources ? Do we have a capacity to generate such an environment ? This
becomes much more critical in the context of New Economic policies pursued
by the National leadership.
9.
To act as people’s Representatives, a financial cost is involved. Taking into
consideration the economic dependence of women in todays context, where and
how women leaders would find financial resources to act as ‘People’s Repre
sentatives’ ? This becomes more critical in a State like Himachal Pradesh which
has a subsistence economy or a State like Karnataka where majority of women
have to depend upon daily wages. Our studies have clearly shown that a woman
from ‘influential class’ or a woman from ‘totally resourceless families’ have been
chosen for Panchayats.
10. Lastly, How many NGOs are really committed to create an environment for
women’s participation in Panchayats with feminist values? Do they really value
elected women members of Panchayats or is there a ‘class element’ involved in
the treatment of women members of Panchayats?
This becomes more critical as many so called big NGOs are holding seminars
and conferences in the name of women members of Panchayats and how are
they treating these elected women members ? In a recently held National
Conference of Panchayat Women, it was found that the Representatives of
NGOs were paid a handsome per D.M. in addition to food expenses but the
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elected women Representatives of Panchayats were paid a meagre amount
towards food expenses ?
I
Acknowledgements:
1.
Ms Madhu Sarin- Situational Analysis of Himachal! Women - SUTRA - 1991
2.
Ms C.P. Sujaya - Vibrations - SUTRA - 1994
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Part II
A CRITIQUE OF THE HIMACHAL PRADESH
PANCHAYAT RAJ ACT 1994 :
AN ENABLING INSTRUMENT FOR CREATING
PEOPLE’S PARTICIPATION?
One can examine the Himachal Pradesh Panchayat Raj Act 1994 from the following
vantage points:
1.
I
Does the Act propose to devolve, in letter as well as in spirit, functions of local
governance to the elected Panchayat Raj Institutions bodies ?
The Preamble to the new Act says that it is meant "to consolidate, amend and replace
the law relating to Panchayats with a view to ensure the effective involvement of the
Panchayat Raj Instiutions in the local administration and developmental activities . Is
effective involvement an adequate phrase, does it say everything, does it convey the
full intention underlying the 73rd Amendment to the Constitution? Can it be
translated to mean the Panchayat Raj Institutions are meant to be an autonomous
arm of the Government? Does it reflect the spirit of Article 44 that Panchayats shall
be the local units of government? That it shall be the third tier of government? Or
does the phrase "effective involvement" give the impression that it is still the State
Government that will take the initiative in "involving" the Panchayats in "develop
mental activities" - as a junior partner, perhaps. In fact, in two places, the Act
specifies the role of the Panchayats as that of "an agent of the State Government"
[sections 82(2) and shall be under " the general control of the State Government or any
other authority appointed by it and shall comply with such directions as may from time
to time be given to it", [’section 82(4) and 93(4)]. Does not then, the working of the
Preamble accurately summarize the approach that is reflected in the individual
provisions of the Act? Who is in charge? Who is involving whom?
The Act reproduces Schedule 13 to the 73rd Amendment to the Constitution, but
says little beyond this [section 11(2)]:
"Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act the State Government may, by general
or special order, entrust to the Gram Panchayat preparation ofplans and implementation
of schemes for economic development and social justice specified in Schedule II.
Schedule II contains a very large number of items — agriculture, forestry, public
distribution system, animal husbandry, poverty alleviation, fisheries --- the list
covers almost all the activities and functions of the Government in so far as the
rural areas of the State are concerned. It is in the preparation of plans and
implementation of schemes that the Panchayats can most actively involve the public.
But they need to be clear about the scope of their authority and power. Which aspects
of these subjects are to be devolved to the Panchayat Raj Institutions and which
aspects are to be retained with the State Government? This is the crucial question to
which the Act does not provide any answer. It only says that the State Government may
pass a "general or special order" specifying further details. Note the use of the word
"may" and not "shall". Obviously, the process of devolution of powers of governance
--- of preparation of plans and implementation of schemes --- has not started, the
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passing of the Act by itself cannot ensure this. The process is still to begin. There
is nothing laid down in the Act as to when this special or general order shall be
passed. Will there be one general order covering more than one subject matter or
item? Or will the discretion lie with each Department to issue each special order
pertaining to the subject matter of the particular Department?
Besides Schedule I, another list of activities termed Schedule I has been appended
to the Act. The operative section — Section II (1) states as follows :
"It shall be the duty of a Gram Panchayat in so far as the Gram Panchayat funds allow
to perform within its area the functions specified in Schedule I".
Schedule I contains many items which are common to Schedule II. Apparently, this
is an older list which may have existed in some form in the earlier Act. Some of the
common items found in both the Schedules are, drinking water/public water supply,
health and sanitation, plantation of forests, welfare of Schedules Castes and Tribes,
backward classes, family welfare, roads, bridges and public utlities etc. The point
to be noted is that the Act has placed constraints on both the Schedules being
operatinalised immediately
in the case of Schedule I, it is subject to the
availability of funds, in the case of Schedule II, it has to await the passing of the
"general or special order" by the State Government. Till such time there is little that
the Panchayat Raj Bodies can do, but they can hasten a decision on either issue by
strong lobbying with the State Government.
2.
Are the Panchayats envisaged to act as units of local self government or local
government or as an extension machinery or out-reach presence of the
state/central government?
The delay in framing the Rules and clarifying the position regarding Schedule I and
II has created understandable anxiety in the minds of many people who are keen
that the Panchayats start activising themselves as early as possible. Not much
thought is paid to the larger question of the true role of the Panchayats as the
repository of confidence and will of the people. Decentralizedplanning means planning
from the grassroots, where the needs of the village as a basic unit are to be articulated and
made the foundation for planning and allocation of resources. This means that the
p[planning model that is prevalent today, which allows a large numbers of national
programs — IRDP, DWCRA, JRY, ICDS, Adult Education, NLM, Non-formal Education,
and may others — are implemented uniformly throughout the 6 lakh villages ofthe country
should be given a second look.
This is especially relevant for Himachal Pradesh which has a topography, climate
and population density that is very different from the rest of the country in most
cases. It is the pattern of our village settlements, their isolation, lack of communica
tion etc. which should determine the way that our development programs are
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I
delivered and not a pan-Indian situation. Similarly, in every important sector,
health, education, vocational training, agriculture, forestry, road building etc. the
status should be analysed with reverence tow hat people possess and what they
lack and they try to fill in the gaps. With the increase in literacy that has occured
in recent years, for example, Himachal has an ever-increasing number of educated
blue-collar and white-collar youth — both men and women - who are swelling the
registers of the Employment Exchanges. This may not be the case with another state
in the country which is much more educationally backward. As an example,
Himachal has one of the largest proportions of women self-cultivating farmers in
the country. Himachal also has one of the lowest proportions of landless agricultural
labour as compared to other states. These are typical features at the State level but
even here there are wide differences between the districts and even within the
districts.
The altitude and the topography of Himachal determine the climate, the cropping
pattern, the occupational structure, the type of employment generation possible,
the natural resources available etc.
A genuinely decentralized administration by the Panchayat Raj bodies should take
these vital differences into consideration when conceptualizing and implementing
development programs. These details can be taken into account when people at the
level of the village are involved in the whole process of planning, from collection of
data and information onwards. Decentralized planning can be, therefore, a forum
for bringing all the local needs and interests into the open and the Panchayats have
to be the medium for making process possible. But the Panchayats also have a
responsibility to make the planning process transparent and accessible to the
general public. Otherwise there would be little difference between the old form of
centralized bureaucratic planning done from the capital and the new alternative.
For this to happen, the Panchayats should have the necessaiy flexibility to respond
to locale-specific situations and needs. They should also have the freedom to take
local decisions. It is not possible to say whether the Himachal Act gives this freedom
and autonomy to the Panchayats because it is silent on the scope and type of
decentralization which is proposed to be introduced. This can only be spelt out in
the Rules and other notifications to be issued in future. But is would be necessary
for the Panchayats to reflect on this issue right now.
Besides development administration, the Panchayats have to be involved in resource
mobilization. Fund availability is in fact a serious issue. The Gram Panchayat has
access to very limited funds in the existing set up as it does not yet have any formula
for sharing of resources with the State. However, the Finance Commission set up
under Section 98( 1) can review the financial position of the Panchayats and make
recommendations to the Government on the division of the taxes and other financial
resources of the State between it and the Panchayat Raj bodies. It can also make
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recommendations on the taxes, duties, tolls and fees which the Panchayats may by
themselves collect, appropriate or impose as well as the amount of grant-in-aid that
the Government is to make available to these bodies. Section 100 authorizes the
Panchayats to impose house tax, profession tax, surcharge on stamp duty, tech
bazaart, sanitation services fee, water rate etc. However, all these methods of raising
revenues is subject to the approval for the Government. The Finance Commission
is a creation of the Government and there seems to be no insurmountable barrier
to the Panchayats receiving their fair share of resources. But the power given to
them to raise taxes will be a very sensitive measure of how the public will view their
performance.
3.
Does the Act provide mechanisms by which the elected members of the
Panchayats can involve representatives of people’s organizations in the task of
local governance?
One of the dangers facing the Panchayats is the possibility of their turning into
closed systems. The Panchayats can legitimately claim that they represent the will
of the electorate and that this is sufficient for them to act on their own. The tendency
will then be for them not to involve other constituencies and lobbies in every day
working. The Act provides for Standing Committees to be constituted at all three
levels — GP, PS and ZP. These Committees are given responsibilities in particular
sectors, which may range from finance to social justice to agriculture, and they
become the chief instruments of activity and power of the Panchayats. How these
committees carry out their duties, how the membership is decided, what powers are
given to them etc. are therefore very important questions. The cooption of outside
members on these Standing Committees is a salutary feature of the Himachal Act. It
prevents the Panchayats from becoming a closed system, restricted only to those
who came in through the elections. It improves their contact with the general public
and makes the running of the Panchayat administration more open and transparent.
It also help the Panchayats to tap outside talent in the form of expertise, experience
and commitment. Unfortunately, in the Himachal Act the provisions for co-opting
outsiders on the Standing Committees exists only in respect of the Gram Panchayat, and
not the Panchayat Samiti nor the Zilla Parishad. This appears to be a deficiency as the
two higher levels of the Panchayats set up are responsible for planning coordination of
development activities relating to more than one Gram Panchayat / block.
At the Gram Panchayat, there are to be three Standing Committees all of which have
the power to co-opt members from outside, called the Production Committee. Section
23 lays down the details. There is a requirement for a woman member only on the
Social Justice Committee. But the functions of the Standing Committees themselves are
to be devolved through a process of delegation ofpowers by the Gram Panchayat. There is
need for greater clarity on this provision. Unless the Gram Panchayat itself is delegated
powers in respect of development schemes by the State, under Section 11(2), it cannot
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1
further delegate functions to the Standing committees. There are two constraints on
the authority or the autonomy of the Gram Panchayats to freely exercise their right
to choose the individuals they want to co-opt on the Standing Committees. First,
the Act lays down that the method of cooption is to be laid down in the Rules.
Secondly, the cooption of outside members can be made from farmers’ clubs, Mahila
Mandals and Yubak Mandate "and other bodies recognised by the Government". So,
the recognition of these bodies by the State becomes a crucial factor. It can choose
not do so with respect to any particular body, say a cooperative society, or a
voluntary organization, a trade union or any other such entity. So, the method of
cooption of the Standing Committees is to be decided by the State Government, Obviously,
this method is to be included as a part of the Rules, and till this is done, the Standing
Committees cannot be fully operational.
The Panchayat Samiti and the Zilla Parishad should also have similar powers to
coopt outside persons on the Committees, so that they can broaden their decision
making base and have fruitful interactions wit the other bodies involved in public
life and public dealings. Especially at the district level, where consolidation of
Panchayat Samiti plans, execution of inter Panchayat Samiti schemes, advising the
State Government on matters pertaining to development on a wide range of subjects,
etc. is to be carried out by the Zilla Parishad, the expertise of local resource agencies
and individuals can help in enriching the process.
At the block level, in addition to the 3 Standing Committees, the Panchayat Samiti
has the power to constitute one or more committees to conduct enquiries and
prepare reports on subjects relating to Panchayati Raj. Unfortunately, these
Committees are to consist only of elected members (Section 87). This section has
another provision --- Sub-section (2) — which authorizes the Samiti to appoint
Committees "for any part of the are of a Panchayat Samiti" to look after the execution
of any "measures" or works, or to inspect and supervise any institution under the
charge of the Samiti. These local area committees are to consist of "persons who are
residing within such area". Obviously, this means that persons other than elected
members can sit on these Area committees. Such an initiative is welcome, as it has
the advantage of involving local persons who may not be associated in any way with
Panchayats or with Panchayat politics, but who, as local residents are most closely
affected by the works or schemes and have first hand knowledge of the way
institutions are run and developmental activities carried out. The Panchayat Samiti,
by involving such persons, can hear the authentic voice of the rural public, the
concerned citizens, and can make changes in their programmes according to the
feed back received from.
Unfortunately, here again, the autonomy of the Panchayats is incomplete, as Section
87(3) lays down that the Constitution, term of office, powers duties and procedures
to be followed by the committees shall be laid down in the Bye-laws of the Panchayat
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Samiti. According to Section 187(3) the bye-laws can be framed by the Panchayats
but they shall not come into force until they have been confirmed by the prescribed
authority. Who the "prescribed authority" is, can be known only when the Rules
under Section 186 are notified. If the prescribed authority for confirming the bye
laws is kept at the lowest level possible, for example, the BDO for the Panchayat
Samiti, the Deputy Commissioner for the Zilla Parishad, and the appropriate local
official for the Gram Panchayat, the position can still be retrieved somewhat, but if
the authority is kept at higher levels, the advantage of having these committees Itself
would be eroded through delays and other bottlenecks.
4.
Does the Gram Sabha have adequate powers vis-a-vis the Gram Panchayat?
The Gram Sabha has been described as "the soul of Panchayat Raj". It is the body
that most truly reflects the relationship between the electorate and the elected. It is
a unique mechanism that is found only at the Gram Panchayat level and not at the
Panchayat Samiti or the Zilla Parishad level. The sense of accountability of the
elected members can be tested by a vigilant Gram Sabha. If the Panchayat system
is able to evoke and maintain the participation of the villagers at this level, this
sense of participation can permeate the entire PR system up to the district/Zilla
Parishad.
Unfortunately, in the country as a whole, not much attention is paid to the Gram
Sabha. The provisions in the Himachal Act pertaining to the Gram Sabha are the
following:
a)
The population of a Sabha is between 1000 and 5000. The headquarter of the
Sabha as well as the Sabha itself, shall be declared by the State notification.
In a Scheduled area, this population criterion can be relaxed. The Government
also has the general power to relax this provision, keeping in view the
topography of the area.
In Himachal, the area of some of the Gram Panchayats are very spread out, and this
comes in the way of holding well attended meetings. Since one Gram Panchayat
consists of many hamlets, there could be rifts and local pressures which could
prevent cohesion.
b)
The State has the power to alter the boundaries and the name of the Sabha
without taking its consent. But there has to be a previous notification of the
proposal to do so.
c)
The Sabha has to hold two meetings every year. The Pradhan bears the
responsibility for convening these meetings. Not more than 8 months shall
elapse between two meetings. One meeting is to be in summer and the other
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in winter. The place and the time of the meeting are to be published for general
information.
d)
One-fifth of the members of the Gram Sabha can requisition the Pradhan to
convene a meeting of the Sabha. The D.C., the Panchayat Samitl, or the Zilla
Parishad can also ask him to do so.
e)
The quorum for the meeting is one-fifth of the total number of the members of
the Gram Sabha. For an adjourned meeting, the quorum is one-tenth. THERE
IS NO SEPARATE QUORUM FOR WOMEN. This means that most of the Gram
Sabha meetings will take place without the participation, or with minimal
participation of women.
fl
The powers and functions of the Gram Sabha in so far as supervision and
management of the Gram Panchayafs work are concerned, are not very
extensive. They can ask questions and clarifications of the Pradhan and the
Up-Pradhan! They "shall consider...and make recommendations and suggestions"
to the Gram Panchayat on the annual statement of accounts, the administra
tion report, the audit report, its replies, and the development report, besides
other matters. [Section 7(2)]. As far as their role in general development is
concerned, the Act says that they shall identify beneficiaries, mobilize voluntary
labour, render assistance in the implementation of schemes etc. But to what
extent the Gram Sabha can make use of these provisions to invoke and sustain
the participation of the people in local governance will depend on the relation
ship between the Gram Panchayat and the Sabha and also on the way the Gram
Sabha exerts and asserts itself. Since the Pradhan and Up-Pradhan of the Gram
Panchayat are the ex- officio Pradhan and Up-Pradhan of the Gram Sabha as
well, the Gram Sabha needs to be conscious of the need to preserve an
independent profile.
h)
The Gram Sabha has the power to appoint one or more vigilance committees
consisting of not less than five persons who are not members of the Gram
Panchayat. These committees are to supervise the Gram Panchayat works in
the area and to put up reports on these activities in the meetings of the Gram
Panchayat. They also have to send them to a "prescribed authority". This is
the only case in the entire Act, where the Gram Sabha has the full autonomy
to set up these committees without getting approval or confirmation from any
other authority. Such vigilance committees are not provided at either the
Panchayat Samiti or the Zilla Parishad level. The other striking feature of this
provisions is that the members of these committees should not be the elected
members of the Gram Panchayat. If the Gram Sabhas can use this provision
constructively, and set up vigilance committees consisting of concerned and
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public spirited citizens, it can lead to greater involvement of the people in
activities of local governance.
The provisions given in Section 7 of the Act describe the duties and powers of the
Gram Sabha as well as the authority of the State over it. If the Gram Sabha is to
act as a mini-legislature, it should have some definitive powers. But the Act stops
short of giving the Gram Sabha the power of approving the statement of accounts
etc. and of treating the accounts as final only after they have been formally adopted
by the Sabha. Similarly, the Act lays down that the Gram Panchayat shall "give due
consideration” to the recommendations and suggestions of the Sabha! But it stops
short of saying that the Gram Panchayat is bound to obey the consensus decisions
of the Gram Sabha on accounts, general administration, progress on works and
other development activities etc. If some objections are raised by the Sabha members
on the audit note, for example, is there any way of ensuring that these points are
retained or noted by the Gram Panchayat for the purpose of attending to them and
reporting on them in the next meeting of the Gram Sabha ---or are they not recorded
at all? It appears that the Act has reduced the Gram Sabha to a mere advisory body.
It has no handle over the Gram Panchayat. If the Pradhan so wishes, it can be turned
into an ineffective paper tiger.
The Act lays down that a minimum of one-fifth of the members can requisition a
meeting of the Gram Sabha. On the other hand, the minimum quorum required for
an adjourned meeting is exactly half this number --- one-tenth. Generally the people
requisition a meeting of the Sabha when it has not been convened for many months
and it may be a case of the unwillingness of the Pradhan to do so. The range of
population of a Gram Sabha in Himachal is 1000-5000. It means that at least 200
to 1000 signatures are needed to convene a meeting of the Sabha against the will
of the Pradhan. On the other hand if the Pradhan wishes to push through certain
items in the meeting for which there is no quorum, he only has to adjourn it and
then manage to get a much lesser number of people to attend the same.
It is the general experience that the meetings of the Sabha do not evoke any
enthusiasm or excitement. The attendance is often very thin, and meetings have to
be adjourned for want of the quorum. Women, especially, rarely find the time or the
inclination to attend the Gram Sabha. One of the suggestions is to insist on a
separate quorum for the women, and to involve the Mahila Mandals and other
organizatins to ensure that the women have full information about the Sabha
meetings, that the month, date and the venue and especially the time of the day of
the meeting are fixed taking into consideration the convenience of the women both
from the point of view of their domestic work schedule as well as the agricultural
work cycle. Since the area of a Gram Sabha is spread out in Himachal, special efforts
are to be made to ensure that the meetings are well attended by both men and
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women and that this is treated as one of the most important days of the year in the
area.
Section 9 of the Act lays down that "the meeting of the Gram Panchayat shall be
public". This needs to be clarified, and the scope of the meeting being a public event
needs to be spelt out. The meeting of the Gram Panchayat is to take place at least
once a month, but the venue is invariably the office of the Gram Panchayat. It is to
be seen whether the meetings cannot be rotated in the different villages falling in
the Gram Panchayat. so that the people can have a greater sense of participation
in the management of the Panchayats. This sense of ownership and Involvement is
very important in view of the topography of the State as well as the isolated nature
of the hamlets in many areas and districts. Whereas the village, as an individual
entity, has a degree of social cohesion, the Gram Panchayat is only an administrative
unit and there may not be any strong bonding amongst the various village-con
stituents. It is very important to create this feeling of closeness and participation in
all the villages falling within the jurisdiction of a Gram Panchayat especially the
hamlets which are not easily accessible and feel themselves left out.
Section 26 lays down that the Gram Panchayat "shall" render such assistance as
may be prescribed"!!) with regard to the running and maintenance of the schools,
dispensaries and hospitals in the area. Here, the open question is, who will run the
sub-canter, PHC and other health facilities? What power will the Panchayat Raj
Institutions have in the running of schools and other canters in adult and non-formal education? The second part of the question is, even if the Panchayats are given
the power to supervise or aid in the management of these facilities, what is the extent
of public involvement that they will look for, and whether they have the freedom to
do so? All these details will have to await the issue of the "General and special orders"
of the Government as well as the main Rules under Section 186.
5.
Does the Act betray the intention of the framers to control the Panchayat Raj
Institutions functioning?
On the one hand, the inclusion of Schedule 1 and II gives the impression that the
intention is to involve the Panchayats in as wide a range of development activities
as can be imagined. Besides these two Schedules, there are various other provisions
scattered through the Act which spell out other activities which the Panchayats can
be authorized to carry out. There are also other provisions which detail the initiatives
which the State Government can take in transferring certain assets to the
Panchayats. Section 11 (4). for example, authorizes the State to transfer to any Gram
Panchayat the management and maintenance of forests, waste lands, pasture lands,
vacant lands, irrigation work, any public property, the collection of land revenue,
etc. The Gram Panchayat can also issue general orders regulating the use of water,
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the carrying on of activities deemed to be injurious to public health, the construction
of buildings, and other dangerous and offensive trades or practices.
However, the Act makes most of these activities contingent upon the formulation
and publication of Rules by the State or the issue of general or specific orders. The
bye-laws can be prepared by the Panchayat but are to be confirmed by the prescribed
authority. Only those organizations can be included or consulted by the Panchayats
which have been approved by the State. The method of cooption is also to be decided
by the State. The State can alter the boundaries of the Gram Sabha without
consulting the people. The Deputy Commissioner can order the Pradhan to convene
a meeting of the Gram Sabha. The reports of the Vigilance Committees have to be
sent to the "prescribed authority”. A majority of the members can ask in writing,
the Pradhan to call a meeting of the Gram Panchayat, but if he does not comply,
can go ahead and convene it" with the previous approval of the prescribed authority".
The State has the power to add to or to withdraw any function from the Panchayat
and take these upon itself. A joint activity of more than one Gram Panchayat has
to be carried out in accordance with the Rules. Two or more Panchayats shall if
directed to do so by the State, combine to start a school or a dispensary. The Gram
Panchayat has the power to draw up a model plan for a village. This has to be
approved not only by the Gram Sabha, but also by the State. Once this is done, all
building and repair activity in the village is subject to the provisions of the model
plan and the approval of the Gram Panchayat. However, the Gram Panchayat cannot
take any action against the defaulter without obtaining an order from the SDM.
Though any person can make a complaint to the Gram Panchayat against the public
misconduct of certain public servants, the Gram Panchayat cannot take any action
against him/her even though it has the power to conduct an enquiry in the matter.
The Gram Panchayat has to submit the report "along with the prima facie evidence"
to the concerned members of the higher bureaucracy. Action is to be taken by these
authorities. The Gram Panchayat is to be merely informed of the action taken. Public
servants against whom complaints can be made include (Government can extend
the list), pativari, peon, bailiff, constable, head constable, chauktdar, forest guard,
gram sewak, game watcher etc. (section 16). Section 28 lays down that the Gram
Panchayat shall, "if so prescribed and so far as practicable, assist any Government
servant in the performance of his duties within its area". The reverse --- what powers
the Gram Panchayat possesses over the Government servants who fail to carry out
their duties --- has not been touched upon anywhere in the Act. The provisions
regarding the jurisdiction of the Gram Panchayat to stop the sale of liquor is subject
to the approval of the State.
6.
To what extent are the powers of formulation of district plans decentralized to
the Zilla Parishad, Panchayat Samiti and the Gram Panchayat?
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Chapter XII of the Act lays down very basic and minimum parameters of the planning
process in the new set up. What is described in the Act does not take us very far
and does not provide any of the Important details. The process is to start from the
Gram Panchayat, which is to prepare a development plan every year and sent it to
the Panchayat Samlti. The Panchayat Samiti will consolidate the plans of all the
Gram Panchayats in the block and sent it to the Zilla Parishad, who, like-wise,
consolidates all the Panchayat Samlti plans as well as those received from the urban
bodies and frames a comprehensive plan for the whole district. The Chairman of the
Zilla Parishad then sends it to the State Government.
Besides this skeletal framework, the only other provision contained in this chapter
is the composition of the District Planning Committee. This body, which is the most
important district level mechanism for collection and collation of block-level plans,
then refining them before finalizing the Plan, contains MP’s, MLA’s elected members
of the Panchayat bodies/municipalities and representatives of the cooperative/land
development banks. No other technical/scientific organization or individual experts
are included. But there is a provision that the District Planning Committee shall
consult "such organizations and institutions as the Government may by order
specify" in preparing the draft development plan. Here again, the autonomy of the
Panchayats is left incomplete. The whole process of consultation is dependent on
the approval of the prescribed authority. For example, Himachal has three Univer
sities located in different places. They deal with important development subjects
such as forestry, animal husbandly, agriculture, horticulture etc. They have
complexes situated in many different parts of the Pradesh which attend to many
technical issues of local importance. Such institutions must be involved in the
planning process so as to gain advantage from the expertise that they possess.
The Himachal Act is also not clear on the involvement of the Panchayat Bodies in
the planning process after the district plans reach the State Headquarters. In fact,
above the district level, the Panchayats do not seem to have any presence. There is
no provision for any State-level body/committee in which the representatives of the
different Departments can sit with those of the Panchayats to discuss the problems
of coordination likely to arise in the implementation of the plans.
4
The Act does not specify how the Gram Panchayat will deal with the difficult task
of framing development plan on yearly basis for the area under its jurisdiction.
Besides the three Standing Committees and the other optional committees it can
constitute, the Gram Panchayat has no other mechanism it can call upon to initiate
and carry out the task of preparation of the annual plan. This involves collecting
information, meeting the representatives of the villages, understanding the
strengths and weaknesses of the programs as they are implemented at present,
deciding the new priorities, etc. This means that the Gram Panchayat office should
have a comprehensive set of documents containing all the relevant information
about the individual villages. The Act does not provide any information on the
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ft
resource position. Against what resource position should the Gram Panchayat
prepare their annual plan? Most important, the division of planning responsibilities
between the Panchayat bodies and the State departments has not been made. This
information is necessary so as to inform the Panchayats about the extent of their
own jurisdiction in each sector. The open question that still awaits an answer is
whether, in this area, the Panchayats will be able to take on the role of planners
and decision makers or whether they will remain as mere implementers.
7.
Does the Act pay attention to the need to involve the weaker sections in the
administration of the Panchayat Raj Institutions?
The situation with regard to women has been separately presented. It is seen that
beyond the stipulated reservation of 30% and the nomination of a woman member
in the Social Justice Committee at the Gram Panchayat level, there is no involvement
of women in the day to day conduct of work in Panchayat Raj. women’s question
has also been completely marginalised within the system, by making it a single issue
under the social justice umbrella. The fact that women’s work, roles, needs and
problems are equally, if not more important in productive sectors associated with
the Production Committee and the health and education sectors associated with the
Amenities Committee is Ignored. Women’s needs have been reduced to social welfare
and social security.
ft
In so far as Scheduled Castes and Tribes are concerned, not a single member of
these groups is required to sit on the Social Justice Committee, or any of the other
two Committees, though the reservation exists for both groups as stipulated In the
Constitution. This omission is all the more glaring when we consider that Himachal
has, perhaps, the highest percentage of Scheduled Castes in the country. There is
of course the possibility that a member/members of this group may get elected to
the Social Justice Committee. Here again, the question or the issue is one of
marginalisation versus mainstreaming --- a narrow view or a broad view. The
interests of Scheduled Castes, whether one looks at their involvement in agricul
tural, landbased, off-farm or service occupations or from the view-point of their lack
of education on par with the other castes, or their lack of access to health care, cut
across the work of all three Committees, and cannot be restricted to the work of the
Social Justice Committee alone. In all fairness, these groups should be fairly
represented in all Committees. There is the question of how to involve the members
of these groups from the larger community outside in the working of the Panchayat
bodies. This depends to a very great extent on how the Panchayat conducts itself,
how sensitive it is to issues of caste and tribe, how well it would implement the
development schemes meant for these organizations representing these groups and
interests.
207
a
H^esource Centre
Occasionat ‘Paper Series 9{p.5
Political Empowerment Of Women In
a
A Unique Social Context:
A Study In Kerala
Prepared by
Sreevidya K.R.
of Uma Resource Centre
and
Dr. Radha
of Institute of Management in Government,
Thiruvananthapuram
UMA Resource Centre
Institute of Social Studies Trust
"Shreeshyla", No. 42, 4th Temple Street,
15th Cross, Malleswaram, Bangalore - 560 003.
1995
4
Section 1 of this Occasional Paper is based on a
study undertaken by Ms.Sreevidya K.R. of the
UMA Resource team. This paper traces the his
torical perspective of the Kerala Women and the
State's decentralisation process.
Section 2 consists of the paper prepared by
Dr. Radha of the Institute of Management in
Government, Thiruvananthapuram and the dis
cussion that ensued at the Seminar organised by
the Institute of Social Studies Trust, Bangalore,
between 27 - 29 April 1995.
9
ft
Table of contents
Section 1
Introduction
[208-233]
208
1.1
Kerala : The Model State
208-213
1.2
Matriliny : The Unique Experience of Kerala
213-214
1.3
Women and Party dynamics
214-220
1.4
The thorny path to decentralisation
221-222
1.5
Gram Panchayats in Kerala
222-226
1.6
A profile of Women members
227-229
1.7
Conclusion
229-233
Section 2
[234-246]
2.1
Presentation of Dr. Radha’s Paper at the Seminar
234-237
2.2
Discussion of the paper
237-241
2.3
Case Studies
242-246
Section 1
INTRODUCTION
As Kerala heralds a new century, it is also likely to usher in a unique situation, a
situation unprecedented in the annals of modern India. While many other parts of
India are still on the threshold of an egalitarian development, Kerala is already far
ahead in terms of development indicators for women. What is unique about Kerala
is its cultural and social heritage contributed by the practices of matrilineality and
matrilocality. These practices strengthened the individual status of women in the
society. Their privileges over men and property and in the family, under
matrilocality were hallmarks of the higher status than that men enjoyed.
Anthropologists are delighted at the positive indicators of development which Kerala
has achieved for society at large and women in particular. But today Kerala faces
challenges of burgeoning consumerism caused by foreign remittances, increasing
migration instinct arising out of lack of employment opportunities, an individualistic
attitude as a result of educational exposure, and, a perceptible rise of male
dominance which is tiying to demarcate spaces for women. This has rather
weakened the position of women in society.
Earlier, women in Kerala enjoyed an enviable social status which the women in any
other part of the country could never enjoy. The breakdown of the Joint family
system to the nuclear family is cited as one of the major reasons for the transfor
mation in the power structure. Nuclear family system gave more social dominance
to the male. This had its sway in the political field too. It is rather surprising to
note that women all over India who were in the forefront of the freedom struggle
along with men, were denied the opportunities of a meaningful participation in the
political power after independence. This state of affairs continues even after five
decades of Independence. The number of women who take to political and social
activities is rather low in Kerala despite the fact that they outnumber men in
population and are more literate and educationally far ahead. A recent press report
states that girls outnumber boys from high school onwards. It has also been pointed
out that out of 141 MLA’s there are only 8 women in the Kerala State Legislative
Assembly; and out of 29 MP’s there are only 2 women MP’s from Kerala.1 The Kerala
society fertile for male dominance, does not provide a conducive atmosphere for
women’s participation in politics and administration. The new 73rd and 74th
Constitutional amendments ensure reservation of one-third seats for women in the
3-tier Panchayat administration and provide for a solution of a distressing situation.
This in a way, marks the return of power to women in a compensatory form which
was being slowly robbed away by male dominance in the political arena. However,
the extent of power, that men folk in Kerala will pass over willingly to their women
and how far these women will effectively sustain the impressive indicators to ensure
equal political participation and how they will make this participation meaningful
are matters yet to be seen.
Surendran, P.K., "Kerala’s Educated Women Give Husbands a Complex", The Times of
1.
India (Bangalore), 27 July, 1995
208
1.1
Kerala: The Model State
Kerala lies in the South - West comer of India bounded by the mountains of the
Western Ghats in the East and washed by the Arabian Sea in the West. Nature is
so bounteous that the land of 38,868 sq.km presents a scene of green and luscious
vegetation. It is a region Ideally suited for human habitation. Today the population
of Kerala is 29,098,518 with a growth rate of 14.32 percent. The pleasant climate
and the innumerable rivers and canals with perennial water criss-crossing the
country contribute to the thick density of population of 749 per.sq.km.
Kerala is the only state in India to have a sex-ratio in favour of women. Women
have their own contributions to make it the most literate state. Analysts have
consistently found that Kerala stands on a better footing when compared with other
Indian states in the matter of literacy, life expectancy and infant mortality. The
table below is in Itself self explanatory.
Table 1 : Demographic Particulars
India
Kerala
Population growth
23.85%
14.32
Density of Population
Sex Ratio
273 Sq.km
927 females
per 1000 males
749 Sq.km
1036 female per
1000 males
Literacy
52.19%
89.81%
Indicators
Female
Male
Life expectancy
Infant mortality
64 years
86.17%
93.32%
70-76 years
Below 60 per
17 per 1000
1000 live births
live births
39.19%
64.20%
* Source : Competition Success Year Book, 1995
These demographic indicators are favourable to women. Sociologists who have
studied Kerala refer to the 'Kerala Model’ as one which offers ‘lessons’ for policy
makers in other parts of the country.2 Different aspects of Kerala’s experience
contributed to this phenomenon. The position of women is the single most
important determinant. This change contributed to the unique demographic be
haviour and the nature of society.
2.
Kerala has been in the forefront in enacting many welfare legislations in the fields where
women work in large numbers, for eg., as handloom weavers, construction workers, tailors, agricultural
workers and as fisherwomen.
