KOSHISH

INTRODUCTION

The 1980s marked the beginning of a different narrative for India, a story of unity, determination

and drive to transcend the status-quo began to emerge. The SHG movement gained ground in the

80s and since, has transformed millions of lives. The movement thrived on its intrinsic virtue of

unity that is born out of the likeness in needs, similarities in the stories of distress and a

collective desire to exit the vicious circle of poverty.

An SHG, in simple words, has been defined in the following manner (from A Report on the

Success and Failure of SHG’s in India –Impediments and Paradigm)

SHG is a development group for the poor and marginalized

It is recognized by the government and does not require any formal registration

The purpose of the SHG is to build the functional capacity of the poor and the

marginalized in the field of employment and income generating activities

People are responsible for their own future by organizing themselves into SHGs

Guiding Principles for Formation of SHGs

The strong belief by the individual to bring about change through collective efforts forms the

basis of the movement;

Effort is built on mutual trust and mutual support

Every individual is equal and responsible.

Every individual is committed to the cause of the group

Decision is based on the principles of consensus

The belief and commitment by an individual that through the group their standard of

living will improve

Savings is the foundation on which the group is built for collective action.

Initially, NABARD supported the movement by offering all sort of assistance to NGOs in their

initiative. They analysed the potential and performance of these SHGs. In 1987, it first put funds

in the movement. Several types of savings and credit groups of varying membership have been

functioning in India. However, the documented evidence of SHGs as they exist today in India

was formed by MYRADA, an NGO. NABARD carried out an elaborate study which gave useful

insights into group dynamics, saving habits, and repayment ethics of the poor. Later, it, in

consultation with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Commercial Banks and NGOs launched a

pilot project in 1991–2 for linking of SHGs with banks. In the year 1996, the success of the pilot

project prompted RBI to direct banks to add the bank linkage activity to its mainstream activities.

Since 1998, Government of India has accorded national priority through its recognition of bank

linkage programme in Union Budgets. At the forefront are NGOs and development agencies that

identified and formed the SHGs and have taken upon themselves the job to nurture them and

monitor their growth. Once the groups are trained and strengthened, they are linked to nearby

banks, usually within six months of formation. Banks provide collateral-free credit in increasing

proportion to the group’s accumulated savings. Adopting a flexible approach, all the decisions

about the functioning of the group, borrowing from the bank, internal lending including purpose

of loan and rate of interest charged by the SHG to the final borrower, etc. are left to the

discretion of group members.

The SHG-bank linkage model has been designed as a partnership between three agencies, viz.,

the SHGs, banks and NGOs/other SHPIs. The design is built on combining the ‘collective

wisdom of the poor, the organizational capabilities of the social intermediary and the financial

strength of the Banks’ (Mishra, Alok: 2006).

The bank linkage program received renewed attention in 2012 when NABARD came out with

SHG 2, a second wave of more invigorated efforts in this direction. The thrust being this time

“on voluntary savings, cash credit as a preferred mode of lending, scope for multiple borrowings

by SHG members in keeping with repaying capacity, avenues to meet higher credit requirements for livelihood creation, SHG Federations as non-financial intermediary, rating and audit of SHGs

as part of risk mitigation system and strengthening monitoring mechanisms”. (NABARD

website)

Wadarwadi

The auto stopped in front of a huge blue board. It read ‘Wadarwadi’. As we tried to find our way

through the narrow lanes, we were greeted by little children playing around, women sitting in

small groups and chatting over tea, a bit of squalor here and there and many curious eyes peeping

through curtain corners, trying to decipher the reason behind three girls walking through their

neighbourhood, visibly in search of something. After many such dark and dingy lanes, we

managed to reach our destination when we found Jyoti winnowing rice under the hawk eyes of

her mother-in-law. As we approached, she instantly wanted to retreat into the protection of her

home; all the women and children in the vicinity looked at us with an odd suspicion.

