A Space

within the Stf\.lggle

Women :S Panicipation in People :S Movements

Edited by
IUNA SEN

'

koh fa wcmen

~&
1990
 l~ Cy
I Rt.Jr) . s-

'"S0X,
I ·:::;'1CJ

A Space within the Struggle

Womens Partlclpatton In Peoples Movements
was first published in 1990 by

Kall for Women

A 36 Gnlmobar Park
New Deihl 110 049

C 7bts collection Kalt/or Women

C Individual essays with the authors

All rights reseroed

Phototypeset by lnteipress Magazines Pvt Ltd

A 126 Neeti Bagh, New Delhi 110 049 and
Printed at Crescent Printing Works (P) Ltd
New Delhi 110 001
 CONTENTS

lntrod.uction ........................................................................... 1
IUNASEN

Reminiscences from Wynad ........................................... . 19

KA]ITIIA

The Srikakulam Movement ............................................. . 25

UVINDHYA

The Anti Price Rise Movement ............................................ 50

NANDITA GANDHI

The Bodhgaya Land Struggle ............................................ 82

GOVIND KELKAR AND CHETNA GALA

The Chipko Movement ......................................................... . 111

VIMLA BAHUGUNA

The Adivasi Struggle in Dhulia .................................... ...... 125

NIRMALA SATiiE

The Kera la Fish workers' Struggle ......................................

NALINI NAYAK

B 1.d.1 W or k ers .in N'1paru. ........................................................... 16o

CHHAYADATAR

The Tamil Nadu Construction Wo rkers' Union ........... 182

GEETiiA
Workers' Struggles in Chhattisgarh ....................... ...... .. ... ... 194
IUNASEN

The Assam Movement ................................................... .. ......... . 213

SHEILA BAR'IHAKUR AND SABITA GOSWAMI

The Farmers' Movement in Maharashtra ............................... 229

GAILOMVEDT

Notes on Contributors..................................................................... 271

Notes on Readings............................................................................ 273

 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I am grateful to the various people who have helped to put this book
together. In particular, I must thank the women of Dalli Rajhar-..t,
Rajnandgaon and Hirri mines who, by befriending me and involving
me in their movement, have contributed enormously to the develop-
ment of the ideas I express here; 11le Individual contributors to the
collection have also taught me a great deal both in terms of their own
perceptions, and the perceptions of the women they have written
about.

Binayak, my husband, and Pranhita my daughter have provided

crucial moral, material and intellectual support throughout this proj-
nect. And, at Kali, Urvashi Butalia and Manisha Chaudhry have lived
through the wear and tear of this production, and have ultimately
sustained and held it together.
 Introduction

ILINA SEN

For some time now the naLure and scope of the women's movement
in India have been the subject of considerable debate. The last two
decades have seen a conscious articulation of women's issues among
many urban and educated middle class women. Women's issues have
gained prominence in academics, with 'Women's Studies' beginning
to take shape as a discipli.ne. The media have played a role in
highlighting issues of women's rights and their violation. Many
women from educated backgrounds have come together in groups
in a realization of their strength and potential and have lobbied and
protested against the blatant forms of discrimination they face in o ur
society. They have attacked the anti-women bias in national policy
and implementation and have demanded an e nd to such discrimina-
tion. Some of the issues they have opposed include invasive
reproductive and family p lanning technologies, an ti-women legal
structures, se.x discrimination in employment etc. Women have asked
for a secular personal law that guar.intees women's equality. In
k eeping with constitutional provisions, they have fought for equality
of job opportunity where such oµ..,ortunity has been denied. Because
of their superior powers of analysis and articulation, and because of
their access to the media, the activists of these wome n's groups have
received considerable media attention. Structurally, such groups are
c lose to the feminist groups of the West, and this has facilitated their
integration into international feminist circuits. However, such groups
have often remained circumstantially distant from the actual lives of
poor women, even when they have made conscious efforts to articu-
late their needs. ~ has meant that they have, by and large, remained
isolated from the mainstream of political processes in the country.
As against this tendency, a strange myopia has characterized the
mainstream progressive political groups for a long time where
women's issues are concerned. Centrist groups like the Congress may
have adopted some of the vocabulary of women's rights and by
integrating this vocabulary into plan documents such as the National
Perspective Plan for Women, have basically simplified and co-opted
women's political demands. The attitude of left of centre groups---tlie
Communist parties and Socialists who have a large base among the
organized working class-has, until very recently, been e5Sentially
one where the resolution of women's issues is relegated to the post
revolutionary period. While the left has brought many women into
mass fronts, it has been very distrustful of any open analysis of
patriarchal d9minance. Theoreticians of the left like Vimal Ranadive
(Ranadive, V. Femtntsts and the Women '.5 Movement All India
Democratic Women's Association, 1987) have openly accused
feminists of attempting to break up working class organizations
through an injection of 'irrelevancies' such as the issues of women's
oppression into straightforward class struggles:

According to the different action groups and the feminists, the

origins of the exploitation of women is in the patriarchal system
of society...[inl the writings of the feminists in India the political
and left. parties as well as trade unions are 'patriarchal,' they
'subsume' the women's question .... The point to be noted here
is [that) these groups would like to keep away the women from
the common movement, by taking up only social issues like
dowry etc., under their leadership. They would not like women
to be politicised so that they can march ahead In the mainstteam
of the revolutionary sttuggle.

A common feeling in left circles is that feminists in India come

mainly from urban middle class backgrounds and have acquired their
feminist beliefs through an exposure to the West. Thus, the issues they
raise are not of primary concern for the mass of Indian women whose
 JnlrOdua#on 3

main task is to join forces with the rest of their class to struggle for
broader political change.
nus kind of stand has further confused the debate on the women's
question in India. For, while much of what the left groups maintain
about urban feminists and their narrow base can be said to be correct,
th.is position ignores the historic relationship between the working
class and the women's movements--« relationship in which the two
have consistently enriched one another. Both movements originated
in the Occident and many early Socialists were also strong crusaders
for women's rights. Today, however, a more antagonistic position has
been taken vis a vis one another by both left and the so called
'autonomous' groups of women. While the left has generally upheld
the importance of united class struggle (with qualified recognition of
women's special issues/needs) the specifically feminist groups have
argued vociferously fur 'autonomy' and independence of decision
making for and by women.
These debates and issues have confused the entire question of
whether a women's movement exists or even whether it is legitimate
in India. Given the diversity of cultures and the complexities of caste
and class among women in India, can we actually speak of an
overarching women's movement in the country? Or is it that there are
a number of fragmented campaigns which do not add up to a
movement? How many of these campaigns are urban, middle class
and how many rural? Equally, how do we detine a 'women's' move-
ment: is it one in which only women participate? Or one which raises
only women-specific issues? How then do we look at women's
participation in 'broader1 mass movements? It was with these kindS of
questions in mind that it was planned to examine, in this book, certain
mass movements in the last two decades in which women have
participated in significant numbers, and to which they have con-
tributed a special women's view point. The movements we examine
are mass movements aiming for a broad political or social change in
which women have been important participants. The role of women
in some of these struggles has been commenced on, in others it has
been ignored. The fact of women's participation does not, of course,
necessarily make them 'women's movements'; any movement which
is wide enough or involves a large enough number of people will
inevitably involve large numbers of women. Indeed, if we examine
4 A Space wUbtn tbe Struggle

these movements using the yardsticks of conventional 'feminism'-

centring around what people see as 'narrow' or 'one dimensional'
women's issues-we are often disappointed. Women in these move-
ments do not strive for autonomous or independent articulation of
only their women specific demands. At the same time their articula-
tion of demands and issues exerts a pressure on their movements to
take cognizance of the women in their mass bass.
At the same time it is important to recognize that the ways in which
movements have thus had to define struggles and issues to accom-
modate the women in their ranks have charted out new dimensions
for women's struggles in India. These dimensions have gone beyond
existing definitions of 'feminism' - a word that has acquired, in the
course of its history a value loaded connotation of being spoken from
a narrow women's platform. At the same time these dimensions have
disproved the narrow left standpoint that women's issues do not
mattet in larger struggles against class exploitallon. An understanding
of the nature of these women's struggles thus becomes important if
we are to gain a perspective on the women's movement that is more
truly representativt: of the aspirations of the generality of Indian
women than most currently available feminist theory.
The movements we document are . ones that originated in the
generalized economic and political crises that gripped the country
towards the end of the nineteen sixties. The promises of independent
India had by then proved to be largely unfulfilled for large sections
of our people. The policy of planned economic development resulted
in heavy industrialization and agricultural capitalization, but led to a
host of new contrad ictions. The tepid implementationof land reform
had failed to solve the problem of rural inequality and the rural masses
remained sunk in poverty. Urban poverty and unemployment were
also serious problems, while increasing radicalization provided the
students and youth with a way for channelizing their frustration and
anger; the ruling party responded with increasing draconian laws and
measures directed against any form of protest.
The Parliamentary opposition including the Parliamentary left
proved itself incapable of providing a viable alternative to the people,
and party cadres rebelled in large numbers against the politics of
appeasement being followed by party hierarchies. Rebel party cadres,
students and youth who saw no future for themselves in the existing
 Introduction 5