209
In the words of Robin Jeffrey, "In the years after 1920, a new assertive political
culture supplanted old Kerala’s ways of public conduct. Where many groups had
once been servile, large numbers of people became demanding. Where once most
people had dealings only with their families, relatives and patrons, they began to
organise in far larger numbers over wider areas. Where once lower castes were
excluded from particular areas near temples or the house of high caste, free
movement and unregulated public contact became normal. So too did public
discussions of most Issues, including politics in the widest sense. After 1948, hotly
contested democratic elections drove politicians and governments to try to provide
services and commodities that a vocal, increasingly organised population
demanded. In that population, moreover women had accepted roles as workers,
salary earners and even grudgingly as politicians. The ‘tea-shop’3 which women
labourers were almost as likely to frequent as men, symbolised the changed
conditions. Here as important as the food was the company, the conversation and
the newspaper".4
Government programmes encouraged parents to educate girls also and this im
proved the quality of life in family and in society at large. The age of marriage for
women rose and fertility fell, at the same time health facilities improved, mortality
declined and people saw a need for fewer children. The increased health awareness
among people and more scientific and modem health programmes sponsored by the
government improved public health and controlled contagious diseases. An im
proved understanding of their own health also helped them extract services (health
and family planning including birth control information and devices) from govern
ment.
Overview of the State
Kerala is a land of contrasts. The contrast is stark as social elements of yesterday
and today and ways of life centuries apart are found juxtaposed. The juxtaposition
is indeed fascinating. It is unique, yet paradoxical. When women the world over were
subjugated, Kerala could take pride in a society that treated her equally, gave her
equal education, gave equal property rights and above all gave her the freedom to
make the choice of marriage and family.
This tradition continued for 700 years until the British gained entry into this part
of the country. The first signs of missionary zeal were evident. It was British
hegemony that merged the isolated Kerala with the life of India. Social life began
3.
D. R. Mankekar, noted journalist, elevated the ’tea shop’ and called them the 'coffee
houses’ - an institution where public opinion is moulded ... the focal point in the village.
4.
186-200
Robin Jeffrey, 'Politics, Women and Well Being' Oxford University Press, 1993, pp.
210
to change under the Impact of English education and Western ways of thought.
This was particularly seen in the emerging patterns of marriage and family.
Right to hold lands was the prerogative of the upper classes. Most of the land in
Kerala was owned by the Brahmins or chieftains (all Nayars) or aristocratic high
caste families. The landlords were called Janmis who were all powerful. They
subletted their lands to Nayar tenants who in turn subletted it to other castes for
tilling. It is in this context that social gradation was marked and thejanmis (master)
enforced his will on the tenants to create subservience (slave or ‘adlyari)
The change in occupational patterns had a direct bearing on the caste system. The
ordinary villager went out in search of jobs which emancipated him from bondage
and also exposed his family to external influences.
Caste was the main support of feudal institutions. The caste system that prevailed
in Kerala was different from the other parts of India. Apart from the common division
into high and low castes as in the rest of India, castes were also divided on Patrilineal
and Matrilineal lines. Practice of caste system revolved around three principles of
Untouchability (touch taboo), unapproachability (approach taboo) and unseeability.
A Nambuthtri who belonged to the high caste kept a distance of 6 ft. from a Nair, 24
ft. from a Tiya, 36 ft. from a Kammalan and 72 ft. from the Nayadl. A similar
gradation existed among Nairs and Ambalavasis from the lower castes. The person
touched by a lower caste underwent a number of purificatory ceremonies. The caste
system was rigid because the lower castes were prohibited from entering temples.
Their women were forbidden from wearing clothes which reached beyond the knee
and above the waist. Certain ornaments, musical instruments, riding an elephant
and living in tiled houses were also forbidden. Any dereliction from this would result
in being beaten up. Thus intercaste subordination was universally accepted.
This rigidity was beginning to change from the early 20th century. Sri.Narayana
Guru pioneered efforts to create a new social order with the message of‘One Caste,
One Religion, One God’. "Sri.Narayana’s strategy was not a mere nibbling at the
fringe of the caste structure, but a direct onslaught on the very sanction of caste
orthodoxy.”5
When orthodox opinion hardened against untouchability, many threatened to leave
the Hindu fold. Even Dr.Ambedkar who championed the cause of Harijans is said
to have taken a decision to lead the Harijans for conversion to Islam only to save
themselves from the segregational atrocities of the Hindu fold. Even the places of
worship were shut against the Harijans. The then Maharaja of Travancore,
5.
Puthenkalam, S.J., ’Marriage and Family in Kerala’,: with Special Reference to matrilineal
Castes, Canada: Journal of Comparative Family Studies, University of Calgary, 1977. p. 22.
211
Sri.Chithira Thirunal, was bold enough to allow the Harijans to enter the temples
through his historical proclamation of temple entry in the year 1936. This marked
the end of the practice of untouchability in that part which constituted Travancore
State.
The ideals of freedom, equality and brotherhood imbibed and inspired by the English
education were seen as the prime reason for arousing social consciousness. Thus
"a movement from inherited achieved status began, a movement from the inter
dependence of castes to the competition of individuals, from traditional authority
to modern bureaucracy".6 An independent India inherited a Kerala devoid of the
age old matrilineal system. Nevertheless this contributed to the unique culture
which placed the women in a high position.
Matriliny: The unique experience of Kerala
1.2
Vasco-da-Gama landed at Calicut in 1498 and found Kerala divided into dozens of
rival principalities. But the region had an ancient unity. According to Brahminical
legend, the creation of Kerala resulted from the banishment from India of the God
Parasurama.7 The legend, attempts to justify some of the most important features
of a traditional society in Kerala - the hold of the high caste Hindus on the land, the
Matrilineal system of the Nayars and their relationship with the other castes.
Matrilineal system or the rnarumalckatayarn rested on the pre- dominant rights
women possessed in the family. Descent and succession to property were traced
through females. The mother formed the stock of descent. Kinship as well as rights
to property was traced through females and not through males. Women had always
been recognised as having independent rights.
Under Marumakkatayam "Marriage was, in theory at any rate, a union by affection,
an ideal towards the attainment of which civilised societies are still eagerly looking
forward. Marriage in Malabar, for the woman as a party to the contract stood in
the same position with man". Marumakkatayam literally meant in heritance by
sister’s children as opposed to sons and daughters. The wives and children belonged
to a different family and had no rights in the property left by the
6.
Robin Jeffrey ’Decline of Nair Dominance’, Vikas Publishing House, 1976.
7.
Parasurama reclaimed his land with a throw of an axe from Cape Comorin to Gokarna.
The sea receded and Kerala was formed. To populate this land, he introduced a special race of
Brahmins (Nambudiris) and give them absolute ownership of land and unique customs and a special
race called Nayars to act as bodyguards. He bestowed on them the matrilineal system of family and
inheritance.
8.
Balakrishnan, P.V., ’Matrilinealsystem in Malabar, Kannur: Satyavani Prakasham, 1981.
212
husband or father. This was based on the matrilocal Joint family called the tharavad.
All members of the tharavad descended from a common female ancestor but the
management of tharavad affairs was bested in the eldest male member, the
karanavar; the system was matrilineal not matriarchal. The property and assets
were held in common by all members and no individual could claim his/her share
of the joint property. The Junior members enjoyed certain rights and remedies like
1. Right to succeed to the Management
2. Right to be maintained by the Karanauar
3. Right to object to improper administration of property
4. Right to bar an adoption
5. Right to get a share at any partition.
Each woman was visited by her husband at night. The male members of her own
tharavad similarly went out at night to visit their wives. Marriages were contracted
and ended with considerable ease. A man negotiated with a woman’s kamavar,
obtained the woman’s consent, and presented her with a cloth. This was called
sambandham or union. Either the man or the woman could end the Sambandham
(union) with little formality. Impartibility was an essential feature of the marumakkatayam, system. There could be no partition without the concurrence of all the
members of a tharavad by which tharavads could claim very long lineage and
ancestry.
End of Ma tri liny...
The social and political change resulted from the impact of a cash economy, western
style of education, improved communication and a British inspired system of law
on the complex social structure changed this Indian princely state. Tharavads like
many family corporations had a natural tendency towards disintegration with the
progress of social evolution. A Nair woman who lived with her people had a right to
maintenance in her Tharavad property. But she needed many more things besides
maintenance and the Tharavad was not legally bound to provide her with all of them.
She looked to her husband for the satisfaction of many of these needs. As the
century progressed, her reliance on her husband increased. Thus their relationship,
formal under the old matrilineal organisation, became more personal.
The matrilineal family organisation gave rise to conflict between two loyalties, the
matriarchal and the matrimonial. "The Ttiaravad huddled together as a family a
number of distant relatives not necessarily drawn to each other by any bond of
natural affection. It made home life Impossible, for the father was a casual visitor,
213
and the mother and children were but units in a heterogeneous flock, dependent
on a practically irresponsible guardian, who from the mere accident of his being the
eldest of the flock, was expected to regard every member with impartial love and to
prefer their interest to his own".9 The Madras Marukamakkatayam Act of 1933 was
"an Act to define and amend in certain respects the law relating to marriage,
guardianships, interstate succession, family management and partition, applicable
to the Marumakkattayam Law of inheritance". The Madras Marumakkattayam
Act, 1933 did away with the matrilineal Joint family. Every adult member became
entitled to claim his or her share of properties of the tharavad. A wife was made the
legal heir to all her husband’s self-acquired property’.
At about the same time, there was a recognition of a public Sambandham as a legal
marriage and the man became the legal guardian of his wife and children. Also by
1922 the process of subcaste fusion was almost complete. Growth of social
assertiveness and political aspirations among the deprived classes hastened this
process. Lower castes threatened to convert to Islam and Christianity and some to
atheism and Karl Marx. The missionaries, the independence movement and the Sri
Narayana Dharma Paripalana Sangham (SNDP) movement acted as catalysts.
People wanted a change even in political governance.
Matrilineal system in Kerala served as a vital force in society uninterruptedly for
centuries. Modern concepts of individualism, resistance, political and economic
changes led to its withdrawal from the social plane, eventually leading to its decay.
1.3
Women and Party Dynamics
Political activity in Kerala is always very intense and lively. The fate of a government
is largely determined by the people, who have a higher degree of political conscious
ness. "Though many people identify politics with political parties, politics has
entered the day-to-day life of people including those who think that they have no
politics".10
9.
This is a quote from the Malabar Marriage Commission's Report which was published
towards the end of 1891. The deliberations of the Commission led to the passing of Act IV, 1896 entitled
"An Act to provide a form of marriage for persons following the Marumakkatayam or Aliyasanthanam
Law".
10.
K. Sharadamoni, : "Kerala: Society and Politics", International Congress on Kerala
Studies, Thiruvananthapuram : Institute of Management in Government, p.41 (From Women's Policy
Research Advocacy Unit Library, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore).
214
Yet, women are conspicous by their absence in Kerala politics except as voters. Only
a miniscule number are elected to the Parliament and State Legislature. At the local
level, there are a significant number of women in the decision making bodies. This
is attributable to the reservation policy in local elections which mandatorily brings
in women. Social background of these women who have taken up positions in the
last local bodies is indeed impressive. The last District Council elections brought
474 woman members.11 Out of the 372 woman interviewed, most of them read 3
newspapers a day. Widespread literacy combined with exposure to communication
media implies that members are well-informed about public affairs. Inspite of an
Inherent, conducive environment for political growth of women, why they have failed
to make an impact of their own in societal development and administration is a
matter to be studied carefully.
One of the reasons cited for this unpleasant trend is that men have dominated the
political scene and observers feel that "patriarchy has come back with a vengeance".
Women shun politics condemning it as dirty and an expensive game run by men.
Moreover the Party leadership is vested with a male who enjoys patronage, money
and the selection of candidates for office. A political party will field a women only
if it is assured of positive results. Most often women get a berth in the party only
because of their prominent connections in the political world. An example was the
former Minister of State in the Communist State Government of Kerala
Smt.K.R.Gauri. But even her story proved that the communists too were reluctant
to allow a woman into the highest level of the party. In the last elections, the party
projected her as the prospective Chief Minister in their election campaigns. But
after the elections, in which the party had secured a majority, it conveniently
sidelined her.
This act invited the wrath of many people, as it was only a political strategy to attract
women voters. Also the leftist parties had neglected mobilisation and organisation
of women on their special issues in the past. Their lack of concern for organising
women on special issues cannot be attributed to the male leadership of the parties,
but to the fact that the leadership is adhering to the leftist idology.12 But a
noticeable fact is that these parties have mass bases among workers and peasants.
Women are more visible at this level of the hierarchy.
11. B.S. Khanna, Panchayat Raj in India (Rural Local Self Government: National Perspective
and State Studies), New Delhi : Deep and Deep Publications, 1994, p. 202
12. Chaya Datar, "The Left Parties and the Invisibility of Women : A Critique", Teaching
Politics, vol. 10, Annual Number, 1984 (From Women’s Policy Research Advocacy Unit Library,
National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore).
215
«
I
Kerala has always been affected by political instabiUty. Between 1956 and 1994,
the state witnessed 10 elections and 15 ministries. Political parties are taking refuge
in caste/community denominations to stay in power. "In the choice of candidates,
the voting strength of different caste/religious groups was always considered by all
political parties. Now they have become Independent forces, able to play the number
game and with the ability to instil in an increasing number of people the desire to have
a caste/religlous identity.13
Added to the pressure of fighting a lone battle to gain entry, the woman is also faced
with the competing forces of communalism. Robin Jeffrey observes that the pres
sures working against women’s public political activity are as great in Kerala as
elsewhere in India. Thus, out of choice, women prefer to do something else that will
give them more security and stability. That is why we see a large number of women
concentrated in the service sector, more so in the lower cadres. This, to many
observers, gives the impression that people have drawn Invisible spaces and
demarcated mobility of women saying, "thus far and no further".
Men have become so domineering that, more often to counter competition they
indulge in the ugly game of character assassination. They usually subject women
to humiliation and ridicule. An incident narrated at the ISST seminar is a glaring
example.14 At a Panchayat meeting, one woman got up to say ‘priority’ should be
given to the issues concerning women and the Malayalam equivalent of the word
she used for priority was ‘munthukam’ ('Mun’ in a certain context means front and
’thukam' means weight) One male member retorted lewdly, "even otherwise you have
a lot of munthukam".
The retort was ridiculous in the sense that the male member was referring to the
bodily features of the lady. The ridicule is so atrocious that one Panchayat President
even put forth a proposition to measure the capability of the prospective elected
women representatives. He stated that a woman should contest elections only, if
she can climb a coconut tree. Such primitive attitudes still persists. Women
distance themselves from this denigration in political life with its fall in public
morality, corruption, infighting and intrigues, dishonesiy and patronage, not to
speak of money and muscle power.
Women, over the last two decades did not move towards raising any crucial political
issues. They did not form a perspective of their own and their relation to the power
13.
ibid, no, 10, p. 42
14. Paper presented by Dr. Radha of the Institute of Management in Government, Thiruvananthapuram, at the Seminar organised by the Institute of Social Studies Trust, Bangalore, April 1995.
216
equations. The oncoming Panchayat elections are based on the reservation policy
which will mandatorily bring in not less than 33.33% of women into the decision
making bodies. The political parties have once again swung into action to cash in
on the situation. Many political parties have taken up training programmes apart
from several voluntary organisations like the Kerala Sahitya Shastra Parishad. They
have recently initiated several training sessions for Panchayat members, particularly
women. This may be a political strategy, but nevertheless it is going to bring in a
change in the political scenario of the State.
The elections are overtly political with all parties encouraging women to further their
interests. Finally she has been given a choice, but with the unique background and
modern challenges, the women have an uphill task to judiciously prioritise their
needs to further development of the society at large and the women in particular.
Since there is already the mandate regarding the reservation percentage, one-third
of the total number of elected members in the panchayat municipal administration
will certainly be women. But that alone is not enough. The constitutional mandate
in favour of women casts high responsibilities on them which inter-alia include
purging the malodorous political field, withering down the intensity of corruption
and making the administration beneficial and subserving to common good.
The new experiment of substantial participation of women in politics and ad
ministration should help create at least among them an awareness about the
democratic process in our country. Almost all welfare activities Including those
relating to women and children which were hitherto being carried out by the state
have now become the responsibilities of the panchayats under the Kerala Panchayat
Raj Act 1994. A situation of taking unilateral policy decisions touching upon women
behind their back will not occur any more .
Though the Panchayat Raj Act does give sufficient backing to the women to explore
the political field which is hitherto dominated by menfolk, it is doubtful whether our
society will show the maturiiy to accept them as policy makers and to provide them
with necessary moral backing to make the concept of democracy meaningful. But
it is hoped that the vigilant woman members will not betray the Constitutional
aspirations reposed in them and projected through the 73rd and 74th amendments
of the Constitution.
The following tables show the number of women to be elected into the three tier
Panchayat system in the coming elections.
217
Table 2(a): Number of Women to be Elected to the Gram Panchayats
Name of Zllla
Total
Women
ST
SC
Seats
SC
ST
Women
Women
Thiruvananthapuram
949
341
119
6
35
Kollam
848
302
114
1
39
Pathanamthitta
521
186
75
3
17
Aalapuzha
744
273
93
Kottayam
756
274
75
8
5
2
Idukki
494
181
76
25
17
6
Ernakulam
890
319
100
Trishu r
1066
389
138
1
40
Palakkad
950
346
153
16
57
Malapuram
1110
398
107
2
12
Kozhicode
856
311
86
1
11
Wayanad
270
98
9
49
22
Kannur
856
309
69
13
1
Kasargod
410
151
42
11
5
3
Total
10720 3878
1256
136
274
40
22
14
Source: Directorate Of Panchayat Raj, Thiruvananthapuram, 1992
4
218
6
Table 2(b): Number of Women to be Elected to the Block Panchayat
Name of Zilla
Total
Women
ST
SC
Seats
SC
ST
Women
Women
Thiruvananthapuram
132
47
17
5
Kollam
134
49
18
5
Pathanamthitta
78
29
12
3
Aalapuzha
149
41
14
2
Kottayam
105
39
10
1
Idukki
72
26
11
4
Ernakulam
138
49
15
Trishur
161
60
19
Palakkad
132
46
22
Malapuram
162
59
15
1
Kozhicode
125
45
14
2
Wayanad
36
13
1
6
Kannur
106
38
7
2
Kasargod
53
20
4
1
Total
1583
564
179
17
3
2
3
Source: Directorate Of Panchayat Raj, Thiruvananthapuram. 1992
219
9
1
3
32
4
Table 2(c): Number of Women to be Elected to the Zilla Panchayat
Name of Zilla
Total
Women
ST
SC
Seats
SC
ST
Women
Women
Thiruvananthapuram
25
9
3
1
Kollam
25
9
3
1
Pathanamthitta
15
5
2
1
Aalapuzha
21
7
2
1
Kottayam
21
7
2
1
Idukki
15
5
2
Ernakulam
24
8
2
1
Trishur
25
9
3
1
Palakkad
25
9
4
2
Malapuram
25
9
2
1
Kozhicode
25
9
2
1
Wayanad
15
5
1
Kannur
24
8
1
Kasargod
15
5
1
300
104
30
Total
1
1
3
4
Source: Directorate Of Panchayat Raj, Thiruvananthapuram, 1994
220
12
1
1.4
The Thomy Path to Decentralisation
Kerala was one of the first states to initiate moves towards political and administra
tive decentralisation. The process, nevertheless, was one of intense activity in the
evolution of the Kerala Panchayat Act 1994.
The Administrative Reforms Committee appointed by the State Government in 1957,
headed by Srl.E.M.S. Namboodiripad had recommended strengthening of
Panchayats. This was seen as a viable and basic unit of administration and
development at the panchayat level. Reconstitution of taluk and block was en
visaged to facilitate the combination of the revenue and development function at the
taluk level. In the District, the Committee wanted the District Council to be advisory
in function and that all development departments should work under it. The
recommendations of the committee were introduced as the Kerala Panchayat Bill
and the District Council Bill, but could not be enacted as law as the legislature was
dissolved.
In 1960, the then new government introduced the Kerala Panchayat Union council
and Zilla Panchayat Bill. Here the Block Panchayat was to be the basic unit of
planning and development. They would have an elected Panchayat Union Council
to carry out developmental activities. The District level would have an advisory Zilla
Parishad. Again, this did not create an impact because the Government fell out of
power.
In 1967, the Ministry headed by Sri.E.M.S. Namjroodiripad introduced the Kerala
Panchayat Raj Bill 1967. The Bill contemplated a two tier system - the Panchayat
at the basic level and the Zilla Parishad at the district level. The select council that
studied this bill had recommended major modifications in the functions and power
of the Zilla Parishad, to be called District Councils. The Bill could not become law
as it lapsed in August 1970 when the legislative Assembly was dissolved.
The Achuta Menon Government in 1971, then introduced the Kerala District
Administration Bill which had incorporated the Select Committee recommenda
tions. Even this Bill lapsed as the government fell. However, an attempt to revive
it was taken up in 1978 by the A.K.Antony Ministry. The structure resembled the
1971 Bill and with certain modifications. The Bill was passed in the legislature in
1979 and received Presidential assent on 18th May 1980. At the same time
E.K.Nayanar’s government came to power. They made no effort to implement the
Act.
Every Bill put forth In the history of decentralisation in Kerala envisaged the two
tiers which would have executive functions at the District and lower levels. The
third tier was invisible as it would be only advisory in nature. The Kerala government
commissioned a study of the defects of the 1979 Act headed by V.Ramachandran.
221
The report entitled "Report on the Measures to be taken for Democratic Decentralisa
tion at the District and Lower Level" was submitted in 1988. Amendments were
proposed to 37 sections and 33 schedules in the Act. The report also suggested
reservations for SC & ST and 30% of the seats for women. Consequently elections
were held to the District Council in 1990. For two and a half years District Councils
were in existence and these bodies were dissolved.
Kerala was often the scene of unstable political situations. As governments in power
which wanted to Initiate the process of local governance fell, and as they were
reluctant to share power with the local bodies - the path to decentralisation was
ridden with ambiguities and non-committal attitudes. At this juncture came the
73rd Constitutional Amendment Act 1992, mandating the creation of Panchayats
at three levels in all districts in the country. In March 1994, the State Government
introduced the Kerala Panchayat Raj Bill 1994. The Bill was passed with substantial
changes taking into consideration of about 3500 amendments suggested by the
Legislative Assembly. The Kerala Panchayat Raj Act 1994 came into force on May
22, 1994 repealing the District Administration Act of 1979.
The new Act conformed to the mandatory provisions of the Constitution. It is
proposed to increase the Gram Panchayats to 1093 from 1001 and 152 Block
Panchayats to co-exist with rural development blocks and 14 District Panchayats
in Kerala. The powers and functions of the Panchayat at each of these levels are
listed in detail which include 126 items for the Gram Panchayat, 29 items for Block
Panchayats and 80 items for district panchayats. Gram Sabhas are to be held
regularly which will mobilise community efforts. The new Act will be seen in action
only from September 1995 when elections to all three tiers will be held.
1.5
Grant Panchayats in Kerala
At present, Kerala has a one tier system of Panchayat. There are 1001 Gram
Panchayats in the State covering 1219 villages and 206.82 lakh of rural population.
Elections to these Panchayats were last held in 1987. The Panchayat had been
entrusted with the responsibility for both obligatory civic and discretionary develop
mental functions. The obligatory civic functions relate to expansion and main
tenance of local roads and works, lighting of streets, drainage and sanitation,
provision of drinking water, prevention of epidemics, control of offensive and
dangerous trades, maintenance and improvement of certain irrigation works. The
discretionary functions relate to socio- economic development schemes, program
mes and activities concerning education, public health, social welfare, agriculture,
15. None of the responsibilities which could have been entrusted with the District Councils
was virtually given to them. The District Councils which came to power, full of sound and fury, were
reduced to toothless organs. The reluctance to give up power in favour of the District Councils was
rampant ever since the induction of the Councils.
222
animal husbandry, public works and village industries. Each Panchayat has set
up five Standing Committees. The new Act stipulates that at least one member of
the Social Justice Committee should be a woman.
The main sources of the income of the Panchayat are through taxes (compulsory
and optional), statutory grants, non-statutoiy government grants and loans. On
the basis of size of their respective income Panchayats had been classified as:
a)
b)
c)
d)
Special grade Panchayats having an income of more than Rs. 1.75 lakh
Grade I Panchayats having an Income between Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 1.75 lakh
Grade II Panchayats having an income between Rs.50,000 to Rs. 1 lakh
Grade III Panchayats having an income less than Rs.50,000
Table 3 : Zilla Panchayat Bifurcation in Kerala
Name of Zilla
No. of
No. of
Taluk
Blocks
Panchayat Grade Distribution
Special
Grade
Grade
Grade
Grade
I
I
HI
Total
Thiruvanan
thapuram
4
12
36
41
7
84
Kollam
5
13
45
25
1
71
Path anamthitta
5
9
22
30
2
1
55
Aalapuzha
6
12
20
41
9
1
71
Kottayam
5
11
28
36
8
1
73
Idukki
4
8
17
22
11
1
51
Ernakulam
7
15
34
38
14
86
Trishur
5
17
49
40
9
98
Palakkad
5
12
20
39
30
2
91
Malapuram
4
14
18
28
47
2
95
Kozhicode
3
12
22
31
24
77
Wayanad
3
3
13
9
3
25
Kannur
3
9
18
40
25
Kasargod
2
4
6
15
16
Total
61
151
348
435
206
Source: Directorate Of Panchayat Raj, Thiruvananthapuram, 1992
223
2
85
37
10
999
The government grants are distributed among Panchayats keeping in view this,
classification.
Table 4 : Panchayat Tax Grant
Zilla
Area
Name of
Zilla
Total
Collection
Amt. due to
Panchayat
25%
to Govt.
75%
Panchayat
Panel Share Amt. 1994-95
Trivandrum
Kollam
Pathanamthitta
Aalapuzha
Kottayam
Idukki
Ernakulam
Trishur
Palakkad
Malapuram
Kozhicode
Wayanad
Kannur
Kasargod
3713000
5629000
6084000
6338000
9930000
6958000
10402000
9035000
12762000
13399000
9996000
6074000
12895000
8161000
3493562
5296326
5724436
5963424
9343137
6546782
9787242
8501032
12007766
12607119
9405235
5715027
12132905
7678685
873390
1324082
1431109
1490856
2335784
1636696
2446810
2125258
3001941
3151780
2351310
1428757
3033226
1919671
2620172
3972244
4293327
4472568
7007353
4910086
7340432
6375774
9005825
9455339
7053925
4286270
9099679
5759014
2039.25
2426.55
2657.28
1250.94
2153.91
5059.23
2132.64
2901.54
4369.51
3399.23
2149.68
2091.54
2796.05
1904.94
1529549
2318830
2506265
2610898
4090596
2866300
4285034
3721908
5257216
5519620
4117778
2502140
5312001
3361865
28550670 85652008
37382.29
50000000
Total____________ 121376000 114202678
Exp. for
1 sq.km
750.0
955.61
943.17
2087.17
1899.15
566.55
2009.26
1282.74
1203.16
1623.79
1871.99
1196.31
1899.82
1764.81
There is an Executive Officer for all grades but together they are under the
Executive Officer of the State Civil Service.
Table 5 : Officials in the Panchayat Set-up
Panchayat Director
Joint Director
(Expansion)
Joint Director
(Administration)
r
... T
Administrative
Assistant
Finance
Officer
Deputy Chief
Registrar
I
Publicity
Officer
Law
Officer
I
I
Principal Local Self
Training Centre
Regional Panchayat
Deputy Director
Zilla Panchayat Officer
(14)
Taluk Panchayat Officer
(61)
Panchayat Inspector
(151)
Special Grade Panchayat
Executive Officer (348)
I
r
T ~
Account
Officer
I
I
First Grade Panchayat
Second Grade Panchayat
Third Grade Panchayat
Executive Officer (435)
Executive Officer (206)
Executive Officer (10)
Source : Directorate of Panchayat, Thiruvananthapuram, 1992
224
Here the Government exercised substantial degree of control as it closely monitored
the functioning of the Panchayats. It could supercede or dissolve a Panchayat on
specified grants.
In order to enable the Panchayats to take up schemes of local relevance on their
own, a provision in the state budget is set up, as untied funds for Panchayats.
Table 6 : Zilla Level Untied Funds Sanctioned for Panchayats (in lakhs)
Total
General
Special
SC/ST/OBC
Sector
Plan
Plan
Thiruvananthapuram
165.71
71.56
11.56
248.83
Kollam
128.94
66.64
2.58
198.16
Pathan amthitta
105.90
38.60
4.29
148.79
Aalapuzha
145.17
58.74
3.03
206.94
Kottayam
140.64
47,52
9.85
198.01
Idukki
Ernakulam
100.91
31.49
24.85
157.25
168.71
63.55
3.84
236.10
Trishu r
Palakkad
189.11
84.73
5.84
279.68
85.88
12.54
Malapuram
190.21
210.04
72.14
9.27
288.63
291.45
Kozhicode
161.01
50.95
7.16
219.12
Wayanad
44.08
10.53
28.05
82.66
Kannur
172.41
35.95
13.00
221.36
Kasargod
77.16
31.72
14.14
123.92
Total
2000.00
750.00
150.00
2900.00
Name of Zilla
Source: Directorate Of Panchayat Raj, Thiruvananthapuram, 1992
The Panchayats also drew up their own Five Year Plans. These plans had several
weaknesses. Nevertheless, the fact that Panchayats, instead of drawing back on
the grounds of inadequate information base and insufficient technical support from
departmental officials, went ahead and formulated their development plans was, in
itself, an advance in the sense that there was intense desire on their part to be
involved in local level planning.16
I.S. Gulati, Panchayati Raj and Development, Muvattupuzha: Msgr. Thomas Nedumkallel
Memorial Committee Lecture , 1994
16.
225
e
The State Government has also involved all the elected bodies in the state in theJBth
Plan exercise. The new Kerala Panchayat Raj Act reserves not less than 33.33% of
seats for women in all the three tiers of the Panchayats. Also it provides for a Gram
Sabha. The Act also stipulates the mandatory setting up of the State Finance
Commission, which will recommend and devolve the funds/financial power allo
cated by the State legislature. The new Act also stipulates the appointment of a State
Election Commissioner for Superintendence, direction and control of the prepara
tion of electoral rolls and conduct of elections to the Panchayats.
The District Council elections were last held in 1991. Members were elected directly
to, from territorial constituencies on the basis of adult franchise. 10% was reserved
for SC or their population whichever is higher and one seat for ST. For women it
was not less than 30%. In the first elections, the actual number of successful
candidates belonging to these classes was even higher than the reserved quota as
several candidates had won in the general constituencies as well.
The unpleasant inclusion to this body was MLA and MPs who enjoy the dual
membership of a person in executive and decision malting bodies. He could
nominate a member of his area. "This has not been received favourably since this
may lead to over centralisation in the democratic decision making process and would
be detrimental to the emergence of a vibrant local leadership".17 Also this was a
keenly contested election between Left Democratic Front and the United Democratic
Front securing 321 and 150 seats out of474 respectively. Also the District Collector
who was designated as the Chief Executive Officer was provided with a Deputy
Collector as Secretary nominated by the government. The District Councils were
dissolved after two years. Reasons cited for this faltering progress to decentralisa
tion were the unstable coalition governments and their lack of commitment to give
up part of their powers, the overbearing attitude of the bureaucracy, Inadequate
co- ordination between the Panchayats and the Municipalities and the absence of
Gram Sabha for grass-root participative democracy.
Several of these shortfalls are taken care of in the new Act. But the details of the
Act are still under review and preparation. Elections to all the tiers are to be held
in September as per the government’s notification. The success of the new system
is still debatable and how far the women will make a mark in the new system is yet
to be seen.
17. K.R. Sastry, "Kerala Panchayat Raj Act Without Substance", Economic and Political
Weekly, vol. 30, no. 30, 29 July, 1995.
226
1.6 A Profile of Some Women Members (Based on Field Study conducted in
June 1995)
Smt.Santhanam Valli, at 50, is the Mahila Samaj Union President at the Block
Level in Vattiryoorkav Panchayat. There are 12 Blocks in Trivandrum with 32
Mahila Samajams. She is a lady of grit and determination. Her immense work
stands witness to it. With a good knowledge about the various schemes, she has
procured for her Block all the benefits that the Government has to offer. On her
own initiative, she has set up an umbrella assembling unit and Mushroom cultiva
tion for the poor women members of her jurisdiction (she has in her Jurisdiction 4
Wards).
Today she cries out for more funds to sustain her unit. She says ‘help me see these
poor women economically independent’. She is of the opinion that, the Government
is not serious about their commitments. Once elections are over, they turn a
Nelson’s eye to our problems. She is determined to make these women independent,
for then their position within their family and in society will change. No more will
they have to depend on their husbands for money. She fears a backlash because
the women then will be left to fend for the family, yet, to her it seems better than
being in the receiving end.
Smt.Ayesha Bibi, of Pothankod Panchayat is however enthusiastic to contest again.
Her party is already preparing to field her. However, she would do it only if her
husband consents. She is a very articulate woman, who, claims to have done much
for her ward. But people are not ready to take her claims in their face value. The
levels of education being high in the state, an articulate woman like her is still looked
down by the people only because she has not completed her schooling. She is happy
with the work she has done. She faces no inequality at the meeting venue as she
proudly says that she is also respected and her views are given due weight. She
was instrumental in making the first round of the Literacy Programme a success.
She remembers with nostalgia the happiness in seeing the transition of many from
darkness to light as she says ‘Knowledge is Power’. She herself is well informed
about Government policies and programmes through the media. She had contested
for the first time and the response was veiy encouraging. People are extremely
supportive of her. The success, she says, "depends on their continued support and
patronage".
Smt.Savithri Amma. at 55, is of the opinion that the Gram Sabhas are a failure
for she says, people’s pre-occupations have become so important that community
affairs have taken a backseat. She is from the Vattiyoorkavu Panchayat. The Party
she represents, encouraged her in her elections. She was assured of the Rs 20,000
she spent on the election campaign by her party, but she has not received the
amount as yet.
She is not happy about the fund utilisation. She cited the example of a contractor
who cheats in connivance with the authorities giving the wrong estimates and taking
up the work on the basis of wrong estimate and then sharing the profit with them.
227
There are several bureaucratic wrangles. Hence it takes time for the funds to
materialise. She would not contest again as another woman should be given a
chance. For this, the training programmes are a morale booster to encourage new
people.
Smt.Indira Bai, (a B.Sc, B.Ed) of the Pothankod Panchayat who was elected a
member, vehemently vows that she is not going to contest again. Her point of
contention is that she cannot combine the roles of a teacher (by profession), a
homemaker (by choice) and a Panchayat member (by preference). This is one of the
ground realities that policy makers have failed to take cognizance of - that of
providing support services. Unless elected women representatives are assured of
an alternative, the nation will lose conscientious and competent leaders.
All these women are articulate and aware of their positions, and their limitations
and the strengths in the new political set-up. But they are unaware of the prospects
and challenges of the new Act. Most observers feel that there is an immediate need
to build awareness of the new Act. The new Act should percolate down to all the
members of the society. Only then will they be equipped to face the challenges of a
new system.