Wadarwadi is one of the largest slums in North-West Pune. Located in Mukeshnagar, the slum

spans a large area with tons of grocery stores and narrow ‘gullies’ almost giving it the feel of a

maze. When asked about the place, the locals managed to give us an estimate of nearly a

thousand families residing there, each consisting of about four to seven members. Rows of

‘kuchha’ houses in dilapidated conditions without electricity or any such luxuries that have

become necessary for a comfortable life, coexist there with ‘pucca’ houses that have so much as

a television set and can afford four square meals a day. Our sample comprises of those residing

under conditions of the former kind. Residents of Wadarwadi were not immediately enthused by

our presence and hesitated to divulge details about the quality of life they led there. From

inaccessibility to credit to chit fund frauds, they have seen it all. We wanted to tell them that we

had not come to rob them of their belongings; rather we were here to tell them what more could

potentially become a part of their lives if they were willing to invest a little bit of their long lost

trust in us.

Convincing Jyoti’s mother-in-law of our intentions was definitely not a cake walk, but after

some coaxing we did manage to succeed. Jyoti, still a little hesitant to interact with complete

strangers, finally agreed to talk to us. The survey began with a few initial questions on her age

and occupation, whether she had a bank account or not and moved on to ones such as her

knowledge on Bachat Gats, whether or not she had ever been a part of one, her idea of financial

independence, her experience of taking loans from informal lenders and any consequential loan

sharks that she faced etc. Overcoming a bit of her initial shyness, she patiently answered all our

questions. Witnessing our interaction with her, the other women looked partially convinced

about our harmlessness. As we moved ahead in the row of huts, people seemed to become

increasingly receptive, so much so that some of them voluntarily spoke to us to know more about

this ‘nayi cheez’ that we were talking about. We went on to interview some 10 odd women and

some of their family members who were around. The trends that emerged from the survey are, as

follows:

About six of them worked as domestic helps and the rest were housewives.

All of them in the age group of 20 – 30 years, with the exception of two women who

were aged 44 years and 55 years respectively.

The domestic helps had an average family income of 10,000 rupees.

For most of those who were housewives, their husbands were either daily wage labourers

(construction workers, mostly) or were employed in offices for menial jobs, their monthly

incomes being subject to fluctuation but within a bracket of 5000 rupees – 8000 rupees.

Most of them were illiterate, exceptions being two of them who had studied till classes

six and ten.

Three of the women had bank accounts but were not aware of what type of account they

had (savings or current), they were also unaware of the rate of interest that they received

on their deposits and of the facility of bank cards that they could avail of. All three of

them knew how to deposit and withdraw money from their accounts with the exception of

one.

None of them knew of Bachat Gat-s barring two women who were already a part of such

a group and were aware of their functioning.

Once told about the benefits of joining a Bachat Gat, all of them showed interest, albeit of

different levels, in joining one.

All of them were willing to trust a bank with their finances.

When asked about their idea of financial independence and the degree of importance that

they attached to it, those who worked as domestic helps admitted to enjoying their

independence and wanted to continue with their work. Those who were housewives were

receptive to the idea, but wanted permission from their husbands.

All were willing to devote an hour’s time for tutorials on basic banking activities et al,

given the frequency of twice or thrice in a week.

All of them had children (maximum of three, as observed) and those in the relevant age

group were being schooled.

None of them faced loan sharks, but were wary of borrowing from informal lenders who,

according to them charged an interest rate as high as that of 120% pa.

Most of the women working as domestic helps, however, admitted to having borrowed

money in the past from their employers, the loans being interest free.

Some of the women who were not formally employed showed interest in acquiring jobs.

Their main areas of expenditure, as observed, were ration, rent, medicine and children’s

education.

In addition to the above information, three unique cases were observed. The first one is that of

Anita Pawar who lives with her son and runs a laundry business. Anita’s son, who is 23 years

old, works in an office, as she puts it. Their total monthly income is about 15,000 rupees to

20,000 rupees. Anita is also a part of a Bachat Gat which is under the Pune Mahanagar Palika.