system initiated a series of popular sUuggles and movements in

different parts of the country that managed to hreak the str.inglehold
of party politics. The wave of mass struggles and movement that
began then has not yet abated. Many of these ma.,_c; struggles, carried
out from spontaneous or non- party platforms, represent forms and
directions of struggles that go deeper than estahlished political struc-
tures. They belong themselves to a new gener.ition of political ex-
pression, and unlike established political structures, many of them
reflect the aspirations of sections of the toiling people hitherto un-
politicized.
For women too the period marked a watershed in their political
participation. It had become increasingly clear that the constitutional
promises of equality did not mean much unless basic assumptions
regarding social power and control were challenged. During the late
sixties and early seventies many older women's organizations, like
the all India Women's Conference, the Young Women's Christian
Association and the National Federation of Indian Women, which had
become relatively inactive following the end of the freedom struggle,
began a new phase of activity marked by increasing interaction and
cooperation with one another. This time their focus was not only on
mobilizing women hut on understanding and attacking the sources
of their oppression. In addition, newer efforts towards forming or-
ganizations with women as le-.iding protagonists occurred in a large
number of situations. The political and organizational unrest of the
late sixties gave these efforts room for growth.
The State response to this unprecedented crisis of legitimacy was
the declaration of Internal Emergency in 1975, But this was not before
the two major ideological platforms for social change in India-the
left and the Gandhian/Sarvodaya framework-each made hid to
direct the course of the future.
The deep disturbances within the left political tendency had their
roots in the withdr.iwal by the party leadership of the pre-inde-
pendence Tebhaga and Telangana agrarian struggles in favour of the
policy of United Fronts. The simmering resentment among the party
cadres spilled o ut into the open in a series of agrarian struggles that
began in the mid-sixties in Naxalbari and that went under the general
name of the Naxalite upsurge. The Naxalites, or members of the
various groups of the CPI (ML), based themselves on a history of past
6 A Space wllbtn the Strusgle

and present tribal or peasant struggle and led a1111ed insurrection

against feudal and State oppression in many parts of the country. The
struggles were mo.st marked in parts of Bengal and Bihar, in the
Andhr.1 agency areas, in Telangana and in parts ofKerala. Two of our
studies deal with these movements. Ajitha's account of the Wynad
struggles is from the perspective of a woman cadre awakening to an
awareness of how the women's question is accommodated (or not
accommodated) within traditional party structures. Ajitha shows us
how the functioning of these structures can remain alien to the large
scale involvement of women, although women do respond to mass
actions at the peak of the movement. The Srikakulam struggle belongs
to the same general trend. Vindhya discusses the long years that the
Girijan Sangham spent in organizing people on economic and cultural
demands. Many wo1nen came into the fold of the movement during
these years. Organizational experience during this'period touched on
important issues regarding the social position of women and on the
man-woman relationship within organizations. However, the move-
ment praxis was not fully able to cope with issues of women's
sexuality and motherhood. Forexample, the only solution they could
offer to Nirmala, a young mother with a small baby, was to have the
baby put out with relations. Perhaps for this reason, in the phalie of
armed struggle, which was the finale of the movement and not its
core, women played a relatively limited role. These two accounts,
thus illustrate the ways in which traditional party structures and fonns
of organization ultimately impose limits on women's involvement.
The anti-price rise movement (APRM), which Nandita Gandhi
discusses, was in many ways, different in form and spirit from
monolithic party led actions. Led by a coalition of several parties and
their women's fronts, the APRM mobilized large numbers of won.en
in cities like Bombay and Ahrnedabad around the issues of skyroclc-
eting prices. Loosely organized and flexible in structure, the ll)Ovt.'-
ment adopted innovative forms of protest like the /a/ni marches, but
failed to sustain itself in the absence of a solid organization.
The APRM also brings up a number of issues, particularly those of
leadership and cross-party organization and working; it provides a
useful example of a single-issue and short term movement as against
the wider based and longer-term movements discussed in this
volume.
 lntroductton 7

The late sixties and early seventies saw also a radic-.llization of the
Gandhian or Sarvodaya tradition of non-violent protest. The Sar-
vodaya response to the political and economic crisis of the period
were movements like the Nav Nirman in Gujarat and the Bihar
movement led by JP Narain. Sarvodaya-led and based among intel-
lectuals, the Nav Ninnan activists called for accountability among the
people, mainly the intelli8entsia, as citizens. Many Nav Nirman cadres
went to Bihar and later joined the movement there. The Bihar move-
ment acknowledged the futility of a preoccupation with the politics
of power alone. Much more fundamental change was needed, ac-
cording to it, in order to achieve a just society.
The movement called for a Total Revolution and r.lised among its
cadres and supporters a wide range of questions regarding women.
Issues like men-women relati~ns. family violence, rape, and unequal
distribution of work and resources were debated openly, and created
a widespread ferment among its women cadres (Kiran Shaheen
'Btbar me stree samoobon Ka uday aur Vikw,' 1985 mimeo). The
Bodhgaya struggle which Govind Kelkar and Chetna Gala document,
wa<> led by the Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Vahini, a youth organization
that formed the vanguard of the Bihar movement. The position it took
on land rights for women during the struggle against the feudal rule
of the Bodhgaya Math, was a product of thi.<i fennent.
The Chipko movement in the Uttarakhand Himalayas where vil-
lage women resisted commercial forest felling, dates from the early
seventies, basically the same period as the Bihar movement.
Philosophically traceable to Gandhian origins as well, the movement
raised crucial questions of ecological balance and developmental
priorities. Chipko achieved high levels of women's particip-dtion like
the Bihar movement, although its theoretical stand on the women's
question appears to be different While the Bihar movement took a
stand on the equal legal rights of men and women, Chipko based its
campaign for women's mobilization on the latter's supposed special
responsibilities for nurture related activities and generalized from this
that woi:nen had a special concern for the preservation of life and
ecological systems.
The movement of adivasis and the growth of the Sharmik San-
ghathana in Maharashtra's Dhulia district is another significant pre-
emergency movement. In essence it was a movement for the
8 A Space wilbtn tbe Struggle

restoration of the social and economic dignity of the disinherited tribal

peasantry of Shahada whose lands and assets had been appropriated
by settlers from outside. The tribal people worked for less than
subsistence wages on lands that were formerly theirs. The frequent
sexual violation of the tribal women was a symbol of the humiliation
of the entire tribe. The Shramik Sangathana's militant struggles led to
a change in this. Initially the main focus in the Sangathana's work with
women was on their mobilization. Along with the attack on violators
of women's dignity from outside the community-which fitted in very
well with t'1e focus of the entire organization--<he presence of
outo;ide activists was responsible for the injection into the movement
of issues of domestic violence, alcoholism etc. that challenged patriar-
chal relations within the tribal community. And it was through the
efforts of the women's front that a systematic expoSt" of the subor-
dination of women in customary tribal· law became available. In
discussions it became clear that the tribals did not wish to opt for a
common civil code. Rather, they preferred to retain tribal law while
at the same time fighting for changes within it. Here, the question of
identity becomes important and get~ articulated in a somewhat dif-
ferent way from what we see in the Assam movement.
The Kerala fishworkers' rnovement developed out of the crisis in
the traditional fisheries sector in the wake of mechanized fishing. The
beginnings of this crisis, with dwindling catches and overfishing of
the seas, can be traced co the mid-sixties, although the union of
fishermen--<he Kerala Swatantra Matsya Thozilai Federation-dates
from the late seventies. Social activists from Church related groups
were important in organizing the fisherfolk. Although women in
Ker.ila do not actually fish, they undertake the major responsibility
for marketing the catch. A sensitivity to their problems was woven
into the struggle from the beginning. The struggle of the Kerala
fisherfolk eventually merged with the struggles of fisherfolk in Goa,
Tamil Nadu and Kamataka, and today is an extremely powerful voice
basing ito;elf on workers' solidarity, environmental wholeness and
sound developmental planning.
As far as women specifically are concerned, the organization took
up the issue of women's rights to public transport for vending fish.
Within the movement too a significant debate took place on organiza-
tional models for women's involvement. The demand that women be
 lntroductton 9

accorded full union membership began in the Trivandram unit where

'Women were strongest in leadership positions, and subsequently the
issue of whether women needed a separate front for their women
specific issues, in addition to the union platform, had to be argued
and sorted out in the entire organization.
The experiences of the Nipani's bidi workers, Tamil Nadu con-
struction workers, Rajanandgaon textile workers all base themselves
on a basic Trade Union structure. Each is however unique in extend-
ing the scope of the trade union into a much wider social field. The
sheer size of the women membership exerts a pressure on the union
to take up trade union and social issues that focus on women. From
the Nipani struggle has emerged an attack on social practices that
oppress women such as the devadasi system, while Dalli Rajhara's
contribution has been to stress the specificity of the women workers'
point of view, something that has enriched both the worker's and
women's movements. The union has also moved worker's struggles
out of traditional trade union fields like the workplace into a whole
range of social situations including health and culture. The Tamil
Nadu construction worker's union has woven a sensitivity to the
women·~ perspective in its entire working and struggle practices. The
union has became a forum for the articulation of the tensions between
women and men workers, their differing work conditions, as well as
expectations and prospects in the industry
. .
The Assam agitation against 'foreigners' in the e-arly seventies
brought women out on the streets in a patriotic cause in a manner
reminiscent of the nationalist movement. However, while great im-
portance was attached in this movement to women's mobilization,
equal stress does not seem to have been given to the articulation of
women's special issues or to a separate women's platform, as in some
of the other movements. So, as in the case of the nationalist move-
ment, the question remains, what did this participation mean for the
women who fought so gloriously in the ranks? Did the women gain
anything collectively out of this experience? If yes, what, and if not,
what brought them in, what sustained them? The Assam study in-
cluded here is also significant from another point of view. It is the
only sub-national movement among those studied here and is there-
fore important inspite of the fact that many of its assumptions might
be open to question. At the same time, this movement articulates
10 A Space wUbtn tbe Strusgle