Table 7 : Particulars of Panchayat Samithi Members
Name of Zilla
Total
Ward
Election
on held
wards
Candidates
Male
Members
Female
Members
SC
ST
SC/ST
elected from
gen. seats
Thiruvana
9
150
88
74
13
3
408
113
56
1
2
717
570
147
732
780
586
377
146
103
4
Idukki
733
480
72
69
36
17
Ernakulam
860
859
682
177
92
6
Trishur
1009
1009
807
202
115
17
Palakkad
894
998
708
808
186
190
85
99
10
Malapuram
894
999
Kozhicode
804
804
648
156
75
2
Wayanad
256
848
369
206
50
10
21
675
Kasargod
256
848
369
295
173
74
77
28
8
9
Total
10181
10176 8140
2036
976
81
nthapuram
886
885
716
169
Kollam
805
804
654
Pathanamthitta
521
521
Aalapuzha
717
Kottayam
Kannur
Source: Directorate Of Panchayat Raj, Thiruvananthapuram, 1992
228
1
2
4
4
6
58
Table 8 : Panchayat Establishment Grant
Name of Zilla
Grant
Thiruvananthapuram
19,23,663
Kollam
Pathanamthltta
12,52,677
Aalapuzha
41,95,615
Kottayam
Idukki
Ernakulam
22,50,143
33,15,614
18,67,591
Trishur
18,16,682
Palakkad
43,41,048
Malapuram
Kozhicode
16,38,008
17,62,006
Kannur
Kasargod
14,14,151
6,50,860
Total
2,69,89,815
5,61,757
Source: Directorate Of Panchayat Raj, Thiruvananthapuram, 1992
1.7
Conclusion
"Compared to other Indian states, Kerala has less of the social Impediments like
negative attitudes towards education of girls, use of children as cheap labour,
excruciating poverty and malnutrition, which are used elsewhere in the country to
hide the failure of the state to alter entrenched pedagogic culture".
But, behind
this facade of greater growth and progress, lies the problem of "soaring unemploy
ment, changes in agricultural practices, exodus of young and able bodied to other
parts of India and abroad in search of jobs which gives rise to the problems of rising
female-headed households and increasing female migration". The first signs of
development without alternatives are evident. The Increased fife-expectancy, has
today an ‘alarming rate of elderly’ waiting to be cared for. The joint family has nearly
crumbled and the nuclear family has no time for them. Here too, the onus of taking
care of the older people falls on the already overburdened women who have to combine
triple roles. The nuclear family has made the people more self-centered affecting human
bonds.
Krishna Kumar, "Battle Against Their Own Minds : Notes on a Literate Kerala", Economic
and Political Weekly, vol. 30, no. 7, 12 February, 1994
18.
229
"In the new stratification based on the possession of consumer goods, women are
bigger losers because false prestige, rivalry and bickerings, opportunism, deceit and
indifference takes the place of mutual help, solidarity and friendship".
Consumer
culture has led to a paradoxical situation wherein "the employment structure in
rural areas does not show any significant overall improvement but rural prosperity
has increased, also among the casual workers. This is reflected in the higher than
all India levels of per capita consumption which have grown and diversified on
average as also for the bottom 30% of the population".20
Social mores have undergone dramatic changes. If the rate of divorce is on the rise
among the middle and upper class, desertion is the common practice among the
lower strata. Bargaining and huge transactions have become part of modem
marriages in Kerala, replacing the earlier simple traditions of marriage.
Male dominance is markedly seen in the media too. It is the favourite pastime for
some journalists and cartoonists to caricature women in a bad light, the point of
reference often being the rise of feminism. Media also re-inforces this brewing
dissent among many sections of the society.
This retrograde trend is due to globalisation and liberalisation which are putting
pressure on the economy to change. The impact is largely felt by women. Matriliny
as a system remains, but transformed. This transformation where the position of
women is sliding down is enforcing patriarchy. This is unfavourable to the develop
ment of woman. She is slowly losing her earlier position of power that she enjoyed
within the domestic domain and more so in the public domain.
The 73rd and 74th Amendments of the Constitution usher in new hopes and
challenges about women’s grassroot participation. Observers feel that if there is any
fall in development indicators, Kerala can overcome it. The new experiment of one
third reservation to women heralds the vision of a visible, vibrant 4.763 women at
the grassroot decision-making levels who will lobby their issues. Also since Kerala
lacks feminist organisations, the local bodies are seen as the pivot to bring about
the much needed change. The party politics, being an important component of the
development process cannot be sidelined at least for the time being. So, it will only
be in the interest of women that they rise above party politics and further thencause. They will have to create avenues for forming collectives to attempt the
discovery of new paradigms of development.
19. K. Sharadamoni, "Women, Kerala and Some Development Issues”, Economic and Political
Weekly, vol. 29, no. 9, 26 February, 1994
20. Mridul Eapen, "Rural Non-Agricultural Employment in Kerala : Some Emerging Tenden
cies", Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 29, no. 20, 12 May, 1994
230
The Gram Sabha is seen as a platform for immediate appraisals and reforms. There
is a danger of the Gram Sabha not becoming operational because of the overt
presence of party politics. There is the possibility of political conflicts superceding
the priorities of the village. It is here that the women can put pressure on the ‘bottom
up’ development scene. Thus the political parties have a duty to further democracy
in forums like the Gram Sabha.
Skills they have in plenty, yet they need to be more skillful in tackling male
dominance. They will have to fight the invisible resistance built in the society. There
is a need for the transformation of the power equations prevailing in the society.
The women will have to counter threatened Indignities and accept political office.
The effects of matrillny on the social fabric of Kerala was tremendous. As delineated
in the earlier pages, the foundation of this development was undlsputably the status
of women. The power she enjoyed culturally and socially stands transformed today.
After six decades of the fall of matrillny, women are today poised to take over power
in a new form.
During these intervening years "the public domain was expanding, but the space
therein was not shared equitably by all. Women were among the excluded. In a
way women’s and men’s arenas were getting demarcated".21 The demarcation dealt
a blow to the women as she was trying to fit into a mould of an "ideal woman" to
whom the hearth and home were of greater Importance in the light of the breakdown
of the joint family.
In the bargain, political participation of women in the scale envisaged was a casualty.
In the light of this, several effects of development are slowing down and the maladies
in the society are gaining volatile proportions.
Political participation of women will open up new vistas of development. One of the
important result will be the empowerment of women. The elected women repre
sentatives are going to be catalysts of change. The women who will be elected in
the coming months have a challenging and an onerous task ahead. The success of
the Panchayati Raj Institutions largely depends on their collective participation.
They are at a take-off point, where the basic indicators are positive. But will they
consider genuine needs of the people and lobby for change? Will they fight the
growing patriarchal political powers to stay in the game?
Only time will tell.
21.
K. Sharadamoni, "Delusions of Equality", Madhyam, vol. 10, no. 1, 1995, p. 32
231
References
Balakrishnan, P.V., Matrilineal System, in Malabar, Kannur : Satyavani
Prakasham, 1981
Competition Success Review Year Book, New Delhi, 1995
Datar, Chhaya, "The Left Parties and the Invisibility of Women: A Critique",
Teaching Politics, vol. 10, Annual Number, 1984
Eapen, Mridul, "Rural Non-Agricultural Employment in Kerala : Some Emerg
ing Tendencies", Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 29, no. 20, 12 May, 1994
Gulati. I.S., Panchayat Raj and Development, Muvattupuzha : Msgr. Thomas
Nedumkallel Memorial Committee Lecture, 1994
Institute of Social Sciences, Suggestive Model (Draft)for Discussion: Panchayati
Raj Bill for Kerala, 1993, New Delhi : ISS, 1993
Institute of Social Sciences, Status of Panchayati Raj in the States of India, 1994,
New Delhi : Concept, 1995
Jeffrey, Robin, The Decline of Nair Dominance, Vikas Publishing House, 1976
Jeffrey, Robin, Politics, Women and Well Being, Oxford University Press, 1993
"Kerala Panchayat Raj Bill: Editorial Comment", Economic and Political Weekly
vol. 29, no. 14, 2 April, 1994
Khanna, B.S., Panchayati Raj in India (Rural Local Self Government: National
Perspective and State Studies), New Delhi: Deep and Deep Publications, 1994
Kumar, Krishna, "Battle Against Their Own Minds : Notes on Literate Kerala",
Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 30, no. 7, 12 February, 1994
Oommen, John, "Politics of Communalism in Kerala". Economic and Political
Weekly, vol. 30, no. 11, 18 March, 1995
"Panchayat Raj", Thiruvananthapuram : Directorate of Panchayat Raj, April -
June, 1994
"Panchayat Raj",\ Thiruvananthapuram : Directorate of Panchayat Raj, December, 1994
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Puthenkalam, S.J., Marriage and the Family In Kerala : With Special Reference
to Matrilineal Castes, Canada : Journal of Comparative Family Studies,
University of Calgary, 1977
Raj, K.N., "Decentralised Development and Local Government in Kerala" ,
Seminar on Panchayat Raj/ Nagar Palika Bill and the Implications for Local
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International Congress on Kerala Studies, Thiruvananthapuram : Institute of
Management in Government
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and Political Weekly, vol. 29, no. 9, 26 February, 1994
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Political Weekly, vol. 30, no. 30, 29 July, 1995
233
Section 2
2.1 Presentation, of Dr.S. Radha’s paper at the ISST
Seminar...
I am working in Trivandrum at the Institute of Management in Government. I will
talk a little bit about attitudes in Kerala. Let me talk about the attitudes of the
bureaucrat first. At a training programme for Block Development Officers, one
bureaucrat felt that women should bear the lamp and show more light in darkness,
but, he fears that reservation would bring them out ultimately against bureaucrats,
against men and against the society itself. The bureaucrat said, "we are going to
help women, but finally are they not going to bite us"?
Dr.Radha explained the attitude of the non-govemment organisation’s towards
women and Panchayat Raj Institutions . They think it is a special access for women.
It has given a lot of help to women, but it does not receive proper receptance because
the pot is turned downwards by culture, male domination inside and outside the
family, and a whole lot of suppressive activities which exist in the society; and this
too in a society which has had a matrilineal and matrilocal system. These women
are going to be catalysts in the society and they are going to be change agents; they
are going to work with men in society as partners in development.
Elections in Kerala are like a mirage. As you go near it, it is getting further away.
That is why I say women are working upstream - that too in a society where
indicators are very good for women.
Alternative gender indicators are required for Kerala because of the development
process and the changes. Why do women have such good indicators? Sex ratio is
in favour of women, though it is now dropping. The mean age of marriage for women
is higher than the average of India as well as from the other states. Expectation of
life at birth is higher and physical quality of life index is higher. But Kerala has the
highest rate of suicide and that too often by young mothers. The rate is nearly eight
per month. Realities are catching up with us - Dowry deaths are increasing.
Gram Panchayats exist from bygone days - since its inception maybe from 1
November, 1957. In Kerala, Gram Panchayats exist under the Kerala Panchayat
Act of 1960 and District Administration Act of 1979. The State has only the Gram
Panchayats in Kerala which consist of 7 to 15 directly elected members and
indirectly elected President. Under my survey I have not met a single women
President. There are only 1001 Gram Panchayats in the State, covering 1219
villages and 206.82 lakh rural population. On an average there are 1-2 villages per
Gram Panchayat, covering 20,661 rural population. Elections in Panchayats were
234
held in 1987 and next elections are scheduled for September. This is what we have
understood from the survey. We have met men and women in the Panchayats and
the already elected members. As I said now, in Kerala we are working in a vacuum.
We Eire learning from outgoing adjustors, because these Panchayat Raj Institutions
are going to cause a very basic structural reform. The District Council elections
was a real eye opener and a very good one because the number of women that came
up were more than the one third representation given now. But that was dissolved.
Will they come up again? And, who are the women who are going to come up? As
1 said we are learning from the past adjustors. We met the women and men from
the society among the Panchayat people and the elected women and men members.
Then we met the Speaker, Minister for Local Administration, Minister for Rural
Development, Secretaiy State CPI(M)., Secretary KPCCI, Secretariat State Council,
MLA women and men secretary, public opinion leaders, Former Chief Secretary,
first women Chief Secretary - all to get opinion from both the women and men. And
the question we addressed were:
1)
Do you welcome the new approach to Panchayat Raj and gender Issues?
2)
Do you welcome the decision to reserve one third seats for women?
3)
How far do you think women will discharge their duties?
4)
What are the findings related to status of women?
In rural areas some were absolutely unaware of the impending Act. Then the
existing women Panchayat members are mere puppets. I have given a case study
also where one women was manipulated by her husband who was not in the
Panchayat to take a opinion and give her ideas on disputes in the society. Women
members were openly ridiculed. One women member in a Panchayat got up to say
"priority should be given to this issue which relates to women’s problems and the
word she used was ‘munthukam’". One male member got up and said, "even
otherwise you have a lot of‘munthukam’". How is a women supposed to battle this?
In our training session they ask us how to tackle these questions. But with a little
bit of humour they can manage effectively. One women came to a Panchayat meeting
very late. She had to sit on a chair which was rocking. One male member started
rocking it from behind. This irritated her. She said, "if you don’t stop this rocking,
I will fall asleep during the meeting". That solved the problem.
Women's Status
In our survey, we found that most women were unaware of the Panchayat Raj Act.
Existing women members were mere puppets, and were ridiculed during the
meetings. Women had no training In decision making. There Is domination by male
235
members. Leading women activists are aware but not of the profound Impact of the
Act. Women leaders are not entrusted with money. The male President controls
the money. Most men members say, "women come to the meetings only to claim
T.A and D.A". Panchayat President’s yardstick for women’s qualification is in their
ability to climb a coconut tree.
Bureaucrat's View
The bureaucrat’s view of political participation is that there is corruption among
Panchayat President and members. They are down right corrupt, and have no
correct decision making ability. The Executive Officer’s signature is required to pass
the papers. The Executive Officer does not sign. A very qualified women teacher
was not posted in a school because the Executive Officer didn’t sign, allthrough the
academic year. Executive Officers are not co-operating.
Also, the members are unaware of the link between quota and gender. They also felt
that reservation of wards for women should always be a process of rotation without
minoriiy or majority.
There are two aspects - now the Panchayats deal only with the practical gender
needs and not the strategic gender Issues. Not one discussion has been held on
rape. There are many questions coming out of issues in societies. Lots of families
are breaking up.
Politician's poin t of view:
They say polarisation will actually diminish with Panchayat Raj Institutions’s being
implemented and I think there is a lot of difference between intent and implemen
tation. It remains to be seen whether this is true or not because among our training
Session, I have tried to form an Association, a Party free Association of women’s
Entrepreneurs.
Gram Sabha meetings should prove effective. If Implemented, that is where we could
have accountability. The Gram Sabha will give a lot of opportunity for women to
bring up their Issues.
Some women have complained to me saying, the meeting was made known to me
very late. So women are being marginalised.
Women's Organisation
Women Elected leaders would have a tough Job balancing priorities of Party and
Women’s Movement. It would look like they are walking on a tight rope and trying
to balance themselves on the path of development.
236
Legal awareness regarding ‘Rights of women’ is Imperative for women Panchayat Raj
leaders.
In Kerala, we have started legal awareness campaigns only this month. None of the
women knew what their rights were. Now a whole series of awareness programmes
have been launched and this has been found Imperative for women Panchayat
members also.
Atpresent...
A backlash has developed. Media is being used to portray a picture inappropriate
to women. After Panchayat Raj Institutions have women in it, the woman is shown
sitting, with her legs on top of the table, the radio blaring and with a newspaper in
hand. The man is rocking the cradle which is tied to a grinding stone; so when he
is grinding, he is rocking the cradle. This is what is happening in a literate state.
The work of the women Panchayat Member is really a mountainous task.
Another leader opined that the money a party spends for an election campaign for
a women candidate will not be retrieved. I do not know how the men are getting
back their money. Are they resorting to corruption afterwards? Is that the attitude
the Party is going to have?
So these are the backlashes. I could quote several examples that come up in the
training sessions. I have Included 3 case studies in my paper.
The last of the case studies is veiy relevant. A woman stood for elections last time
and was threatened that she would be assaulted if she did not withdraw her name.
She did not withdraw. But when they said, "your child will not return from school
tomorrow", she became fearful and withdrew. She has completely given up her
activities for women’s development. This is an area where there is a lot of Muslim
domination. A lot of awareness generation camps are being conducted.
2.2
Discussion of the Paper...
Leela Gulati: I think what Radha has done is to remove "nazar". When something
is very good, you say a lot of bad things. What is interesting is that these 10 years
of schooling is accepted in Kerala even if you go to landless or agricultural labour
households. Even in Tamil Nadu we have a large number of women who have taken
part in literacy movements and even otherwise as workers. I feel that we are
probably reading too much. I do see probably what you have said is true. But they
probably do not represent the whole truth. Even if these were the attitudes I feel
that it is possible with little intervention to change it in a very short time. I’m
surprised that women have not taken a stronger stand.
237
The other thing is that it is not entirely a new thing to see women working in Kerala
at the village level and at the Panchayats. The last point... 1 feel concerned about
this picture that is drawn; if it is so, what corrective measures should be taken?
George Mathew: I’m grateful to Radha for these insightful comments. Kerala is a
paradox. Although we can belittle some of the achievements, they are there - like
the UNICEF report put one page on "The status of women in Kerala". Some of these
are very interesting. It is curious that in 1987 the Government reserved 20% of
seats for women in the Panchayat election. Women did not come in larger numbers
than the number of reserved seats. Before that one or two were symbolically
nominated. In 1990 for the District Council, there was 30% reservation for women.
Even then, only 30% women got elected. That is the situation - but, the social
background of the women who were elected was extremely high in terms of education
and social awareness. And even studies show that Elected Women Representatives
read more than three newspapers a day. When one woman was asked, "what is
your caste?", she replied, "I won’t say what my caste is. I’m a woman". That was
the kind of level they have reached. But with all these social indicators, why does
a woman not come up to leadership positions - in public life, in legislatures and in
the Parliament? I have a feeling that with the matriarchal or matrilineal system we
have had, patriarchy has come back with a vengeance. Even religions like Chris
tianity and Islam have contributed to this. Modern education in co- operation with
the patriarchal climate accentuate it and build role models. Women workers read.
But, she will have a role model, and will be conscious on how she should behave.
It is also interesting that in the service sector, and among teachers there are 25%
more women than men and among office workers there are 25% more women. This
can only mean that women are not allowed leadership positions, but can do other
things.
A woman cannot even go to Sabarimala. When one lady collector went there all hell
broke loose. The Gram Sabha is going to create a problem in the settlement pattern
in Kerala. It is not going to work. The households are miles apart and I am not sure
if women are going to come and participate. As you have mentioned that although
there is party politics, when the common good of the locality comes, they co-operate.
That is a good point.
Rameshwari Verma: In informal politics, everybody takes part including women.
But when it comes to formal political process and decision making, women are not
allowed.
Balaji Pandey: I am disturbed by what has been said because there has been so
much development and indicators in Kerala are positive. Are development in
dicators now going to recede back? There is so much intervention by women
238
politicians and land reforms are very effective in West Bengal and Kerala. What are
the efforts being made to check this?
Vina Mazumdar : The bureaucrat’s observation that they are unaware of the
connection, was marked when the Committee on Status of Women was doing its
work. The members of the bureaucracy with whom we had to interact, had this
constant refrain - when this country has been ruled by a woman for the last so many
years, is there still a need for better status for women? They were very surprised
when the report came out. The Committee was of the view that Mrs.Gandhi’s
becoming Prime minister had revolutionised women’s status. So the connection
between status of women and political power is something that bureaucracy
understood very well. Now between early 70s and early 90s, if the perception of
bureaucracy has changed so radically then I think it is an issue that needs to be
probed. What are gender issues? This needs to be defined. My second point is an
appeal to women’s development. Development indicators using the sex-ratio was
not to be used as a measure of development. That is what a lot of development
specialists, including Human Development Report, has reduced these indicators to
- sex-ratio, differences in literacy levels, etc. As far as the Committee on the Status
of Women is concerned, we used it to merely demonstrate the differences in a country
which had constitutional mandate that the State shall not discriminate. It was only
a weapon against the State. Education and health was the State’s responsibility.
We are much more subordinated and if Kerala is today lacking that shape, some of
the indicators of Kerala’s development that are being used by all development
specialists is partly to blame.
Neelam Gorhe: The media is at times critical of women’s participation in political
processes. Women are, at times, intolerant of this criticism. The role of the media
in this process has to be analysed. Media has to be educated and plays like ‘Amakar
Soubhagyavati’ help the cause of the women’s movement.
The bureaucrats anc^ the politicians have a tendency to provoke women activists by
making chauvinistic statements. They would like to trap women into such discus
sions. Women, however, should learn to ignore this.
Abhijith Dasgupta : To balance political party interest and gender interest is what
the Gram Panchayat members will be called upon to do in future. This has to be
probed further.
Gita Sen: The Kerala phenomenon Is both fascinating and puzzling, because those
of us coming from outside have a long and sustained connection with Kerala. To
me it seems that there is no denying all of the positive things for women in the Kerala
experience. It seems to me that there are two implications from it which are striking.
In fact a great deal of Kerala’s positive performance from women’s perspective can
239
be traced back to one historical characteristic. The matrilineality and matrilocality
of key caste groups meant the absence of son preference in the scale one is
accustomed to in the rest of the country. That of course has had a whole range of
implications. That meant no killing girls, education of girls, no biases against girls
and women that we are used to seeing in the rest of the country. But there is nothing
more to it in Kerala for women than this - that when it comes to other aspects,
crucially gender power, it does not extend beyond this. It means that, therefore, we
are talking about institutions that may or may not work to transform the native
power relations in the society between men and women in the society and between
local bodies and larger Political Institutions. Fundamentally Kerala may not be that
different from other states in the nature of transformation that are required. You
come down basically to the same question of power which is still there. It seems to
me in Kerala, which is highlighted in a much sharper way, there is no worrying
about our girls dying at a faster rate, or about our boys being more literate than
girls are and so on. All that has been taken out. But the fundamental issue of
power still remains the same and that is the thing that strikes one in a powerful
way.
Kavita Srivastav: Rajasthan may be so called 'backward’ at least in terms of
development indicators. In the sense of the term we are last and you are first.
Rajasthan is fascinating, in terms of spaces for work - and this despite the feudal
character, despite not having the kind of things happening in the National Move
ment. There are tremendous spaces of work in Rajasthan and the way women have
been mobilised in Rajasthan in the last 10 years is terrific.
Development indicators do not impress me. If you take away the Kerala nurses from
Rajasthan we will not have health services of the little variety we have. The nurses
are really an oppressed group. In Rajasthan, on the contrary, women have spaces.
Women traditionally have collectives. I have always wondered, what are these
community spaces that the women have in a highly literate individualistic society
like Kerala. The spaces you have in Kerala are so limited - there are vested
Interests like the Party.
Leela Gulati: I wanted to add to this matrilineality and matrilocality. I think some
of them have been imposed by women themselves with this tremendous desire to
mainstream. Both the media and the past history has played a role. I think there
is a psychological dimension and a historical background, precisely because of
matrilineality in Kerala.
S. Radha : I am not saying media has always been against women’s participation.
Madam Gauriamma’s story has come out as a film. That is a role model. She says,
"what you mean women had a good position in the matrilineal system? Even to
bathe they had to ask their uncle for oil". That is the freedom we have had."
240
As regards the Gram Sabha ... the working of the Gram Sabha will depend on how
it is going to materialise. We can’t prophesise now. 1 myself do not know what are
the efforts required to recede or stop the recession of development. As Leela Gulati
said women are leaders at the grassroot level. Let’s go into a typical Government
office in Kerala... the Director is a male, CEO is a male. Where are the women?
Women are typist and clerks. They are participating, though at the lower level.
About the girl child... there is no discrimination. But the son is addressed more
affectionately - Kutta, and the daughter - Edt Penne. Even chances for going into
higher studies are curbed. In well-off families no discrimination is shown, but
middle class family will prefer to send their son inspite of the girl being good in
academics or in other professional courses. There is no organisation among women
in the traditional culture. Even if a women is beaten in broad daylight, nobody comes
to her help. It has happened on several occasions. Kerala, I emphasis is a unique
state. It is very difficult to understand. It is very paradoxical.
241
2.3
Case Studies
The following Case Studies were presented as part of the paper written by
Dr. S. Radha of the Institute of Management in Government.
I Mute Partners in Social Development
Vattiyoorkavu Panchayat is about 20 km from the Capital city of Trivandrum.
It is slowly developing and is much sought after haven for new settlements and new
houses are springing up like mushrooms. In this locality there was a land dispute
between two neighbours regarding the ownership of a track of land. This argument
was taken to the Panchayat office. Sareena, a woman member of this Panchayat
was entrusted to visit the locality, meet the concerned persons and evolve an
amicable settlement. This ward is male dominated and Sareena was also of the
character of a subordinate wife in the family. Even for decision in the family, she
did not take the responsibility of asserting her views. Many times she herself had
felt that the decisions taken at home were not the appropriate ones with regard to
her children. Not even once had she raised her voice for the benefit of her children’s
future. Emergencies in the house had often been eased out with her pay. Her money
was fully controlled by her husband. She was unaware of what were the items of
expenditure from her husband’s pay packet. She had never dared to ask how much
he earned or what he did with the money. All expenditure in the house upto the
22nd day of the month was met from Sareena’s pay. After this any additional item
of expenditure was met by her husband on her request. This was known to her
intimate friends. They had not empowered her also. Sareena also consulted her
husband in all official matters. He helped her take decisions in this field also. But
it was not a decision based on discussions between them. Whenever she brought
a problem for help, her husband said do this - do that, she obeyed him without
questioning him or suggesting an alternative at least for discussion sake. What she
feared was, if her opinion displeased her husband, he would beat her or ill-treat
her, and for the sake of her children she was nodding to everything he said. In the
settlement of this dispute outside the family also when her husband was consulted
he went and visited the place took a decision and dictated to her how to write the
report. Though Sareena wanted to involve herself in the incident she did not do so,
giving up the authority given to her as an Elected Member to do what is rightful for
the people who trusted her.
In this case Sareena was a mere puppet member in the panchayat. She helped
others with advice but when it came to crucial matters she withdrew and allowed
her husband to dominate. When asked whether she agreed, she answered that
anyway the problem was settled and that she was happy that she did not have to
strain herself in arriving at a solution.
242
This incident of Sareena would definitely make people distressed because she is not
actively using her right. She does not exhibit any leadership qualities also because
she had not understood her proper role as a woman Panchayat leader.
There are many Sareenas like this. Many women have also often pointed out that
the biggest problem to partake in political decision making was their own family. It
would be interesting to discuss whether it would have been better off if Sareena was
only a house wife and not pretending to help in social/ societal problems.
II
Holding Hands
Kerala as a state is one of the most progressive and advanced in India, especially
so far as women’s status is concerned. In Kerala, Ernakulam District stands out
as one of the most cosmopolitan and modem, becoming the commercial and
industrial hub of the state. The new system of Panchayat Raj Institution with its
emphasis on women representation was hailed as a landmark even in this district,
as a step to further strengthen women’s empowerment. In Kerala, in all of the 14
districts, there are more than a thousand panchayats. Kerala has opted for the one
tier pattern of Panchayat Raj. In the Kerala Gram Panchayat elections, not only 33
percent of the seats, but over 43 percent of the seats have been captured by women.
It is evident that the women are quite ready, capable and determined to lead
panchayats to success. Mrinallni, aged 40, was a social worker, a member of the
Mahila Samajam and the president of the Tripunithura block. She had good
knowledge and experience in this area. After graduation from college, she had
voluntarily opted for such kind of work, especially concentrating on developmental
works, in rural areas for the benefit of women. She believed that under the new
dispensation of Panchayats, there was immense potential for women to participate
in decentralised governance and development. So far their involvement had been
peripheral. She had found that women are more clear about the basic problems at
the grassroot level. What is needed is to expose women to elementary knowledge
and basic principles of democratic development. Therefore simply and easily
communicable training modules should be prepared for them. She had utmost faith
in training programmes which were required to sensitise women about the various
provisions of the 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments. Mrinalinl went about
the region explaining about the Panchayats and making rural women aware of the
numerous challenges that lay ahead of them, were they to find themselves elected
to Panchayats either as Members or as Presidents. According to Mrinallni, women
are not able to participate effectively in the political process due to the following
reasons a) assetlessness
b) illiteracy
c) ignorance
243
Land plays an important role in the power structure in rural India. The ground
reality is that women have no control over it. Without land ownership they are not
safe even in their own households. According to Mrinalini, if land is transferred in
their favour they can sustain their livelihood properly and organise themselves to
participate in village or block level affairs through Panchayats. Mrinalini, was
determined that the households of women in that region would not be ruined by the
drunken habits of their husbands. Once women acquired some position and power,
they would be strong enough to fight it out. The fact that the Panchayats will have
a minimum number of women who will use their strength for mobilising women at
large and keep liquor out, Mrinalini was convinced that by proper education, women
could rise to a position to curb the growth of obstructionist and retrograde forces.
Mrinalini was overwhelmed that In her Panchayat there was a very helpful woman
member - Vijayamma who had involved herself in local women’s issues, guiding
women to approach the proper persons and people to redress their grievances.
Mrinalini also had a friend Daisy, a woman with a flair for handicrafts and a clear
knowledge of what to do. Daisy was also wanting to engage young girls who had
failed S.S.L.C. and were idle at home. Daisy started a micro unit producing
embroidered bags, mats, hats, purses etc., of dried pineapple leaves. When the
colour combinations were striking and the pattern exotic, the items were found to
be really beautiful. Daisy converted a shed in her house, put benches and employed
thirty girls to help her, paying a minimum of Rs.200/- per month. Daisy knew that
if she had a loan she could help the girls more and boost her business also. But
the Bank Manager was always rejecting her project proposal on one reason or other.
Daisy told her difficulties to Mrinalini. Mrinalini met the Manager and spoke to him
to let Daisy have one small chance. The Manager refused flatly stating that Daisy
did not even look stylishly dressed and came barefoot to the Bank. Mrinalini was
helping Daisy also with writing the proposal in English and also all other correspon
dences. With Mrinallni’s help Daisy organised a small exhibition of her products
and as this was a time when many foreigners were invited to the unit, it was found
that all the items were sold out. Mrinalini explained all this to the Bank Manager
who refused again. Mrinalini finally approached Vijayamma who spoke veiy vehe
mently to the Manager. Vijayamma also had Daisy’s unit publicised through a T.V.
Programme. After this, the Manager relented and Daisy got the much needed loan,
expanded her unit. Now Daisy has a stall permanently reserved in the Delhi trade
fare. Thanks to the helping hands of Mrinalini and Vijayamma, Daisy is now being
offered loans from the Branch Manager!
244
III
To be or not to be !
In contrast to the conditions prevailing in Emakulam District, in the remote areas
of Malappuram District, in and around Tiruvangadi Taluk, the place seems un
touched by the changes taking place in the outside world. This is an area where
the majority of the population is made up of Muslims. They are not modem in
outlook, and cling on to old ways and practices. There Eire Panchayats in these
areas but they are dominated by men. Women lead a secluded life, far from the
madding crowd. Feminist ideas are unheard of in this region. Women wear the
purdah, live in dark houses and their whole lives revolve around their menfolk. The
latter are quite dominant and domineering. They have fixed ideas about the status
of women. Women are still considered as chattel, with no will or mind of their own.
Into this midst came Neena, a social worker and a dedicated champion of womens’
rights. She was shocked to find such an archaic and outdated situation in real life.
She decided to seek further and study the whole situation. Putting up at a modest
hotel a little far away from the village, which in itself was frowned upon by the
inhabitants, Neena tried to get to grips with the problem. During the day she went
out to the village, going into the houses and talking to the womenfolk of all ages,
specially when the men were out working in the fields. She discovered that women
slaved out their lives, making food, fetching fuel and fodder. Neena realised that if
modem amenities were provided, the gruelling work of the women would be eased
a little. But she also knew that the male dominated society would oppose her tooth
and nail. With every passing day her presence and questioning were irritating the
menfolk who were becoming openly critical and hostile. Neena began to realise the
futility of the situation. What chance had women in this male entrenched village?
They could not compete in elections; they could not participate in power sharing.
They could not leave their houses without their husbands,, brothers or father’s
permission. Neena knew that she was battling against heavy odds. She would try
and educate the younger women, make them realise their disadvantages and help
them to overcome their difficulties. But the more she tried, the more hostile became
the menfolk. She began to get irritated and then became afraid of their menacing
attitudes. It was a Herculean task to empower women who are backward because
of their low literacy, ill health, lack of consciousness and poor living conditions
generally found in rural India. In a male dominated society women are not allowed
to freely cast their vote. Their choice is limited to the choice of the husband. Since
they are subservient to the males in the social hierarchy, the reservation of seats
would serve little purpose.
Neena now knew that she needed a little political support to empower women here.
She approached the woman Panchayat member in the Ward, Sreemathl, to help her.
Neena stated frankly that she only wanted to educate the Muslim women. Sreemathl
listened to Neena carefully but expressed her helplessness in the matter. Sreemathl
was a homeo-doctor previously and she told her story to Neena. When Sreemathl
245
was practicing one day, two Muslim men came as patients and threatened her to
withdraw her dame from the elections. When she refiised they said that she would
i
her very frightful for being a Hindu. Ifshe interfered in Muslim matters, a communal
strife would also definitely ensue, for there were many with vested interest to evoke
one. With her eyes fixed on her own twisting fingers, Sreemathi presented the very
picture of powerlessness. Neena now had come to a dead end valley. Whom cou
she turn for support? Should she break the wall in front? or tum back helpless,
feeling beaten down in her efforts.
246
/
‘Uftfa. Resource Centre
Occasional Taper Series 9\[o.6
WOMEN IN PANCHAYAT RAJ
A STUDY IN WEST BENGAL
Prepared by
Ruma Banetjee.
of Development Dialogue
UMA Resource Centre
Institute of Social Studies Trust
"Shreeshyla", No. 42, 4th Temple Street,
15th Cross, Malleswaram, Bangalore - 560 003.