She has a savings account in the Bank of Maharashtra and runs a business in spices with her

group. When asked about whether she would want to be a part of another such group, she readily

agreed. The second case is that of Durga Sinha Devkar, who is 30 years old, unmarried and

works as a domestic help. Her monthly income is about 10,000 rupees. Our third case is Diksha,

a young orphan who was probably the first one to come forward to take part in this initiative.

Diksha is a resident of the same slum. She has been living with her paralysed grandmother ever

since her parents passed away. Educated up to the ninth grade, she has now assumed the role of

the sole breadwinner of the family. Diksha works as a domestic help and also tailors clothes for

extra income. She earns about 9000 rupees per month.

To think of these people surviving in such adverse conditions, earning a meagre income which

just about enables them to make both ends meet, called for an effort to alleviate their distress; it

called for a koshish.

Based on our understanding of Wadarwadi we could deduce the presence of the following

problems:

1) The income streams of these families are uncertain . However they have been able to

tide over most fluctuations in income because of the easy availability of domestic help

jobs around Wadarwadi. We realised this issue while speaking to Kajal and Lalita, both

in their mid-twenties. Their husbands are construction workers and when asked about

their monthly incomes, after some hesitation, they admitted to it being uncertain since it

mostly depended on the kind of work they got which varied from day to day.

2) Men struggle more to engage in gainful employment . This was evident while we

surveyed the area since the average level of education was found to be quite low and

some men were even absolutely illiterate. As a result, they could only land themselves

informal jobs such as at those at construction sites and other working class jobs which

left their income streams dwindling and their livelihoods insecure.

3) Most men and almost all women lack bank accounts and hence have no access to

formal financial instruments. When asked about banks to Jyoti and Kajal, little did they

know about the concept of saving, let alone the importance of depositing them in a bank!

Without existing bank accounts for themselves and being financially dependent on their

husbands for every morsel, they could hardly dare to dream beyond the four walls of their

crumbled rooms.

4) Low incomes imply absence of or minimal wealth, apart from gold and the houses

they live in they have no assets to account for. Even for the families with more than

average income levels, they are unaware of how to use that money to gain assets. Without

any knowledge about bank accounts and instruments that they could invest in to multiply

their money and acquire assets, such as fixed deposits, MIS etc. lack of collateral for

availing of loans from formal institutions is a problem that they perpetually suffer from.

They do not know about the various ‘yojanas’ or schemes that the Maharashtra

government had for women and children, such as free education for girls, and therefore

end up spending more than they should be.

5) Alcoholism is prevalent in Wadarwadi . It has posed many safety concerns for the

womenfolk. With sunset, these women become more conscious of their surroundings,

warning outsiders to move out of the place lest they became victims of inappropriate

behaviour by the men there. These women have taught their little children various safety

measures and every girl around is extra vigilant of the activities going on in and around

their homes.

6) Women could not tell the difference between a bank and a chit fund . They did not

know that deposits in banks earn interests, on the other hand, those who do have accounts

could not categorize them i.e. as savings, current etc. implying the grave need for

financial education.

7) They have been victims to exploitative lending practises and have succumbed to chit

fund scams. This was evident in their aversion to divulge details to us because many

people have, in the past, cheated them, or had come once to survey the place, made

hollow promises and never returned. Due to their incapability to avail of formal credit,

they usually refrain from taking loans entirely since they have been subject to

exploitation in the form of exorbitant rates of interest. In addition to that, their initial

reluctance to participate in initiatives such as that of a Bachat Gat is justified as they have

had experiences of fraudulent cases where people have come with chit fund schemes,

collected money from these people by enticing them with high interest rates, never to

come back!

What is needed?

This community is definitely not what one would refer to as “down and out”, they are decidedly

above the poverty line. While they have in place the roti, kapda and makaan they have failed

constantly to better their situation. A hundred rupees saved today would lie idle in a rice

container or the masalei ka dabba or under the mattress.