questions of identity and nationhood which are also touched upon,

though in different ways, in the other movements studied here. Our
last case study is of the women's front promoted by the Shetkari
Sangathana farmers' movement in Maharashtra. Peasant women other
than the totally assetless have been notoriously difficult to organize.
Their relative isolation. and subjection to feudal and patriarchal
dominance has traditionally been held to be responsible for this. This
movement has not only mobilized them but also upheld their role as
a force in changing the degenerate political culture of the present. It
is this idea that lies behind the sponsoring of 100 per cent women's
panels for local elections. This account shatters some myths about
women's participation although it raises a .host of new questions
a):>out the basis for unwavering organizational support to the women's
platform.
It is important to point out at this juncture that the movement case
studies included in this book do not intend or purport to represent
the totality of women's experiences in organizing during this period.
We do believe that some of the most significant experiences have
been discussed here, but important areas of women's experiences in
struggle also lie elsewhere. We have not spoken, for example,of
student movements, the anti-rape or anti-dowry movements or ex-
periences like that of the Hyderabad based Progressive Organization
of Women. The latter, while its membership consisted mainly of
educated middle class women, worked from a class struggle perspec-
tive and generated a significant discussion on women's political and
personal struggles. Nor do we have in our collection representative
accounts of struggles led by established major political organizations.
With the exception of Rajnandgaon in Chhattisgarh, the experiences
of organized indUSlrial workers have not been analysed; the other
trade unions we have looked at are mainly from the periphery of
organized industry. Press reports and photographs of the General
Railway Strike of 1974 and the Bombay Textile Strike of 1981 provide
evidence that women were visible in large numbers at demonstrations
and meetings. This organizational experience has not been adequate-
ly documented anywhere. Women's role in some movements and
organizations (not in this book) is relatively better known. 1bese
include experiences like SEWA (Self Employed Women's Associa-
tion), Ahmedabad, the Balliapal anti-missile test range agitation and
 lnlroductlon 11

the Chipko style APPIKO movement of Kamataka. Dalit organizations

have developed intra-organizational women's units like the
Republican Party Mahila Aghacli. And in tribal movements like the
Jharkhand agitations, and the Majhi Sarkar of Madhya Pradesh's
Mandia district, women's involvement at least at the mass level is
known to be significant. lbere are also countless grassroots struggles
led by or involving women which do not fmd even a mention in the
media. Our effon has been not so much a complete documentation
as the achievement of a viewpoint on women's political participation
based on accounts of some of the significant struggles (on which it
has been possible to gather material) during this period. And in our
selection of accounts we have concentrated on mass movements or
mass organizations in which at least equal stress has been given to
struggling against existing systems and establishments as to creating
alternatives.
nus anthology shows that women have participated actively in
mass movements and have addre~ themselves to a wide range of
issues. These have included land rights, remunerative farm prices,
preservation of identity, deforestation, dwindling fish catches, and
•
industrial mechanization. However, apan from numbers and militan-
cy, what aspects of these women's struggles can we comment on?
There appear to be several imponant and interrelated aspects to these
struggles. ·
Let us look first of all at the conditi001i under which women are
mobilized. Organized political structures like parties, trade uniops
and other mass organizations have played a role in mobilizing women
in Srikakulam, among construction workers in Tamil Nadu, Bicli
workers in Nipani and in Chhattisgarh. In a slightly different way the
fashennen's union in Kerala has been instrumental in drawing women
into the struggle, for though women form pan of the fish indusuy,
they do not fish and were not, for a long time, union members. The
organization has also been instrumental in directing women's effons
tow:lrds their own struggle for social justice-Q struggle within the
strugglC, to use Nalini Nayak's phrase. A similar process can be seen
in Dhulia, and in both these cases, women activists highly conscious
of women's issues have played a crucial leadership role. In the
Chhatta Yuva Sangharsh Vahini led Bodhgaya movement too, the role
of such women activists was imporWlt, allbough in the Samagra
12 A Space wUhtn tbe Struggle

Mahila Aghadi, the initial feminist push came from a man. Both men
and women leaders were imponant in Chipko, but in the Assam
movement women's involvement was more spontaneous as there
was no one leader.
The movements in which the mobilizer or activist played a major
role provide one model of organization whereas others are provided
by trade unions, or loose issue-based mobilizations. The laner, like
the APRM or the Assam movements, often have no life beyond the
•
issue. Once a large number of women were mobilized, they acted as
pressure group for the formulation of struggle issues from a women's
perspective. For instance, in the Chhanisgarh mines, the particular
way in which the mechanization issue was formulated, as something
•
that, for ideological reasons, selectively affects women, was because
of a union membership that was half female. Even in Assam, where
mobilization of women was less structured, stress was laid on the
deshprem of Assamese women (Manorama Bhanacharya Ahomar
Astitya RokkbarAndolono toNarlr Bbumtka, Guwahati, 1985). How-
ever, it is important to keep in mind that there was often an entire
range of issues around which the mobilization took place; in other
words, the issues were not always limited to those that wer.e
heightened by the protagonists and antagonists at the peak of the
movements. Fighting State structures, making demands on the State
(as in Bodhgaya, for example) questioning developmental or ecologi-
cal paradigms (Kerala, Chhanisgarh, Chipko) each call for different
levels of mobilization, as do extensions (generally at a later stage in
movements where they occur) of the 'political' struggles into the
personal Lives of the women in the struggle.
What ideological justification(s) do movement leadership» provide
for this mobilization of women? The leadership's role is important in
picking up issues from the mass, in feeding them back to the mass in
the form of slogans and strategy and in presenting the struggl e issues
to the public information system. This may vary from situation to
situation. The ideological justification given to women's mobilization
ranges from women's special duty (dha rma) as the matrljatt
(mothers) to free the motherland from the clutches of the foreigners
as in Assam (Manorama Bhanacharya, op. cit.), to the need for
women's equal participation in political activity. The latter argument
•
is used in Sri.kakulam, Dhulia, Dalli Rajhar.i, Rajnandgaon, among the
 Introduction 13

Maharashtra peasantry, and the fishworkers of Kerala. There is also

women's mobilization around what are supposedly women's 'special'
concerns like the fuelwood crisis situation in Chipko. The unity lies
in the common belief of organizers that w..xnen's political participa-
tion is important and necessary.
By conventional definitions of feminism, not all the movement
ideologies appear to include frontal attacks on patriarchy. Some
movements, quite obviously, are more advanced in this respect than
others. The Kerala fishworkers' movement and the Bodhgaya or-
ganization appear to have carried on a major debate on women's
oppression and liberation within the organization. Such debates
appear also to have taken place in Dhulia and in the Samagra Mahila
Aghadi, but were confined much more to women only. In the Assam
struggle no reference of any sort is made to women's special issues,
nor is patriarchy addressed in any particular way. And there are
actually some indications that the AASU/AGP leadership was hostile
to such a specific articulation of women's issues and to the work of
women's organizations. (Vasanthi Raman 'The Nari Mukti Movement
in Assam,' For a New Democracy March 1986). In Chipko, a virtue is
made of women's unequal responsibility for housework and
household and for maintaining ecological balance. However, regard-
less of whether movement ideologies overtly represent anacks on or
a reinforcement of patriarchal norms, the call for women to break out
of their traditional housebound roles and assume responsibility for
social action in itself represents at least the beginnings of an attack on
patriarchy.
A similar apparent contradiction exists when we look at the ways
and contexts in which women's issues are raised by these movements.
Barring perhaps Assam (where wome~·s mobilization is itself an
issue), all the other movements raise women's issues that are situation
specific. The Dhulia adivasi women's exposition of the way in which
traditional tribal laws are oppressive of women (contrary to popular
mythology), the Chipko women's generalization of their domestic
concerns to ecological positions, the Chhanisgarh mine-working
women's strong statement of women's equal rights to work--the
examples are many. These are all movement specific and women
specific issues. The emphasis on women's common oppression 'as
women' may or mav not be there. There ls a tendency to regard issues
14 A space wllbtn tbe SlnlBBle

of family violence as the only 'legitimate' women's issues and to be

critical of the commibnent of mass movements to women because
such issues do not get raised or get raised only with outside support.
Madhu Kishwar (1'he nature of Women's Mobilization in Rural India,
Economtc and PolutcaJ Werily, December 24-41, 1988) feels that
grassroots movements use atrocities on women as symbols, and that
'how for and in what manner women's issues get taken up usually
depends on the male leadership's inclination and ideological bent.'
Using the example of the IsUi Akali Dal, she also generalizes that
women participate in movements to serve family interests: 'the repres-
sion unleashed on the men of their families and community was a
more important causal factor for their participation than any of the
political demands.' In a similar vein Jana Everett ('We were in the
Forefront of the Fight: Feminist Theory and Practice in Indian Grass
Roots Movements' Soutb Ana Bulletin VI : I 1986) argues that
'grassroots activists, have tried to minimize divisions and internal
oppression based on class, caste, and gender, and to build coalitions
~o confront those in power such as landlords, commercial interests
and government officials.' Such perspectives ignore the fact that
women relate to a totality of existential conditions, and to poor, toiling
women, issues of daily survival and strategies related to this are of as
much importance and are as real as issues of family violence. Tilis is
not to assert that women workers and tribal or peasant women are
not concerned w ith isSues of family violence. Many movements· that
begin with the sectional interests of men and women in mind have
gone on-to develop strategies to tackle such problems, although their
main thrust may remain on women's empowerment. Tilis has hap-
pened in Dhulia, in Chhattisgarh, in Nipani and in the Kerala
Fishworkers' movement. Time and space specific attacks on patriar-
chy must be respected for providing this specificity as well as for
providing an awareness of the complexity of the iSsues involved.
Attempts to impose a priori formulae to gauge the involvement of
women in · struggle, can compartmentalize or ghettoize w omen's
of
issues further and actually strengthen patriarchy-instead attacking
it. Perhaps women in the movements of toiling people have a longer
view of history and are able to conceptualize levels and stages of
stiugide much better that their analysts are willing to give them credit
for.
 lnlroduct1on 15