1995
Table of contents
[247-252]
Section 1
247-248
1
Introduction
1.1
The Act of 1957
248
1.2
The Act of 1963
248
1.3
The Act of 1973
248
1.4
Characteristics of the Panchayats Under the
Present Left Front Government
248-250
1.5
Inadequacies of the Panchayat Raj System in West Bengal
Prior to the 73rd Amendment Act
250-252
[253-259]
Section 2
2.1
Main Provisions Under the 73rd Amendment Act
253-254
2.2
Reasons for Reservation of Women in Panchayat
254-256
2.3
A Critical Analysis of the 73rd Amendment Act
256-259
[260-266]
Section 3
3.1
Representation of Women in the Three - Tiers of
Panchayats in West Bengal
260-265
3.2
Training given to the Women Panchayat Members
265-266
[267-285]
Section 4
4.1
Methodology of the Study
4.2
Findings of the Study
4.2.1
Family Dynamics
267-269
{270-285}
270-271
4.2.11
271-274
Economic Position
4.2.111 Community and Social Environment
274-276
4.2.iv Involvement of Women Panchayat Members
276-277
4.2.v
Political Awareness and Perception of Meaningful
Participation as ’Women’
278-281
4.2.vi Perception of Leadership of Panchayats
281-282
4.2.V11 Impressions about Panchayat Raj
283-285
[286-293]
Section 5
5.1
Conclusion
286-288
5.2
Development Dialogue’s Support to Women in Panchayat Raj
289-293
Women Decentralization and the Left Parties - A Comment
- UMA Resource Centre
(294-298)
Section 1
Women in Panchayat Rqj:
an empirical study in the state of West Bengal
Introduction
Panchayat Raj is considered to be a real democratic apparatus which encourages
active political participation of the vast majority of the weaker and poorer sections
of rural India in the decision making process. The goal behind its introduction has
been to achieve democratic decentralisation, to create a platform for ensuring a
genuine political control from below. This statutory Panchayat elected on the basis
of universal adult suffrage through secret ballot was to replace the rule by the
traditional village elite and inscribe in its place the rule of the representatives from
all the sections of the village society. These representatives would come from the
grassroot level, who are expected to know the problems and the ‘felt needs’ of the
ruralite. The Panchayat Raj would act as a local self govenunent ruled by villagers
themselves having similar power like other governmental bodies enabling the proper
and timely Implementation of the decisions taken.
The necessity of decentralisation of political power was always felt In the vast
populated country like India inhabited by almost 90 crores people In 25 states
comprising 5 1/2 lakhs of villages and thousands of cities and towns. Democracy
always targets at betterment of the citizens which could only be possible with the
understanding of the social reality in totality. So one needs to penetrate at the
grassroot level to unveil even the smallest possible reality. Moreover, the elected
local representatives of the government mostly stay closer to common people who
are the backbone of the nation. As a result they should be encouraged to participate
consciously in the decision making process to turn it Into a true democracy. So
Introduction of the PR system was as near to reality as possible.
True democracy also calls for assessing the suggestions made by the common
people. A platform, therefore is always necessary where common people could
express their ideas. Local self government assures such a stable base for these
people. The very term ‘local’ implies, there are some functions of the Government
which are local in nature and cannot be performed from a distant place.
Non recognition of the democratically elected government at the local level has done
a lot of harm to the country as many separatist tendencies have surfaced in different ,
parts of India. The absence of viable democratic institutions at the local level that
could act as a cushion for absorbing discontent of the people, might be mainly
responsible for it.
247
Prior to the PR system, the sub-state space of governance had been occupied by
bureaucracy with District Magistrate and Collector as the presiding deity.
1.1
The Act of 1957
It was the Balwant Rai Mehta Committee which in late 50s made a significant dent
in the area reserved for bureaucracy by introducing two-tier Gram Panchayat and
Anchal Panchayat. Besides a new concept called the Gram Sabha was introduced.
1.2
The Act of 1963
In 1963 the West Bengal Zilla Parishad Act was passed to provide for the restruc
turing of the village level government with a view to encourage such government to
participate in developmental activities. It was felt that the participation of
people in planning and development would enable proper decentralisation of
democracy. Under this two corporate bodies were created - Anchalik Parishad at
the block level and Zilla Parishad at the district level. There was no direct election
to any of these bodies.
By 1964, 19,602 Gram Panchayats and 2,926 Anchalik Parishad and a Zilla
Parishad in each of the 15 districts were constituted. Despite such sincere initiatives
the PRIs remained isolated from the masses.
1.3
The Act of 1973
The entire perspective, however, changed quickly under a new Panchayat Act of
1973. A three-tier structure to be known as Gram Panchayat, Panchayat Samiti and
Zilla Parishad was made popular. Howbeit, after the legislation of West Bengal
Panchayat Act 1973, it could not take a proper shape. The first election to the three
tiers of Panchayats under this Act was held in 1978 when the Left Front Ministry
decided likewise and nearly 60,000 elected representatives of rural West Bengal took
charge of the system.
1.4 Characteristics of the Panchayats Under the Present Left Tront
Government
First, these Panchayat institutions are of a different nature, quantitatively. While
the first generation Panchayats of the early 60s were intended to be non political in
nature and were expected to implement certain specified development schemes, the
Panchayats that were brought in West Bengal in 1978 were openly political and
designed to share a wide range of governmental functions with people’s participa
tion. This step was taken against the backdrop of Ashoka Mehta Committee of 1978.
Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh also adopted similar system. The second generation
Panchayats as they are called, were a bold step towards establishing democratic
248
a
institutions, at the sub-state level in order to share some of the government
functions - plan and non plan.
Second, even among the latter generation Panchayats, West Bengal had a novelty.
In a society dominated by extreme forms of economic and social inequality, adult
franchise, per se, could not develop capable leaders. West Bengal PR system
uprooted the monopolistic and dominating control of the rural elite. Over the years
the Panchayats have achieved an important objective. New people are brought into
politics who have been given on- the-Job exposure to the art of self governance from
the grassroot levels upwards. Thus Panchayats served as nurseries for new entrants
and have now created a rich pool of experienced leaders.
Third, the system made a two-pronged interventions - Panchayats and Land
Reforms with three main objectives. First, to identify the ceiling-surplus lands and
to hand them over to the state; second to distribute celling- surplus lands to the
landless labourers ; and third, to ensure registration of Bargadars (share croppers)
.through a crash programme ‘Operation Barga’.
Fourth, from 1978 Panchayat elections have been held regularly at an interval of
five years, In fact the strategy of land reforms, regular election coupled with
devolution of power and functions to the Panchayats were the main causes behind
the emergence of a new breed of leadership, the one which is significantly different
from earlier ones. The dominance of landed gentry, as a result, was put to an end.
The present generation leaders are young, belonging to small peasantry class or to
the class of marginal farmers or to professional middle class and also in large
number of instances the beneficiaries of land reform. This gave a pro -poor character
to the PRl's(Panchayat Raj Institutions).
Again, West Bengal stands apart from other sates In another way. In a country
where rural society is characterised by extreme forms of inequality developing from
uneven pattern of land ownership along with the forbearing presence of feudal and
semi feudal customs, it is very difficult to establish democratic institutions with
a truly representative character. However, with the Panchayats and land reforms,
West Bengal has been able to reinforce such democracy.
In West Bengal, the planning process has been decentralised since the first year of
the 7th 5-year plan. It has a 3 tier machinery - State Planning Board at the State
level, District Planning and Coordination Council (with the District Planning Com
mittees as its executive arm) at the district level Block Planning Committee at the
block level. The Panchayats of West Bengal are statutorily linked with the planning
process. The Sabhadhipati of Zilla Parishad is the Chairman of the District Planning
Committee at the district level. Sabhadhipati of Panchayat Samiti is the Chairman
249
C
of the Block Planning Committee of which all the Pradhans within the block area
are members.
The State Planning Board gives an indication about the quantum of funds likely to
be available for a district out of different departments’ plan budget, special program
mes like JRY, IRDP etc., amount to untied fund under the district plan scheme and
projected fund to be made available by the financial institution. On the basis of this
indication, the District Planning Committee prepares its plan, keeping in view the
fund that will be available from the above mentioned local sources.
The Gram Panchayats, after assessing the local resources available and the felt
needs and aspirations of the people, cany out the exercise of preparing plans which
are Integrated at the block level by the Block Planning commission. The District
Planning Commission, thereafter, Integrate all block, muncipal and sectoral
plans prepared by the department officers and arrives at a district plan. District
plans prepared by all district form an integral plan. District plans prepared by all
district form an Integral part of the State Plan. This form of decentralised planning,
as claimed by the Left Front Government, has been adopted by West Bengal much
prior to any other state in India which ensure immense power to the local self
Government.
1.5 Inadequacies of the Panchayat system in West Bengal prior to the 73rd
Amendment Act
*
Nevertheless, to set up Panchayats is one thing, but what is more important is to
give life to Panchayats. As it is stated in our constitution, necessary power should
be given to Panchayats and make them really functional, effective and be more
successful local self governing units. In pursuance of that Constitutional provision,
all the state governments (except Mizoram and Nagaland) had passed law for setting
up Village Panchayats and also instituted them. Still the functioning in the last 40
years was far from impressive. Even the zeal and energy with which the
Panchayats of West Bengal started itself soon faded after 1983 when the second
Panchayat was elected. And with the coming of the third Panchayat in 1988 it
seemed to have all but disappeared. The innovative spirit of the early years was
hardly to be seen. The Panchayats became overtly engrossed in routine work. The
fixation on Jawahar Rozgar Yojna programme became all pervasive. The leaders
amongst the elected functionaries were not clear about the objectives of the
Panchayats. Being overburdened with work assigned to them by Panchayats, many
felt that Panchayats were agencies primarily to implement schemes of the Central
Government. The concept of Panchayats being institutions of self government was
missing or dimly perceived.
250
r
The Panchayats were structurally weak. Also it was felt that if no programmes,
capable of enthusing Pahchayat functionaries of mobilising people, were to be
Implemented, they would turn out to be empty vessels.
Another drawback of the PR (Panchayat Raj) system in West Bengal was the
conspicuous absence of women in the Panchayat bodies and mainly in the decision
making process of PR. In view of the above defect, the PR system could not live up
to the expectation of the people as well as the founder fathers of the Constitution.
This was considered apalling when development ensures expulsion of any sort of
differences, be it economic, social, political or anything else. In our society the gender
difference is a major problem one faces dally. Even today proportionately women
are less than men. As per the 1991 census for every 1000 men there are 927 women
in India and 917 in West Bengal. At the end of 20th century women are still the
major victims of unequal distribution pattern in our society. Consequently they are
neglected and receive less care, nutrition, medical help, education, respect and other
kinds of opportunities.
According to the 1991 census out of 68,077,965 people in West Bengal, 35,510,633
are males and 32,567,332 are women. The rate of literacy is also low among women.
Out of 32,609,397 literate persons. 20,091,36 are males and 12,517,561 are only
women. The following tabular representation of the percentage distribution of the
working force by main activity in West Bengal highlights the stark difference between
male and women workers in cultivation, non-household manufacturing, trade and
commerce and in transport, storage and communications.
Persons
Male
Female
Cultivators
Agricultural Labourers
Plantations, Forestry, etc.
Mining and Quarrying
(a) Household manufacturing
(b) Non-household manufacturing
Construction
Trade and Commerce
Transport, Storage and Communication
Other Service
28.40
24.56
2.76
0.78
3.90
12.06
1.85
10.72
4.22
10.70
30.15
22.65
2.30
0.84
2.84
12.62
2.06
11.82
4.74
9.98
16.23
37.88
5.87
0.34
11.33
8.17
0.41
3.08
0.57
16.72
Total
100.00
100.00
100.00
Category
Note : Figures represent percentage in respect of total main workers.
Yet development entails maximum utilisation of both material and human resour
ces. The compulsive Importance of women’s role is long recognised. Every nation
V
251
9
should consider equitable access of women to land, water, other natural resources,
Inputs and services and equal opportunity to employ their skills. Collective action
and participation of women at every level should be encouraged for all around
development of the nation.
So, it was felt that the Constitution itself should provide the basic and essential
features of PR institutions to give certainty, continuity and financial and administra
tive strength to them. It was thought that a new part should be added to the
Constitution regarding Panchayats. Apprehending amendments at the centre, West
Bengal amended the State Acts, just a couple of months before the 73rd Amendment
Act of the Constitution which was ratified by the requisite number of people in State
Legislature and came to effect from April 20, 1993. The State Act Included all those
which the 73rd Amendment Act provided for. Special emphasis was placed on the
election of women incorporate certain provisions; some on the insistence of the
Central Government. At present the 1994 Panchayat Act is in force since 22nd April
1994.
c
252
Section 2
2.1
Main provisions under the 73rd Amendment Act
According to the 73rd Amendment, Panchayats are institutions of self government
to which State Legislature are requested, by law, to endow "powers and authority
which are necessary to enable them to function as (such)". However, it also implies
that "such law may contain provisions for the devolution of power and responsibility
upon Panchayats at the appropriate level" with respect toa.
the preparation of plans for economic development and social justice;
b.
the implementation of schemes and economic development and social justice
as may be entrusted to them including those in relation to the matters listed
in the 11th Schedule (Article 23 [G], which contains 29 items, all in the field of
development (Bidhi Nirdeshika, Panchayat Directorate, West Bengal; written
in Bengali).
As per the specifications of the provisions, it is entirely within the competence of
the State Legislatures to decide what power and authority the Panchayat should
have in order to function as credible institutions of self government.
The principles laid down by the 73rd Amendment are quite specific. First and
foremost, it provided for a Gram Sabha in every village. All the persons registered
as voters in the election relating to the village will be members of Gram Sabha where
powers and functions at the village level will be specified.
Second, there will be a three tier Panchayat structure, one at the village level, another
at the intermediate level and the third at the district level. However, if a district has
a population of twenty lakh or less, it is for the state to decide whether there should
be a Panchayat at the intermediate levels or not.
The composition of Panchayat was also dealt in detail. The ratio between the
population and the territorial area of a Panchayat and number of seats must be, to
the extent possible, uniform throughout the state. The same goes for territorial
constituencies also. All seats at all levels will be filled by members directly elected
by the voters of the constituency concerned. The chairpersons at the village level
Panchayats will be members of intermediate level, and in a district without inter
mediate level they will be members of the district level. The chairpersons of
intermediate level will be members of district level Panchayats. The members of Lok
Sabha and State Assembly could play a definite role directly in the intermediate and
district level Panchayats. All the members, whether directly elected or nominated,
and the chairpersons shall have the right to vote in the Panchayats.
r
»
*
253
*
Another most important provision of the Amendment Act is with regard to reserva
tion of SC and ST in relation to their population in the area concerned. One third
of the total number of the offices of chairpersons should be reserved for women.
When the constitution was being drafted, the question of reservation for women was
discussed. However, this could not take proper shape due to rejection by women
members of the Constituent Assembly demanding for total equality (Mazumdar.n.d.)
Still, enactment of many State Government Panchayat Act provided a clause that
in absence of elected women in these bodies, nomination of one or two women
should be made compulsory. Such provision was denigrated to mere tokenism in
most states. The lack of attention of women’s educational, economic, health and
other needs was severely condemned by the experts of the Committee on the Status
of Women in India (1971-74).
2.2
Reasons for reservation of women in Panchayat
The CSWI debated the Issue at length and sought to make such women genuine
representatives of women’s concerns. It, therefore, advocated statutory women s
Panchayats with powers and resources to respond to rural women’s critical needs
of literacy, legal rights, health, new earning opportunities, wage equality etc.
The President and the Secretary of the Women’s Panchayats could, ex-officio, occupy
the two reserved seats on the main Panchayats, making nomination unnecessary.
The recommendation was not implemented. However, the issue of rural womens
empowerment became the major concern of the officials and scholars, voluntary
organisations working at the grassroots, and some international agencies. The 6th
five year acknowledged that without economic independence and equal access to
education and family planning, women’s equality would remain a myth. Often their
responsibilities in household chores prevent them from having much spare time.
Cultural barriers also restrict them from interacting and participating with men
folk, (Mukherjee, 1994). This led to the introduction of the scheme of development
of women and children in Rural Areas (DWCRA) with the dual objective of enhancing
their social strength and participation capacities. From 1985 all the anti-poverty
programmes for rural areas had a mandatory provision that at least 30%
beneficiaries must be women, which was raised to 40% in the Sth plan.
Women’s organisations have all along advocated the need to promote and harness
the potential resources of‘women’ in nation building activities. In 1988 the Draft
National Perspective Plan for Women advocated 30% reservation for women in all
elected bodies from Panchayats to Parliament. This was rejected later by the critique
of NPP. However, a strong recommendation was made for reservation in all local self
254
Government bodies to be filled by election. The most interesting fact was that it took
due precaution to ensure the representation of the poorer section of women,
especially those belonging to SC and ST in order to :
i.
ensure genuine leadership from below
11.
initiate effective participation by the most neglected and marginalised group of
women in the political process.
73rd Amendment of the Constitution, thus represents the outcome of a debate
stretching over several decades on women’s representation. It is a response to
women’s movement.
To return to the point of departure, the other provisions of the said Amendment Act
is duration of Panchayats at any level which is held is to be 5 years. In case of
dissolution, election must be held before the expiry of a period of six months from
the date of dissolution. If the Panchayat dissolves after two/three years since
election, fresh election is to be held. Otherwise, if the remainder period is less than
six months, no election should be held for the remaining period.
The Constitution further states financial matters. The 73rd Amendment Act explicit
ly lays down that the Governor of the State shall have to appoint a Finance
Commission to review the financial position of the Panchayats. The Commission
shall be constituted at the expiry of every fifth year whose duties would be to
recommend :
1.
to the Governor the principles which would govern the distribution of resources
from all taxes, duties tolls and fees between the State and Panchayats,
11.
how grants-in-ald from the state consolidated fund should be made to the
Panchayats, and,
111.
on any other matter which may be referred to It by the Governor, for maintaining
sound financial position of the Panchayats.
The Governor of the state is then required to pay attention on the kind of action
taken thereon, and before the Legislature of the State. All the expenditure must be
accounted for which signifies that Panchayats are required to maintain accounts
and audit thereof. The higher bodies of the Panchayats like Zilla Parishad and
Panchayat Samlti are liable to provide grants or financial help to the Gram
Panchayats from time to time.
Democracy calls for proper conduct of elections and 73rd Amendment categorically
provides for such election. It urges for preparation of electoral rolls, with the help
255
♦
of State Election Commission. The Commissioner’s duty would be determined by
the Governor who could be removed only in the way a High Court Judge is removed
i.e., by impeachment. Laws will be made in each state for all matters relating to
elections to Panchayats.
West Bengal State Act incorporated all the above provisions laid down by 73rd
Amendment Act. However, in this connection it must be mentioned that certain
provisions were already present, as far as the Panchayat is concerned, and imple
mented by the State Act of West Bengal prior to the 73rd Amendment. One of them,
was the implementation of decentralised Panchayat system which was started from
1985.
Apart from the above mentioned feature, West Bengal Government had also
championed the reservation of seats for women and SC/ST during 1992, a prior
step taken apprehending the 73rd amendment act of Constitution.
In order to give a feminist perspective, West Bengal Panchayat Act 1992 had
accepted the reservation of seats for women. However, the seats of the office bearers
were not reserved for women as insisted by the Central Government, Government
of West Bengal had a reason for it. They felt that if the elected woman office bearer
belonged to a party who was not in majority then it would be extremely difficult for
the person to administer and make the others listen to her. Nevertheless, on the
insistence of the Central Government the Government of West Bengal in the latest
Act included that not less than one-third of the total number of offices of the office
bearers like Pradhan, Upapradhan Sabhapatt, Sahakart Sabhapatt, Sabhadhipati
and Sahakart Sabhadhipati would be reserved for women also. This provision of the
Act would come into effect from the next election to be held in 1998.
Another provision for women which is Indirectly connected to PR system is the
reservation of 40% of the IRDP loans for women and 30% of the work opportunities
created under J RY would be reserved for women. Panchayats are entrusted with
the responsibility of selecting the deserving candidates.
2.3
A Critical Analysis of the 73rd Amendment Act
The Amendment Act Itself has received a wide range of comments covering political,
economic, administrative and other aspects. Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, in the year
1993 enunciated a detailed study to asses the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities
and threats analysis of Panchayat Raj situation in the country.
Let us begin with strengths. It is believed by all that with the constitutional status
which is accorded to Panchayat bodies will check the state from tampering with the
life of these institutions as practiced earlier. This will enable the Panchayat bodies
to function truly as rural local self-government responding to and mobilising better
256
people’s participation. Making "Gram Sabha" the soul of Panchayat, states, will
enhance this participation in various development programmes.
The provision of a three-tier structure is expected to bring uniformity in the
structural pattern throughout the country and will strengthen planning process at
the grassroot level.
Another positive effect of the said Amendment Act is, periodicity of elections which
will ensure durability of and budding up confidence in, PR institutions. The tendency
for dissolution of these bodies on some ground or the other will also be curbed.
Other provisions of election process will also contribute in accelerating democratic
process at the grassroots levels. Election of all members of Panchayat at eveiy level
by the people will give every citizen an opportunity to exercise his franchise to elect
four to five representatives at various levels of Panchayats to boost peoples
initiatives. It will create a feeling of oneness in the system and will open formal
means of communication. Direct election to these bodies will also bring about
24,00,000 people at various levels in these bodies. Thus, a large number of people
will be directly involved in the art of self- government, political education and
political socialisation.
Moreover, each Individual will have to choose his association in one tier. Hence like
the previous system, one person could not be a chairperson at the village, block and
district levels simultaneously. The 73rd Amendment Act has restricted the monopoly
of one person to hold office at various levels. Consequently, opportunities will be
available to a large number of persons.
Another important aspect of the Act is the political empowerment of women by
providing one third reservation of seats. This means about seven to eight lakh
electorates will be sharing the activities and contributing directly in the development
process. This paves the way for a neglected sector of the society to participate in
main stream politics. Similarly the other disadvantaged group of SCs/STs has been
given the opportunity to enter into the system through reservation in these bodies.
Though the powers, authority and responsibility are of course vested In the
legislature of State who would decide the functions of Panchayats, the legislature
will implement the programmes of development and social justice including the
subjects provided in the Eleventh Schedule to the constitution. If all the 29 items
are entrusted to the Panchayats, it will emerge as a strong local government
eventually, thereby introducing positive correlation between effective decentralisa
tion strategies and better performance.
Previously the Panchayats always suffered from lack of financial resources. This is
also being taken care of by 73rd Amendment Act. The Constitution of Finance
257
Commission to review financial position every fifth year will help them to sustain
economically through the provision of designated taxes, duties, tolls and fees.
Over and above, the provision to vest powers regarding all matters relating to
elections of Panchayats in a State Election Commission will ensure regular and fair
elections to the PR bodies. It will reduce frequent litigation on flimsy grounds and
will avoid unnecessary delay in electoral process.
In spite of these positive line of action expected to be set in by the Amendment some
weaknesses and threats have been forecast. The Gram Sabha which has been an
Important organ of the PR bodies is not aware of the specific powers and functions.
It is not clear as to what would be its quorum, how frequently it would meet, what
are its exact responsibilities. It will, however, be the responsibility of the local
leadership, (Singh, 1993) to make this body function effectively.
The functioning of each level of Panchayats have not been spelt out in detail, as
well. The 29 items as listed in the Eleventh Schedule do not give idea whatsoever
as to which level will be responsible for a particular set of functions. This has to be
determined by the individual State Government thereby decreasing the chance of
uniformity in substance and functions. Article 243 (b) states that it is upon the
discretion of the State Government to decide the functions of the different levels of
Panchayats. It is apprehended that State Government is in a position to take
advantage of this measure. It should have not transferred additional functions
(beyond those specified in the Constitution), to the Councils despite constitutional
backup should be referred to in this context.
The present practice of institutional relationship between the PRIs and State
Government was one of dominance of the State Government. The powers and
functions of PRI’s are not properly decentralised. And if development planning
process is to be decentralised down the district level, this should go hand in hand
with the Government of India reducing the centrally sponsored plan Scheme and
allowing State Governments to function freely in their allotted spheres. As the
planning process stands now, most of the funds are tied down sectorally and even
project and scheme wise and under Minimum Need Programme, centrally sponsored
schemes, central schemes. After that whatever little remains untied are stated to
be distributed over the spill-over works and should be accompanied by suitable
devolution of financial resources between them.
There is a need to increase the Panchayat’s area of discretion in planning their own
funds and in ensuring that the sectoral schemes and other departmental program
mes are coordinated and integrated by them.
Again, apart from directly elected member, the composition of Panchayats is vested
in the hands of State Legislative. The chairperson of lower level must be allowed to
258
become members in the higher level body in ex-officio capacity to maintain an
organic link. Otherwise the three tiers will function in isolation and the interest of
lower bodies will be under represented and unrepresented.
Another crucial threat may develop from the MP’s and MLA’s who are included in
these bodies. A number of committees have suggested and conflicts will increase.
Three types of conflicts may emerge according to Mukherjee (1995). One, the conflict
between local level politicians and National Level Politicians on the other, two, the
conflict between bureaucracy and local level politicians and three, the conflict
between the vested interest and the local level politicians. The first type of conflict
may arise as these Legislatures, given Article 243(G), will be rendered economically
powerless and the locus of power will shift to the chairpersons of the Panchayats.
The MP’s and MLA’s, then would have to vacate political space for the local level
politicians which will be a painful process for them.
Secondly, Democratic decentralisation in terms of the 73rd Amendment, would also
reduce unrestrained authority and power currently enjoyed by the bureaucracy,
more so in view of proposed Article 243(H), if the Act which authorise power to assign
the Panchayat to levy, collect and appropriate taxes, duties, tolls, fees and provides
for making grants-in-aid to the Panchayats from Consolidated Fund of the grants.
The final conflict relates to conflict between vested interest and the local level
institutions. One chairperson of the Panchayat would be much nearer to the scene
of action and would be much better placed to monitor the implementation of
programmes, deployment and end use of resources and thus the vested interests
will be Inconveniences dishonest contractors, unscrupulous businessmen, ir
responsible teachers, health care workers government functionaries, indigent tax
collectors would oppose to local level democratic decentralisation.
The Amendment Act shows that the financial autonomy of the Panchayats hang on
the single thread of their own resources from taxes, duties, toll and appropriated
by PRIs but with conditions and limits regarding the usages. Thus, the scope for
PRIs to function as units of self-government is extremely circumscribed.
An important aspect of Panchayats is completely missing. This is about the power
to adjudicate on disputes which arise in the village itself. The idea of dispensing
justice locally and cheaply is absent. The Act does not provide for Nyaya Panchayat
at village level.
However, everything depends upon the State Government as to how meaningful they
are going to make this Amendment.
259
■■i
Section 3
3.1
Representation of Women in the Three-Tiers of Panchayat in West Bengal
Despite a number of shortcomings, the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act on
Panchayat Raj, inflicted hopes among the weaker sections of Indian society. In West
Bengal challenges had been accepted by all the political parties to gear up women
candidates to enter politics at the lower level in the spirit of self governance as
committed citizens. Any study of women Panchayat members should throw light,
even briefly, on the election process and the kind of response it evoked from women.
It goes without saying that in West Bengal, like any other states, people are likely
to experience a major social change; a change whose main actors are women. Women
are mainly responsible to bring about the change successfully. In the 1993 election,
there were 71,000 elected seats in the three-tier reserved solely for women. One
would be pleased to note that more than 67,000 women participated, under different
political umbrella, in the elections. In other words, at least two women on an average,
contested for a particular post. The following table illustrates the number of women
candidates elected in three-tiers :
Tier
GP
PS
ZP
No. of reserved
seats
21489
3182
224
No. of Women
candidates
Average No. of
candidate/seat
60.664
9,241
873
2.82
2.90
3.90
Source : Panchayat Election Study forthcoming issue ISS, Delhi.
The analysis of the Panchayat Election study high-lighted that compared to the data
pertaining to the general seats, representation of more than 2 women candidates
for each reserved seat is not insignificant. In fact, considering the striking absence
of women before 1993, the present election statistics portrayed a hopeful picture.
Out of 24,895 seats which were reserved for women, only 561 seats were not
contested by any candidate. As per the forthcoming publication of ISS, this figure
meant only 2.25% of the reserved seats were not contested for. which was not very
alarming. Side by side, when the percentage for total general uncontested seats was
calculated, it amounted to 2.69% a figure more than that of the uncontested reserved
seats. The above two figures highlight one important criterion. The percentage figure
of uncontested reserved seats (2.25%), is below the average, i.e., 2.69%. One can
therefore, safely infer that ‘women’ in general were not the reason for the absence
of any prospective candidate. There might have been some other factors also which
were responsible for the absence of candidates.
260
The ‘felt’ presence of the women candidates in West Bengal became more obvious
from the number of women office bearers in the 1993 Panchayat bodies. The
representations of the office bearers at all the three Panchayat levels in all the
districts of West Bengal and the Karmadhyakshas in Panchayat Samities and Zilla
Parishad are self explanatoiy from the following table.
Table : 1.1 Office bearers in Gram Panchayat in the State of West Bengal
Upapradhan
Pradhan
Name of
district
Total
Darjeeling
Purulia
South 24 Parganas
North 24 Parganas
Jalpaiguri
Nadia
Midnapore
Maida
Howrah
Hooghly
Coochbehar
Burdwan
Bankura
Murshidabad
Birbhum
Uttar Dinajpur
Dakshin Dinajpur
21
70
312
214
125
187
514
147
157
210
87
278
190
255
169
99
65
Women
8
8
10
6
2
57
10
3
20
3
22
30
1
5
2
1
P.C. of
Women
Total
Women
P.C. of
Women
11.43
2.56
2.67
4.80
1.07
11.09
6.80
1.91
9.52
3.52
7.91
15.79
0.39
2.96
2.02
1.54
21
84
312
214
125
187
514
147
157
210
87
278
190
255
169
99
65
3
27
40
42
20
17
88
28
26
62
18
62
45
32
42
8
3
14.29
32.14
12.82
19.63
16.00
9.09
17.12
19.05
16.56
29.52
20.69
22.30
23.68
12.55
24.85
8.08
4.62
Source : Directorate of Panchayat, Govt, of West Bengal, Calcutta.
■
€
As per ’Panchayat Raj (1992)’, written in Bengali, out of 2866 Gram Panchayats in
West Bengal, 16 had women Pradhans and 12 Gram Panchayats were under women
Upa-Pradhans. Four districts namely Coochbehar, Maida, Murshidabad and
Howrah did not have any women Pradhans or Upa-Pradhans. It is quite visible from
the above table that the present scenario is more promising than the previous one
as the only district which cannot claim to have a women Pradhan is Darjeeling. In
the rest of the districts, at least one chair of Pradhan and one chair of Upapradhan
is held by a women member of the Panchayat. This very context could be regarded
as a step ahead in integrating women actively in politics and specially in decision
making role. As the situation stands, Bankura, Purulia and Midnapore are three
districts which are more forward as 15.69%., 11.43% and 11.09% respectively, of
261
the seats of Pradhans are occupied by women. In Purulia again, 32.14% of the seats
are under women Upa-Pradhans. As far as seats of Upa-Pradhans are concerned,
Hooghly, Coochbehar, Burdwan, Bankura, Birbhum have exhibited a positive spirit
because more than 20% seats of the Upa-Pradhans are occupied by women. No
matter how insignificant the achievement might be, the Inclusion of women mem
bers in the decision making areas is a kind of achievement compared to the previous
composition of Gram Panchayats in West Bengal.
Table 1.2 : Women Representatives in Panchayat Samitis of West Bengal.
Sahakari Sabhapati
Sabhapati
Name of
the district
Total Women
Darjeeling
Purulia
24 Pgs (S)
24 Pgs (N)
Jalpaiguri
Nadia 17
Midnapore
Maida 15
Howrah
Hooghly
Coochbehar
Burdwan
Bankura
Murshidabad
Birbhum
Uttar Dinajpur
Dakshin Dinajpur
4
7
29
22
13
54
1
13
18
12
31
22
26
19
9
7
1
P.C. of Total Women P.C. of Total Women P.C. of
Women
Women
Women
25
2
6.90
1
6.67
1
1
17
1.85
15
7.69
5.56
1
1
Karmadhyakashas of
Panchyat Samitis
4.54
3.85
-
4
7
1
29
7
9
22
13
2
423.53
54 19
5 40
13
1
8
18
2
12
31
7
7
22
3
26
7
19
9
2
2
7
14.29
24.1
40.91
15.38
170
35.19
150
7.69
44.44
16.67
22.58
3.18
11.54
36.84
22.22
28.57
35.00
14
38.27
31
4.48
42
24.48
37
unknown
2615.29
17.54
536 94
3523.33
16
100 16
20.56
180 37
18.33
120 22
17.42
310 54
18.81
218 41
260 44
16.92
17.90
162 29
12.5
88 11
63 14
22.22
40
81
290
196
Source : Directorate of Panchayat, Govt, of West Bengal, Calcutta.
Table 1.2 highlights that in the higher echelons of the Panchayat, women members
are not so visible as in the Panchayat Samities, men mostly hold the Chair of
Sabhapati. Darjeeling, South 24 Parganas, Midnapore, Maida, Howrah, Hooghly,
Bankura, Murshidabad are the primary districts where at least one woman Sab
hapati is present.
Nonetheless, the present situation is less dismal than the previous years. Prior to
1993 elections, there was no woman Sabhapati and only one Sahakart Sabhapati
262
in Panchayat Samltles of West Bengal. There were also only eight women Karmadhyakshas before 1993.
A paragraph must be devoted to the assessment of the present structure of the
standing committees of the Panchayat Samiti Kamvadhyakshas is the most
authoritative person in any standing committee who has the power to decide about
everything. Except in Jalpaiguri, South 24 Parganas and North Dinajpur, 15% of
the standing committees in every district claim to be running under women
Karmadhyakshas as Table 1.2 highlights. No data was available from Jalpaiguri
regarding Karmadhyakshas. Purulia and Darjeeling have set examples as 38.27%
and 25% of the Panchayat Samltles have women Karmadhyakshas.
Table 1.3 : Representatives of women fold in the decision making positions
in the Zilla Parishads of West Bengal.
s'
Sahakari Sabhapati
Sabhapati
Name of
the district
Total Women
Darjeeling
1
P.C. of Total Women P.C. of Total Women P.C. of
Women
Women
Women
1
Punilia
24 Pgs (S)
24 Pgs (N)
Jalpaiguri
1
1
Nadia 1
Midnapore
Karmadhyakashas of
Panchyat Samitis
1
1
Maida 1
1
1
1
100
1
6
Not -known
10
9
Not-known
10
2
100
10
10
2
100
10
2
33.33
3
1
10
1
11.11
1
20
3
30
20
Howrah
i
1
Hooghly
1
1
10
3
Coochbehar
i
1
10
5
Burdwan
i
1
10
5
Bankura
i
1
10
3
Murshidabad
i
1
10
4
10
20
50
50
30
40
Birbhum
i
1
9
1
H.U
Uttar Dinajpur
1
i
1
6
4
1
9
3
66.67
33.33
Dakshin Dinajpur
1
As revealed by the above table, there are no women Sabhadhipati and only two
Sahakari Sabhadhipati reinstating the fact that it is still difficult to break the glass
ceiling by women. However, one can add that situation has improved after 1993
election as reasonable number of women (44 in all) members were made Karmad
hyakshas of the standing committees of Zilla Parishad. Previously, there were
263
only 13 Karmadhyakshas in the Zilla Parishad. After the latest election, women
Karmadhyakshas are absent only in Purulia and Jalpaiguri. On the other hand, in
North Dinajpur, 66.6% of the Karmadhyakshas are women followed by 50% in
Burdwan and Coochbehar.