The major needs observed in this community are:

1) Financial literacy

Preceding the issue of financial literacy is literacy in general. Lack of basic education

causes individuals to shy away from banking and therefore they are left outside the

purview of the banking sector. Schemes such as “no-frills” account, relaxation in KYC

norms etc. are news to these people.

2) Avenues for parking savings such that there are increased returns to augment

earnings.

Our interaction with these women suggested that a lack of linkage to banks has cost them

productive saving habits. Therefore we recognize that there is a need for gainful saving

avenues that grant these families a stream of return that they can rely on for contingencies

and other needs.

3) Stability in employment

A reliable employment opportunity is one that provides a steady stream of income

regularly. This is exactly what most of the households in Wadarwadi lack and this clearly

is a consequence of illiteracy. Without education, menial jobs in the informal sector are

the best that they can do. This is especially applicable to the men folk there, which when

coupled with the strongly patriarchal set up can prove to be disastrous. With the

persistence of such instability, the foundations for their financial inclusion cannot be laid.

Hence, there is a dire need of a resolution to this problem.

4) Overall improvement in quality of life

The families that are being dealt with in our sample are not below the poverty line and

that is probably one of the major reasons as to why they have been largely excluded from

mainstream economic activities. It is because of an odd financial middle position that

they are stuck in that they have not received any sort of ‘special’ attention from the

concerned authorities. With the income that they earn and some amount of informed

spending, these people could lead a much better quality of life. Therefore, this potential

betterment calls for action to be taken on these lines.

As mentioned earlier, Wadarwadi sees the women in a better financial position compared to the

men. Against a deeply patriarchal backdrop it is intriguing to see how women, while conforming

in every which way to the societal norms have emerged as the more reliable bread-winner. It

made immense amount of sense then to bring them together, amalgamate their strengths and

enable them to be “all for one, one for all” i.e. bring them all together via a Bachat Gat. Given

the position that these women are in, we feel that they can be used as the vessel to bring about

financial inclusion. Financial literacy is the prologue to financial inclusion and natural to the

formation of a Bachat Gat is the training that every member has to undergo. The training

involves learning basic mathematics, basics of lending, borrowing and repayment, scheduling of

meetings, book keeping etc. A Bachat Gat is the easiest and most tried and tested way of

bringing about financial literacy among women; the women further educate their families.

Our survey suggests that most homes are able to save a meagre amount every now and then. A

few women save as much as thousand to two thousand rupees per month. Therefore, we felt that

they have a potential to form a successful Bachat gat and also save (when provided with sound

financial counselling) more than what they are presently saving.

OUR KOSHISH:

Our plan, or Koshish as we call it, works in four phases. We begin by bringing the women of

Wadarwadi together and creating a Bachat Gat for them. Once we have the Gat, we will go

ahead to link them to a bank after which these women can resort to internal lending to fulfil their

credit requirements. After a stipulated period of time, these women can borrow from formal

financial institutions and may even start a business of their own. The end here is to bring about

financial inclusion. But, the big question is, what exactly do we understand by the term ‘financial

inclusion’? Does it only imply having a bank account and knowledge of basic banking activities?

The answer is, NO! It is much more than just that. Financial inclusion as we understand is a three

legged procedure. The first and very obvious step is to have a bank account. But, what after that?

Do these accounts lie dormant or are they put to any constructive use? This is where financial

literacy steps in. It is through literacy that people would know the importance of parking their

savings with formal institutions rather than keeping them idle at home. But, over and above all

this, there needs to be an incentive for using these accounts – this is the second part of the

process. Up until now we have only observed incentives and actions on the part of consumers. In

the third and last leg of our process, we need to spare some thought about the requirements of

banks. This involves providing incentives to banks to offer their services to people at nearly zero

cost. What we have now is the ‘Financial Inclusion Pyramid’.

We shall now elaborate step wise, our plan of action in order to achieve the aforementioned

objectives.