'
Despite ideological variations, certain common structural features
can be seen in mass movements that involve large numbers of
women. Firstly, such structures, are, by and large looser than tradi-
tional parties or trade unions. The Assam movement, and perhaps
Chipko, do not appear to have any structural boundaries, but by and
large the pattern appears to be that a women's cell actually mobilizes
women and organizes programmes for them. Once again there is
some variation in the relative equality and autonomy that these cells
enjoy, .but a broad pattern of the supremacy of overall organizational
structures and priorities can be seen. There is a distinction visible
between the .mass (in which women are significant) and the leader-
ship, the vanguard in which women may or may not be present. As
a matter of fact women's low representation in the leadership is
perceived as a problem in many organizations, but while the van-
guard draws its strength and power from the mass and is accountable
to it, a gap in perceptions is sometimes visible between the mass and
the vanguard. We can understand this ifwe look at the kinds of actions
in which women have been involved. Women have been part of all
kinds of political actions-dbarnas, gheruos, picketing and other
forms of protest. They often have shown spontaneous participation
in actions. The Chipko story is full of such instances, and in my own
experiences in Chhanisgarh, I have often seen women spontaneously
coming together in anti-liquor or anti-mechanization actions. Ap-
parently, in the Assam movement too, women showed a similar spirit.
For example, during the election campaigns when Begum Abida
Ahmed was filing her nomination and section 144 prohibitory orders
and shoot at sight orders were in force, twelve women stood alone
in defying the ban. At the.unpremeditated call ofBezar Barua, a crowd
of 20,000 women joined the defiance action within minutes. (Alka
Desai, personal communication). :rhis spontaneity was often sought
to be channelized by the movement leadership by placing women's
group at the forefront of political action. This tradition of having
women lead demonstrations apparently originated with Gandhi who,
according to one writer, specialized in turning apparent liabilities into
assets. (Poonam Saxena 'Women's Participation in the National Move-
ment in the United Provinces. 1937-47' Manusht 46, 1988). Women
heading demonstration$ in this -wa.,v :acted, in the leadership's mind,
both as a buffer against State repression, and in highlighting the
16 A Space wUbtn the Struggle

repression when it did come. Movements of all shades have issued

countless pamphlets decrying brutal attacks on unarmed women and
have continued to have them at the head of several demonstrations.
However there appears to be a disjunction between the perception
of the leadership and the mass of struggling women regarding this
'leading' role of women in the forefront of the struggle. The leadership
quite clearly used this visible women's presence as a symbol and
provided actual guidance regarding strategy and tactics from the
background. This situation led to much heartache and confusion
•
among those who (later) studied women's participation in ·move-
ments and often failed to find a correspondence between this leading
role of women and their real representation in the leadership.
It is important to point out that this gap is not necessarily felt or
perceived by the women in the ranks. Within the organizations, there
are day to day practical democratic processes that function, and the
degree of deipocracy or freedom they experience here is often far
larger than in their previous experiences at work, in the family, or
indeed other organizational experiences. In the Chhattisgarh move-
ment for example, the entire process of meetings, regular democratic
elections and freedom of speech that women experienced in the
.
organization represented a .tremendous political and personal
achievement for them. Many other movements would provide similar I•
examples. I

The political consciousness that women achieve through the J

processes of struggle and organization, their self confidence and II
sense of power and solidarity are there for all to see. It is sometimes
argued against this that women in mass movements lack a conceptual
upderstanding of the structures of patriarchy, that their concern is
mainly with the experiences on the ground. It is true that there is a
danger of women in these situations getting caught up in the nitty
gritty of day-to-day work and often of being unable, for reasons of
time of space, to talk and have analytical discussions as much as they
would like to. Sometimes the problem of space may not be entirely
physical. However, the case studies in this book show that separate
women's cells are the rule and not exception in mass organizations
with a large women's component. Within these cells a process of
deepening of the analysis of the structures of women's oppression is
constantly going on. The Nari Mukti San~rsh Samrrieian held in
 Introduction 17

Patna in early 1988 was a major effort by women from various

organizations to come together and deepen this analysis among the
cadres and mass base of ongoing movements. This attempt was
'particularly significant for it came at a time when many more con-
scious feminists were expressing a need for larger political linkages
for their work to have meaning.
An important area, and one which is perhaps not adequately
discussed, is the interface of women's personal struggles with their
public ones. We do catch glimpses of such struggles, for example in
Nirrnala Sathe's portraits of the women leaders of Shahada and in
Vindhya's narration of the pressures CPI (ML) women faced while
working in the dalams. Women's cells in large organizations do
discuss these issues, but perhaps in recognizing this as an aspect of
the struggle, and in dealing with it, women in mass movements have
a long way to go. An important beginning in understanding this
process has been made by the Stree Shakti Sangathana's recent study
of women in the Telangana movement (We were making history: Life
·stories ofwomen In tbe Telangana people's struggle, Kali for Women,
New Delhi 1989) which, by using detailed interviews with women
activists of the movement, draws attention sharply to the complexities
of this dilemma.
Finally, a few words about the essays in this book. These contain
a variety of style and content. The contributors come from differing
backgrounds and have developed their work in complete freedom.
This may account for some of the variation that can be seen in style
and approach. Some of the essays are written by activists and some
by academics or researchers. For women who have written from
'within' movements writing has sometimes not come easily. For, from
within struggles, doing has seemed more important than writing. As
far as the content is concerned, our selection has focussed on women
in mass and people's movements. Except for one case, the anti-price
rise movement, all the other accounts are of larger movements against
specific forms of oppression which have included men and women.
The APRM was a one-point programme involving women only,
although it did include an implicit attack on the economic policies of
the State.
Other contradictions exist among the pieces selected. While they
all have their roots in the socio-political unrest that exploded the
18 A~ wllbtn tbe SlrusBle

superlkial calm of the first two decades after independence, the

particular pointS of explosion they touch are very different from each
ocher. Four studies deal with urban/industrial women: these relate to
the two trade unions from Chhattisgarh, the Tamil Nadu construction
workers, the Anti-Price Rise Movement, and the Assam anti-foreigners
agitation. All others have reference to rural situations. While the two
studies from the Naxa.lbari period, Ajitha's and Vin<ihya's, refer to
party-led struggles, and a third, the APRM to an inter-party coalitio~.
the majority of our case studies have reference to non-party organiza-
tional platforms: And finally, while the class basis of the majority of
our case studies is among the toiling people, the Assam movement,
and perhaps the farmers' agitation stand slightly apart, as they base
themselves on a coalition of classes.
The unifying thread that holds the selection together is not meant
to be their commonality of purpose but rather the commonality of a
•
particular phenomenon they all illustrate: the significant participation
of women in mass movements. It is this commonality that we have
taken as our starting point. Whether other forms of commonality are
evident at the end will be for the reader tn assess.
 Reminiscences from
Wynad

K.AJITHA

I was arrested from the jungles of Wynad shortly after the

Pulpally action of Novemher t 968. During the long years that I
was in jail I spent much time thinking ahout the whole question
of women in mass movements. I have written about my ex-
periences in Malayalam in my autobiography Ormakkurip-
puga/, excerpts from which are reproduced helow.