The analysis of the above data is felt necessary to underline the fact that 1993
election has brought in more women in the decision making role which gives an
indication that women are capable and ready to lead our Panchayats to success.
Gram Panchayat Elections, 1993
Districts
Total No.of members
Women Members
Howrah
3177
1120
North 24-Parganas
4332
1537
South 23-Paranas
5997
2117
Murshidabad
5245
1862
Nadia
37764
1339
Burdwan
5409
1913
Bankura
3419
1207
Midnapore
9043
3193
Purulia
2745
968
Birbhum
2992
1052
Hooghly
4176
1468
Jalpaiguri
2190
782
Coochbehar
2418
853
Maida
2813
938
Uttar Dinajpur
2028
718
Dakshin Dinajpur
1262
441
Siliguri-Mahakuma Parishad
387
135
Total :
61397
21643
Finally, attention must be focused on the general election data pertaining to
GP’s(Gram Panchayats). In most cases, more than 33.33% (l/3rd the total
Panchayat seats), seats are occupied by women. The reason can be explained with
the help of an example. Suppose in a Block Panchayat there are 9 seats, then
obviously 3 seats will be reserved for women. But in case there are 10 seats, then
264
as per the Amendment Act. 33.33 seats should be reserved for women. This is surely
not possible.
Under such circumstances 34% seats were kept reserved for women. In this way
73rd Amendment Act guarantees active participation of women in the decision
making process. This would give them an opportunity to raise their grievances and
other related social and economic problems in a formal forum as Bhargava and
Vidya (1992) states, a political process is necessary for Improvement of women in
all spheres of life. The representation of women in political institution is expected
to encourage other women to slowly break the age old barriers imposed on them by
the social structure ensuing political power on an equal footing with men.
As stated by Mazumdar (1993), a sea change in the status of housewives in the
country side will be expected and ordinary women will be expected o become more
assertive after all these initiative taken by the present Government. The question,
therefore, arises as to whether the reservation formula which is imposed from above
will yield a grassroot social revolution; whether the newly elected women will
reasonably put a stiff resistance to the vested rural male interest entrenched for 15
years. These housewives leaving the rigid confines of their homes to participate in
administrative matters. This might create teething troubles as women will try to
take policy decisions or implement them. To fathom the present day status of the
women members, after the completion of one year of their tenure of service, an
extensive file study in the districts of West Bengal is necessary. Detailed probing
into the opinions, attitudes and perception of the women members regarding
Panchayat is logical as there is a global realisation of problems arising from social
divides based on gender and poverty (Narayanan. 1994).
3.2
Training given to the women Panchayat members.
The Government of West Bengal also took special initiative to provide encourage
ment to the newly elected candidates specially those who are fresh entrants to the
Panchayat system.
In the above background, the State Government took the decision to impart
systematic training to all the elected members to enable them to acquire appropriate
attitude, knowledge and skill in addressing issues or problems they have been facing
in their work situation.
The training curriculum as per the Directorate of Panchayats. West Bengal, was
designed under five modules : (a) Role of Panchayat as a unit of local self-government
in three tier federal structure and as a promoter of rural development and social
justice; (b) Study of problems and Issues related to people below the poverty line in
rural areas, illiteracy, gender bias, unemployment and under-employment, health
and sanitation, population inflation and environmental pollution with the objective
265
of sensitizing the opinion leaders of the Panchayats on the issues; (c) The spectrum
of current programme for poverty alleviation of the target group and the role of
Panchayats in planning and implementation of the said Rural Development ac
tivities; (d) Development and people's participation; (e) Planning for vil
lages / block / district comprising objective setting, preparation of resource inventory,
identification of problem areas, determining strategy, and integration of existing
development programmes.
Target group of the training comprised members elected to Gram Panchayats as
well as members elected to Panchayat Samities from the Gram Panchayat areas,
who are ex-officio members of the Gram Panchayat. However, the office bearers of
the three tiers of Panchayats and Karmadhyakshas of the standing committee were
not included in the training programme.
Subsequent training for these office bearers and specially for women office bearers
and women Zllla Parishad members was organised in January and February '95 at
the State Institute of Panchayat, Kalyani, West Bengal. The curriculum of the
two-day training Included discussion on the role and Importance of women in the
PR system of India followed by series of amendments relating to West Bengal
Panchayat Acts. The women participants were also made to understand the laws of
Panchayat System in West Bengal and also the duties and responsibilities vested
to the three tiers of Panchayats in West Bengal. Emphasis was placed on the different
projects under the Panchayats specially those which involve the upllftment of
children and women. The training also sought to expand the awareness of the
participants regarding the grassroot planning and development and the recent
changes induced in the process. Finally, this political training included another
aspect into the curriculum viz., the legal rights of women as citizens of India.
Over and above the training courses, the training literature for Gram Panchayat
members was developed by the Government of West Bengal after elaborate discus
sions with officers of concerned Departments, UNICEF, Institute of Health & Public
Hygiene. Five training booklets under Panchayats training series were published till
now which are :
1.
Introduction to Panchayats
2.
Village Level Planning and Development
3.
Universal Education and Role of Panchayat
4.
Public Health & Panchayat
5.
Jawahar Rozgar Yojna and IRDP.
Books on other two tiers have already gone to the press.
266
Section 4
4.1
Methodology of the Study
The Study was designed to assess the experiences of the women members pertaining
to the duties and responsibilities of Panchayats.
The study, therefore, focused on different aspects which were likely to have an
Influence on the role played by the women members of the Panchayats.
These issues are :
1.
Family Dynamics : Constraints of playing dual role at home and Panchayat,
encouragement provided by the family to women respondents when they
decided to contest elections and also later on in fulfilling their duties as
members: confidence exhibited by these representatives in running the
Panchayat despite being subjugated by Patriarchy.
2.
Juxtaposition of the representatives from economic point of view: Whether
these members are gainfully engaged in any occupation outside home and their
awareness regarding economic benefit of being a Panchayat member.
3.
Community and social environment: Receptivity of the community l.e. how far
the society is conducive to the these women members, awareness of the
respondents regarding social problems, movements etc.
4.
Involvement of women members in Panchayats: their physical presence in the
Gram Sabha and Gram Panchayat meeting and consequent involvement with
meetings: their perception of their contribution towards community develop
ment.
5.
Political awareness and perception of meaningful participation as 'Women; in
the political scenario.
6.
Leadership qualities of the Panchayat members: respondent confidence in
canying out Panchayat work; perception about the required qualities of a leader
and differences, thereby, experienced by the respondents by virtue of being
'Women'.
7.
Impression of the respondents regarding the system itself l;e; Panchayat Raj:
Comparison of the present system with the earlier status quo of PRIs,
awareness of the respondents, regarding the sources of funds, functions of the
Panchayats and role of Panchayat administrator.
267
Coverage: Four districts from West Bengal were covered by this study. These are,
Birbhum, Dinajpur, (both north and South districts were covered), and Murshidabad. A total of 50 women members were interviewed out of which 4 were
Pradhans and 7 were Upa-Pradhans. 9 Gram Panchayats from Birbhum and
Dinajpur (comprising north and south ) 9 Gram Panchayat from Murshidabad were
selected for the study.
The selection of the fields was purposive. Attempt has been made by the study to
highlight the social reality in a Hindu dominated area l;e;, Birbhum, Muslim
dominated area like Murshidabad and in the area dominated by scheduled caste or
scheduled tribes namely Dinajpur, In other words the present study has made an
effort to fathom whether there exist any difference on the basis of the community.
Purposive sampling was adopted for the study.
Sample Description : The composition of the sample according to age, family
structure, marital status, education of occupation is as follows:
Age Group
Total No. of Women
19-28
14
29-38
23
39-48
10
49
3
50
Total :
Total No. of Women
Family Structure
joint
24
Nuclear
26
50
Total:
Martial Status
Total
Married
42
Widow
4
Unmarried
4
50
Total :
268
Level of Education
Total
Literate
9
Primary
8
Class 5 - 9
12
Madhyamik
11
Higher Secondary
5
Graduate
5
50
Total
Occupation
Total
Agricultural Labourer
2
Own Cultivation
4
Household Work
33
Teacher/Private, Tutor
3
Sewing
3
Social Work
3
Shop Owner
2
Total
50
Technique of date collection : With the help of a structured questionnaire, the
50 respondents were interviewed in their villages.
Period of Survey : The study was conducted in January and February 1995.
269
4.2
Findings of the Study
4.2.i Family Dynamics
A number of newspaper articles have focused on the active co-operation of the family
members of the women candidates to the Panchayat during the time of the elections.
Brief Interviews by reporters with these candidates highlighted the spark of freedom
which was visible in the eyes of some of these women candidates who were
participating in the political process for the first time. Their husbands, fathers-inlaw and brothers were the main crusaders for their cause who extended full support
to these women. In some cases, the candidates concerned were well wished by their
neighbours also; providing encouragement at every turn. This made some reporters
comment "a new form of leadership is being introduced by the reservation policy".
The present field study, however, did not portray such a positive picture, After
completion of more than one year of their tenureship, only 16 women out of 50
interviewed stated without hesitation that they were being still fully supported by
their family members which enabled them to perform their Panchayat duties
properly. The family members of these 32% women had accepted their absence
from the house. However it needs to be pointed out that amongst these 16
fortunate members, four were widows and another person enjoyed freedom because
she was unmarried. It was usually expected that unmarried and widowed women
had less work load. However, 9 from amongst the 16 women expressed that there
had been significant change in their work load relating to housework. Right from
cooking to cleaning utensils, washing clothes, keeping the house clean etc., they
get help from their husband, children, daughters-in-law and sisters-in-law. On the
other hand, majority of these 16 women do not face any change in their daily routine.
On the other extreme, were the women who, all the time, experience stiff resistance
from their family members in fulfilling their duties as elected Panchayat members.
Overburdened by housework and other social stigma, restriction of movement,
and lack of self confidence, 8 respondents of the present study were unable to
meet up to their dreams of participating actively in politics. They were mere puppets
in the hands of their husbands who usually exploit the political power of their wives
and 'rule’them.
The position of the rest of the 26 women were even worse. They were apparently
allowed to attend the Panchayat meetings physically but in fulfilling the duties of
the Panchayats in name only. These women expressed that either they were guided
by party men or their husbands in enacting Panchayat responsibilities. To quote
one, "all the work is done by them. Everything is done by my husband. He supervises the
repair and maintenance of the roads". The position of these women was worse as they
270
were not physically restricted from movement. They are allowed to visit the villagers
and act as if they wield power, but they are not rescued by their husbands from
such duties. Only 3 women felt that the family members compromised in case they
were unable to meet with all exigencies of the household work.
-
Less
No change in
Workload
Workload
D
M
B
1
4
4
D
Total
M
B
3
4
16
5
9
26
2
8
Support from family
members enabling them
o fulfil PR duties
Apparent support but
actual work done by
the family members
9
2
6
No. support at all
Notes :
D = Dinajpur
M = Murshidabad
B = Birbhum
However, the women members of Birbhum of Birbhum district enjoyed maximum
freedom in this respect followed by partial freedom of the women of Murshidabad.
The position of the women of Dinajpur Vis-a Vis the family responsibilities was the
worst. They were less articulate politically also. So one major obstacle in women’s
participation in Panchayat is time. H.S. Mukherjee (1944:210) states "right from
early morning to late night, they take care of their children, sweep and clean their
homes, walk long distances to fetch water, fodder and fuel wood, send children to
school, take care of livestock, and the elders and cook and distribute food, help in
farm activities and do all kinds of miscellaneous things which are important:. And,
to quote Mazumdar (1993) article in The Telegraph "Ego disallows most males from
actively involving themselves in household chores. As a result many women Panchayat
Members will have to add their political work on top of considerable domestic burden".
4.2.H Economic Position
The economic position of the women respondents was also looked into. The
questionnaire focused on whether the respondents were gainfully engaged in any
work and their perception as to whether it helps in Panchayat work. It was also
assessed whether the women were economically independent in the sense they have
271
control over their earnings to measure their economic status. Over and above, the
economic benefit of being a Panchayat member was also analysed.
After the analysis of date, it was clarified that an overwhelming majority of the
respondents were not engaged in any outside work. Only 9 women members had
an earning of their own by being employed as agricultural labourer, engaged in
sewing.
What was found significant is that 14 out of 50 respondents consider that a gainfully
engaged woman can be an active worker of the Panchayat. In fact economic
independence helps in Panchayat work because these 28% women felt that mentally
and financially they were much better off than their other women counterparts. One
of these members also contributed to the Panchayat fund from time to time.
Moreover, extra income permitted them to travel to different places by rickshaw.
Otherwise, they had to depend on their husbands to take them to the Panchayat
office on cycles or to walk the whole way. Under such circumstances it becomes
difficult to attend the Gram Panchayat meetings on time. One woman member stated
a very interesting fact. Her extra income had provided her ample time to be actively
involved with Panchayat work.
As it is, these women were overburdened with household work. In addition, other
activities would deter them from whatever Panchayat meeting they could attend.
However, what was most grave is the fact that 16 of these respondents could not
express any idea as to whether gainful employment helped them in Panchayat work.
These women failed to express their opinions as they stated they had veiy little idea
about Panchayat Raj as a concept. This reflects their lack of involvement with
Panchayats.
When attention was focused on the awareness of these women regarding the
economic benefit of being a member, the apathy of these women became more
significant. Out of 50 respondents 38 of them (76%) did not receive a regular sitting
fees which they were entitled to. Out of these 38, three had not received any money
at all, not even the tiffin fees which each member was supposed to get on attending
a meeting of the Panchayat. Again, 12 amongst these 38 women received only tiffin
fees of Rs. 20/- per meeting. The rest of the 23 respondents either received a
lumpsum of Rs. 80/- to Rs. 160/- once or twice or over a few meetings.
The position of the 12 other women was definitely better than their exploited ’sisters’,
as they received sitting fees regularly, However, 5 out of these 12 women were
confident that Panchayats provided them the rightful amount every month. The
other 7 Interviewees stated that though they got a petty amount from the Panchayat,
the payment was regular. But these seven women had to contribute out of their
income from Panchayat to the party who provided them support during the elections.
272
The fact which must be stressed here is that not a single respondent felt that the
fees they got from the Panchayat could meet their needs. The amount was not
sufficient in every respect. They clould not forego the other activities which earned
then money, just because they were Panchayat member.
The respondents were also asked whether they enjoyed sufficient economic gains
or any other kind of gain. In response to the question, 17 members commented on
the different kinds of benefits they had been able to exploit because of being a member
of the Panchayat body. The following table highlights the kind of benefits they could reap
1.
Experienced mental satisfaction
6
2.
Gained respect of the villagers
6
3.
Gained confidence to help others
1
4.
More exposure to the society
1
5.
6.
Can contribute money to the family
and meet children’s school fees
Bought a pond
1
7.
A benefit no doubt but could not specify.
1
Before concluding this section, it needs to be mentioned that whatever meagre
income these women had (even the tiffin fees of Rs. 20/- per meeting), only 7 women
had the freedom to decide how to spend their income without any resistance from
other family members. In general, it was visible that even after being a Panchayat
member, these women were not enjoying any economic gain and had not been able
to reap any gain.
Not engaged
Total
Gainfully
gainfully
Engaged
D
M
B
D
Employment helps in
expediting PR duties
2
2
5
3
Employment creates
problem
1
4
Could not express
any opinion
Total
273
M
B
2
14
4
3
8
20
8
3
5
16
50
4
Dinajpur
Murshidabad
Birbhum
Total
Sitting fees
received
3
9
12
9
11
38
Sitting fees not
received regularly
18
Total
50
As the tables indicate, the inhabitants of Murshidabad and Birbhum were fortunate.
Roy (1993) in the article in Ananda Bazar Patrika, corroborated the findings of the
study. Most women members are either ’wives’ or ’daughters’ of poverty strlken
families. At least this is the hard truth of the Gram Panchayat members.
4.2.iii Community and Social Environment
In a traditional rural society, politics is regarded as ’unwomanly’ as Sen (1994:61)
comments, the attitude of traditional men prevents women from participating
actively in the body politics. They are victims of various types of social control.
Society has rarely provided them with an opportunity for self actuallsation. It is
therefore necessary to infer the receptivity of the community and how far the society
is conducive to their participation. An attempt is also made to assess the awareness
of the respondents about their own society.
The Impression generated by the 50 respondents highlighted that in most cases, it
was the party to which the women candidates belonged which encouraged them to
contest the elections and participate in the political process. 32 of the 50 women
members who were interviewed stated that the party men took the initiative to put
in the nomination paper during the time of election. In other words 64% were
influenced, cajoled and encouraged by the party members to stand for Panchayat
elections. However, it was not the party only. The family members always stood by
the side of these 32 respondents to guide them accordingly. In most of these families,
the husbands adopted an active role in supporting the women members during
their election time.
Villagers also provided the necessary motivation and in the case of 12 women
respondents, the nomination paper was submitted by these said villagers. On the
other hand, the nomination paper of two women Interviewees were submitted by
their brothers and one by the father-in-law. But what attracted attention was that
in the case three women, the nomination paper was placed by themselves on their
own decision.
274
The above analysis clarifies a fact. One can comment that Initially women were
accepted more easily than expected as in most cases the husbands or fathers-in-law,
brothers-in-law, brothers, uncles and even mothers-in-law, sometimes influenced
women to stand in elections. Apparently it would seem that the community in which
they lived has acknowledged their presence in the decision making process. But
surely they did not have a free rein over everything. Once they came into power, the
party men did not create a very congenial environment. All the women whose
nomination papers were submitted by their respective political parties, as Basu
(1993) In the Statesman expressed, were puppets In the hands of their political
bosses. To quote one of Basu’s interviewees when she was asked "who is superior,
the party or the Panchayat ?", "The party!" she replied. This woman member’s opinion
is corroborated by the women members who have to abide by the party’s directives.
In response to the question as to "WTry did the party help you contest elections? , these
respondents equivocally expressed, "For the party’s benefit".
The condition of women who were inspired by their husbands or other male family
members was no better. As appeared from the interviews the society was not given
free access in as far as Panchayat work was concerned. Their men still call the shots
as Dam (1993) puts it. Their subverted role which has no space for independent
thought or action impose them to fofiow their men. Only three women expressed a
positive change of their subservient status as they stated that the decision to contest
elections was their own. They were not coaxed, or cajoled or influenced or even
forced by any other persons. And the community always stood beside them.
Certain factors appeared to have helped the party men the family members to
influence these women easily. Apart from three women, the rest of the 47 respon
dents stated that this was their first attempt at contesting elections. They had never
khowed any keenness to participate in the political process earlier.
Moreover, though the women members from Blrbhum district spoke more confi
dently, none of the members seemed very articulate about the primary reason as to
why they developed an inclination to enter the political scene. Only some women
from Blrbhum could specify that they expected their direct participation in politics
to enable them help the villages and specially the women. The rest could not explain
what they meant by "to gain our own benefit".
It also appeared from the interview that women respondents were not aware of social
problems and movements. Their knowledge regarding the social movements seemed
to have been restricted to women’s molestation. Only two women could specify and
give concrete answers when probed about the social movement. One of these women
members mentioned the Narmada movement and Gandhiji’s Satyagraha while the
other considered the literacy campaign as a social movement. Twenty of these
members, however, commented that they did not have any idea whatsoever about
275
social movements. The ignorance of these women is an added advantage for party
men to guide women for party benefit.
The society itself does not seem very responsive, as veiy, few respondents stated
that there were some active women’s organisation or NGOs working in the region.
Nine women answered that there were some women’s organisations trying to help
the rural women become self reliant. Women’s organisations in Panchayat they can
effort to uplift the life of desolate women through the DWCRA scheme. However only
two members out of nine said that they were members of these organisations and
that they had dedicated their life to the cause of women’s empowerment. Other
seven women expressed doubts in the sincerliy of the women’s organisation. NGO’s
have not been able to reach the grassroot people in large numbers. This also acts
in favour of the party men. Due to lack of stftcere spokespersons for the women,
who could protest against the unreasonable actions against women? The power
ytrielders could channelise the Ignorant women to strengthen party’s cause. The
'society is still not mature enough to stand up for women. However, the situation in
Murshidal^d and Blrbhum is far better than Dinajpur.
4.2.iv Involvement of Women Panchayat members
The present field based study has also made an attempt to gather insights about
the actual contributions made by these 50 women as Panchayat members during
last one-and-a-half years. Involvement for the present purpose is measured in two
ways :
1.
their physical presence in Gram Sabha and Gram Panchayat meetings; whether
they note down the minutes of the meetings; whether records of their atten
dance are kept; how the sitting arrangements are made at the meetings.
2.
their contribution towards the overall community development i.e., main
tenance and repairs, roads, light, water supply, drainage system etc.
Analysis of data highlighted that the physical presence of the member in Gram
Sabha and Gram Panchayat could be categorised under three divisions :
a. High level of participation, i.e. when the member has attended all the
meetings of Gram Panchayat and Gram Sabhas barring may be two or three.
b. Average attendance when they participated in more than 50% of such
meetings.
c. Poor attendance when they have attended less than 50%. This section also
includes those women members who have stated that no Gram Sabha was
276
organised in their villages and also those respondents who could not clarify
how many such meetings they have attended.
Level of
Participation
PC of
Total No.
of women
women
High
28
56%
Average
8
16%
Poor
14
28%
However, 13 out of the 28 women who regularly attended the meeting confessed
that the meetings were not always held at their convenience. They face problems in
attending such meetings. In spite of such problems their involvement, according to
them was quite significant. These 56% women regularly took down notes and
recorded minutes of the meetings. Very few exhibited lack of confidence in keeping
track of the meetings in writing. Still, this minuscule minority' of women take help
from their husbands or brothers in case they have to refer to the previous meetings.
The latter half, that Is the rest of the 44% of women expressed lack confidence in
as far as written evidence of the meetings are concerned. Some were bold enough
to highlight their lack of confidence. However, only the women categorised under
the ‘poor’ group (28%), lacked Involvement in expediting Panchayat duties. It could
not be understood whether they were being compelled to take a back seat or that
they themselves lacked dedication.
As far as their contribution to community development was concerned, most of these
women claimed to have played an active role in tubewell construction maintenance
of roads, school buildings, drainage system and water supply. Some women
Panchayat members had tried sincerely to work towards women’s empowerment by
taking initiative in providing loan to rural women, protesting aginst injustices like
child marriage and molestation alongwith helping villagers in general. This degree
of involvement was by 30 women members, i.e. 60% of the interviewees. It is clear
from the study that womenfolk are now ready to participate in Panchayats for the
betterment of humankind. This works against the myth that women are not capable
of taking active part in any kind of developmental work. Given suitable oppor
tunities, they might even take better care of larger interests of the village. The
offending agent in this case is the male resistance that they have to put up with. In
fact, the latter 40% of the women corroborated that men discount the presence of
women in Panchayat. Men feel insecure to share power with women. So quite often
these women were not allowed to work in the villages. They were not always informed
about the functions of the Panchayat as the Pradhans, party men and their
husbands did not allow them to join the network.
277
4.2. v Political awareness and perception of meaningful participation as
'women'
Participation in the political scene also necessitates awareness of the political field.
Political awareness of the respondents was also probed into. Enquiry was made as
to how these women members come to know about the 1/3 reservation of Panchayat
seats for women and how they keep in touch with the political field and so on. Mass
media did not seem to play any vital role in the lives of the women interviewed, as
only 10 i.e. 2% of them stated that they depended on the newspaper, television and
radio as well, apart from the villagers and their family. Majority of them, therefore,
had to rely on villagers and family members for information. They had to accept the
way men folk interpret them.
In response to the question as to how women members became aware of the
reservation policy introduced by the 73rd Amendment Act, two women claimed that
they heard it on the radio. The rest (48 i.e., 96%) were told by party men, who had
influenced the respective husbands to motivate their women for election. Villagers
in some cases provided the required inspiration. This lack of awareness, perhaps,
inhibits women from getting involved with Panchayats.
Few questions were also included in the questionnaire to ascertain the perception
of women members about their meaningful participation in Panchayats. Special
emphasis was placed on the ‘woman’ criterion. Therefore, context of discrimination
between male and women Panchayat members was brought within the purview. The
context stressed on the degree of participation of men and women, whether women
verbally participated in the meetings, whether their decisions were received open
heartedly by their male counterparts, whether the women were also members of any
Standing Committee, whether these women have been able to solve women related
Issues, as well as how often villagers consulted them about their problems.
With regard to verbal participation in the meetings, 3 types of opinions came out
from the interview, which were :
= 22
1.
Each and every member participates equally
2.
Women do not participate and men take more opportunity = 9.
3.
Women lack confidence and are scared to speak out = 19.
The above tabulation highlights that more women (44%) expressed that they
participated equally with men and did not feel any apparent difference because of
their gender. On the other hand, 9 women (18%), gave a contrasting viewpoint. What
however, seemed more significant was that 19(38%), women lacked confidence in
expressing their opinions during the meetings. As Mukherjee (1994) pointed out
278
perhaps "the cultural inhibition accompanying women’s participation often pose
major problems for joint sessions of men and women held in villages. It can constrain
the women from expressing frank opinion on many matters."
Verbal participation
Dinajpur
Murshidabad
Birbhum
8
14
Total
in meetings
Each and every member
participates equally
22
Women do not participate
and men take advantage
7
1
1
9
11
3
5
19
Women lack confidence and
are scared to speak out
Total
50
A very pertinent question was added in the questionnaire relating to the acceptance
of women’s decisions by men folk. Out of the 50, 16 women (32%) felt that men
mostly did not give importance to women’s decisions. No detailed information
regarding this issue could be collected as about 10% of the women appeared to be
unaware of the men’s reaction regarding the issue under consideration signifying
lack of perception about meaningful participation as women.
Amongst the respondents interviewed, 21 (42%) of them stated that they were
members of different kinds of Standing Committees. However, majority of them did
not mention the committees of which they were members. In this context it should
be mentioned that only 2 women in Dinajpur were members of the Standing Commit
tees. In West Bengal there are 10 standing Committees under the Panchayats :
i.
Artha, Saristha, Unnayan O Parikalpana Sthayee Samiti (Finance, Estab
lishment, Development and Planning Standing Committee).
ii.
Bon O Bhumisanskar Sthayee Samiti (Forest and Land Reforms Standing
Committee).
ill.
Krlsht, Sech O Samabay Sthayee Samiti (Agriculture, Irrigation and Cooperative
Standing Committee).
iv.
Purta, Kaiya O Paribahan Sthayee Samiti (Public Works and Transport Stand
ing Committee).
279
ft
V.
vi.
Janaswasthay O Paribesh Sthayee Samiti (Public Health & Environment
Standing Committee).
Slksha Sanskriti TathyaOKria Sthayee Samitl (Education, Culture, Information
& Sports Standing Committee).
vii. Khudra, Shllpa, Tran O Jana Kalyan Sthayee Samiti (Cottage & Small Scale
Industries, Relief & Social Welfare Standing Committee).
viii. Matsya O Pranisampad Blkash Sthayee Samitl (Fisheries & Animal Resources
Standing Committee).
ix.
Khadya O Sarbarata Sthayee Samitl (Food & Supplies Standing Committee).
x.
Bidyut O Achira Charit Sthayee Samtti (Power & Non Conventional Energy
Resources Standing Committee).
Besides this there is a Samanmay Samitl (Coordination Committee) headed by the
Chairperson of either the Zilla Parishad or the Panchayat Samiti. This Samitl
coordinates the function between a Standing Committee and the Panchayat body
and also between different Standing Committees and monitors the activities of the
lower tier Panchayat bodies for which funds are allotted by the higher tier Panchayat
bodies for execution of schemes.
One of the most significant aspects was the acceptance of these members by
villagers. Interviewees stressed on ‘before-after’ situation. It was noted that 29 (58%)
women were approached by villagers for advice only after they were elected as
Panchayat members. However, out of these 29, about 15 (51.75%) women expressed
that only women came to consult the elected women Panchayat members. It appears
from the above analysis that the women were not easily accepted as members. Men
still did not trust them and rely on them. They had no faith In 51.75% of the
respondents interviewed.
On the other hand, 12 women exhibited confidence when they stated that their
‘advice’ was sought even before they became elected members of the Panchayat.
These 12 (24%) women were trusted by their fellow villagers and were not ignored.
Nine women were less specific regarding this issue. Either they expressed that they
were very Indecisive and unsure or are compelled to maintain a low profile because
of party men, family members and in some cases the Pradhans of Gram Panchayats.
The above analysis illustrates very clearly that the men folk still hesitate to accept
their women counterparts as their equals.
Meaningful participation also calls for a systematic training of the said members
whereby they would be able to expedite their responsibilities properly. A very
280
interesting fact was revealed from these interviews. Majority of the women (barring
7 of them), attended training programmes organised for their benefit. It must be
mentioned here that not every member understood the content of the training
workshop as 24 (48%) of them clearly reported their inability to understand the
Panchayat Raj. So much so, 2 of these women replied "no Idea" as soon as they were
asked about the content of the training programme which they stated they had
attended. The situation highlights that the training given to these women was not
comprehensible by all.
4.2.vi Perception of leadership of Panchayats
Leadership is a group process which enables individuals to initiate activities for
achieving the common objectives of the group or community. This calls for Joint
effort of each and every member stimulating each other, supplementing abilities and
resources and evolving an effective organisational and hierarchical pattern.
The present study laid importance on the leadership pattern also. At the Gram
Panchayat level, it is the Pradhan who is considered to be the pivot of the system
and regular meetings.
An attempt was made to assess the opinions of the women members regarding the
leadership qualities of a ‘Pradhan’ and whether any difference was felt by them
between a male Pradhan and a female Pradhan and in reception from the Govern
ment officials. Another question was added in the questionnaire to discern whether
women Pradhans were more sincere to the cause of women’s empowerment.
Three types of opinions were highlighted by the 50 respondents pertaining to the
issue of difference between male and female Pmdhans which are :
Dinajpur
1.
2.
3.
No difference is felt
by the respondents
Only the Govt, officials
respond less to women
otherwise no difference
from the male members
Difference in attitude is
felt from the Govt,
officials & male members
3
15
Birbhum
Total
8
11
19
4
5
12
4
19
Murshidabad
50
TOTAL
The above tabulated representation clearly signifies that more number of women
felt a difference in attitude of others when the Pradhan was a woman. (Only 19
women had not succumbed to the age-old differences in treatment based on ‘gender’
factor). The man depended more on the decisions and suggestions put forward by
281
fellow men rather than on women. To quote some respondents : "We do not get any
importance from them (men) officially.
To quote Pal (1994) "They - women members are victims ofgender bias". These women
were bogged down with this particular character of the society that they themselves
considered that men can take better decisions amongst the two. The result was that
they displayed a lack of confidence in themselves.
Rest of the women apparently did not find any difference between a male and female
Pradhan. These 38% of respondents felt that women Pradhans can also put across
their point of views.
However, a significant aspect must be discussed here which clarifies as to why the
confidence in women Pradhans was not showed by all. These 50 respondents were
asked to describe the necessary qualities of a Pradhan. About 50% of these women
were not eloquent in describing the qualities required of an able Pradhan. Some only
mentioned honesty and integrity, some laid stress on ability to build interpersonal
relationships with villagers, and some considered a Pradhan should be a ‘Good
Samaritan’ first but could not explain what exactly the person was supposed to do.
24 of these women, however, were very specific regarding what is to be expected
from a leader of the Gram Panchayat. A leader, according to them must possess
more than one quality. He/She should be educated, honest, patient, responsible,
devoted to her/his cause, bold, strong and soft natured as well whereby she could
build good support with the villagers and serve them truly.
Emphasis on the ‘gender’ issue by the present paper was also clear from the question
as to whether the women Pradhan can be more supportive of women related
problems. A very significant majority of these members, i.e. 50% (30 out of 50), felt
that women were more sincere and active cheer leaders of women. It appeared that
these women believed that women were intrinsically as such, no inferior to men in
basic intelligence as well as in managerial capabilities. It is they who generally run
the households. "Given suitable opportunities', according to Prasad (1994), "they
might even take better care of the larger interest of village. The involvement of women
in rural development and management is expected to result in change in focus to
rural administration".
The impression perhaps, that could be formed about the rest of the 40% of the
women was, these women were socialised to believe that men could only act as
trouble shooters.
282
4.2.vii Impressions about Panchayat Raj
It is vital for eveiy society to strike at the ignorance of the general mass by
dissemination of information and raising general as well as political awareness
among the tolling rural people and specially rural women who are doubtly exploited
: first as being illiterate, ignorant and poorly informed than urbanites and secondly
by virtue of being women.
What is most basic in this case is to gather ideas regarding women’s awareness of
the society and how well informed they are. Once the reality is highlighted, necessary
steps to eradicate the problems would be planned accordingly. As a result, the
present study made special effort to measure the impression and knowledge of the
women members regarding Panchayat Raj.
This section sought information on the following issues :
i.
whether the women members concerned considered the present Panchayat
system to be better than the previous one;
ii.
whether inclusion of women in the planning process of the Panchayat body has
been able to strengthen the said institution;
ill.
awareness of the women regarding source of finance of Gram Panchayats, how
it is utilised and justification in endowing the PR system, with greater control
over the finance;
iv.
their perception about the role of PR system in implementing women’s em
powerment, and
v.
whether the political scenario in West Bengal is different with the Inclusion of
women.
Majority of the respondents interviewed (62%), expressed that the new form of
Panchayats introduced by the 73rd Amendment Act was much more advanced as
a local self government unit as it assured participation of both genders (3 from
Dinajpur, 11 from Murshidabad and 18 from Birbhum). However, one cannot Ignore
the frustration of the rest of the 38% women who felt that the previous Panchayats
worked more sincerely. Nevertheless, the present questionnaire could not grasp the
reason behind lack of faith of the women members in the present system of
Panchayats.
Despite such a dismal picture presented by the women, one interesting thing became
clear from the study. All the women except four, unanimously added that the
reservation policy induced by the 73rd Amendment Act, demanding reservation of
283
1/3 seats In the Panchayat body for women, would definitely change the present
Panchayat Raj System towards betterment. Women by nature are kind hearted. Just
and honest. Induction of women into the system would gradually destroy corruption
and nepotism which characterises the present day Panchayats. Since their origin
women have been planning and managing sources quite successfully. This special
ability could well be utilised in Panchayat work.
However, when these same women were asked how the money could be utilised by
them for rural women’s empowerment, they responded very vaguely signifying lack
of proper knowledge about Panchayat Raj system.
Another dissatisfactory fact was revealed after the analysis of data. Few women
(28%), had complete knowledge regarding the different schemes under the
Panchayat Raj or the source from where Panchayats specially Gram Panchayats can
get money. These 14 women had a clear conception of the sources of funds being
Central Government, State Government, Taxation, different schemes etc., while 11
women Panchayat members were aware of schemes like JRY, IRDP, SRPP and so
on.