The financial inclusion pyramid

Phase I – Creation of the Gat

The first phase of the process begins with the students of GIPE identifying those areas in Pune

where Bachat Gats do not exist. One such area is Wadarwadi. Our next job is to create a Bachat

Gat for these women. But, in order to create this Gat, some formal supervision is needed

considering that these women have next to negligible knowledge on the existence of such

groups, let alone the procedure for formation of the same. For this purpose, we shall bring these

people in contact with an NGO (for example, Deep Griha, Chaitanya, Helpo etc.) that is actively

involved in this field of work, or with the CSR wing of a bank (for example, the Rural

Development Cell of the Bank of Maharashtra). These organizations may then take up the task of

teaching them basics such as:

How to mobilize and manage savings of the Gat?

How to manage internal lending?

Incentives to use the bank accounts

Incentives for banks to provide low cost services

Bank accounts

How to educate the Gat members about their individual responsibilities?

Training in book keeping and accounting, training on leadership in a Gat.

Development of capability for conflict resolution etc.

A Gat starts out by pooling the savings of its members and lending within the group to meet the

credit needs of the members. An account is then registered in a bank under the group’s name

(Bank of Maharashtra, in this case). The members are usually from homogenous social and

economic backgrounds, and we should be able to achieve this end with our sample in

Wadarwadi. This Gat, therefore, becomes a means to achieve financial literacy for these women.

It enables them to achieve collective wisdom and unity and inculcates in them saving habits.

These aspects then go on to play a major role in their upliftment.

Phase II – Bank Linkage

The Bachat Gat once formed is closely monitored by the NGO and the bank. For a period of at

least 6 months the gat needs to rely on internal lending. The bank observes the Bachat Gat at

close quarters to ensure:

1)      Constructive meetings at regular intervals happen.

2)      Each and every member is making contributions to the saving pool

3)      Internal lending among the members is carried out peacefully.

4)      Stability within the group, co-operation, unity among the members.

The abovementioned points signal to the bank the credit worthiness of the gat. Once the quality

of the gat is established bank advances subsidized loans to the group to assist them to undertake

productive activities, meet their social needs such e.g. marriage etc.

Phase III: Wealth management

SHG2 issued by NABARD stresses on the need to provide a platform for individuals in a SHG to

cultivate personal banking habits. It discusses voluntary savings (individual saving that is over

and above the stipulated contribution to the group’s corpus) and how such saving needs to be

provided with additional channels. Our innovative plan seeks to enable individuals in the

Bachat Gat to extract an optimum saving from their monthly incomes so that in addition to

contributing to the group’s corpus they can undertake activities to build their personal

savings. Low incomes imply low savings, but if all information asymmetries were to be

corrected, it is reasonable to expect that these households will be able to save much more than

they do status quo. For instance, hypothetically, if their existed a scheme by the government by

which they could obtain electricity at subsidised rates, unless they are aware of it, they will not

be able to avail of the benefit. Inaccessibility and incomprehension of information are two major

battles that these households fight daily. We propose an initiative by banks, preferably as part

of their of their CSR/SHG activity, wherein they undertake financial counselling and planning

on behalf of the women who are part of the Bachat Gat. The banks have the advantage of

having access and understanding of the pool of in formation consisting knowledge about

schemes, subsidies, financial products etc. that are relevant to the group.

Feasibility of such a plan:

1. Low income households characteristically are myopic . Social conditioning and

income constraints discourage long term planning. A financial plan prepared by

banks for them would keep in mind long term needs of the family.

2. Implicit to such a plan is the readiness of the sample to save. This is being

achieved by forming the women into the Bachat Gat wherein they learn and

appreciate the virtues of saving. This ensures that these families actively use their

bank accounts.

3. Such a service is undoubtedly labour intensive. Bank officers would need to

analyse each and every family’s cash flow, devise a plan that is exclusive to a

family etc. However such an effort ensures that the bank accounts don’t lie idle.