I was initiated into politics by my parents, Kunnikal Narayanan (KN),

my father, was a seasoned communist revolutionary who had worked
in Bombay for many years in the pre-independence days. He was
from the ezbava (savama) caste. During the Bombay years he met
and married niy mother Mandakini, who belonged to a Gujarati
savarna caste and was also a communist. In 1956, when the 20th
Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU)
denounced Stalin, both my parents resigned from the party. Later,
they settled in Calicut, at my father's birthplace, where I grew up, and
we lived as part _of a large joint family. After the 1965 split in the Indian
communist mo~ement, my father returned to the party ranks, and
became a member of the Communist party of India (Marxist).
In 1965-66, the first throes of the Chinese cultural revolution had
reached India. My father used to listen to Radio Peking's broadcasts
regularly. At this time (after the Pakistan war) allthe top leaders of
20 A Space wtlbtn the Stru/J8le

the CPI (M) were in jail with the exception of EMS Namboodiripad.
However, the CPI (M) appeared to be endorsing the views of the CPC.
My father wanted to propagate the ideas of the cultural revolution in
India, and so undertook an extensive programme of translation of
Chinese documents into Malayalam. He tr.1nslated the CPC Constitu-
tion, and all nine of the CPC's letters to the CPSU. The CPI (M)
leadership, especially EMS, grew increasingly hostile to this work of
translation and publication, but gr.idually a Marxist publication centre
grew around KN's work. In 1966, after he had published Mao Ze
Dong's ·Combat Liber.ilism' pamphlet, he was expelled from the
Party., However, the CPI (M) unit of Calicut remained with KN and
also withdrew from the party.
At this time, our personal situation was also very difficult. We were
part of a large joint family and my parents had many family respon-
sibilities. The family's attitude to my father's activities hardened after
the Party's action, and we were thrown out of the family home. For
all pr.ictical purposes we had to survive on my mother's salary as
Principal of the Gujarati High School in Calicut city. At this time the
Naxalbari struggle had already broken out. The CPM dominated left
front had come to power in Kerala and EMS had become the Chief
Minister. The party ranks were very disappointed w ith the party's
elector.ii politics, and many units rebelled against the party leadersh·ip
and joined the group around KN. Many local le-.iders, and particularly
members of the student front joined the rebels and this loose group
began to call itself the 'Naxalbari Group.' Although the group saw in
their work a linkage with the work of the CPI (Marxist-Leninist) that
had developed in other parts of India, the CPI (ML) leadership never
acknowledged this. Many of these cad(es who came over to my
father's group were bitter ahout the contradictions in our rural society,
and were poised for direct action. I began helping my father in
tr.inslations and proof reading, and gradually became more and more
involved in the activities of the group; eventually I discontinued my
studies.
The area of north Malabar that is today's Wynad district, was then
divided between Calicut and Cannanore districts. This is a hilly and
forested area with tea, coffee, and rubber plantations. The population
is about 60 per cent tribal. The other 40 per cent is made up of kudis
and makars. The settlers of this area were very hardworking: some
 Remtntsamalsfrom W")lnad 21

owned estates and some ~ have landholdings. The influence of

the church was very strong among the settlers who were mainly
immigrants from the Travancore area. They were brought into the
area by the British colonizers, who had built roads and opened up
different areas and at the time our action (i.e. late sixties) still owned
about three fourths of the plantations there. The settlers had dispos-
sessed the tribal people of their land, and some of them had gone on
to become large landlords and I or plantation owners themselves. The
tribals owned only about two per cent of all landholdings at this time,
and were generally sunk in abysmal poverty.
There were differences among the settlers: Some of the older ones
were extremely wealthy while those who had come more recently
had worked very hard to clear and cultivate forest land, but were not
being given title deeds (pattayams). Around Pulpally in Calicut (south
Wynad) they were very restive because they had bet:n promised
pattayams by the left front government before the elections, but after
the elections, the government, especially K.R.Gowri, the then
Revenue Minister, were dragging their feet on this. The land in
question belonged to a devaswom (temple trust), and when the
settlers began to encroach on it and prepare it for cultivation, a camp
of the Malabar Special Police was set up in the temple agmhamm
(compound) giving the impression that the government was keen on
protecting the interests of the devaswom. There was general unrest
among the settlers of this area, and some of them wrote to KN seeking
his group's intervention. As it was, many old communist workers who
had come over to the Party's breakaway faction had been working in
this region for a long time.
Based upon their contacts a programme of political education and
propaganda with the affected settlers began. They were very keen to
receive propaganda and seemed ready for anned action. Similarly,
the group inherited a tradition of working among plantation workers
who were housed in 'padi' accommodation, i.e. rows of single-room
overcrowded tenements, and worked in the most oppressive condi-
tions and were thus easy to organize. In addition, through some
comrades who had been working to organize the tribal people for a
long period, the group had access to the support of a large section of
gtrijans(tribals).
22 A Space wUbtn tbe SlruBsle

This background is important as all these factors combined to bring

about the Pu Ipally and Telicheny actions. The precipitating factor was
the situation in Telicheny with the laying off of bidt workers. The
Ganesh bidi factory ofTelicheny, owned by Mangalorians, employed
about 18,000 workers, all men. After coming into power, the left front
government had passed an act specifying minimum wages to be paid
to bidi workers and, in response, the management of the factory had
declared a lock out in the factory and had closed its leaf depots all
over Cannanore district. The CPM unit at Tellichery had rebelled
against the Party high command, and the comrades there had
gravitated towards K.N's work. They immediately took up the issue of
the bidi workers and began propaganda work on the lines advocated
by the CPC there. Meanwhile an urgent solution to the problem of
18,000 laid off workers had to be found. The Party cadres drew up a
programme in which the group at Tellichery would attack the police
station at the city centre on November 22, 1968, and the group at
Pulpally would attack the MSP ca1np on November 24. Both groups
would concentrate on capturing arms and after the respective actions,
they would meet in the forests and regroup and launch the armed
struggle that would liberate Wynad. The period immediately preced-
ing the planned actions had been spent by the group in extensive
propaganda and in conducting study classes. The response of both
the plantation workers and the settlers to these activities was very
positive; the study classes were well attended. Women too, mainly
peasant women and peasant wives from the settler community, took
part in the classes, so the group felt that mass support for the liberation
action would be forthcoming.
On November 22, as planned, about a thousand people went to
attack the police station at Telichery. However, the action did not
quite take place, for the crowd dispersed once the policemen inside
were alerted and threatened violent retaliatory action. The group at
Pulpally was unaware of what was happening there, and on Novem-
ber 24, about 50-60 persoris, all men, and one woman (myselO, went
to attack the MSP camp at Pulapally. This action was more successful.
We took the police by surprise, killed one constable and one sub-in-
spector who had a reputation as a sadist, and captured a large quantity
of arms. After this we retreated as planned into the forest area, to await
the other group. At a village en route, we attacked two landlord
homes, looted their stores of grain and othervaluaotes and distributed
these to the villagers. At this point many tribal peasants came and
joined us and all of them, men and women, were extremely enthusias-
tic about the struggle. Later they accompanied us to the forest, helped
us to cross the K.abbani river towards the Mysore border, but did not
aceompany us beyond the river.
Our group settled down to wait in the forest for the other
(Telichery) group, but of course they were not coming at all. We
roamed the forests, and every day two or three of us went into the
villages for food. A few were caprured, for the police had undertaken
a big hunt for the group, and were combing the forests and hills as
well as intimidating the villagers and trying to extract information
about our group. The group gradually dwindled, and grew demoral-
ized. One old comrade died in an accidental blast while handling
some hand grenades. Finally only fifteen of us were left, and we went
in a body to a village for food and shelter. The village people
i.ffimediately informed the church which rang its alarm bells and
alerted the police who were combing the area. This led to our capture.
I was the only woman who had taken part in the action. My mother
had not been part of the group tlµtt attacked the MSP camp, but she
too was arrested soon after for her political involvement. In police
custody I w as beaten, tortured and subjected to filthy abuse. I was
threatened with rape several times, although not actually raped, for
perhaps the left front government did not want to run the risk of the
public outcry this would raise if it become known. The police and the
interrogating officials repeatedly accused me of prostituting my body
to fulfil the sexual needs of the comrades. They did this to make me
lose my self esteem. During the emergency years and immediately
before, I was kept in solitary confinement for five years. My parents
too were in jail, but I had no contact with them. I was on the point of
insanity before my release. In 1977 my parents were released, and
they came to see me, and this contact gave me, once ~gain, a
beginning and a hope. Shortly after this I was released.
During my years in prison, and particularly when I noticed the bias
of the police interrogation, I began to think about our movement,
about my own role and the role of other women in the struggle. What
the police were saying was of course untrue, but it was true that some
of the comrades had made sexual advances towards me. Did they also
see me as a sexual object and nol as a comrade? How aware was the
Pany. of the issues of women's equality and of the need to build
women's involvement? I realized that our Party and politics had not
been sensitive to these issues at all. It is true that some women had
participated in our study classes. It is also true that when we went into
the villages for study classes or propaganda work women used to be
very active in providing food and shelter. But these women expressed
no interest in the issues around which the struggle was being built
and were not at all vocal or articulate. If they did speak at all it was to
complain about their men's involvement in politics. And yet they
looked after us well, so, in a sense, they took their involvement in this
movement as their fate. Even the women who otherwise had a
reputation for militancy did not rally around us. I remember a woman
in the Vellamunda plantation area who had been very active in trade
union work in her area. Even she was not sympathetic to our struggle.
The only time women did rally spontaneously round us was after the
Pulpally action, when a large group of tribals had come out in our
support. This group had included many women. But these women
also paid the price for their support of our struggle. For , after our
arrest, the police came down heavily upon the tribal people and used
mass scale arrests, intimidation and mass rape as weapons to subdue
them. .
All these questions-why people behaved the way they did, why
women did not come out in support of the movement, why my
mother and I were the only two women active in the Party, and why
I was alone in thinking about these issues-used to depress me. When
I came out of jail in 1977, I began to read and, through the debaft!S
and discussions in the women's movement, began to search for
clarity. Today when I think of the Pulapally action; I realize that it was
infantile, but the value of the experience is not thereby lost, for it did
have some lessons about the methodology of struggle. Even the
limitations and omissions of the action had lessons for the future.
 The Srikakulam Movement

U.VINDHYA

Pas1 leads us
only when we force ii 10
odlerwise ii contains us
in ils asylum wilh no ga1es