Quite a significant percentage of these women, i.e. 42% were not aware of the
schemes specially introduced for women under the Panchayat Raj (PR) system. The
repeatedly stated "No idea" and could not suggest what other types of schemes could
be Introduced for women’s upliftment.
However, from the statements of the rest of the members, which constituted 58%
of those interviewed, it was clear, that given a chance these women are quite ready,
capable and determined to lead Panchayats to success. They emphasised on
schemes which would ensure self reliance and enable rural women to earn money
through home based gainful occupation, so when they were asked to relate new
schemes for women, they harped on loans which would provide support to those
women who had adopted sewing, tailoring, preparing pressed rice, preparing ’bidi’
and small handicrafts as their gainful engagement.
The confidence of the women Panchayat members whoi were brought under the
preview of the body, became prominent when 21 of them (42%), suggested that
women were equally capable to play the role of an administrator in any political
body like their opposite counterparts and 9 (18%) emphatically stated that women
excelled more as administrators being more tolerant, honest, loyal, and more
dedicated to women’s upliftment.
Though the latter 40% stated otherwise and claimed that men were better ad
ministrators they never held ‘biological’ difference between men and women to be
the main reason for it. Rather, they considered the society in which these women
284
live the major discouraging factor for women to adapt the role of the administrator.
Certain difficulties are always associated with women.
At every step these women faced the problems relating to geographical
mobility, cultural inhibition, male dominance and subjugation and exploitation of
party men, which held them back from fully participating in the decision making
process of the PR system.
Dinajpur Murshidabad Bribhum
Total
13
21
5
9
2
20
Women capable of
championing women's
cause equally
1
7
Women more tolerant,
honest etc. as
Administrators.
4
Men are better
Administrators.
13
5
TOTAL
285
50
Section 5
5.1
Conclusion
The impression gathered from the analysis of the study revealed that women’s
participation in the decentralised governance and development with a few exceptions
had been peripheral. The traditional outlook in rural areas, lack of education and
awareness and access to information are the primary reasons for the tilt of the
balance of power against women.
The women respondents still faced stiff resistance from the men folk both at home
and outside. Their workload relating to household chores had not been reduced.
Quite naturally these women toll day and night to cope with both the worlds. Insplte
of the fact that some women members enjoyed the support of the family members
during the time of election, support did not extend to housework also.
Assetlessness and lack of personal income did not allow them to participate to the
fullest extent in politics. Assets assure control of power and without it sustenance
of livelihood becomes difficult thereby holding people back from organising them
selves to participate in village or block or Zilla affairs through Panchayats. Majority
of the women interviewed are not engaged gainfully and perpetually occupy the
bottom step of the social ladder. Membership in Panchayat also did not prove to be
fruitful as they hardly gained any economic benefit. As appeared from the interviews,
they were not paid any sitting fees regularly. Even if some did not get their rightful
fees, it was either very meagre or irregular. The political party under whose ticket
they fought the election always deducted money from their fees for party funds.
So lack of awareness - economically, socially and politically appeared to have
curtailed women’s participation in the Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRl’s). They were
opportunistically utilised by their husbands, fathers-in-law, brothers-in-law,
brothers on one hand and political party on the other for their own benefit. Quite a
significant percent of the women interviewed asserted that they had to act according
to the party’s decisions. They experienced reasonable reception from the society
Itself, only to function as per the whims of the power holders.
Apart from the minuscule few, these women had no previous experience in public
life. As a result, in spite of being physically present in the Gram Panchayat and
Gram Sabha meetings they hardly gave any suggestions nor did they take initiatives
to extend their view points. However, many expressed the willingness and confidence
to work for rural women. Given the right opportunity, they felt they could solve
problems women face all the time. Though the respondents could not explain with
concrete examples as to how they could strive for rural women’s empowerment, the
feeling generated by them was positive in nature.
286
They are considered by many to have a better sense of time management, to
be better communicators, better in human relations and have greater understanding
of planning, executing and controlling activities. They possess all the necessary
qualities, of a leader, similar to men. and differences in leadership depends on
personal traits rather than on gender. Yet the women did face gender bias from the
male members, senior government officers and to some extent from women them
selves who were socialised to accept male supremacy.
i
Absence of involvement in community development might be due to the ignorance
of democratic processes and values, working of democratic Institutions, concept and
relevance of PR particularly of the importance of the present Panchayat Raj Act and
one-third reservation of seats for women, various poverty alleviation programmes
and policies for women and other sections. Very few respondents had a clear
conception about these programmes, sources of fund, different agencies which can
promote support financially.
A paragraph or two must be added on the comparative assessment of the four
districts where the present study was carried out, namely Birbhum, Murshidabad
and Dinajpur both north and south. Women members of Birbhum were found to be
politically more mature and were inclined to be actively involved in the PRI’s.
Perhaps, such confidence was the result of the support of the family as well as their
community. Despite heavy workload, women members of Birbhum found time to
participate in Gram Sabha and Gram Panchayat meetings. Though the respondents
of Murshidabad were not as fortunate they were supported by their family in contrast
to the majority of the women members of Dinajpur.
The inhabitants of Birbhum and Murshidabad expressed greater awareness about
the economic benefit of being a member in the PR System. This was because these
members received sitting fees regularly, however meagre it might be despite the
contribution they had to make to the party fund.
Involvement of the women Panchayat members of Birbhum and Murshidabad was
also highlighted by the political awareness about the PR system as expressed by
these women who appeared to have a clearer perception of meaningful participation.
These women felt, after their experience with the Panchayats for more than one year,
women in general were equally capable of performing Panchayat duties as they were
honest, hard working, sincere, and tolerant in nature. They also stated to have faced
less discrimination from male members as well as governmental bodies. However,
the respondents from Birbhum could voice more about the system and had more
knowledge about the sources of finance for the Gram Panchayats and what more
could be done for the rural women of Bengal.
287
C
From the above assessment it becomes clear that the respondents of Dinajpur were
In the worst situation. Primarily because they were less informed about the PRIs
being more ignorant politically. What was more important was that their society
seemed to have taken less initiative in making them politically articulate nor had it
tried to create a congenial environment for them. As a result, these women expressed
less confidence as members of Panchayats and stated that in most cases they were
compelled by their husbands or, party men to join the PRI’s.
To conclude, like Joshi (1994): "Hence in the tmmediatefuture the rural women, have
to take up the cudgels and reapfull advantage of the opportunities given to participate
in rural affairs through the medium of PRI’s. So, what is needed is the will to
strengthen political empowerment which could be achieved through a combination
of multiple strategies and programmes (Kumar : 1994)
First and foremost it is necessary to sensitise those in power about the issue of
women’s development and rights. Attitudinal change of administrative machinery
is the primary task of nation builders to accelerate development. This should
accompany generations of awareness among women where Government should take
the lead. NGO’s, women’s organisations and movements can adopt various
strategies for educating women on women related issues. They are to play a positive
role providing information, skill and resources for evolving and establishing to
grassroot women’s organisations. People in general and women in particular have
to be made fully conscious of their rights and responsibilities under the new system
which calls for political mobilisation. To exploit the resources in the name of Women’
Literacy Campaign should be included in the agenda of awareness generation.
Women should also be encouraged to participate in public affairs and in dealing
with external agencies. Therefore, orientation-cum-training programmes must be
introduced where government of West Bengal has already taken the initiative and
trying sincerely to track them politically. The programme should alm at changing
the patriarchal orientation in men and male institutions (Kumar, 1994).
There is an urgent need for a resource centre also to provide help to the women
members of Panchayats with educative and Informative materials on different
issues. This could also serve as a common meeting place for women for interactions
and exchange of ideas.
However, as stated repeatedly by all and reflected from the present study, women
cannot participate properly because of the extreme work load. It is therefore,
necessary to provide certain support services to women members of Panchayats for
strengthening political empowerment. In other words, involvement, dedication and
commitment of Government, NGO’s and people themselves are most essential
elements needed for PRI’s to function properly.
288
5.2
DD's Support to Women in PanchayatRaj
Development Dialogue, the NGO based in West Bengal had expressed a feeling of
empathy towards the women in Panchayat Raj. In response to this, the said NGO
had organised a three day training workshop for the Pmdhans and elected women
members of Gram Panchayats, under DWCRA. The objective of the training
programme held in October 11-14, 1993 were :
1.
to provide the participants with a clear conception of the situation of women
and children in the small society,
2.
to impart training about the need for organisation and group dynamics in the
above respect,
3.
to get a clear idea about the DWCRA programme and its linkage with other
development programmes concerning women and children and how this could
be better coordinated,
4.
to understand clearly the role of Panchayat members in effective implementa
tion of DWCRA programme.
The programme was attended by 15 male pradhans and 15 women members of the
Gram Panchayat.
All the 15 women members of the Gram Panchayat were newly elected and did not
have any experience of the functioning of Panchayats unlike the Pradhans who had
earlier experience of working either as Pradhans, Upa-pradhans or as members. The
training programme, therefore, was designed to serve the heterogeneity both in
regard to sex and experience.
After the introduction, the participants were made to express their expectations
followed by the discussion on objectives of the training in greater detail.
The training programme had incorporated an unconventional aspect whereby men
and women were being trained together with a hierarchical barrier and difference
in experience and exposure. The women members were either escorted by their
husbands or the Pradhan from their village and were very respectful towards them.
Conscious efforts were made by the members of DD to make them feel comfortable
and at ease and to participate effectively.
All the women being new and inexperienced were shy to talk in the class as the
Pradhans were also present. However, as the programme proceeded these women
became more articulate and participated more freely.
289
The activities envisaged under DWCRA were also discussed where the weak and
strong points identified for women were explained, namely :
a.
To enhance the collective strength of women through organisation of groups.
b.
To enhance their level of awareness.
c.
To improve their skills in the existing work and to acquire new skills.
d.
To be informed about economic and other programmes so that they can avail
of these facilities stretched on to the elaborate explanation of TRYSEM. JRY,
ICDS, Adult Education, Health & Family Welfare and the concept of poverty,
inequality of income, inadequacy of resources, inequality in access to resources
were also in the agenda of the training programme. The deplorable situation of
women and children of the families below the poverty line was explained to the
participants. To understand the concept of a group, leadership was also
Introduced to the participants who were made aware of DWCRA being an
instrument for bringing improvement in the economic state of women.
The role of Panchayat members was also given attention to alongwith the respon
sibility of women members in the absence of the Pradhans.
The session was quite interactive and generated a lot of discussions which evoked
many questions like :
1.
What were the motivations for them to get organised;
2.
How could they overcome social and familial barriers to come out of their home
and work together;
3.
Did they still face any resistance from the family members particularly hus
bands regarding their mobility which is required for participation in the training
programme, procuring inputs etc.;
4.
How they adjusted their work between occupational demands and household
demands;
5.
Did they feel handicapped for not being literate;
6.
What kind of child care facilities are arranged by them;
7.
Are other women in the neighbourhood interested in Joining this sort of
programme and what are their attitudes towards it.
8.
Do they think that they can manage their affairs even if DD withdraws.
290
The answers to these questions were brief. What could be inferred from their
conversations was that it was much easier to overcome the social restrictions and
the resistance of the husband due to their enhanced economic contribution. The
women participants also informed us that in view of the need of being literate, they
were attending literacy classes for one hour when they were in the work shed. They
expressed satisfaction over the child care arrangements and non-formal education.
Over and above, they also expressed confidence that if they continue like this with
the learning process and participate with DD in sharing their responsibilities they
will be able to stand on their own feet in the near future.
The Session concluded with a happy note as the participants felt it as a levelling
one. The impression given by women members was that women’s programmes would
be strengthened with the mutual help and support from each other.
291
•Ji
References
Basu. U.
1993. Panchayat women may succum to Party dictate.
The Statesman, November 5. Calcutta.
Basu, U.
1993. In a Burdwan camp women lap up Panchayat
Raj. The Statesman, November 6, Calcutta.
Bhargava, B.S. and
Vidya K.C.
Bidi Nirdeshka
Chakrabortty, K.
and Bhattacharya, S.K. :
1992, Journal of Rural Management Vol III No. 5.
(September)
1994. Directorate of Panchayat. Government of West
Bengal.
1993. Leadership, Factions and Panchayat Raj : a case
study of West Bengal. Rawat Publications, Jaipur.
Dam, M.
1993. Power tastes bitter for Panchayat women. The
Statesman, October 24, Calcutta.
Ghosh, B.D.
Panchayat Election Study. ISS. Delhi, (forthcoming).
Ghosh, B.D.
1992. Panchayat Byabasthay Nadir Angshyagrahan.
Panchayat Raj, May-June.
Ghosh, B.D.
A note on the Panchayats of West Bengal.
Mimeograph.
Joshi, U.
1994. Women’s role imperative for strong PRIs. Kuruk
shetra Ushering in an Era of Women in Panchayats.
June.
Kaushik, s.
1993, Women and Panchayat Raj. Har-Anand Publi
cations. Delhi.
Kumar, K.
1994, Strategies for empowerment of Women in PRIs.
Kurukshetra. Ushering an Era of Women. June.
Kurukshetra
Ushering in an Era of Women in Panchayat. June
(special issue).
292
Majumdar, D.
1993. Voice of the Village Belles. The Telegraph L June
1, Calcutta.
Majumdar, U.
Why Reservation of Women in Panchayat ? A back
ground note. Mimeograph.
Mukherjee, N. and
Bandyopadhyay, D.
1993. New Horizons for West Bengal’s Panchayats. A
Report for the Government of West Bengal, Depart
ment of Panchayats. Govt, of West Bengal.
Mukherjee, A
1992. Seventy-third Amendment : Next Steps and
conflicts. The administrator. Winter. October-Decem
ber. vol. XXXVIII. No. 4.
Mukherjee, N
1994. Rural Women and Panchayat Raj Institution.
Kurukshetra. Ushering in An Era of Women in
Panchayats. June.
Narayan, R
1994. Women in Panchayat Raj. The divide between
intent and implementation, Kurukshetra . Ushering
in An Era of Women in Panchayats, June.
Pal, M.
1994. Empowering women through Panchayat Raj
Insititution,. Kurukshetra. Ushering in An Era of
Women in Panchayats. June.
Roy, G.
1993. Sechhashebi Sangshay Tairi Meyder Pete Unmukh Sobh Da. Ananda Bazar Patrlka . May 19,
Calcutta.
Roy, G
1993. Sikhader Pachane Rayeche Daridra Manusher
Subhechha O Asha Akangshyar Shakti. Ananda
Bazar Patrlka . May 26. Calcutta.
Sen, A
1994. A review of women’s role in Panchayat Raj.
Kurukshetra. Ushering in An Era of Women in
Panchayats. June.
Sengupta, S
1993. Badha Nel, Barang Pashe Darachhen Swami,
Sashur. Ananda Bazar Patrlka , May 14, Calcutta.
Singh, S.K.
1993. 73rd Constitutional Amendment. An Analytical
Framework. The Administrator. Winter. OctoberDecember Vol. XXXVIII No. 4.
293
Women, Decentralisation and the Left Parties: A Comment
- UMA Resource Centre
West Bengal has a history of party pohtics permeating to the lowest level of political
governance. It has been ruled by the coalition led by the Communist Party of India
for the past 18 years. This is one of the longest runs by any left party in the country.
When Marxism and Leninism had collapsed the world over, Calcutta continues to
have an undamaged statue of Lenin.
What catapulted the CPI(M) to fame was their stability, land reforms and agrarian
reconstruction and the initiation of the three-tier Panchayat Systems. By 1990-91,
the State Government was handing over 50% of the plan budget to the Panchayat.
e
One of the reasons cited for the success of socialism in Bengal is the fact that in
spite of proclaiming ‘dictatorship of the proletariat’, they operate their political
strategies within the parameters of the constitution and resemble any other
democratic party. Their strategy till date has been one of mass mobilization in rural
areas and in recent years through large scale direct recruitment to the party cadre.
"Thus along with conscientization, articulation and mobilization of the rural poor^
component of the strategy of
vesting of democratic rights becomes an integral
i
political engineering". 1
They have ensured the necessity of Panchayat Raj Institutions as a supplement to
Parliamentary democracy to bring about development. The size of the population
and the widespread poverty of the State warrants the Panchayats to become effective
as "nodules for collecting information about grassroot needs and requirements and
transmit it up".
In this scheme of things where the party has a strong political structure which is
male dominated, where do the women of the State come in? They were classically
outside the system for all these years. This is because the left parties have neglected
the mobilisation and organisation of women in the past. This disconcern is
attributed to a certain mindset of the leadership. However with the passage of 73rd
and 74th Amendments, the left parties have been compelled to give political space
for women. This could well lead to a change in the left party ideology.
The first change was seen in Kultikri. Kultikri. is the only functioning All-Women
Panchayat in Bengal today. The 13 member Women Panchayat was elected to office
in 1993. Kultikri is situated in Thargram subdivision of Midnapore District in West
Bengal. This is one among the many obscure, insignificant, drought prone village
dominated by the tribals.
,
294
R
The 13 women who are Panchayat members including the Adyaksha and the
Upadhyaksha were selected by the CPI(M). Over the two years they have performed
well. They have availed of all the schemes and given it to the beneficiaries, renovated
schools and ponds, and created cultivable land for poor families. 25 percent of the
village is illiterate. Kultikri has taken a leading role in the district’s literacy
campaign.
The Panchayat has to do a lot more to mitigate the suffering of its population.
Environmental degradation is a major concern. In spite of land reforms and
agricultural re-construction that Bengal had pioneered, it is found that Kultikri’s
inhabitants, who are largely poor have yet to receive vested lands.
But people outside Kultikri, like the BDO Purnachandra Sheet rang a bell of
bureaucratic high-handedness when he said "It should get all possible help and
special projects while no lapses should be tolerated".3
*
It is clear that the Kultikri all women Panchayat exists only by left party diktat. As
such, it is very different from the all women Panchayats of Maharashtra which are
not a response to a single over-riding political presence. Rather, these panchayats
of Maharashtra have come into being for a variety of reasons.
In an attempt to understand the links between the gender and leftist ideology, Chaya
Datar writes as follows:
"We must look at Sheila Rowbothom’s experience of Feminist party as an ‘insider*.
She makes a critique of the theory of organising which stems from Marxist theory
of revolution. This will help us analyse the assumptions behind the left parties’
position on women’s movement.
Dogmatic Approach to History:- The left parties failed to respond to the women’s
question because they forgot that theory gets developed only through the dialectical
process of dipping theory into experiences.
Manipulative Approach to History:- Left does not approach history in its com
plexities, but analyses history with the help of‘slots’ , ‘definitions’ and ‘categories*.
If the category to understand certain phenomenon does not exist then that reality
is ignored. Invisibility of women’s question could be explained through this attitude.
Authoritarian Approach to the Movements:- Revolution is considered as ‘science’.
The theory is asserted as ‘above’ experience. This becomes a basis for emphasis on
the intervening role of the party.
295
R
Subsequent Approach to the Class:- Vanguard concept of party and class provides
in theory’ a means of channelling for the greatest effect, all the elements in the
struggle - economic, as well as social and cultural. In reality all the varieties of
oppression are overgeneralised and considered as static. No attempts to change
relations within party is possible, because party is supposed to be holding correct
ideas. Party gets identified with the people at the top.
Democratic Centralist Approach to the Cadre:- Because of the centralist tenden
cy within the party decision making process, leadership cannot be challenged by
any new groups.
<
Dehumanised Approach to the Consciousness:- No quality of relationship as a
part of a new society is discussed.
Further critiquing the above approach, the author postulates that what Sheila
Rowbothom has to say mainly is that the way left parties have organised themselves,
prevents them to go back to the original theory of society and revolution, and review
them in the light of new developments on a number of fronts, one of them being
women’s front. Today women’s component is absent from the left parties’ politics,
because it is absent from their theory of society. Women are ‘invisible everywhere.
When they see women’s movement in concrete, they call it a bourgeois movement
and ignore it. The fault lies not in Marx’s greatest theory of society, but the way
people treat it dogmatically. Marx’s greatest contribution is his method of
materialist conception and dialectical treatment to history. By using this method
certain lacunae can be filled or reconceptualisation of historical process can be
developed.
Invisibility of women and their activity starts from the conceptual premises of human
society. Production for Marxists is production of ‘things’ and not production of
human life as a whole’ which involves procreation as well as ‘bringing up’ children
and ‘looking after’ grown ups. Women also carry out usual production activity, but
under different production relations which is ignored too. Thus by neglecting
women’s special activity as well as usual activity, ‘Production activity’ is assumed
as a man’s premise and then everything else follows logically. Theory itself has
serious blind spots. It claims to be holistic, and deals at the tendential level and
hence it cannot be pardoned for ignoring such a vital activity, as procreation, which
is conscious human activity and not a biologistic activity. Women cany out their
activities within the domain of the family institution, where men dominate. Prohibi
tion for participating in other activities, outside the family, relates them to the total
hierarchical system. I call this male domination patriarchy’, not only as a part of
family institution, but as a part of total class rule.
296
I would say that in both cases women’s movement was always seen as a byproduct,
or as the result of mainstream political movement and not as the essential,
indispensable part of the process of revolution, which contributed to the success of
revolution. The mainstream movements were so strong and turbulent that women
found themselves engulfed and thrown up on the waves, and men had to approve
their contribution without hesitation. Thus participation of women in politics has
definitely affected their status in the new society in some degrees and in certain
areas of life. But still a lot of problems remain. The most important manifestation
of these problems is that very few women are occupying decision making positions
in those societies. Women’s movement as such has no independent, autonomous
status, from which ‘base’ women can voice their demands, discuss the government
policies, and pressurise it. The movement seems to be stagnating.
The reasons seem to be two-fold: firstly, the women’s organisations had grown either
as a part of party-wings or with the blessings of party, and hence they remained
susceptible to and dominated by the party policies on women; and secondly, women
in the party never tried to develop a theory of women’s movement, which would have
helped to consolidate the movement and be a guiding path in future.
The consciousness for power and consciousness against exploitation, can emerge
most strongly among people who are working directly opposite to capital, in a
collective manner, using modern technology, is broadly the contention. Naturally
all those who do not get opportunity to work under these conditions cannot acquire
consciousness, giving them power to become leaders. Women stand at the lowest
rung of this ladder. They are the most atomised, especially in the capitalist society,
in the cities, where nuclear families have emerged. Their work is also not productive
from the point of view of capital, and hence it is not paid, due to which they lack
economic independence. It seems that too much importance is given tp the
experience at work place, that all the hopes are placed on the consciousness
becoming revolutionary out of that experience and that all other areas of the life of
men and almost the whole life of women get ignored. The man’s life is divided
between being exploited at the workplace, and being dominant at home, exploiting
his wife. Not only that, but patriarchal ideology which men share with other men
from other classes helps them acquire gender identity for themselves in the society.
Women’s movement in the west has pointed out this lacuna, raising the slogan of
personal is political, and political is personal’. Thus the maxim that all the live
experiences in life give rise to the conscious being and determine its actions, is the
important principle put forth by women’s movement.
The process of elimination of women which starts at the level of conceptualisation
of the premise for human society, gets completed at its culminating instance i.e.
political instance. Women have no place in the revolutionary process. If at all they
dare to participate, they will be treated as a reserve army, guarding the rearfront.
297
and also as, handicapped men. Women’s special consciousness about their specific
experiences have got no place In the party politics. Women require special conces
sions, such as good workers. Women should not be working in second shift, because
they should be available to perform their duties at home. Thus issues of women
workers are taken in a limited perspective.
The party structured in a hierarchical manner cannot accommodate women. On
the other hand, women’s movements in the West have tried to develop different
organisational form where Individuals are not promoted as leaders but the coUective
leadership Is stressed. They detest a centrahsed structure which tends to get
bureaucratic. The question is. how we can make It a process emerging from below,
rather than from above".4
The current induction of women into the party is welcomed by both CPM leaders
and bureaucracy. Critics point out that the party had no alternative. Nominating
women was just a way - and probably the only way to get rid of corrupt elements
without arousing protests and dissent within the party. In principle, no man could
actually oppose giving power to women.
Thus decentralisation and the reservation for women In the local bodies adds an
interesting dimension to the situation in Bengal. Circumstances have propeUed the
left parties to create spaces for women in their drive to decentralisation. Can gender
now hold Its own within the class struggle?
References:
1.
Mukheiji. Badal. and Mukhopadhyay, Swapna: "Democratic Decentralisation
In Rural West Bengal: Socialism of the Plains", Indian Economic Review, Special
Number, 1992, pp. 459-474
2.
Ibid
3.
Mukhopadhyay, Ashlm. "Kultlkrl: West Bengal’s only Women Panchayat".
Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 30, no. 22, 3 June, 1995
4.
5.
Datar, Chaya, "The left Parties and the Invisibility of Women: A critique".
Teaching Politics, vol. 10, Annual Number, 1984 (From Womens Policy Reserach
and Advocacy Unit, National Institute of Advanced Studies. Bangalore)
Mitra, Amlt, "Will Women In Panchayats transform Bengal?", Down to earth,
15 July. 1993
298
UfMA Resource Centre
Occaswnat Taper Series Rp. 7
Women and Panchayats:
The Tamilnadu Experience
Prepared by
S. Sudha
Dr. T. Sundaraman
of Pondicherry Science Forum
(
UMA Resource Centre
Institute of Social Studies Trust
"Shreeshyla", No. 42, 4th Temple Street,
15th Cross, Malleswaram, Bangalore - 560 003.
1995
«
It is difficult to present a paper on the experience with women in Panchayats in
Tamilnadu.' It is also difficult to elaborate on the prospects of future intervention
to enhance the political role of women. For one, Tamilnadu has a very weak tradition
of Panchayat Raj. The last elections were held in 1986, but Panchayats were
subsequently dissolved and there have been no elections for almost ten years. Bven
the rules that must follow State legislation have not yet been framed. There is an
obvious determination to postpone elections as far as it is constitutionally and
politically feasible.
’
Indeed, if we go through the whole history of post independence Tamilnadu. the
number of years when elected Panchayats existed here constitute only a small
fraction of the total. There is hope that the 73rd and 74th Amendments will change
this dismal scenario, even though right now the loop hole in the law by which there
is no deadline for constituting the Panchayats for the first time has been used as
delaying tactics. As state after state finally hold their elections, it seems inevitable
that even this imperious government will have to hold elections.
In this background what we have set out to do is to take a close look at the knowledge
and attitu.des of rural women in 3 backward districts of Tamilnadu
(Ramanathapuram, Kamarajar and Vlllupuram Ramaswamy Padayatchi districts),
and at their perception of problems and prospects that the Panchayat Raj Institu*
tions represent.
The study design...
It is not easy to assess the attitudes of women to Panchayats when there is so little
direct experience of the same. We therefore chose to use structured questionnaires
to gather some part of the data, but relied mainly on group discussions with women
in the course of 3 workshops:
1. on Panchayat Raj law and local felt needs
2. on health and sanitation and
3. on agriculture and related problems.
The invitees to the workshops were largely women who had been active in the literacy
movement and/or were active In local women’s organisations, or else in some way
or other active in the social life of the village. This definitely creates some sort of
bias as the views of such women cannot be said to be truly representative of all the
women in the village. However, as these women are more vocal and active, and have
already been or are likely to be Panchayat members, this information is useful to
understand the future potential of women In Panchayats. Moreover, by comparing
this data with that obtained from the structured questionnaires, which were
299
distributed to a much wider section of women, we can make out how representative
their views are.
f
Knowledge aboutPanchayat laws...
It is unfortunate, but the fact of the matter is women are not aware of either the old
laws or the new ones. Even the more active women are not aware of the fact that
there are reservations for women. The widespread cynicism about the possibility of
any Panchayat elections being held may be one reason for such a lack of knowledge.
This is not to say that they have not heard of Panchayats or their functions. In
Ramanathapuram district for example, out of the 225 women interviewed, 160
women knew that an institution like the Panchayat existed, and they had some basic
understanding of its main features. About 164 of them knew of the recent
Amendments, 149 women knew about elected Panchayats, and knew the name of
their last elected Panchayat leaders. Only 33 had not voted, and overwhelmingly
they wanted elections for Panchayats.
But beyond this, when asked to explain how many votes each village woman casts,
or to list the main functions of Panchayats, or even to state the gains to women from
the 73rd Amendment, responses were not forthcoming. There was a great deal of
interest in all the camps when the laws were explained. The potential powers that
could be wielded was recognised without having to elaborate upon it.
Participation in Panchayats...
In the past, in Tamilnadu, the law provided for 2 women to be nominated to
Panchayats if none had been elected. It appeared from discussion that this had
made little Impact as most women could not even recollect who had been nominated,
and what the nominees had done. We are cautious however that as much time has
elapsed since the elected Panchayats were functional people may have forgotten
what role women had played, within their limited scope as nominees.
However, our composite data shows that 92.44 percent of women felt that women
must stand for elections, that reservations for women are needed, and that women
can and even must contest and become chairpersons of Panchayats as well. Nor
did women feel that they would be unable to play their role sufficiently well. A good
number of our respondents and participants (94.22%) even felt they could perform
better. Some were convinced women would be less corrupt and most thought they
would be more sincere.
Again, surprisingly, they did not think that the men would be able to browbeat them,
or prevent them from speaking up. It is difficult to understand this response for it
does not match with either the traditional view of women’s self image and her
300
voicelessness, or with the participation of women In other social decision making
as it stands now. Could it be that the atmosphere of an all women workshop
emboldened women to express their wishes as if they were realities? Or is it likely
that at least in Tamilnadu with a higher educational level for women, higher
participation of women in village level government employee role (noon meal
workers, Anganwadl/Balwadi workers, health and ANM workers, teachers etc.)
there is a change amongst women and men about the perception of women's ability
to occupy decision making positions and to exert authority? It must be remembered
that a number of our women were from these very sections, or as chairpersons of
local Madhar Sangams (Mahlla Samlthis), or as literacy activists, had experience in
interacting with officers, as well as in mobilising local men and women.
Though women were more ambivalent about the question of whether the men would
accept their role without opposition, a majority of them were confident that they
would get support at home. Nor is this a mere artefact of our selection of active
women for these workshops. The structured questionnaire administered to a much
larger section of women showed the same pattern.
What women expect...
When women are just asked ‘What do you expect Panchayats to do? What problems
can they solve?', there is a lot of stereo-typing and cliches in their responses. Again
and again there was reference to lacunae in local rural infrastructure. Sometimes
it was the lights and latrines, and sometimes it was the road, or the bus. Often it
was about ration shops and drinking water. Each time the predictable solution cited
was the ‘government’ should move to provide the respective facilities. But beyond
this, the women were seldom able to spontaneously articulate any new demand, or
initiate any new vision of what Panchayats can do.
Though there were problems in plenty in health, in educational facilities, in terms
of gender and caste oppression, these were never expressed as such. Though one
is familiar with a somewhat dimissive characterisation of the lack or demand for
health or education as owing to a lack of felt needs by the rural people, how does
one account for the fact that there were no demands even for improvements in
agriculture or credit facilities, or for ways to improve income.
Further discussion with the women made it evident that these were pressing
problems, and there were many more such problems. But it had obviously not struck
them that many of these problems were related to Panchayats, or that there were
any solutions to them. Hence it was veiy clear that unless women were given much
more information on specific problems and what could be done, the true potential
of Panchayats and women’s participation in it would not emerge. We addressed this
issue in two camps - one on health and sanitation and the other on agriculture.
301
«
Health and Sanitation...
The immediate demand of women Is of course for provision of good health services,
and where drinking water is not available, a bore well with hand pump. The local
PHCs appear well staffed but are under-utilised for a variety of reasons. In contrast
the district hospitals are overcrowded.
There is a fairly good awareness of what curative services they ought to receive from
the PHCs but very little about preventive services and their need.
We transacted a set of 15 booklets on health in the workshop. The first booklet is
an introductory one on determinants of health and disease called "Why do we
become sick". The next 3 booklets deal with waterborne diseases and a variety of
steps that can be taken at the individual or the village level to check their spread.
A comprehensive though brief account of how total rural sanitation can be achieved
is elaborated on in one of these 3 booklets. The next 7 booklets deal with various
aspects of women’s health, seen as part of women’s rights. And the last 4 deal with
the four chief preventable causes of child mortality.
After discussing these booklets, a survey of the health problems in a village was
organised. And in the evening the group sat together to consolidate its findings. The
messages of the booklets were much clearer now.
It was obvious that waterborne diseases were rampant and that faeces could
contaminate drinking water in a number of ways.
It was also obvious that maternal & infant mortality were preventable to a great
extent. Interestingly, the survey showed a very high percentage of still births and
abortions (about 1 in 2 pregnancies) but we could do little to probe this further.
After this entire exercise, women’s approach and demand began to change. The
issues they started raising suddenly became different.
«
How can the available drinking water be purified and protected? Can we get all
people to try out soak pits? Will the health worker come and help us? How much
do latrines cost? Can they be built cheaper? Won’t leach pits contaminate ground
water? Will the government be willing to build latrines for everybody? Why are the
latrines already built through earlier government programmes not being used? So
will building of more latrines help?
Now the women were not sure whether they would be able to voice such health
demands. Even if they could voice them, they were not sure if people would agree.
They were not sure of co-operation to implement such new ideas. Then they
demanded to know whether a village where all this had been achieved could be
302
visited as a demonstration to convince the doubters. We could not offer to show
them any such village. Nevertheless, most women agreed that though carrying out
the entire fist of necessary tasks of this nature was difficult, it was certainly possible
to address some of them. And these sessions certainly did give them a lot of
possibilities of what could be done if elected.
Agriculture...
Another focus of our discussion - carried on in different sessions - was on
intervention in agriculture and animal husbandry. In the district of
Ramanathapuram, a newly registered society for women called ‘Maharram - an
offshoot of the literacy movement has managed to distribute 2500 cows under the
IRDP loan scheme and organise over 350 credit co-operatives and about 60 milk
co-operatives.
In Kandamangalam taluk of Villupuram R.P. (VRP) district, a farmer’s network cafied
‘Kalanjiyam! has been set up by the Pondicherry Science Forum. This body is
Involved in studying problems in agriculture, and devising participatory action
plans. A workshop held with farmers, and subsequent discussions with women
Identified a whole set of major problems that had not been mentioned when the
people were merely asked what their problems were.
The major problems that emerged could be listed as follows:
a.
declining water table and non availability of water for agriculture.
b.
declining yields despite applying higher doses of chemicals.
c.
resistance of pests to pesticides.
d.
difficulty in obtaining credit.
e.
rising cost of Inputs.
f.
inability to get a remunerative price at the market.
g-
low yields of milk from cattle.
h.
poor availabiliiy of fodder and the time required to collect it.
We discussed what could be done for these major problems collectively. Except in
the area of water management, there was little clarity on whether we had anything
substantial to offer towards a Panchayat level intervention. It took a long time to
arrive at why there was a crisis in water, and it is still debatable whether the group
gained any conviction that it is possible to reverse the changes that had taken place.
303
<•
However, considerable interest was aroused, and keenness to learn about places
where such problems had been tackled was expressed. Participants were skeptical
about getting all the people to agree to any system of Joint water management, and
expressed their own lack of confidence in their ability to organise any Joint action
even on small issues where they were absolutely convinced. But if someone else
initiated it - they would be willing to participate.