These individuals would park their savings in appropriate financial products

by the banks which would, to a certain extent, incentivise this activity for the

banks too.

4. Such an endeavour would gradually, but surely lead to wealth generation.

5. Enables the households to not rely completely on bank credit that the Bachat Gat

would receive.

6. The Bachat gat offers an active intermediation when it comes to issues like

individuals having to divulge their expenditure patterns to banks, individuals

sticking to the plan prepared for them by the banks etc.

Financial planning/counselling will create an “upward spiral” for the women of Wadarwadi and

their families. The entire process will start out with these women structuring their expenditures

efficiently and extracting a saving, however small, taking into consideration the pool of

information relevant to their needs. These savings would be bifurcated into their contribution to

the Bachat Gat and their personal fund. Innovative schemes and financial products available with

the bank will afford these meagre savings to grow favourably. An ideal consequence of a

Bachat gat is employment generation. Gainful and consistent income generating activity will

ensure a higher income stream that will lead to higher savings and therefore higher returns.

Following are the key areas:

(a) Expenditure management

Spending judiciously

Being aware of the government schemes and bank schemes for the poor, girl children,

women etc.

Being aware of government subsidies etc.

To stop taking loans from informal money lenders and thereby save the money that

would flow out in the form of exorbitant rates of interest.

Proper financial planning of the income earned at the beginning of the month and

accounting formally for the various expenses made.

(b) Income management

Increasing sources of income (this also involves making the men realise that the women

should be allowed to earn so that there are additional funds in the family which leaves a

larger amount available for investment)

Making productive investments in various institutions (even if they are small funds

because one day they would multiply and be aggregated to a larger one!)

Inculcating saving habits (we should not forget that saving is a way of earning future

income!)

Opening a bank account and keeping even a small amount with the bank because this will

prevent the saver from spending it for unproductive consumption purposes.

Keeping a proper record of the amount kept with a bank, the amount to be earned with

the interest and the date of maturity of the investment.

Case Study:

Name Age (years)

Marital Status

Occupation Family Monthly Income (Rupees)

Monthly Expenditure (Rupees)

Saving Bank Account

Diksha 17 Unmarried Part time domestic help and tailor

Only earning member; survived by widowed grandmother

9000 5000 4000 None

Nirmala Salve

27 Married Domestic help

Husband is a plumber (earns two thousand weekly), has two children (girls) and mother-in-law

12000 (Nirmala + Husband)

5000 3500 to 4000

Husband has; Nirmala does not

The above table gives the basic details about the subjects of our study.

The following tables give their areas of income and expenditure on a monthly basis.

Areas of Expenditure (Monthly; in Rupees)

Medicines Food Rent Loan Electricity School Fees

Stationary and others

Diksha 2000 1000 500 1420 80 - -Nirmala Salve

2000 1500 700 - - 700 100

Areas of Income (Monthly; in Rupees)

Income from principal occupation

Income from other part-time occupation

Spouse’s income

Diksha 7500 (as domestic help)

1500 (as tailor)

-

Nirmala Salve 6000 - 8000 (Husband’s income)

How wealth management can change the scenario – an analysis.

We begin by looking at what happens if both these women invest their money in a Fixed Deposit

scheme.

Principal amount to be invested (Rupees)

Rate of Interest (%)

Days to maturity (Days)

Interest earned (compounded quarterly) (Rupees)

Total amount (Rupees)

Diksha 4000 8.50 365 349.99 4349.99

Nirmala Salve 3500 8.50 365 307.12 3807.12

Analysis

Diksha’s case:

Areas where she could save:

A huge amount if she used generic medicines which would reduce the cost to 800/- or

less because the non-generic medicines are over-priced by at least 30% to 40%. This

implies additional savings of 1200/-.

She could save a certain amount with more knowledge on formal credit availability

because with informal loans she pays an interest of 25% per month whereas with a formal

loan she would have to pay 8% or 9% per annum which would further get reduced once

various government and bank schemes come into play. Therefore, we have the following

estimates;

1. New amount saved - 5600/- (approx.)

2. New interest amount - 492/-

3. New maturity value - 6093/-.

Hence, wealth management has not only increased her savings but has also enhanced her

interest amount.