We make hislory or
ii makes us

MARGE PIERCY
'Famvell 10 a Btcen/ennlal'

A significant aspect of agrarian society in Andhra Pradesh is the life

and struggles of the tribal people. By and large, the tribals inhabit the
forests which stretch over 78,000 sq. km. along a continuous belt of
the ~ Ghats and cover parts of the districts of Srikalrulam,
Vizianagaram, Vi.sakhapatnam, and East Godavari in the coastal
region, and Khammam, Warangal and Adilabad in the Telangana
region of the state. The hill areas of coastal ~dhra are referred to as
the 'agency areas', so named after the British appointed an 'agent' to
administer them.
From the times of the East India Compan,y, tribal life has been
.
marked by the gradual deprivation of the. tribals' basic rights and
denial of their traditional access to forest lands and products, both
brought about by the influx of people from the plains because ofState
legislation. This has led to unrest and several revolts starting from the
colonial period. In post-independent India Srikakula.m was the first
district .to witness an armed struggle, which took place in the late
sixties and was based primarily among the tribal people of the area.
Led by the Marxist-Leninists, who came to be known as Naxalites, the
movement, along with that of the peasants of Naxalbari in north
Bengal, was the first armed peasant revolt against the Indian State.
This was about 17 years after the Indian communists had abandoned
the path of armed struggle in 1951 in the Telangana region (later to
become part of what is now called Andhra Pradesh).
The Srikakulam movement over the years acquired, and continues
to have, a symbolic significance in the history of armed struggle. But
unlike its more famous contemporary, Naxalbari, Srikakulam did not
generate many studies. The available literature is very limited. Even
within such literature, the reference to the role and participation of
women is negligible. This essay is an attempt to uncover some of the
aspects related to women's participation in the Srikakulam move-
ment. It is based both on the available literature and also, more
importantly, on interviews with some of the surviving activists, con-
ducted in early 1989, almost two decades after the struggle.
The essay is critically limited by both historical and methodological
factors. Consciousness about the role of women in people's struggles,
including those led by the communists, is of relatively recent origin.
The development of the women's movement, the growth of what is
referred to as w omen's studies, and the consequent innovative genre
of feminist historiography, are all products of the mid-seventies, by
which time the Srikakulam movement was, by and large, suppressed.
The absence of consciousness about the women's question, which
marked the leadership of the movement, explains the paucity of
reference to :women in the literature available. It is, of course, true
that in this regard the Srikakulam movement was no different from
other movements. But is necessary to elaborate this point further. Very
often, the vantage point of historical hindsight that the contemporary
analysts enjoy leads them to some kind of a wholesale condemnation
of patriarchal attitudes prevalent in the movement, in retrospect,
without going into the specificity of its strength and weakness. Such
a condemnation is facilitated by the common methodological fallacy
 7be SrllrtaJrulam Movement Tl

of isolating women from society and the movement whose dynamics

they are subjected to, and projecting them as independent objects of
research and analysis. Even where such treatment of patriarchy is
valid, it obscures the process which it seeks to break. In our view it
is necessary to document and analyse the processes by which the
patriarchal system began to crack even when no feminist conscious-
ness prevailed. It is only then that the 'past leads us to'. Otherwise· it
contains us in its asylum with no gates'. This essay thus seeks to
contextualize the women's question within the larger issue of the
•
scope and essence of the agrarian movement.
Thus, in the first part of the essay, some of the features of tribal
society, with special reference to women's status, are described. This
is followed by a· brief account of the movement in the second part,
and the final section deals with aspects related to women's participa-
tion in the movement.

•
Srikakulam district, topographically, has two <listinL1 regions: the hill
tracts or the 'agency areas' and the plains or coastal areas. The agency
areas comprising the talulis of Palakonda, Parvatipuram, Pathapat-
nam and Salur, were mostly inhabited by tribals. The plains areas
comprise the taluks of Icchapuram, Narasannapeta, Srikakulam and
•
parts of Takkali and Sompeta taluks . The area around Sompeta,
which is referred to as uddanam or garden (because of the thick
groves of cashew and cocouut trees), was the base of the movement
in the plains.
Prior to the division of the district, Srikakulam had the highest
density of tribal population (about 260 persons per sq. km.) in the
scheduled areas of the state (Census of India, 1971). The main tribes
are the Savaras, Jatapus, Mukha Doras, Konda Doras, and caciah:i!>
It was the Savara and jatapu tribes, forming nearly 70 per cent of the

• Prior to the formation of Vizianagaram district in 1979 and comprising

some taluks of Srikakulam and Visakhapatnam districts.
28 A Space wUbtn tbe Slru//8le

tribal population in the district, that constituted the backbone of the

uprising.
Both tribes are endogamous. They live in small hamlets scattered
and sometimes organized into small villages. Their houses are aJigned
in parallel rows, each row having a common roof. In anthropological
writings, both are termed as patriarchal and as being characterized by
patrilocal residence and patrilineal descent. Yet the status of women
within ihese tribal societies is markedly different, locatt;d, it appears,
in their role in economic productive activity.
The Savaras, classified as a 'protected tribe' practise podu or
shifting cultivation. Among the Jatapus however, the practice seems
to have declined over time and· in many places they have adopted
settled agriculture (although some of them were forced to revert to
shifting cultivation when they lost their lands to non-tribal
moneylenders and landlords). In both the tribes the cui.1omary prac~
tices and culture are based on the absence of private ownership of
land. This has also made them unfamiliar with the juridical and legal
func.1ions of the State. Later, during the course of the movement this
unfamiliarity appeared to contribute to a peculiar duality in their
dealings with the State. On the one hand, they treated the State as a
repressive mechanism and fought hitter and glorious banles against
its armed might. On the other, they remained baffied and confused
by its administrative and judicial procedures. The men and women
who took up arms against landlords and police, used chilli powder
and country made bombs and went on a rampage of annihilations,
could not, it seems, understand the procedures of the State. One
incident, recounted to the author, brings this out in sharp focus.
During the movement, twenty tribal men and women were arrested
and sent to Central Prison at Rajamundry. Eventually, when they were
let out, the sessions judge ordered the police to escort them to their
villages. The police instead bought them tickets to Parvatipuram and
left them at Rajamundry railway station. The tribals walked along the
railway tracks all the way to Parvatipuram, a distance of 350 km. and,
once there, surrendered the railway tickets to the local magistrate, told
him not to bother them anymore, and then went back. to their hills.
The course and discourse of the post-colonial welfare state thus
remained outside tribal society, except in its repressive functions, and
this serves as the backdrop of the movement.
 The status of women in the Savara and Jatapu tribal societies has
many distinctive characteristics. Firstly, men, especially among the
Savaras, are mainly hunters, toddy tappers, and forest labourers while
the women are usually engaged in cultivation on the hill slopes. The
strenuous labour that includes clearing of bushes, transplanting,
weeding, threshing, winnowing, harvesting, bunding or embank-
ments is undertaken mostly by women. In addition, they also have
their domestic responsibilities that include carrying water, collection
of firewood, and forest produce, pounding of grain, cooking, rope
making and cattle-rearing. Women's participation in agricultural ac-
tivities is intensive and their labour more strenuous than that of the
m en. This is especially true in the case .of the Savaras whose men are
known to be indolent, fond of song and dance and addicted to liquor.
They are often seen playing with the children, while the women
contribute a larger share of the labour input.
Secondly, marriage for them is a loose association between a man
and a woman within the community. Marriage bonds can therefore
be contracted as well as dissolved with ease. This is primarily because
the responsibility of child-rearing in the community is not totally
bOme by the family. The socio-economic conditions that prevail do
not call for a strong bond to make the family an enduring unit for the
purpose of bringing up children, protecting their legitimacy or
property rights. Consequently, the woman is more free to take her
own decisions regarding matrimony. The selection of partners often
takes place at the weekly meetings and marriage by elopement and
capture are common forms. Voli or bride-price is practised and
consists of giving some cash, new clothes for the bride's mother, grain
and liquor. Significantly, the custom of polygamy is prevalent in both
the tribes. Men prefer to have a number of wives since it means more
money.
This kind of a status for women in tribal society had some implica-
tions for the movement. The immediate economic issues of the
movement were as much women's issues as men's. They included the
right to cultivate, especially podu which is declared 'illegal' by the
State, access to forest and forest produce such as timber, tamarind and
firewood, wages for forest laboµr, customary forced labour o r vetti,
in forest work, occupation of tribal land by non-tribals, especially
moneylenders, interest rates charged by the tatter, payment for forest
produce both by state-owned agencies and private traders, and
harassment by the forest officials. All these issues are directly related
to the economic activity of women as well.
If their economic position facilitated the entry of women into the
movement, their social position and cultural practices seem to have
lessened the restrictions on their participation. At the peak of the
movement, many of these women who, in hundreds, were forced to
live away from their families, went along with their Sangham and
suffered lo'lg periods of imprisonment. Yet, by and large, this does
not seem to have generated the usual tensions and resentment on the
part of the men, at least not to any noticeable extent.
We should hasten to clarify here that many of these observations
are not applicable in the case of women from the plains. The
Srikakulam movement, as already indicated, had a component of
people from the hills as well as from the coastal plains of the district,
especially from the uddanam area. In the p1ains, where the movement
itself was on a smaller scale, a comparatively smaller number of
women were drawn into the struggle that culminated in the armed
revolt. Some of them, like Sampoomamma, Ninnala, Ramasita, and
Chandramma were wives of the leaders. All of them came from
landless or poor peasant families. Unlike tribal women, these women
were literate and politically better informed by the time the Mahila
Sangham or the women's wing of the Communist Party began or-
ganizing them in the mid-sixties.
The issues in the plafns also differed in some respects. Apart from
wages of agricultural labourers, especially the attached labour
(paleru), the movement in the plains took up the issue of control over
•
waste land, mortgaged land and illegally occupied land of the poor
peasants. Gender-specific issues, however, were more conspicuous
here. According to Sampoomamma, one of the few surviving leading
women activists, one issue which helped to bring about women's
solidarity in the Mahila Sangham was the sexual abuse they suffered
at the hands of landlords and moneylenders. Caught in the vicious
circle of chronic indebtedness, the poor or landless peasantS were
often reduced to vetti in the houses of the moneylenders. For women
vetti meant working as domestic servants and being sexually abused.
Often for loans of even such small amounts like Rs 10 the peasants
found themselves indebted for life. Many times the moneylender
refused to take the principal amount on some pretext or the other so
that the debt could be prolonged and vetti extracted. It is reported
that husbands would tum a blind eye to the sexual humiliation of their
women because of the desperate condition of indebtedness which
they had been forced into. Intervention by the Mahila Sangham
proved to be not only supportive to the individual women but also
helped to assert their combined strength.
Similarly, the men's addiction to liquor was also a source of tension
for the women. Very often the liquor merchants were moneylenders
themselves and thus men became indebted to them. The Mahila
Sangham organized an anti"liquor campaign. Women in large num-
bers rallied together in destroying the liquor brewing pots. Their
targets of anger were also the sondts or the local trading caste. It
should be added that there were more social restrictions on the
participation of women in the movement in the case of women from
the plains. This perhaps explains the fact that almost all of the leading
women activists, with some exceptions, were wives or daughters of
male leaders, which was not necessarily the case with the tribal
women.
Thus, specific features of the social and economic status of the
women, as well as familial and cultural practices within the larger
framework of patriarchy, crucially influenced the role and participa-
tion of women in the Srikakulam movement. Before we go into the
details of their role, we shall look briefly at the movement itself.