Gender issues...
In our first camp we had mooted the possibility of elected Panchayat women being
able to address the problem of women. If ‘problems of women’ were understood as
ration shops, drinking water, roads, lights etc - this was universafiy acceptable. But
if ‘problems of women’ meant addressing wife beating or male alcoholism or
indebtedness or provision of day care centres - then there was considerable
hesitation and lack of cohesiveness. Not that the women disputed that elected
Panchayat women should take up such causes - they had little idea of how to go
about it and whether it would be fruitful.
What inputs will elected women representatives need?
After this entire exercise lasting over 6 months, the Pondlcheriy Science Forum
has been able to evolve some understanding of the major training inputs that are
needed to evolve a new local women’s leadership.
a.
One important, immediate priority still seems to be just Information. One needs
mechanisms to collect and disseminate information at various levels. Today,
even for those who are keen, there is very little information available and
accessible on Panchayat laws, on the causes of various problems faced by
people especially women and on options available to redress them.
b.
Another important necessity is to create models - replicable models. Such
models where the levels of investment in terms of financial resources and other
external inputs are not excessively high. It seems that most women are not
likely to take up and work for effective changes simply because they do not see
the possibility of change at all. Suggestions advanced as ways of reforming
existing realities are frequently turned down as not feasible, as people will not
agree or co-operate.
c.
What of confidence and personality building exercises? More inputs are of
course welcome, but it is essential to look at this question in context.
The fact to be noted is that where the views that women wish to voice are
acceptable to and fall within existing village culture, they may not perhaps be
304
£
lacking in the confidence or ability to voice them. They are doing so in a number
of ways.
However in a lot of areas there is a difference between the needs as perceived
by people, and ‘genuine’ needs which do not get articulated properly. Thus
people may be demanding more doctors and drugs whereas their real need
may be for better drainage and waste disposal and more hygienic latrines.
Or very often, we encounter demands for government to dig deeper bore-wells,
where hydrogeologists would tell us the only scope is to augment water
heirvesting structures.
When such issues arise, and women are personally convinced about the
rightness of their stand, they need inputs and support to be able to uphold a
minority position in the face of opposition. Even today, the single most grave
danger is that elected women or those seeking positions are likely to adopt
populist stances. Being able to cope with a hostile majority, and voicing a
minority position to which one is committed; or even putting forward a fresh
creative alternative without getting isolated - is perhaps to the women's groups
the central issue of personality development. If the elected women surrender
to populist pressures and are unable to differentiate stated aspiration from
genuine needs, then a lot of potential for change would be totally lost.
d.
This need to be able to stand up for a different position from the existing cultural
norms acquires special significance in the context of women’s issues. Given
the prevailing cultural attitudes of women, one can put it that women have
consented’ to being oppressed. Disrupting this manufactured consent, and
questioning accepted cultural standards are very difficult processes indeed.
Gender sensitization necessarily must constitute a major component of the
Inputs we need to give, but should not fail to take into account the hard reality
of women's lives and what they are up against. It is only then that we can make
adequate use of the opportunity for women’s emancipation provided by the
reservation of one-third of seats. Gender sensitization itself then becomes part
of a larger part of building the capabfiities of people to question to critically
analyse, to be creative and confident and to aspire for a new understanding of
a democratic society.
e.
The role of NGO's in providing vertical linkages between women in various
committees, various levels and various places may be considered another
crucial necessity. This is necessary to build confidence in women, to share
experiences of success and failures and to create the necessajy critical mass
to initiate change. NGO’s also need to play a primary role in major mobilisational campaigns (as for example the Total Literacy Campaign variety) that can
create a climate that welcomes and hopes for change to occur. Only when such
305
a favourable climate Is created, will there be enough openness to new ideas,
and a willingness to look seriously at what the elected, trained and sensitized
women are saying.
9
9
The centuries old Inertia of dur villages does not lift easily, and only a
multidimensional approach can hope to make an impact. But undoubtedly
the .33% reservation for women has opened up an altogether new avenue for
initiating the process of change.
9
306
Resource. Centre
OccasionaC Taper Series 9(p.8
WOMEN IN PANCHAYAT RAJ IN ORISSA:
A STUDY FROM THE FIELD
Prepared by
Kamala Mohapatra
of Institute for Socio-Economic Development
Bhubaneshwar
UMA Resource Centre
Institute of Social Studies Trust
"Shreeshyla", No. 42, 4th Temple Street,
15th Cross, Malleswaram, Bangalore - 560 003.
1995
Since this paper was written in early 1995 the
Panchayat Raj situation in the state of Orissa has
undergone radical and unexpected changes with the
dissolution of the Panchayat Raj Institutions by the
newly elected Congress Government. This one act
speaks volumes for the fragility of the Panchayat Raj
Institutions and the vulnerability of the disadvantaged
groups, especially women serving in them. The main
question raised is about the lack of accountability of
the State and Central politicians to the Constitution
and its mandates.
UMA Resource Centre
I
Table of contents
Section 1
1.1
Historical Background of Women’s Political Participation
307-311
1.2
Critique of the Orissa Panchayat Act
311-312
Section 2
I
[307-312]
[313-334]
313
2.1
Methodology of the Study
2.2
Socio-Economic Background of the Respondents
313-320
2.3
Political Background of the Respondents
321-323
2.4
Political Performance of Elected Women
323-334
2.5
Conclusion
Section 3
334
[335-338]
3.1
Recommendations
335-336
3.2
A Note on Task Force For Strengthening Panchayats in Orissa.
336-338
Section 1
Introduction
9
The institution of Panchayat Raj in India Is as old as Indian civilisation. It was
Gandhyi. who realised that democracy could not be complete unless Panchayat Raj
Institutions were Invested with adequate powers, so that the villagers could have
real sense of SiDaraJya. The insistence of Gandhlji resulted in the introduction of
Article 40 In Part Iv (Directive Principles of State Policy) which states "The State shall
take steps to organise village Panchayats and endow them with such powers and
authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-govern
ments". However, the Panchayat Raj Institutions were constituted in several states
which have passed through many vicissitudes and could not live up to expectations
till now. Since then various committees have been set up by the government, time
and again, to suggest a modified scheme of Panchayat Raj Institutions. Even after
its existence for about four decades, It could not acquire the status and dignity of
a viable unit of self-government and responsive people’s body. Several factors are
responsible for this, such as absence of regular and periodic elections within a
stipulated period, prolonged supercessions, variations in structure, insufficient
representation of weaker sections like schedule caste/schedule tribes and women,
inadequate devolution of powers, lack of financial resources etc.
1.1
Historical Background of Women's Political Participation
Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRI’s) - the grassroots units of self government have
been proclaimed as the vehicle of socio-economic transformation In rural India.
Effective and meaningful functioning of these bodies depends on active involvement,
contribution and participation of its citizens, both male and female. The provisions
related to representation of women In the Panchayats constitute the most revolu
tionary feature of the new system. Women In India have been denied theif due share
in public decision-making bodies, even though there were some exceptions. They
were also excluded from the traditional caste Panchayats which still survive in many
parts of the country.
The global concern for women’s political participation was apparent In 1975 when
the UN declared the decade 1975-85 as the International Decade for Women. This
forced governments’ to shift the emphasis of women’s programmes from welfare to
development. It is surprising to note that there has hardly been any mention of this
subject In the National Plan of Action for Women drawn up In 1976. Perhaps for the
Government of India and the UN at that time, the Issues of health, education and
employment for women had a higher priority than their political participation.
However, subsequent national documents prepared at the time of the Nairobi
Conference of 1985 and the forward-looking strategies after Nairobi Conference,
307
recognised the importance of this theme and gave emphasis to women’s participation
in politics through reservation in all elections.
In India, the attainment of Independence followed by the establishment of a Republic
in 1950, brought to women the promise of adult franchise and complete equality of
opportunity in all
spheres. This equality is inseparable from active political
participation. Without active and continuous participation of women at all levels of
government, equality in all spheres can not be achieved. Further, national develop
ment will be more effective, if every citizen irrespective of being man and woman
has an active share in all the activities.
The policy of "development through planning" that has been adopted since 1957
has recognised the importance of providing rural infrastructure for development.
The approach paper of the Eighth Five Year( 1993-1998) has laid emphasis on
making development a people’s movement. The institutional strategies have been
formulated in the plan to strengthen the people’s institution at the district, block
and village level so that the people can be the real actors in the task of national
construction.
When Panchayat Raj was introduced in India very few women contested or got
elected. The committees which recommended the creation of Panchayat Raj Institu
tions did not say much about the role of women in these bodies. The Balwant Rai
Mehta Committee while recommending a three tier Panchayat System for the
country did not consider the significance of women’s participation. It recommended
that in the constitution of Panchayats, provisions may be made for the co-optlon of
two women members "who are interested to work among women and children". It
seemed to have considered the participation of women in Panchayats against the
backdrop of implementation of women and children development programmes. The
role of women in decision-making process was not given importance.
Following recommendation of this committee, women Joined Panchayat Raj Institu
tions in many states as co-opted members rather than elected ones. The principles
of co-option/nomination did not produce the desired result. It resulted in sheer
patronage of dominant socio-economic and political groups with women members
owing allegiance to them. They had no political experience to actively participate in
proceedings of Panchayat Raj Institutions or take up issues related to women and
Children. Thus, their contribution in decision-making process has been inconse
quential.
For the first time in 1974, the Committee on the "Status of Women in India" (CSWI)
recommended the establishment of statutory women’s Panchayat at the village level
with autonomy and resources of their own for the management and administration
for women and children development programmes. It was conceived as a measure
308
Lo breakthrough the traditional attitudes that inhibit most women from articulating
to
their problems and participating actively in the local bodies. Like the Panchayats,
women would be directly elected to these bodies and would have the right to send
their representative to the Panchayat Samltl and ZUla Parlshad.
The Ashok Mehta Committee Report 1978 laid stress on the need for recognising
and strengthening women’s role In the decision making processes of Panchayat Raj.
The committee recommended the reservation of two seats for women in Panchayats.
It may be mentioned that in the light of these developments certain states have made
provisions for reservation of seats for women. The states of Andhra Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Karnataka and Orissa are worth mentioning In this regard. However
it was realised that this much reservation is not sufficient for their development.
To secure effective participation of women in the decision-making process at
National, State and local levels by the Government, the National Perspective Plan
for Women made several recommendations at the sectoral level. The recommenda
tions of the committee are as follows :-
a.
There should be reservation of 30 percent of seats for women at all levels from
village Panchayat to Zilla Parlshad.
b.
There should also be reservation of 30 percent of the executive heads of all
bodies from Gram Panchayats to Zilla Parishads for women.
c.
A more effective step would be to declare a certain percentage of constituencies
in the lower tier of Panchayat Raj as exclusively women’s constituencies and
all executive positions in a certain number of territorial Jurisdictions reserved
for women candidates.
The policy was reiterated in the Eighth plan document. It was In pursuance of this
National Policy that the 64th Amendment to the Constitution incorporated such a
provision. But the 64th Amendment Bill could not be enacted because of the
country-wide protest and failure of the ruling party to gather required support In
both the Houses of Parliament. However, the Constitutional 73rd Amendment Act,
1993 has reserved 33 percent seats for women In Panchayats.
Besides participation in the general elections, contesting elections is a very impor
tant dimension of participation and is through the political party. As far as political
parties are concerned although at election time promises are made of granting 15-20
percent seats to women, no party has been able to reduce the membership of the
Gram Panchayat by fixing the maximum at 25 members, as earlier there was no
restriction on time. In 1964 second Amendment was made to the Act of 1948.
309
>
The Orissa Legislative Assembly, in the meanwhile, passed the Orissa Panchayat
Samiti and Zilla Parishad Act in 1959 and the Act received the Presidents’ assent
on January 15, 1960. The provisions of the new Zilla Parishad Act were Implemented
and as per provisions of the Act, Panchayat Samitis were established. The village
Panchayat became the lowest unit of the three-tier Panchayat Raj system.
Since 1990, the State Government has taken steps to revive the 3 tier Panchayat
Raj system and to make it broad based. Accordingly the Orissa Gram Panchayat
Act 1964 and the Orissa Panchayat Samiti Act 1959 were amended in 1991, 1992
and 1993. The Orissa Zilla Parishad Act 1961 was also amended in 1991 to
constitute Zilla Parishads at District level.
With a view to revitalising the democratic polity and in pursuit of its policy of
empowerment of the people, the Government held elections in 1992 under the new
dispensation of Panchayat Raj (Amendment Act) 1991 throughout the State to
reconstitute Gram Panchayats and Panchayat Samiti after a lapse of 13 years.
Elections were non-party based. There is three tier Panchayat Raj system in Orissa;
Gram Panchayat at village level, Panchayat Samiti to block level and Zilla Parishad
at district level. Elections for Zilla Parishad has not been conducted so far.
Reconstitution of the Panchayat Raj Institutions would ensure the direct participa
tion and greater involvement of the people on the process of development. No society
can progress without effective participation and greater involvement of the people
in the process of development. Realising this the State Government has taken
several measures to bring women to the forefront in public affairs. A significant
feature of the reconstituted Gram Panchayats, Panchayat Samitis and UrbanJocal
bodies is the reservation made for women members. The Orissa Gram Panchayat
(Amendment) Act 1992, included the provisions that in every Gram Panchayat if a
Sarpanch, elected or nominated was not a woman, the office of the Naib-Sarpanch
in that Gram Panchayat should be given to a woman. A similar Amendment was
brought in for the post of chairpersons of the Panchayat Samitis. It is interesting to
note here that 28,068 women have been elected to various positions in Panchayat
Raj Institutions including 14 women elected as Sarpanchs, 1841 elected as members
of Panchayat Samiti, 14 elected as Chairpersons and 302 elected as Vice-Chairper
sons of Panchayat Samitis and 5237 have been elected as Naib-Sarpanchs.
310
I
Table 1 : Total members In Gram Panchayat and Panchayat Samiti level
Position
General
SC
ST
women
Chairman
248
6
43
17
Vice-Chairman
7
1
4
302
Samiti-Member
1961
585
876
1841
Sarpanch
4286
248
714
14
Naib-Sarpanch
10
3
5
5237
Ward-Member
40318
5210
4717
26217
Source : Panchayat Raj Department, Government of Orissa 1992.
In the 1975 Panchayat elections there were 1962 Sarpanchs out of which 20 were
women and 103 of the total 56,720 Ward-members were women. But in 1984 the
number of women Sarpanchs declined l.e., from 20 and 11, there were 125 women
Ward-members.
1.2
Critique of the Orissa Panchayat Act
The functions of each level of Panchayats have not been spelt out in any detail. Even
though 29 subjects have been listed in the eleventh schedule of the Constitution,
the exact functions in relation to their transfer to Panchayats have not been
mentioned clearly.
The present practice of institutional relationship between Panchayat Raj Institutions
and the State Government was one of dominance of State Governments. Even after
getting Constitutional status, if Panchayat Raj Institution’s powers and functions
are not properly decentralised, then how can they effectively contribute to the
development process?
Whatever plan is formulated by these bodies, it often ends up as a statement of
needs. When funds for meeting local requirements are not forthcoming, they lose
Interest in preparation of these plans. The amended Act shows that the financial
autonomy of the Panchayats hang on the single thread of their own resources from
taxes, duties, tolls and fees authorized by the State Legislature to be levied, collected
and appropriated by them (PRI’s). The taxes, duties, tolls and fees levied and
collected by the State Governments, which may be assigned to the Panchayats are
contemplated to be done so, with conditions and limits regarding the usages. Thus,
the scope for Panchayat Raj Institutions to function as units of self-government is
extremely circumscribed.
311
Though the Amendment Act essentially seeks to empower Panchayat Raj Institu
tions in the right direction, one important aspect of Panchayats is missing. This is
about the power to adjudicate on disputes which arise in the village Itself, though
the idea of dispensing Justice locally, cheaply and expeditiously is completely absent.
Panchayat has remained as the agency for implementation of some of the
Government’s plan and schemes for economic development. As the planning process
stands now, most of the funds are tied down sectorally.
The Gram Sabha has been given a statutory' recognition which includes all the voters
of Gram Panchayats. It has been made the soul of Panchayat Raj bodies without
any specific size, power and functions. Gram Sabha is provided with the right to
discuss some or all subjects relating to annual statement of accounts, administra
tive report of the previous financial year, proposals for the next years, and Issues
raised in previous meeting. The same section further clarifies that Panchayats will
discuss the suggestions made in the Gram Sabha meeting. By implication the Gram
Sabha has been transformed into an advisory body, the objections raised or
suggestions made are in no way binding upon Panchayats.
There are some other ways by which the general body Gram Sabha is rendered
Ineffective. The required quorum in Gram Sabha will be one tenth but of an
adjourned meeting no quorum is required. But when it comes to the powers of
members of Gram Sabha for requisitioning a meeting it makes a provision for one
third members submitting it in writing.
Orissa is the first State in the country to reserve 30 percent of the seats for women
in Panchayat Raj elections. The same ratio is also applicable for Panchayat Samiti
and Zllla Parishad. A woman ward-member can directly be elected from the reserved
seats. But there is no provision for reservation for Panchayat Chairperson (Sarpanch). In the Block level a chairperson is elected by Samiti members who are
directly elected by the people. But in the indirect election it is difficult for women to
make it. This being so it is hardly possible for a woman to become a chairperson
who weilds much power in local bodies both urban and rural. There is a provision
for direct election to the post of chairperson of Zilla Parishad but it does not have
any reservation for women. Hence it is difficult on the part of a woman to get elected,
unless backed by an important political party.
Orissa Government has made it mandatory that additional vice-chairperson posts
of local bodies will be reserved for women. But this post being ceremonial does not
fulfill the political aspirations of women in decision making process. For the first
time women in Orissa to some extent have got the right to be elected, but in actual
practice their political participation is very limited. The State Act has not made any
provision for reservation for women in standing committees at Panchayat Samiti
level and functional committee at the Gram Panchayat level.
312
Section 2
2.1
Methodology of the Study
ISED had conducted a survey of women leaders of Panchayat Raj bodies i.e.,
ward-members, Sarpanchs, Naib-Sarpanchs and Samiti members of Gram
Panchayats in five districts: Bolangir, Phulbani, Angul, Keonjhar and Cuttack. These
districts were selected to cover major regions of the State. Cuttack was selected to
represent the coastal region, Phulbani as southern tribal district, Angul for central
Orissa, Bolangir to represent western region and Keonjhar as north Orissa district.
Again the Block was chosen on the basis of concentration of all categories of people
i.e., scheduled caste, scheduled tribe and general. In Keonjhar, two Panchayats were
selected - one having tribal concentration and another having all categories of
population with a woman Sarpanch.
The field work was carried out with the aid of structured schedules covering aspects
like their socio-economic background, preparedness for election, awareness level,
performance level etc. The field survey was supplemented by observation.
The objectives of the study were:
To understand women’s preparedness for election
To study the obstacles and impediments to their meaningful participation
To know the financial position of the Panchayat and financial devolution in
Panchayat.
2.2
Socio-economic Background of the Respondents
The study covers 32 women elected representatives, out of which 29 women were
from Gram Panchayats. (i.e., 22 ward-members, 6 Naib-Sarpanchs and one Sarpanch) and 3 women from Panchayat Samlti level. The study tried to establish
linkages between the socio- economic background of the women representatives and
their participation level. This linkage is essential to examine the performance level,
awareness level and their participation in the Panchayat Raj system of the State.
313
Table 2: Age and Caste wise Distribution of Women Members
25-30
31-36
36-40
above 40
Total
1 (16.6)
4 (66.7)
6(27.3)
3 (30)
5(50)
10 (45.4)
4 (66.7)
6 (27.3)
13 (59.1)
22 (68.7)
1 (50)
2 (2.6)
Ward members ( ) *
SC
1 (16.6)
ST
1 (10)
1 (10)
General
1 (16.6)
1 (16.6)
Total
3 (13.6)
2(9.1)
4(18.1)
Sarpanch/Naib Sarpanch
SC
1 (50)
1 (14.3)
ST
1(100)
General
1 (25)
3(75)
4(57.1)
2 (28.5)
4(57.1)
7(21.9)
1 (14.3)
Total
Samiti Members
1 (33.3)
1
SC
1
ST
General
1
Total
1
Grand Total
5(15.6)
1 (33.3)
1 (33.3)
2(6.3)
1
1
3 (6.4)
7(21.9)
18 (56.2)
32
()♦ Figure in parenthesis is in percentage
Table - 2 tries to establish the relationship of age and participation level of the
members. Out of 32 sample respondents 56.2 percent are in the age group of above
40 In case of ward-members, and Naib-Sarpanch and Sarpanch the percentage
found in this age group is 59.1 and 57.1 respectively. It is so because when no
women were found to come forward to be the members the villagers asked the aged
women to nominate themselves for the above position. Again social stigmas and
social sanctions may be the factors which restrict the young women (those who are
either in the early years of their marriage or in the threshold of marriage) to
participate. Out of total respondents (32) 28.1 percentage belongs to scheduled
314
caste, 37.5 percent belongs to scheduled tribe and 34.4 percent are form general
caste. In case of Naib-Sarpanch and Sarpanch 57.1 percent of them belong to general
caste. It may be because higher posts are synonymous with higher socio-economic
status. In case of posts like Naib-Sarpanch and Sarpanch the upper caste women
have an advantage over the scheduled caste and scheduled tribe women.
In the tribal areas it was found that most of the women representatives were in the
age of above forty and they said that they have become members because nobody
came forward when these wards were declared as reserved seats for women. The
community members decided to nominate their names. Their opinion was that next
time they will not be members as only the male members were taking part in
discussions and they felt that they have no role in Panchayat functioning. When
questions were asked while collecting information regarding Panchayat functioning
and the role of women, most of them remained silent.
Table 3 : Distribution of Women Members by their Educational Standard
( )*
Illiterate
UP
LP
M E
Higher
Total
Secondary
- rate
22
Ward
7
6
6
3
Member
(31.8)
(27.3)
(27.3)
(13.6)
Sarpanch
1
1
1
2
2
/Nalb
(14.3)
(14.3)
(14.3)
(28.6)
(28.5)
2
1
3
32
7
Sarpanch
Samiti
Members
(66.7)
(33.3)
total
8
7
7
7
3
(25)
(21.9)
(21.9)
(21.9)
(9.3)
( ) * Figure in parenthesis is in percentages
It can be observed from the above table that illiteracy Is found more in case of
ward-members In comparison to other positions in the Panchayat, which constitutes
31.8 percent against 68.2 percent literate women ward-members. From among the
total number of ward members only 13.6 percent have completed the Middle
Elementary School Education and in case of Nalb-Sarpanchs and Sarpanchs 28.5
percent have been educated up to higher secondary level and only 14.3 percept of
them are illiterate. In Samiti level all the three sample respondents are literate and
315
66.7 percent of them have completed Middle Elementary School and the rest have
completed high school level education. The activities of Sarpanchs and Naib-Sarpanchs demands the members to be literate and during the course of the field survey
It was observed by the investigator that the women ward-members learned to sign
their name in order to become members.
Table 4 : Marital Status of Members
( )*
Married
Ward
Member
18(81)
Sarpanch/
Naib
Sarpanch
5(71.4)
Samitl
Members
3(100)
Total
26(81.3)
Unmarried
1(14.3)
Widow
Total
14(18.1)
22
1(14.3)
7
3
1(3.1)
32
5(15.6)
( ) • Figure in parenthesis is in percentage
The table shows that out of total sample respondents 81.3 percent are married, 15.6
percent are widows and only one woman representative is unmarried constituting
3.1. percent. It was observed that participation of unmarried women in this system
is very poor due to the prevalence of social taboos. The widow percentage is high
in case of ward members i.e., 18.1 percent.
Table 5 : Land Holding Position of the family of Women Members
0*
Landless
Farmers
Marginal
Farmers
Small
Farmers
Big
Farmers
Total
Ward
Member
6(27.3)
8(36.3)
6(27.3)
2(9.1)
22
Sarpanch
Naib
Sarpanch
1(14.3)
5(71.4)
1(14.3)
7
Samiti
Members
1(33.3)
2(66.7)
3
9(28.1)
12(37.5)
5(15.6)
Total
6(18.7)
()• Figure in parenthesis is in percentages
316
32
Table-5 shows that out of the total number of representatives surveyed 18.7 percent
belong to the landless category, 28.7 percent belong to marginal farmers groups,
37.5 percent are from small farmers groups whereas only 15.6 percent are from big
farmers groups. Out of a total number of women ward-members only 9.1 percent
are from big farmers groups, against 27.3 percent who belong to the landless
category. From among Sarpanch and Naib-Sarpanchs 71.4 percent belong to small
farmers groups against 14.3 percent from big farmers category and the rest the
small farmers category. No one among Sarpanchs/Nalb-Sarpanchs and Samiti
members belong to landless categories. It may be attributed to the fact that the
economic status of the candidate has a direct bearing on these posts. As usual,
representation to the higher posts are influenced by the economic condition of the
members.
Table 6: Income Wise Distribution of Women Members
0*
500010000
1100015000
1600020000
above
20000
Total
Ward
Members
9(40.9)
7(31.8)
2(9.1)
4(18.1)
22
Sarpanch
Naib
Sarpanch
1(14.3)
2(28.6)
2(28.5)
2(28.5)
7
Samiti Members
2(66.7)
1(33.3)
3
Total
10(31.2)
4(12.5)
7(21.9)
11(34.4)
32
( )* Figure in parenthesis is in percentage
The table shows that out of total members surveyed 31.2 percent belong to the lower
income group i.e, Rs.5000-10,000 and 34.4 percent of members have an income of
11.000 to 15,000. In case of ward-members, nearly three fourths of the respondents
earn an yearly income less than Rs. 15,000 and only 9.1 percent are in the income
group of Rs. 16,000-20,000/ The table also shows that members belonging to the
upper position in the Panchayat hierarchy are generally from higher income groups.
317
Table 7 : Occupational Distribution of Women Members
household
work
Wage
Labour
Service
Total
()*
Ward member
11(50)
8(36.4)
3(13.6)
22
Sarpanch/
Naib
Sarpanch
6(85.7)
1(14.3)
Samiti
Members
13(100)
Total
20(62.5)
7
3
32
3(9.4)
9(28.1)
()* Figure in parenthesis is in percentages
It is revealed from the above table that out of a total of 32 women representatives
nearly two thirds are pursuing household work. 23.6 percent are engaged In services
and 28.1 percent are earning their livelihood by engaging themselves in wage a our.
While a higher percentage of women in the ward-member category engaged in wage
labour constitutes only 14.3. in case of Samiti members it is seen that all of them
are engaged in household work only. The reason why a large number of mem
bers/representatives are housewives can be attributed to the fact that. those who
are engaged in economic activity either do not prefer to spend time for this activity
or they cannot afford to spare time for this, according to them their labour accrues
an additional income to the family earning.
Table 8 : Distribution of Women Members According to Family
0*
Nuclear
Joint
Total
Ward member
16(72.7)
6(27.3)
22
Sarpanchs / Naib
Sarpanchs
4(57.1)
3(42.9)
7
Samiti Member
3(100)
Total
23(71.9)
3
9(28.1)
( )♦ Figure in parenthesis is in percentage
318
32
Table-8 shows that out of the total number of women representatives, 71.9 percent
are living in nuclear families and the rest are living in joint families. Out of a total
of 22 ward-members 72.7 percent are living in nuclear families and in case of
Sarpanch and Nalb-Sarpanch 42.9 percent are living in Joint families. It is observed
that all the Samiti members are staying in nuclear families. Traditional norms and
values in a joint family system where women’s role is more restrictive is the reason
why women belonging to this system generally have lower participation level.
Table 9 : Inspiration and Motivation Derived by the Members
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
Ward-Members
6
SC
10
ST
6
General
1(16.6)
1(10)
4(66.7)
2(33)
1(10)
4(66.7)
3(50)
10(100)
2(33.3)
3(50)
3(50)
2(33.3)
1(10)
22
6(27.5)
7(31.8)
15(68.2)
8(36.4)
1(4.5)
1(50)
2(100)
1(100)
1(100)
2(50)
2(50)
3(42.9)
3(42.9)
2(28.6)
1(100)
1(100)
1(100)
1(100)
1(100)
1(100)
1(100 )
3(100)
0*
Total
Total
Sarpanchas / Naib-Sarpanchs
2(100)
2
SC
ST
General
1
4
3(75)
1(25)
Total
7
5(71.4)
2(28.6)
Samiti Members
1
SC
1
ST
1
General
Total
3
2(66.7)
GrandTotal
32
13(40.6)
9(29.1)
21(65.6)
13(40.6)
3(9.4)
( )* figure in parenthesis is in percentages
Note: (1) Family
(2) Villagers
(3) Own Caste/Tribesmen
(4) Political leader
(5) Village leader
The above table indicates that out of the total number of women surveyed 32 women
representatives have got inspiration from their own caste/tribes men to be involved
in the Panchayat Raj Institution, whereas, 40.6 percent are influenced by the family
319
and political leaders. Besides this, the villagers also motivated the representatives
in 28.1 percent cases. However, influence of the village leaders for this purpose
was marginal.
I
In case of ward-members their own caste and tribesmen played a major role to
motivate the members to be involved in the Panchayat. Political leaders also played
a major role in this direction as more than one third of the ward-members were
Influenced by them. Village leaders however played a very limited role, as It is
observed from the table, in the case of ward-members. In case of tribal women
ward-members, their male counterparts were the main source of Inspiration and
motivation. The family, villagers and village leaders have to play a limited role in
this case. In the case of SC women, SC men as well as the political party have
motivated the women to be associated with Panchayats. In comparison to scheduled
caste and scheduled tribe women, women of general caste were inspired more by
the family members and villagers.
In case of Sarpanchs and Naib-Sarpanchs 71.4 percent have been motivated by
family members and influence of own caste/tribesmen and political leaders is on
42.9 percent women. The political leaders as well as family had equally played a
significant role in motivating the women members to contest election for the post of
Samiti member. The caste of tribesmen have played major role as it appears from
the table.
Table 10: Party Affiliation of the Members
No Party
Affiliation
Congress
Janata
Dal
Total
Ward-members
SC
ST
General
1(16.7)
1(70)
1(16.7)
2(33.3)
1(10)
2(23.3)
4(50)
3(20)
3(50)
6
10
6
Total
9(40.9)
5(22.7)
8(36.4)
22
3(75)
1(50)
1(100)
1(25)
3(42.8)
3(42.8)
0*
Sarpanchs / Naib-Sarpanchs
SC
K50)
ST
General
Total
Samiti Members
SC
ST
General
1(14.3)
4
7
1
1
1
1
1
2(66.7)
3
1
1(33.3)
Total
Grand Total
2
1
10(31.2)
13(40.6)
9(28.1)
()* figure in parenthesis is in percentages
320
32
2.3
Political Background of the Respondents
Two thirds of the respondents have party affiliations and all of them either belong
to Congress or Janata Dal. It can be observed from the table that 40.9 percent of
ward-members have no party affiliation because they are not aware of party politics
as they belong to the lower echelons of Panchayat hierarchy and also in the political
structure. Party affiliation, they think, has no importance for them. However, for
the higher post, party affiliation is marked. If we see from caste background, it
appears that more number of tribal ward-members had no party affiliation, they
constitute 70 percent of the Caste Panchayat which is more powerful among them
and 20 percent of them are affiliated to Janata Dal. In case of scheduled caste it is
seen that they have more affiliation to the party than the scheduled tribes women
members. The same is the case with general caste ward-members. The reason may
be that women belonging to these categories are aware of the importance of political
parties.
All the 3 Samlti members are affiliated to political parties out of which 66.7 percent
are affiliated to the ruling party i.e., Janata and Congress. The reasons for being
affiliated to political parties though the post is non-political may be strong political
support is necessary to get elected to this post.
When asked, a woman Sarpanch said that she does not belong to any political party.
But other women representatives of that Panchayat mentioned that her husband
who is a teacher, is an active leader of Congress party and during the election,
leaders of Congress party had supported her in cash and kind.
Those who were not affiliated with any political party i.e. 31.2 percent, were asked
about their willingness to join any political party in future. They opined that they
had no time to be associated with party meetings and that being a party member
carried no advantages whatsoever.
When asked about the resistance faced by them from different sources it is observed,
that only in the case of Sarpanch, there was resistance from village leaders and
opposition party candidates. The opposition party leaders threatened her and asked
her to withdraw her nomination. It was also observed that in case of ward-members
they neither faced resistance from any opponent or opposition party members nor
from the family members.
€
321
-
Table 12 : Opposition faced by the Members
()♦
Having
Opponent
No Opponent
Total
Ward Member
5(22.7)
17(77.3)
22
Sarpanch / Naib
Sarpanch
6(85.7)
1 (14.3)
7
Samiti Members
3(100)
Total
14 (43.8)
3
32
18 (56.2)
()♦ figure in parenthesis is in percentage
It appears from the table that out of the total number of women representatives 56.2
percent had no opponent. Since all the members except Sarpanchs have got elected
to the Panchayat Raj body from a woman’s constituency, no male opponent is found
in case of ward-members, Naib-sarpanchs and Samiti members. But in case of
Sarpanch the seat was open, so there were 3 male candidates for the office. From
among the total number of ward-members 77.33 percent had no opponent.Those
five ward-members who had opponents in the elections belonged to the same Gram
Panchayat (Nandapur) where strong party affiliation was observed. In case of
Naib-Sarpanch and Sarpanch 85.7 percent had opponents and only one Nalb-Sarpanch got elected without any contest. All the Samiti members had opposition
candidates because for that post political parties play a strong role as can be seen
from the table-12.
Table 13 : Perceived Factors to win
0*
(1)
(2)
(3)
Ward
Member
2(40)
2(40)
1(20)
Sarpanch
/Naib
Sarpanch
3 (50)
2(33.3)
Samiti
Members
3(100)
Total
2(14.3)
(4)
Total
5
1 (16.7)
6
3
3(21.4)
8(57.1)
()* figures in parenthesis is in percentages
322
1 (7.1)
14
I1
(1)
Support by village people
(2)
Party Support
(3)
Own Personality
i
(4)
Family
It is revealed from the table that out of a total of 14 members (those who had
contestants) 57.1 percent said that they won due to the support they received from
their party and 21.4 percent won election due to their own personality. However,
very few of those respondents opined that they won the election either due to family
support or support from the villagers.
In contrast to this, in the case of ward-members, it was the support of the political
party and village people which played an important role in winning the election.
However, it was again the support from the political party along with their per
sonality which the Naib-Sarpanchs and Sarpanchs feel is responsible for their
victory. In case of the only Sarpanch surveyed, her family members have played a
major role in winning the elections. All the Samiti members victory was based on
the support of political party.
