photo of Indian woman Garwhal and Kumaon
India
 
RELATED THEMES
education
family life
social institutions

OTHER LOCAL THEMES
agriculture
communications
community activities
culture and customs
development
economics
employment and income
environment
environmental knowledge
festivals
food security
forestry
health
justice and crime
migration
livelihood strategies
livestock
social change
social relationships
spiritual beliefs
tourism
traditional skills
water

BACKGROUND
introducing the area

gender

 quotes about gender
 key testimonies featuring gender

Compared to some other collections on this site, there are a good number of Indian women narrators. Women's experiences, changes in their roles and status, and changing gender relations are a central theme of the interviews and they do present different perspectives and experiences. Although there is much talk of improvements in women's position in society, there is considerable variation in the extent to which women's lives have really changed. There is also evidence of still powerful cultural norms influencing the position and rights of men and women.

Testimonies have been collected with women of different ages, and include one mother and daughter. Some of the older women narrators (India 1 and India 4) were local founders and leaders of various protest movements, including the well known Chipko movement against deforestation. These women assumed positions of leadership having had little or no education, and at a time when many in their communities deemed their actions inappropriate. Two interviews are with younger women who have become elected community leaders through the formal panchayat system. While still relatively pioneering in taking on such responsibilities, these younger women clearly benefited from the struggles of the female activists a generation earlier, and from the chance of education. India 32 acknowledges the important role her mother (India 1) played in helping her to attain the position of village head. Women also seem to be active in a range of social institutions. The Mahila Mangal Dals (rural women's councils) are run within villages by and for women, but have also provided a channel for women to communicate and network between villages.

Many narrators refer to the easing of women's workloads and of social restrictions: "Their workload is reduced and their freedom increased in comparison to the past because they are educated now, and other facilities have increased. A new social order has set in. In the past work was the only thing to be emphasised." (India 9). Yet some (India 8) are not so positive: "There is no change in their condition especially in the remote areas. There they get up at four o'clock in the morning and get busy in their work till 10 o'clock at night." And many mention that male migration has increased the burden of agricultural work on women. There's also some suggestion that the adoption of modern agricultural practices is sidelining women's skills in cultivating traditional crops. And several say that the new road networks have actually increased restrictions on some women's freedom to move around because of the fear and likelihood of encountering strangers.

Despite the undoubted advancement of some women, traditional attitudes towards sons and daughters continue to have influence. For example, India 2 remarks, "Yes, family planning is good. But due to the constant increase in the first borns being girls and a desire for boys, this is not possible. Because even today, the birth of a son is considered essential for the redemption of the ancestral obligations." Another narrator (India 7) describes the preference for educating sons: "Girls are good in education, but few people are interested in educating girls. It is due to discrimination. People feel that one day the daughter has to go to her in-law's house. If she is educated she may not do household chores like working on fields or cutting the fodder.."

Recognising the continuing power of such attitudes, a few narrators stress the need for women themselves to become aware of their rights and capabilities and press for change, rather than waiting for the wider society to alter. India 33 explains, ". it is necessary for the woman to be alert herself. The family members would want that she should not go out and instead cook food, so that she stays under control. I myself told all the women representatives that, 'as long as you are unaware of your rights, you shall be under the pressure of others'. The person who is ignorant remains a slave.whether it's a man or a woman."

quotes about gender

"At first the women never participated [in the village council]. It was not in our custom. But now they do take part in it. In fact, women are now contesting the elections and forming the panchayat."
Hira, F/53, weaver/farmer, India 22

"I have begun to believe that the jewellery that is made for us is like the decoration made for the cows and buffaloes. In one sense it is meant for the same purpose, to make us bow down. There is pain here and there, and then we are constantly worried that it will get lost. If nothing else, it was a kind of bondage for us..."
Sudesha, F/50s, activist/farmer, India 1

"Earlier it was the girl's father who searched for a suitable groom but now.the mother and daughter's decision is necessary."
Hira, F/53, weaver/farmer, India 22

".both boys and girls were treated as equals. People had very few children... Those who had more daughters were considered very rich since all the work depended on them. Men only cut wood and ploughed the field. Everything else was done by women. So they were greatly respected.But the tables have turned now."
Bhagat, M/67, Rajput, scheduled tribe, farmer, India 15

"When I was elected [to the council], people wondered whether a woman can become a head? Can a woman do social work? .Can a woman go in a marriage procession or to cremate the dead? .But we assured them that we can do everything. We are also humans. I had to do all this work and show them. None of the men, prior to me, were able to do as much."
Maheshwari, F/45, panchayat member, India 32

"We do not give dowry. We give a buffalo or two or three buffaloes in mehar (bride price).The special thing about it is that no one else can sell that buffalo, not even the girl's in-laws. Only the girl herself can sell the buffalo. All the calves of the buffalo will also belong to the girl, and regardless of how many progeny down the line, the animals.remain the girl's property."
Kammo, F/57, Muslim, Gujjar, scheduled tribe, farmer, India 23

key testimonies featuring gender


  No.   Name   Sex/Age   Occupation   Location  
Summary Transcript   1   Sudesha   female/50   activist/farmer   Rampur village, Henwal valley, Tehri Garhwal  
Summary Transcript   11   Attar   female/60   midwife/ farmer   Sunara village, Rawain, Yamuna valley, Uttarkashi  
Summary Transcript   12   Bihari   male/60s   leader of grassroots organisation   Budakedar, Balganga valley, Tehri Garhwal  
Summary Transcript   13   Chatra   female/50   field coordinator for Samakhya   Bhelgandi village, Mandakini valley, Tehri Garwhal  
Summary Transcript   15   Bhagat   male/67   farmer   Chansu village, Sangla, Baspa valley, Kinnaur  
Summary Transcript   16   Krishna   female/60+   farmer   Nigulsari village, Nichar, Sutlej valley, Kinnaur  
Summary Transcript   22   Hira   female/53   weaver/farmer   Vauna and Ghamsali, Nandakini valley, Chamoli  
Summary Transcript   23   Kammo   female/57   farmer   Dhanras village, Tons valley, Dehra Dun  
Summary Transcript   25   Shanti   female/55   weaver/farmer   Dunda village, Bhagirathi valley, Uttarkashi  
Summary Transcript   28   Vijay   male/41   activist/farmer   Jardhargoan, Henval valley, Tehri Garhwal  
Summary Transcript   29   Savitri   female/50   head of Mahila Mangal Dal   Sabli village, Henval valley, Tehri Garhwal  
Summary Transcript   30   Dhoom   Male/57   horticulturalist   Chandra Dhungi village, Alaknanda valley, Chamoli  
Summary Transcript   32   Maheshwari   Female/45   Panchayat member   Netala village, Bhagirathi valley, Uttarkashi  
Summary Transcript   33   Beena   female/25   head of regional panchayat   Chamiyala village, Balganga valley, Tehri Garhwal  
Summary Transcript   34   Bachandei   Female/70   Farmer   Dharwal village, Bhagirathi valley, Tehri Garhwal  
Summary Transcript   35   Ramchandri   Female/55   farmer   Pata village, Bhagirathi valley, Uttarkashi  
Summary Transcript   36   Prabha   Female/54      Nagthat village, Yamuna valley, Dehra Dun  
Summary Transcript   6   Vimla   female/58   head of Mahila Mangal Dal/farmer   Dargi village, Henval valley, Tehri Garhwal  
Summary Transcript   7   Tegh   male/74   farmer   Bilog village, Bhagirathi valley, Uttarkashi  
Summary Transcript   8   Mohan   male/60   ayurvedic physician   Chamba, Henval valley, Tehri Garhwal