Nirmala’s case:

The Maharashtra Government, in the year 1994-1995 had started a scheme of giving free

education for girls, up to the twelfth grade which is inclusive of complementary

stationary. Since both of Nirmala’s children are girls, she could get a huge relief on that

front. This scheme is applicable to primary, secondary and higher secondary

schools/Junior Colleges of State Government and Zilla Parishad, Municipal Corporation

and Nagar Palika.

She could save on the expenditure on medicines by opting for generic ones. Her

expenditure would at least be halved.

If 2000/- can be pooled in from her husband and 4,000/- from Nirmala then it comes to

6000/-. Taking into account additional savings, we have the following estimates;

1. New savings - 7,500/-

2. Interest rate - 8.50% per annum

3. Days to maturity – 365

4. New interest earned - 659/- (quarterly compounding)

5. New final amount - 8159/-.

Various government deposit schemes that these women can avail of:

1. The Mahabank Unit Deposit Scheme is a double benefit scheme meant for small

savers, where the minimum amount to be deposited is 5,000/- (potential investment

opportunity for both) The details are available on the Bank of Maharashtra website.

2. The Maha Double Deposit scheme is also an interesting investment for long term

purposes as within a period of 94 months the deposit amount doubles and the interest

of 8.50% (for individuals below 60 years) and 9.50% (for individuals above 60 years)

is given on the doubled amount! Hence, the principal amount doubles without any

extra work on the investor’s part.

3. The Recurring Deposit Scheme.

4. In 2008, a scheme was launched by then President, Mrs. Pratibha Patil, where in

women, who were a part of SHGs could avail of loans at just 4%. The aim of this

scheme was improvement of the livelihood of women and faster and regular loan

repayment. Both women could avail of this scheme by becoming part of a Bachat

Gat.

5. Loans under the Mahila Swavalamban Nidhi (MSN) that was launched by the Mahila

Aarthik Vikas Mahamandal with the objective of providing hassle free financial

assistance to needy women.

DISCUSSION WITH DEEP GRIHA

Deep Griha Society is a Pune based independent charitable organization that works for the

betterment of slum dwellers in the city. Through a range of welfare programmes ancompassing

education, health etc. it helps thousands of underprivileged people within Pune and in nearby

villages. When we presented our idea to Ms. Ranjana who is the programme head of their

women empowerment department, she was visibly delighted. She guided us further with our plan

by giving us examples of how the various Bachat Gats that the organization has under its

umbrella, were formed. Having been closely associated with the movement, she explained to us

the dynamics of such groups and when and where problems arise in their functioning. Her

guidance helped us to plug the loopholes that could potentially come in the way of our plan’s

implementation. It helped us immensely in working out further details related to the same, and

we were granted ratification from the society about the feasibility of our proposal.

Contact:

Mrs. Ranjana, head, Women empowerment cell (09423241884)

DEEP GRIHA SOCIETY, FAMILY WELFARE CENTRE

13, Tadiwala Road, Pune 411001, Maharashtra

RURAL DEVELOPMENT CELL, BANK OF MAHARASHTRA

We spoke to Mr Satish Karmarkar of RDC to understand in depth the undertakings and

contribution of RDC in our shared cause. The interaction revealed to us that RDC is extensively

involved with the SHG movement in both rural and urban Maharashtra. RDC actively identifies

forms and trains bachat gats. The organization has assisted many SHGs across Maharashtra in

taking up gainful activities such as weaving, cooking, Pappad making, packaging etc. He

enumerated the various schemes that are in place for SHGs by Bank of Maharashtra and

explained as to how integral RDC has become integral to the SHG movement in Maharashtra.

By:

Dona Tomy

Ronita Saha

Kaushambi Bagchi

(Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, Pune)