2.4
Political Performance of Elected Women
Merely getting elected to Panchayat Raj bodies without effective participation in
decision making at all levels is meaningless. During the field survey it was observed
that except 2 all the other members attended the Panchayat meeting. Sitting fees
for attending meeting is much less than the daily wage. One of the members opined
that she has a limited say in the decision making process for which she thinks her
presence has no significance. It was found that 28.1 percent of women ward-mem
bers and Naib-Sarpanchs are not aware of the actual amount to be received towards
sitting fees.
Gram Sabha has been viewed as the roots of democracy and an effective tool for the
participation and involvement of the people in the democratic process. When the
ward-members were asked about the Gram Sabha meeting no one could understand
the concept. A woman Sarpanch said that the Gram Sabha meeting was being held
every year, but that the first meeting of the Gram Sabha was adjourned due to lack
of quorum and the rest of the meetings are generally held in the Panchayat office.
Though the records maintained by the Gram Panchayat office show regular holding
of meetings, the ward members are not aware of it. When asked about the Pallisabha
meeting only 27.3 percent of the total ward members have attended it and the
Sarpanch came to the village to attend it. In other cases Sarpanch himself prepares
plans for the village people.
323
Table 13 : Participation
of Women Members on Proposing, Opposing and
Supporting Proposals
Only Oppos
ing proposals
Both
Support
ing &
Opposing
Total
Resolu
tion
3(50)
5 (50)
3 (50)
1 (16.7)
3 (500
4 (40)
3(50)
5 (83.3)
8(80)
4 (66.7)
22
11(50)
1 (4.5)
10(45.5)
17 (77.3)
Nalb Sarpanch
SC
ST
General
2
1
4
1 (500
2(50)
1 (25.0)
1 (50)
1 (100)
1 (25)
2(100)
1 (100)
3(75)
Total
7
3 (42.86)
1 (14.28)
3 (42.9)
6 85.7)
Samiti Members
SC
ST
General
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
Total
3
3 (100)
3(100)
Grand Total
32
16(50)
26 (81.2)
0*
Total
Only Support
ing proposal
Ward Member
SC
ST
General
6
10
6
Total
2(6.25)
14(43.75)
()* figures in parenthesis is in percentage
Half the surveyed representatives either support or oppose proposals. 43.75 percent
support it and only two of them oppose it. In table 14, the picture is more or less
same for the ward-members and Naib-Sarpanchs and Sarpanchs level but In case
of Samiti members all of them either support or oppose the proposal. Distinction
cannot be ascertained in this case as one will consider caste as the basis of
supporting or opposing the proposals.
In case of ward-members 77.3 percent of the members pass a resolution and half
of them only support the proposals brought up by others and never oppose any
proposals saying that they are not willing to pay money from their pocket to do
development work. Among the scheduled caste women representatives, it was found
that only one had opposed a proposal because it was not for the benefit of all the
324
villagers. In the case of scheduled tribes; 50 percent of women ward-members
support proposals because they think it will create misunderstanding among them
and 80 percent of them pass resolutions for the development of their village. Among
6 general caste ward-members half of them either support or oppose proposals and
66.7 percent passed resolutions in the meeting. (Table - 13).
Out of the total number of Sarpanchs and Naib-Sarpanchs 85.7 percent passed
resolutions and 42.9 percent of them either support or oppose proposals brought
up by others. Twenty eight percent of them only support proposals and never oppose
any proposals. Among the Nalb-Sarpanch of general caste categoiy 75 percent
passed resolutions and 25 percent said that their word carries no value in the
meeting. All the Samiti members either support or oppose proposals, brought up by
the others, in Samiti meeting and passed resolution for their respective Panchayats
also (Table 13).
It was found from the survey that those who passed resolutions brought proposals
related to developmental and welfare activities only because they understood the
function of the Panchayat as developing infrastructure facilities.
Table 14: Financial Allocation and Awareness Level
( )*
Total
Members
(1)
(2)
(3)
WardMember
22
13 (59.1)
9 (40.9)
6(27.3)
Sarpanch N.S/
7
5(71.4)
2 (28.6)
3 (42.9)
Samiti
Members
3
3(100)
3(100)
2 (66.7)
Total
32
21 (65.6)
14(43.7)
11 (34.4)
( ) * figures in parenthesis in in percentage
(1)
Aware of financial/budget allocation
(2)
Aware of the amount
(3)
Suggestions accepted during preparing budget
From the above table it is found that out of total number of women representatives
65.6 percent were aware of finance allocation to the Gram Panchayat, but when
asked about the actual budget amount only 43.7 percent could respond and at the
time of making budget 34.4 percent of them had given their suggestions. Among the
325
ward-members it Is observed that 59.1 percent were aware of finance afiocation but
all of them could not say the actual amount sanctioned for various activities. Only
27.3 percent of them had presented their views and suggestion at the time of budget
preparation. In case of Naib-Sarpanchs 71.4 percent were aware about finance
allocation and only 42.9 percent of them have taken part in budget preparation. The
Samiti members are well aware of the amount sanctioned to the Gram Panchayat
and were of the view that their suggestions were not accepted all the time. It is
revealed that the awareness level of ward- members about finance allocation is less
in comparison to that of Naib-Sarpanchs and Samiti members; the reasons may be
that they have not been taking part in decision making and most of them are either
illiterate or unaware of Panchayat functioning.
Table 15 :Satisfactlon Level with Performance of Gram Panchayat
( )*
Satisfied
Partially
Satisfied
DisSatisfied
Total
WardMembers
7(31.8)
6(27.3)
9 (40.9)
22
Sarpanch/
N.S
4(57.1)
1 (14.3)
2 (28.6)
7
Samiti
Members
21 (33.3)
1 (33.3)
1 (33.3)
3
Total
12(37.5)
8(25)
12(37.5)
32
( )♦ figures in parenthesis is in percentage
The above table shows the satisfaction level of the members about their performance
in the Panchayat and it may be observed that 37.5 percent were satisfied. 25 percent
partially satisfied and 37.5 percent were dissatisfied with their performance in the
Gram Panchayat. Out of total number of ward-members only 31.8 percent were
satisfied with their activities in the Gram Panchayat. and in the case of Sarpanch
and Naib-Sarpanch it was 57.1 percent. Dissatisfaction level is higher in case of
ward-members in comparison to Naib-Sarpanch and Sarpanch and Samiti mem
bers.
A Naib-Sarpanch who was a middle aged general caste widow was found to be more
active in the Panchayat. She said that the Panchayat was not working according to
the rules and regulations of the Government. The Sarpanch and Secretary planned
all the activities sitting in the house of the Secretary and no opinion was taken from
other members of the Panchayat. She said that other members did not ask them,
so they were working according to their own free will. She said that other members
♦
326
Table 18 : Reasons for Partial Dissatisfaction on their role
Performance
Total Personal Deficiencies
( )•
External Deficiencies
1
2
3
4
1
2
3
4
Ward
7
4
3
2
3
4
3
6
Member
(57.1) (42.8) (28.6)(42.3)
Sarpanch/
Naib
3
1
2
(33.3) (66.7)
5
(57.1) (42.8) (85.7) 71.4)
2
2
3
2
6
5
9
7
Sarpanch
Samlti
Members
10
Total
5
5
3
2
( )♦ figures in parenthesis is in percentage
Personal Deficiencies
1)
Illiteracy
2)
Ignorance of rules & regulations
3)
Lack of Information & Knowledge
4)
Poverty
External Deficiencies
Male dominance
D
2)
Lack of funds
3)
Non-Co-operation from Sarpanch
4)
Party Feeling
When asked about the reasons for partial satisfaction and dissatisfaction they cited
deficiencies at two levels, i.e, personal and external. From the above table it can be
observed that external deficiencies are main reasons for partial satisfaction. From
among the total number of members who were partially satisfied, 90 percent of them
felt it is because of non-co-operation of Sarpanchs that they could not perform the
329
way they were expected to do. Besides this, illiteracy and ignorance about the rules
and regulations are the main reasons for their poor performance.
In the case of ward-members, non-co-operation by the Sarpanchs coupled with party
rivalry are the main obstacles in performing their role. They feel that illiteracy is
also responsible for their partial satisfaction, as the table reveals - 57.1 percent
expressed illiteracy as the main reason. The Nalb-Sarpanch also clearly mentioned
that non-co-operation by the Sarpanch is the main reason for not performing t e
role effectively.
Table 19 : Reasons for Dissatisfaction on her own performance
()*
Total
1
Personal Deficiencies
2
3
4
5
External Deficiencies
12
3
4
Ward
Member
M.S/
Sarpanch
Samiti
Members
11
(45.5)
5
10
4
5
(90.9) (36.4) (45.5) (27.3)
3
3
4
6
9
(36.4) (54.5) (81.8) (27.1)
Total
14
(35.7)
2
1
2
2
1
1
5
12
5
(85.7) (35.7) (50) (28.6)
( )♦ figures in parenthesis is in percentage
Personal Deficiencies
1.
Illiteracy
2.
Ignorance of rules & regulations
3.
Lack of Information & knowledge
4.
Poverty
5. Cultural norms of the family
External Deficiencies
1.
Male Dominance
2.
Lack of funds
3.
Non-Co-operation of the Sarpanch
330
7
(50)
2
2
1
1
4
(50)
7
7
(78.6) (21)
3
4.
Party feeling
The above table indicates that out of total members who are dissatisfied with their
performance level, 78.6 percent mentioned non-co-operation of Sarpanchs in their
work followed by male dominance and lack of funds as the main reasons for their
dismal performance. It was found that 85.7 percent of them were not aware of the
Panchayat’s rules and regulations which stand as the main constraint. Poverty, as
mentioned by 50 percent members, is also contributing to it and 28.6 gave the
cultural norms of the family as the reason for ineffective role performance.
Among the ward-members, in almost all the cases, Ignorance of rules and regula- »
tions is the main cause and it was complemented by the non-co-operation of the
Sarpanch. In case of Naib-Sarpanch both poverty and Ignorance of rules and
regulations are the main reasons and they pointed out the fact that male members
are dominating in decision making which causes ineffective performance.
Table 20 : Future Aspiration in Case of their Participation in PRI'S
( )*
Stick to the
same position
Go beyond
no more in
Total
ward member
10 (45.5)
3(13.6)
9( (40.9)
22
Naib Sarpanch
sarpanch
3 (42.9)
3 (42.9)
1 (14.2)
7
Samiti Member
2(66.7)
1(33.3)
3
Total
15 (46.9)
6(18.7)
11 (34.4)
( )♦ figures in parenthesis is in percentage
When an enquiry was made about the vertical and horizontal shift of the position
of the members in the Panchayat hierarchy, it was observed from the above table
that almost half of them preferred to stick to the present position and one third of
them were not willing to devote their energies and interests beyond the present term.
Only 18.7 percent of them were interested in contesting elections above the present
position. It is significant to note that maximum percentage of ward members i.e.,
40.9 percent are not willing to continue in the position, as they feel that they failed
to perform as expected by the people. They either did not have time to devote or old
age was a constraint. Only three representatives have aspiration to go beyond thd
present position. In case of Sarpanch, Naib-Sarpanch 42.9 percent would like to
remain in the same position whereas the same percentage of members like to go
higher. It is surprising that 33.3 percent of Samiti members are not interested to
fight elections next time, because they cannot devote more time towards performing
331
the role of Samiti members, which needs full involvement. None among them were
willing to contest for higher position (i.e Zilla Parishad Member) than their present
one, because strong political support and money power is required for these posts.
Some of the members were not Interested to continue their political career. The main
reason was, due to the lack of funds they could not work as people expected. Another
reason they pointed out was that only the Sarpanch and Secretary are all powerful
in the Panchayat functioning and members had no role in decision making. Even
the sitting fees which they get towards attending meeting was very meagre and not
regular.
Table 21 : Distribution of Women Representatives Regarding Opinion for
Elimination of Political Party
( )*
For
Elimination of
Political
Parties
For
retention of
Political
Parties
No
Response
Total
Ward Members
15 (68.2)
3 (13.6)
4(18.2)
22
Sarpanchs/
N.Sarpanch
6(85.7)
1 (14.3)
7
Samitl
Member
1 (33.3)
2 (66.7)
3
Total
22 (68.7.)
6(18.7)
4(12.5)
32
()* figures in parenthesis is in percentage
Majority of the representatives feel that elimination of political parties in the
Panchayat level is necessary while 18.7 percent favoured retention of political party
affiliation. While elimination of political party is favoured by ward-members, NalbSarpanch and Sarpanchs, most of the Samiti members favoured the retention of
political parties. In case of Panchayats more than two thirds of the respondents are
of the opinion that political parties should be eliminated from Panchayats either
from their passive or active support. In the opinion of the representatives, a
Panchayat being a small unit to work collectively for the benefit of the village people,
does not require party politics as it will not only hamper political processes at the
lowest level but will also become an obstacle to the unified functioning of the
Panchayat. However, Samiti members feel that political party’s backing is necessaiy
for them to be elected to the present position.
332
Table 22 : Suggestion for Allotment of Gram Panchayat Fund for Women &
Child Development
( )*
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
Total
Ward Member
6(27.3)
10 (45.5)
2(91.1)
4(18.1)
22
Sarpanch/
N.Sarpanch
4(57.1)
2 (28.6)
1 (14.3)
7
Samiti
Members
1 (33.3)
2 (66.7)
Total
11 (34.4)
14(43.7)
3
2(14.3)
5(15.6)
32
( )• figures In parenthesis is in percentage
1. Separate budget earmarked for the development of women and children.
2. Form women’s block with veto-power to negate proposals which are not in the
best interest of the women and children in the Gram Panchayat.
3. Amendment of rules to invalidate proposals for allocation of funds, and
4. No suggestion.
When asked to suggest how the fund should be allotted for women and child
development, it was found that 43.7 percent of the total respondents mentioned
the need to form women’s block in the Panchayat, having veto-power to negate
proposals which are not in the best interest of womqn and children. 34.4 percent
suggested a separate budget earmarked for the women and children’s development.
The ward-members have greater Interest in forming women’s block and only 27.3
percent of them were interested in separate budget. The case is reverse in case of
Sarpanch and Naib-Sarpanch l.e., more number of them (57.1 percent) were
interested in a separate budget and lower number (28.6 percent) felt the need to
form women’s block uniting all the women members In the Panchayat (Table - 22).
2.5
Conclusion
Reservation under Panchayat Raj for women is at present in the transitional phase
and women are not adequately empowered in practice to play an effective role
because of social, economic and political factors. Although women’s participation
in Panchayat Raj Institutions is very high in absolute sense, yet, analysis in relative
terms shows that their participation in decision-making is very low. For equality to
become a reality for women, the sharing of power on equal terms with men should
333
be the major strategy so that they can play an effective role in decision- making
processes, especially in areas where various policies have direct bearing on their
well-being. It has been revealed by the women representatives of different categories
that they are not treated on par with male members either by the members of the
institution or by the officials and felt that as they are women their views are not
given weightage on many occasions.
Subordination of women in society acts as a structural constraint to their participa
tion in political activities. This constraint operates more or less for all classes and
communities of women. Another important constraint is the prevalent political
culture, which not only has complicated the political processes but also many
decisions are taken behind the scenes.
One of the greatest hurdles in contesting elections for higher posts both at Gram
Panchayat and Panchayat Samiti level is the ever increasing expenditure of election.
This factor not only makes it difficult for women, who have very limited independent
economic resources to participate, but completely eliminate those women who are
below the poverty line from entering the arena. This situation leads to dominance
of the women belonging to upper castes and upper classes in these positions.
During the study we came across the fact that husbands and family members
Influence the women representatives in taking decisions. The most important aspect
the investigator observed during the course of the field survey, was the way the
members performed their role in the Panchayat system. In most case they par
ticipated aS dummies to the male members of their family and they were invariably
influenced by their male family members.
s -"fh;
. .
;
■
.
On interviewing a woman Sarpanch, it was found that some of the primary and
Middle Elementary School teachers had gone to her to forward their applications
for sugar for Saraswatlpuja. It was observed that instead of deciding the quantity
to be given to each school by herself, her elder son who was a contractor was taking
the decision for which she was only signing the application.
334
*
Section 3
3.1
Recommendations
1.
There is a need for comprehensive and meaningful training programmes for
women representatives to perform their Constitutional duties and respon
sibilities as members of Panchayat Raj Institutions. They are ill informed about
power procedures and functioning of these bodies. The kind of role they have
to play and the problems they are likely to face in male dominated political
Institutions should be taken through training. ‘Mahila Vikash Samabaya
Nigam’ has taken initiatives for providing training to all the women repre
sentatives at the Gram Panchayat and Panchayat Samiti level. Before starting
the training programme MVSN had organised Training Of Trainers programmes
involving NGO workers, Government officials, lecturers and other grassroots
level workers. After that NGO’s are being given the responsibility of providing
training to the Panchayat members calling resource persons from the Training
Of Trainers participant’s list.
2.
In order to make women able to participate fully, it is necessary to spread
legal literacy not only among general community but also among elected
representatives.
3.
Both men and women who are In positions of power should be sensitized to
women’s Issues.
4.
As a large number of women are illiterate, ignorant and poorly informed about
ongoing issues concerning the society in general and women in particular, there
is a need to disseminate information for raising general as well as political
awareness. They should be helped to realise their own capabilities and poten
tialities, which will strengthen their self-image and foster them with confidence
to take action in life.
5.
Mass awareness or awakening is required about the role of Panchayats with
reference to the 29 functions listed in the 11th schedule of the Constitution,
what type of people should make it to the Panchayat as elected members and
so on.
6.
There should be a forum of elected women representatives so that they can
meet periodically, which will provide an opportunity to exchange their ideas
and views and this will go a long way to develop their self-confidence.
7.
There should be provision for reservation of women to the post of Chairperson
in Zilla Parishad/Panchayat Samiti elections.
335
8.
The elections to, and composition of, Panchayats should not be based along
political party lines.
9.
It is necessary to provide certain support services to women members such as
special training for confidence building, skill for making Intervention in
Panchayat meeting as well as for decision-making, so as to strengthen their
political empowerment.
3.2
A Note on Task Force for Strengthening Panchayats in Orissa
After completion of two and half years of the existing Panchayats, the Government
of Orissa in collaboration with UNICEF convened a three-day workshop on 21st to
23rd February 1995, inviting officials from the Panchayat Raj Department from the
Centre and State, NGOs academicians and UNICEF, to identify problems being faced
by the elected Panchayat members in their functioning and to suggest ways to
resolve them. As a follow-up of the workshop, the Government of Orissa constituted
a Task Force to support the Government Institute for training all the elected
representatives of the Panchayats.
The Task Force includes Principal Secretary to Government, Panchayat Raj Depart
ment as a Chairman and Programme Officer UNICEF as convener and few NGO s
including ISED and officials from the Panchayat Raj Department, Rural Develop
ment and Women and Child Development. The Task Force in its subsequent
meetings has identified the learning materials required for training the Panchayat
members, creative writers to write the materials, resource persons for State level
masters’ training, a core team of State level trainers and also at the district level
and training calendar for State as well as district level training of trainers.
A ten day workshop of the creative writers from 3rd to 12th April was organised
inviting 30 persons from various parts of the State. The first two days of the
workshop were devoted to orientation of the participants on various aspects of
Panchayats. After that the participants were divided into five groups and were given
the task of writing the draft material on different aspects. Based on their reports six
modules of learning materials have been prepared. They are :
1.
Legal Literacy Reading Materials
2.
Programme Literacy Reading Materials
3.
Welfare Relating Programmes
4.
Equity Concern Reading Materials
5.
Planning Literacy Reading Materials
336
6.
Human Resource Reading Materials.
The other modules will focus on
a.
Child Labour Act
ci.
b.
Orissa GP/PS/ZP Acts
c.
Contract Labour Act
d.
Equal Remuneration
e,
Joint Forest Management
ICDS & Nutrition
g-
MSY/OBB/TLC
h.
Role of Women in Panchayat Raj
1.
SC & ST (Based on Bhuriya Committee Report)
J-
Micro Planning and Resource Mapping.
These materials will be finalised after field testing in the tribal and coastal regions.
Training of the State level trainers is scheduled to be held on 26th to 28th June,
this will be followed by the first two batches of training of the District Training Team
(DTT) in the Central Division of Cuttack, Mayurbhanj, Balasore and Puri between
10th and 14th July. The DTT is to be conducted by the State level core team of
trainers. The project officers of DRDA will co-ordinate the DTT. The training dates
for the remaining districts will be finalised after completion of training in the Central
Division.
337
References
Anurita Roy Choudhury, "Background to Panchayat Raj Institutions in India",
Health for the Millions, vol. 1, no.4. August 1993, New Delhi, p.23
National Perspective Plan for Women (1988): Department of Women & Child
Development, Government of India, p. 13
e
Aditya Sen, "A Review of Women’s Role in Panchayat Raj", Kurukshetm, vol.XLII,
no.9, New Delhi, June 1994, p. 61
Klrti Kumar, "Strategies for Empowerment of Women in Panchayat Raj Institu
tions", Kurukshetra, vol. XLII, no.9, New Delhi, June 1994, p.5
Ibid., p.5
Dr. Manlpal "Empowering Women Through Panchayat Raj Institutions", Kurukshetra, vol.XUI, no.9. New Delhi, June 1994, p.30
Ibid., p.30
National Perspective Plan for Women: Op.Cit., pp. 164-165
Ibid., p. 157
Susheela Kaushik, Introduction to Panchayat Raj and Community Development
in India, New Delhi : Kalyanl Publishers, 1993, p.21
Ibid., p.21
Records of Panchayat Raj Department, Government of Orissa
George Mathew, "Women in Panchayat Raj: Beginning of a Silent Revolution".
Kurukshetra, vol.XLII, no.9, New Delhi, June 1994
338
Valedictory Address: Mr. L.C. Jain
The critical requirement for the success of the Panchayats is the devolution of power
and finances to them. In his valedictory address, Shri.L.C. Jain addresses the larger
issues of finances available for development processes in the context of the new
economic regime. He also comments on the countervailing pressures of globalisa
tion and decentralisation on development through Panchayats.
...Documents such as the report of the Tenth Finance Commission and the RBI
bulletin (of October 1994) review the finances of the State Government. The Ninth
Finance Commission and N.K.P.Salve Commission gives an idea of the state of
finances of the country. There is no substitute for these documents. We need to
address larger issues other than Panchayat Raj. The State has to mobilize resources
and has many competing needs - health, agriculture and irrigation;
The message from these documents is that there is no need to borrow for capital
investment in development - there is no need to generate surpluses. Now our
interest payments in the current budget is Rs.52,000 crores which is more than
double the defence expenditures. While they may represent development - they are
used to meet current consumption and revenue expenditure. The whole Journey
downhill is towards deficit and indebtedness. Interest payments is sparked off by
the Fourth Pay Commission that increased Rs.3000 crore burden on the State and
Central Government. Now there is the Fifth Pay Commission and a greater demand
by Civil Services in the environment of globalization and the Increase in Multina
tionals. With elections, there will be a greater demand for setting Fifth Pay
Commission and all concerned Indians will be bothered.
Empowerment is an external stimulus. At the moment, Panchayats have a con
tribution that, given the state of finances of the countiy, they will raise resources
and not look to the Government - against the current paradigms Centre to State,
and State to grassroots. The future of our development and growth in financial
resources is limited. If financial resources are used to activate other static resour*
ces- soil, water, man power - we have a greater scope of development, that is
participatory, dynamic and persistent. The development will mean not only growth
but durability also.
On the political level, the system of governance is under pressure. The Constitution
has ground rules which need to be followed. If the Centre and State administrations
and different political parties give up their complacency in given situations, there
will be rapid growth. Unless development is guided, and political stability is
ensured, Panchayats cannot exist. The Panchayat boat should be steered in this
turbulence to its destination.
339
•4
Panchayats are now in, but universal suffrage has been around for sometime. And
there is a responsibility to ensure that political waters are well kept. There is a
responsibility by women and men to ensure that Panchayats cannot be kept In
isolation. This view is rather naive and we have a responsibility to correct politics
per se at all levels. The way to correct polluted politics is to orient an organisational
dimension to political parties. This is now non-existent - parties only gamer votes.
Most political parties all over have no organisation and most of them are hired - no
political party has organised elections.
Let’s not limit Panchayats like frogs in the well. Panchayats per se will not do in
isolation. Even if the parties are reduced to merely legislative functions, this will
be greater than politics merely at central and state levels. The Panchayat can create
a nursery for political leadership.
Political and economic process require social dimensions, fundamentally and
inexorably, pulsating the entire system. That is the relevance of one-third reserva
tion. It is a ventilating window.
Our interest in Panchayats must be viewed in a larger perspective and should not
be compartmentalised. Merely keeping a goat like Gandhijl did, will not make one
a Gandhian. Gandhiji’s Panchayats dealt with minimum economic activity, with
production of food grains within the Panchayat area to meet demands of local
consumption wherever possible. There exists no rationality in having 15% of the
districts feeding the rest of the populace. There should be belief in local production,
that is, subject to proximate feasibility, production and consumption as giving power
to political bodies called Panchayats.
Today, when we have chanced upon Panchayats in some form (although not as
Gandhi envisioned it, nor as Article 40 says), production and consumption due to
globalisation is as distant as possible. So also space and power (Article 70. 243 G
(a) area planning - wells to tube wells, therefore others become dry) The present
economic policy is dangerous. Like the old village well which was dried up by the
new tube wells, globalisation similarly may kill proximate production and consump
tion.
Pulsating power of 3 million elected representatives will be a force. One-third
women, who if consciously developed, will make the choices, between the employ
ment of weavers and decision taken outside the boundaries of the country.
I would like to comment on Srilatha’s point- that women already have three burdens,
and that Panchayat Raj is an added burden. The hope is that women will see the
priority and ensure that Panchayat Raj is not an additive burden by reducing the
other burdens.
340
About the relationship with bureaucracy - even during Ambedkar and Montague
Chelmsford reforms, the British were prepared to devolve more powers within the
limited democracy. The ICS officers said that they were against devolution of
powers. They were not ready to work under elected representatives and promised
social justice. Listening to bureaucrats will convince one that they will give good
governance. Why waste energy on elected representatives? When Provisional
Government came, veiy powerful political figures evolved. ACS were directly
responsible to the Viceroy and Whitehall till independence. Sardar Patel did not see
the point of his being Home Minister without civil services under him and Arthur
Anderson Under Secretary shuttled to wear out Sardar Patel. Therefore, Nehru and
Sardar Patel were not allowed control over ICS.
Even under the Provincial Government, the interim Government could not assume
control over the ICS and we assume that the elected representatives will ensure that
they will deliver. From inequity, the bureaucracy has acquired a space of patronage
with the MP’s and MLA’s who have done it openly. They see no contradiction in
passing a resolution (73A) seeking to put one crore of rupees, outside the ambit of
Panchayat Raj, directly with the DC who is the chosen representative of the
Panchayat Raj bodies. States resources (eg. IRDP) are put into pockets of those who
are not poor.
It is not enough to merely blame the bureaucracy as the evil force but it is important
to ensure power is devolved to the lower echelons. Clinically seen, if power does not
vest with the local institutions, then access of the weak, especially women to push
the institution to deliver and change the direction of development will be cir
cumscribed. Any amount of training cannot help unless they are as close to the
decision making process as possible.
341
9
LIST OF PARTICIPANTS
9Dr.B.K.Anita
Women’s Policy Research Advocacy Unit (WOPRA)
National Institute of Advanced Studies
Indian Institute of Science Campus
Bangalore 560 012
I.
Mr.David Arnold
Representative
Ford Foundation
55, Lodi Estate
New Delhi 110 003
Mr.Basappa
Director
Rural Development & Panchayati Raj
M.S.Building
Dr.Ambedkar Veedhi
Bangalore 560 001
i
•t. . •
Ms.Chitra Balakrishnan
Hengasara Hakkina Sangha
497, 1st Floor, 17th Cross
38th Main, 6th Phase, JP Nagar
Bangalore 560 078
rj;
Ms.Ruma Bannerjee
Development Dialogue
19, Sarat Chatterjee Avenue
2nd Floor
Calcutta 700 029
Ph: 767387
Ms.Srilatha Batliwala
Fellow, women's Policy Research Advocacy Unit (WOPRA)
National Institute of Advanced Studies
Indian Institute of Science Campus
Bangalore 560 012
:
Ph: 080-3344351, 3346594
Fax:91-0803346634
Dr.Rina Bhattacharya
Research Coordinator
Institute of Social Studies Trust
5, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg
xlv
Kamala Devi Bhawan
New Delhi 110 002 a
a
Ph: 3312861
Fax: 91-011-3323850
,s»?^
Langford Garden
Bangalore 560 025
Mr.Abhijit Dasgupta
Development Dialogue
e?rat ChatCerjee Avenue
2nd Floor
Calcutta 700 029
Ph: 767387
Ms.Chrisaie D'Costa
Research Officer
for Research in
84 A, R.G.Thadani Marg, Worli Community Health
Bombay 400 018
a
or-Li
Ph:4938601
’ I
Ms.Deepa Dhanraj
268, V Cross, 3rd Main
1st Block, .Koramangala
Bangalore 560 034
<
I
Dr.Neelam Gorhe
Chairman, Founder Trustee
stree Aadhar Kendra
i?n?/?cdr~uh?el APartment
roSl ”! m
Road' Near Hotel su^ '■
Ph: 0212-321017
Fax:0212-342172
Prof.Iqbal Gulati
Centre for Development Studies
Prashant Nagar Road
Ulloor
Trivandrum 695 011
Ph: 448881-84/448412
V
Dr.Leela Gulati
Centre for Development Studies
Prashant Nagar Road
Ulloor ,
Trivandrum 695 oil
i
Ph: 448881-84/44^412
♦
t
Ms.Ani ta Gurumurthy
Women's Policy Research Advocacy Unit (WOPRA)
National Institute of Advanced Studies
Indian Institute of Science Campus
Bangalore 560 012
Mrs.Devaki Jain
"MILAP VATIKA"
19 C/UA, Jawahar Nagar
Delhi 110 007
Ph: 2914638
Fax:91-11-331-6470
Mt.L.C.Jain
Industrial Development Services
M-l, Kanchenjunga
18, Barakhamba Road
NEW DELHI 110 001
Ph: 331 3469, 331 2287
Fax: 91-11-331-6470
a.
Ma.Axrimu Joseph
3698, 9th Cross
Service Road
HAL 2nd Stage
Bangalore 560 008
Ph: 5272941
Ms.Suman Kolhar
Banashankari Nivas
Lal Bahadur Shastri Nagar
Bijapur 586 101
Dr.K.S.Krishnaswamy
'PRANATHI'
Plot NO.1706
14th Main, 30th Cross
Banashankari II Stage
Bangalore 560 070
Ph: 6611913
Dr.George Mathew
Director
Institute of Social Sciences (ISS)
B-7/18, Safdarjung Enclave
New Delhi 110 029
Ph:675451
a
f
4
l
344.
ur.vina Maiuxndar
Vice Chairperson
Centre for Women's ^Development Studies
25 Bhai Vir Singh Marg
j (Gole Market)
New Delhi no 001
I
Ph: 3345530/345541
Fax:91-11-3346044
Mr.Subash Mendhapurkar
Director
Social Uplift Through :Rural Action (SUTRA)
Jagjit Nagar
Via Jubbar 173 225
Dist. Solon, H.P
‘ I
Ph: 01793-8725/8734
Fax:91-1793-8725/8734
Ms.Meera
Hengasara Hakkina Sangha
497, 1st Floor, 17th Cross
38th Main, 6th Phase, jp Nagar
Bangalore 560 078
!
Ms.Kamala Mohapatra
Institute for Socio- Economic Development
28, Dharma Vihar
Bhubaneshwar
ORISSA 751 030
J
Ph: 0674-470302
Fax:91-674-470312
Dr.Swapna Mukhopadhyay
Director, ;
" "
Institute of Social Studies Trust
5, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marq
Kamala Devi Bhawan
New Delhi 110 002
«
Ph: 3312861
Fax: 91-011-3323850
Mr.Vasant Nachane
Panchayati:Raj Prabodhan Sanstha
Reserve Bank Society No 2
Gawand Path
’ '
Naupada, Thane
Ph: 912 2539 3111
Fax:4951331
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Mr.Balajx Pandey
Director
Ph: 0674-470302
Fax:91-674-470312
. Dr.S.Radha
Associate Fellow
Thiruvananthapuram 695 033
Ph: 444229
Fax:0471-442391
Ma.Asha Ramesh
Coordination Unit
802, Arunachal Bhawan,:
19/ Barakhamba Road
New Delhi no 001
Ph: 91-11-3713221
Fax:91-11-3713219
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Ms.Sandhya Rao
Hengasara Hakkina Sangha
497, 1st Floor, 17th Cross
38th Main, r6th Phase, jp Naqar
60 078
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Bangalore 560
Mg.Shoba Raghuram
Deputy Representative
HIVOS
No.20, Flat No.402
Eden Park Apartments
Vittal Mallya Road
Bangalore 560 005
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Mr.Ramananda B.S.
Institute for Youth
and Development
No.97, 17th 'B’ Main
Sth Block, Koramangala
Bangalore 560 095
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Ph: 5530597:
Fax:5530682
Ms.Vedha Sampath
354, Raja Mahal Vilas
Bangalora 560 080
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Mr.T.R.Satish Chandran,
231, 18th Cross
Sadashivnagar
BANGALORE 560 080
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Ph: 3340078
Dr.C.Sen
Indian Institute of Management
Bannerghatta Road
Bangalore
Dr.Gita Sen
Indian Institute of Management
. Bannerghatta Road
Bangalore
Ms.Ji11 S immons
C/o. Sharmila Godbole
759/41, "Harikripa"
Deccan Gymkhana
PUNE 411 004
Ph: 212-331636/ 212-367893
Ms.Kavitha Srivastav
76, Shanti Niketan Colony
Kisan Marg, Jaipur 302015
Ph: 0141-513262 (R)
Ms.Cynthia Stephen
Coordination Unit, Bangalore
■
World Conference on Women, Beijing 1995
C/o.Indian Social Institute
24, Benson Road, Benson Town
Bangalore 560 046
Ph: 91-80-560805
Fax:91-80-5561700
Ms.Sudha Sundararaman
Pondicherry Science Forum •
63, Pasteur Nagar
vinobha Nagar Extension
Pondicherry 605 008
Ph: 0413-30189
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Dr.p.ochita Talukdar
UNICEF
253, Forest Park
Bhubaneshwar 751 009
Ph:400268, 404448, 404'160
i’‘ax: 06 74 4 016 68
Shri.S.U.Tripa th!, I. A. S
Director, Special Projects &
Ex-Officio Joint Secretary co Govt.
Panchayati Raj Department
Govt. of Orissa
Bhubaneshwar 751 009
Ms.Vani Umasliankar
C/o. Mr. Uma Shankar Period!
Hengasara Hakkina Sangha
497, 1st Floor, 17th Cross
38th Main, 6th Phase, JP Nagar
Bangalore 560 078
Ms . Ranieshwari Varina
Director
Centre for Women's Studies
Institute of Development Studies
University of Mysore
Leela Vihar
Manasagangotri
MYSORE 570 006
Ph: 22029
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