II

The armed uprising owes its origin to the organization of the tribals
under the banner of the Girijan Sangham (Tribal Association) fomied
in 1958 by the then undivided Communist Party of India (CPI).· After
the 1964 split in the party, the Sangham went along with the Com·
munist Party of India (Mafxjst). Two teachers, P.Ramulu and Vem-
patapu Satyanarayana, were the fust to organize the tribals agaiilst
illegal extortions by the revenue officials. Satyanarayana, popularly
known as Satyam Master, was held in high esteem by the tribals
because he readily identified with thetn and he eventually became a
legend of the movement He was later pined by another teacher, ·
Adibhatla Kailasam. The Sanghani, initially confuted to the taluks of
Paivatipuram and Palakonda, gradually spread to other parts of the
hills.
One of the major issues that was taken up by the Sangham was the
appropriation of tribal land hy the non-tribal landlords and
moneylenders who initiallycame to the agency areas as petty traders.
They managed to grab the lands of the tribals by selling tobacco, salt,
kerosene, chillies, clothes etc., on credit, and then lending small
amounts for seeds, payment of taxes and extortion. money to forest
and revenue officials and the police. The tribals could not repay the
loans because of the extremely high rates of interest and were forced
to mortgage their lands when new loans were needed. After sur-
rendering their land as well as most of their produce, the tribals had
to submit themselves to forced labour or veni under the
moneylenders.
The Jatapus, who used to be engaged in settled cultivation thus
lost their lands and were forced to depend exclusively on podu which
was objected to by the forest officials in the name of afforestation.
Harassment by forest officials and imposition of forced unpaid labour
by them was another important issue taken up by the Sangham. The
revenue officials also contributed to the exploitation of the tribals by
cheating them and extracting huge amounts over and above the
revenue rates fixed by the government. Invariably, the police used to
take the side of the exploiters by implicating the tribals in false cases,
beating them up, and taking away their hens and goats, farm tools
etc.
The Sangham launched a series of struggles against this well
entrenched ruling class nexus and scored several victories. By 1967,
it was able to establish its strength by securing higher wages for
agricultural labourers, distribution of two-thirds of the farm produce
to the tiller, wresting nearly 2,000 acres of mortgaged land from the
landlords, distribution of about 5,000 acres of waste land to the tribals,
annulment of loans amounting to about Rs 3 lakhs, and securing
better terms of trade for the tribals. In spite of the repeated efforts of
the landlords, in collusion with the police, to counter the rising tide
of the movement and to physically eliminate Vempatapu
Satyanarayana, the Sangham continued to consolidate and expand its
 ~ Srlllall11lam Mooement 33

base, thereby strengthening the faith of the tribals in political or-

ganization.
As the movement grew, so did the degree of repression. The State
machinery began to get alanned by the increasing militancy of the
tribals and arrested hundreds of them by early 1968. Special armed
police (A.P.S.A.P.) were deployed to suppress the movement which
had so far been, by and large, peaceful and legal. The movement took
a violent tum when landlord-; at a village called Levidi opened fire on
unarmed tribals who were on their way to the Girijan conference at
Mondemkhal on October 31, 1967. This incident, that eventually
acquired a folk dimension in all accounts of the movement, in fact
began with the large-scale participation of women. A group of 400
tribal women from the village Gumrna (the literal meaning of the word
is 'women') dressed in red saris, carrying red Hags and singing
revolutionary songs were proceeding to the conference when the
goondas of the landlords attacked and assaulted them at Levidi. The
women were molested, their saris tom, and the red Hags burnt. Some
of the women then ran to Mondemkhal, the venue of the conference
and reported the incident. Hundreds of women accompanied by men
returned to the place. In the ensuing scuffie the women participated
by throwing chilli power and beating up the goondas with sticks and
rolealts (grain pounders). At this stage, a landlord hiding in a house
nearby opened fire and killed two tribals, Koranna and Manl"lnna,
on the spot.
The Levidi incident proved to be a turning point in many ways.
The initial inaction by the police against the landlord-; and their
subsequent acquittal by the courts made it easy for the leadership to
convince the tribals about the need for more militant forms ofstruggle.
Following the incident, a number of arrests were made and once
again, women came to the forefront when they actively, and at times
successfully, resisted the police raids and arrests of their men. At
Gumma they successfully warded off a police party by assembling in
large numbers and using chilli powder, brooms and sticks. At Ped-
dakaraja, it was again mostly the women who confronted the police
party who opened fire, killing three tribals.
Mass mobilization of non-triba l peasantry 1n the uddanam area
began with the efforts of leaders like Panchadi Krishna Murty,
Panchadi Nirmala, Choudhary Tejeshwar Rao, Sampoomamrna,
34 A Space wUbtn lbe Slnq/gle

Tamada Ganapati, Subba Rao Panigrahi, some of whom were mem-

bers of the Srikakulam distrit'l unit of the CPl(M). In 1967 Panchadi
Krishnamurty, a young post graduate and a popular leader and
Tamada Ganapati, had organized the poor peasants on issues such
as seeking exemption from the levy of land cess during the prevalence
of drought conditions, exploitation by middle men in leasing of
coconut and cashew plantations, high rates of interest charged by
moneylenders, and struggle fot better daily wages.
By 1968 larger convulsions within the CPl(M) were being
generated by the struggle in Naxalbari. It was the uddanam leaders
who played a key role in the political twists and rums of the CPl(M)
that finally aligned the Srikakulam movement with the CPI(Marxist-
Leninists) in April 1969 under the leadership of Charu Majumdar. It
was, however, the momentum provided by the militant struggles in
the hills that enabled the districr leadership to take the conscious
political decision of adopting armed struggle as the means to bring
about agrarian revolution, and capture state power through
protracted guerrilla warfare.
The first phase of guerrilla struggle began on 24 November 1968
at Garudabhadra in Kasibugga police station limits in the plains. Led
by Panchadi Nirmala and Subba Rao Panigrahi, the da/am (squad)
forcibly cut the crops of a rich landlord. On the very next day, another
dalam led by Vempatapu Satyanarayana raided the house of a
landlord at Peddagottili in the Parvatipuram agency area. This was the
beginning of a series of raids on landlords, moneylenders and police
informers. A programme of confiscation of property, destruction of
promissory notes, and land documents as well as taking possession
of stocked foodgrains was soon undertaken by the Party. After the
formation of CPI (ML), 'annihilation of class enemies' was accepted
as the Party line and very soon a series of killings succeeded in
terrorizing a large number of landlords who fled from the villages.
Their properties were appropriated, people's committees were
formed to take over the village administration and people's courts
established to settle disputes. At its peak, the armed revolt had spread
to six taluks, covering about 300 villages and hamlets and a popula-
tion of nearly two lakhs.
Alarmed by the transformation of the militant peasant movement
into a politically conscious 'war against the state' the State unleashed
 7be Srl.Mltulam Movement 35

