The Triumph Of Sharmila Devi And Tamil Nadu’s Women Leaders
Sharmila Devi (39), the youngest dalit sarpanch of Thirumanvayal panchayat in southern Tamil Nadu’s Sivagangai district, has pulled off what none of her upper-caste, male predecessors […]
Meagre Funds, No Salary: How Tamil Nadu’s Women Leaders Still Succeed
What is it like to do a full-time job without a salary? Especially if you are a dalit or an adivasi woman and your daily earnings […]
Why Muthukanni, A Dalit, Had To Build Her Own Panchayat Office
It wasn’t personal ambition that drove K Muthukanni to stand for election as panchayat president from Madhavakurichi in Mannur block of southern Tamil Nadu’s Tirunelveli district. […]
Tamil Nadu’s Women Leaders Live, Work In The Shadow Of Violence
Even by normal standards of violence in Tamil Nadu’s panchayat politics, the events of March 29, 2001, were troubling. Menaka, 35, the feisty dalit president of […]
Why 277,160 Women Leaders Remain Invisible To Tamil Nadu’s Political Parties
Salma (50), the deputy secretary of the women’s wing of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), is among the few women to have made the transition from rural […]
Why Ashubi Khan’s Pioneering Run Ends Today
Ashubi Khan, 51, is distraught. A decade of trailblazing work done by this tall, soft-spoken sarpanch (village chief) and her team of seven illiterate women–and three literate […]
When I step into the Parliament, I carry the voices of 10 lakh people of Araku: Madhavi Goddeti
Madhavi Goddeti may be a first time Member of Parliament (MP) in the newly elected Lok Sabha but she is no stranger to politics. The 26 […]
Illiterate, Married at 11, Mother At 12: Panchayat President Now Changes Fates
Despite limited resources and social resistance, Sidhamallamma Kanchappa, a panchayat leader from Tamil Nadu, has become a champion for women’s health.
In A Sylvan Valley, One Woman Reveals, Changes Lives Obscured By Beauty
Nestled in a sylvan valley in northwestern Tamil Nadu and surrounded by forests, the village council, or panchayat, of Sittilinghi struggled to bring to state attention […]
The Woman Who Brought Drinking Water, Toilets To A Lost Panchayat
Mazharkodi Dhanasekar has a radiant smile and is keen to talk about her achievements, which, as it emerges, are considerable: Building 650 toilets and making her […]
In Bihar’s Political Realignment, Women Suffer
As a first-time member of the legislative assembly (MLA) in Bihar, Jyothi Devi, 46, did well over her five-year term: She had 10 bridges—some of which were demanded […]
From Proxies To Politicians: Bihar’s Female MLAs
Thirty five years ago, Bhagirathi Devi was a sweeper in the block development office in Narkatiyaganj, a town in Bihar’s West Champaran district. Today, she is a third-term […]
