The Kishangarh Bas area of Rajasthan's newly created Khairthal-Tijara district is fast becoming a model of women's self-reliance. At its heart is the Sakhi Samiti, an organisation that for almost three and a half decades has been a pillar of support for women who once had neither capital nor any real backing. The group brings rural women together under self-help groups (SHGs) and opens up a route to self-employment and financial independence.
Across roughly 35 years of work, the organisation has pulled thousands of families back from the edge of economic crisis. Today, more than 200 self-help groups operate actively under its banner, with nearly 2,000 women from rural and Mewat areas directly connected to it.
A 32-Year Journey That Began in School
Sita Devi, one of the Samiti's most dedicated members, recalls that she joined the Kishangarh Bas organisation while she was still studying in Class 12. She completed her graduation even as she fought for women's rights and worked for their upliftment. She has now spent a full 32 years serving the organisation.
Sita Devi admits that convincing tradition-bound women living in remote villages and the dense settlements of Mewat, far from the lights of the city, about the value of self-reliance was no easy task. That was the biggest challenge. The first thing the Samiti taught these women was how to set aside small amounts from their everyday household expenses. That modest habit has since grown into a much larger movement.
From Bangle Shops to Beauty Parlours, Loans That Rebuilt Lives
The organisation's work never stayed limited to paper. Working at the grassroots, it arranged easy-instalment bank loans for hundreds of women. On the strength of that financial help, many poor women in Mewat set up their own small enterprises, bangle shops, kirana stores, tailoring centres and beauty parlours. As a result, instead of holding out their hands to anyone, these women now support themselves and their families with dignity.
The help did not end there. When a poor family was suddenly burdened with a daughter's wedding, the Samiti stepped in to arrange loans with easy repayment periods and highly flexible instalments, so that parents would not be crushed under a mountain of debt. The organisation also provides financial backing for women to install small machines at home, such as flour mills (atta chakki) and sewing machines.
Strength From a 100 Rupee Saving and Monthly Meetings
The Samiti's treasurer, Anita, told TrendKia that the organisation pays special attention to daily-wage labourers and poor women who earn each day and spend the same day. By linking such working women to self-help groups, it is building a strong saving habit in them.
Women in the group set aside a small sum, anywhere from 100 rupees to 500 rupees, every 15 days or once a month, almost like dropping coins into a piggy bank, depending on their daily income. A regular meeting is held every month where women who have taken loans pay back their monthly instalments. This pooled fund is then handed to another woman in need, either to start a new business or to meet a family emergency.
The biggest benefit of this transparent, ground-level system is that rural women have been freed from the grip of moneylenders for good. Women once buried under the weight of interest are now living life on their own terms.