widespread repression. On May 27, 1969, Panchadi Krishna Murty

and six others were captured by the police at Kanchili railway station
near Sompeta. They were taken to the nearby Jalantarakota hills and
shot dead. Police later announced that they were killed in an
'encounter'. This practice of capturing activists, torturing and killing
them and announcing that they were killed in 'encounters' was
pursued by the police with unrelenting regularity throughout the
Srikakulam movement. This eventually contributed the word
'encounter' to the lexicon of our political system where it connotes
illegal killing by State agencies of those who oppose the State.
Paivatipuram and Palakonda taluks in the hills and Sompeta,
lcchapuram and Takkali taluks in the plains were declared as 'dis-
turbed areas' under the Andhra Pradesh Suppression of Disturhed
Areas Act. This Act enables even a head constabie to arrest without
warrant and shoot without warning. In these 'disturbed areas', large
numbers oftribal hamlets were burnt down and people were forcibly
'regrouped' into settlements that were virtually concentration camp..<;.
Thousands of people were arrested, tortured and jailed in different
parts of the state. Within two years of the commencement of the
armed struggle, the entire leadership and a substantial part of the
cadre, were liquidated. The final blow to the movement was the
killing of Vempatapu Satyanarayana and Adibhatla Kailasam in July
1970, in Bori hills near Parvatipuram.
Between March 1968 and July 1970 at least 138 people were killed
in 'encounters'. later, as the surviving guerrillas kept fighting, 19 more
were killed. Of all the 157 martyrs of the movement, 92 were tribals,
59 from the plains, while six of them remain unidentified till today.
It may not be out of place here to note some of the distinctive
features of the Srikakulam armed struggle. The tribals in the agency
areas of the Eastern Ghats, ever since the colonial State began to
acquire ownership and control of forests in the mid-nineteenth cen-
tury, have been active participants in a number of uprisings. The
movement of the late sixties is, in a sense, a continuation of this
tradition. The legends w oven around Satyam Master were in tune with
those of the past revolts in which a central figure is bestowed with
mythical abilities. In fact, in our interviews, we found that the tribals
invariably referred to the movement as tirugubatu (revolt or rebel-
lion), a word they use to describe all other uprisings of the past.
NevertheleM, the point to be underscored here is that the Srikakulam
movement was led by a Marxist-Leninist Party whose inspiration was
rooted in the future, in a socialist society, and not simply inspired by
the millennium tradition of the tribals. In this sense, it was a decisive
break from the mythological past.
There is another significant feature that distinguishes the 1968-70
anned revolt from the previous uprisings. While the tribals had
hitherto been demarcating the battle lines between themselves ('we')
and non-tribals ( 'they') they seemed to have readily accepted the
leadership and active participation of men and women from the
plains, in the Srikakulam movement, and included them in the
broader 'we' of the oppressed against the better defined 'they' of the
oppressive State.
The movement was also not conftned to economic demands and
political aspirations. It covered a broader arena of social mores and
cultural practices. In fact the cultural idiom in which folk-forms like
burra katha and jamukala Jaaiba were a part was the single most
important instrument of mass mobilization. Satyam Master himself
wrote and composed songs while Subba Rao Panigrahi's songs and
burra kathas have become part of the cultural history of the people.
The focus in these folk-forms was on socially relevant issues.
Tribal societies are often romanticized by outsiders, perhaps due
to the absence of State superstructures within their society. But tribals
are as much subject to repression by their customs and cultural
practices as anybody. Girijan Sangham made an attempt to break this
framework through the changes it sought to introduce in the clothing,
food, health care and hygiene, and in the inter-dining and inter-mar-
riage taboos of the tribals. Most of the primary literature of the
Sangham, including a brief booklet written by Yempatapu
Satyanarayana, are remarkably free from the romanticization of tribal
life, unlike many other accounts of the struggle. It is difficult for us to
judge how far the understanding was part of the conscious strategy
of the leadership but its effects are evident, especially in the case of
women.
 7be SrillaJlulam Movement 37

III

In the hill areas, as noted earlier, from about the mid-sixties upto the
very last phase of the movement, women participated in large num-
bers. It may not be incorrect to suggest that in any hamlet or village
where men joined the movement, women al.so joined in equal num-
bers. It is difficult to estimate the extent of their participation. But a
perusal of the First lnfonnation Reports (FIRs) in over 1,ln> instances
recorded in a large number of police stations scattered all over, brings
out the extent of women's participation in sharp relief. In the earlier
phase, i.e. 1967..Q9, in aJr1lQ.$t all cases launched in the hill areas we
came across references to 'a large number of women'. But it appears
that their participation in the uddanam was not on such a scale.
Paradoxically, the organization of women in separate women's as-
sociations (Mahila Sanghams) seems to have originated first in the
plains and later in the hills. In the uddanam, Mahila Sanghams were
established in the early sixties and in the 1967 general elections, a
conscious effort was made by the party (CPl-M) to mobilize women
through these Sanghams for the purposes of electioneering. In the
hills Girijan Mahila Sanghams were formed only after the movement
took a militant character. These Sanghams were instrumental in
mobilizing women for meetings, processions, protest marches, public
meetings and strikes. Hundreds of women took part in these activities.
When large meetings took place in far off towns like Srikakulam,
Parvatipuram and Palakonda, women walked, sometimes a distance
of 100 km., holding red flags, and carrying children, food and utensils.
We must hasten to add here that these Mahila Sanghams were loose
associations which were structurally not always distinguishable from
the main Girijan Sanghams.
Three aspects of women's participation need special attention. The
first was the question of women in leadership positions and their role
in the armed squads (dalams), the second was the issue of leaving
children behind, and the third had to do with man-woman relations
in the dalams.
Throughout the period 1958-68 there were no women leaders. ~t
was only in the last phase that women came to the fore. Notable
among them were Panchadi Nirmala, wife of Panchadi Krishna Murty,
Sampoomamma, wife of Choudhary Tejeswara Rao, Puli Ramanam-
38 A space wUbtn tbe Strusgle

ma, wife of Ramakrishna, Tamada Chandramma, wife of Papayya,

Medavarapu Ramasita, wife of Ramana Murty. Significandy, none of
them was from the hills and, more importandy, they were all wives
of leaders. One exception was Varalakstuni, a lribal woman who was
drawn into the movement despite strong opposition from her hus-
band. The popular leader, Satyam Master, married two lribal women,
Gunnamma, and later, Manikyam, but they did not reach positions of
leadership. However, Bharati, his daughter by Gunamma, and who
had received high school education, did emerge as a vocal and
assertive leader. With the exception of Bharati, who is not totally a
lribal woman, the movement did not generate lribal leadership, either
among men or women. Perhaps the absence of women lribal leaders
in the District Committee and Area Committees had to do both with
the fact that they were not literate, and with the fact that they were
women. And in the case of women from the plains, it was their
relationship with the leading men activists that contributed to their
emergence as leaders.
When the Srikakulam movement entered the final phase of the
armed struggle, children became a liability because of the mobility
that was expected of guerrilla squads. Interestingly the decision to
leave children behind was left almost entirely to the women. Sam-
poornamma, Ramasita, Ramanamma, and Lakshmi were some of the
married women who left their children in the care of relatives and
joined the dalam. When asked whether it was their the party's
decision or their own, they replied that it was their own because it
was ·practical and they were glad to have taken the step, even though
it was a drastic one, to serve the cause of the revolution. However,
the taking of such a decision was not always smooth and had its share
?f agony. A case in point is that of Panchadi Nirmala. According to
some surviving activists, a heated argument took place between
Panchadi Krishna Murty and his wife, Nirmala when their dalam was
hiding quite close to a police search party. Their child began to cry
and everyone was worried that it may attract the attention of the
police. Krishna Murty is said to have told Nirmala about Vietnamese
women guerrillas wpo left their children behind. Nirulala, apprehen-
sive that she might be prevented from being with the dalam on
account of her child, finally left him with her parents and returned to
join the fighters.
 The question of man-woman relationships assumed a significant
dimension in the case of younger activists, especially unmarried men
and women. In underground life, especially in the dalams, together-
ness often led to 'liaisons'. The code of conduct prescribed by the
Party specifies that men and women should not, when they rest, sleep
•
in the vicinity of each other. Social codes of conduct were also against
the idea of friendship between a man and a woman. But here we
found that the Party leadership, while explicidy taking a position that
communist ideals prohibit gossiping, engaged implicidy in suspecting
and scrutinizing all relations between the sexes even ifthey were only
friendly conversations with each other. From our investigation it
appears to us that the Party leadership had no coherent policy towards
man-woman relations. Both trends, one based on pre-capitalist
patriarchal nonns, and the other on equality and friendship in a sort
of inarticulate manner, confronted each other in subdued forms. The
best reflection of this ambivalent position was two much discussed
cases. In the case ofRamana Rao, who apparendy develoi>ed intimate
relations ~th another comrade and eventually decided to marry her,
the Area Committee to which he belonged took objection. They even
extemed.him from the area. But the District Committee reversed the
•
decision and even conducted the marriage. In another case, that of
Jayanuna and Anand Rao, the Area Committee condemned their
intimate relationship and their decision to marry without consulting
the committee. Again, the District Committee reversed the decision.
This affair generated a great deal of discussion within Party circles.
After heated debates the Party ·conducted their marriage under its
auspices and ended the debate. As can be expected, this kind of
coming together of men and women, in the process of a bitter struggle
against adverse circumstances, forges links, sometimes intimate, with
each other. The leadership of the movement was often caught in its
own patriarchal norms, which were aggravated by social taboos that
prevail In the people among whom they were working, and the ideal
of equal human relationships. This contradiction was neve r taken as
a larger social and political question and hence the relationships
became a part of the underworld of knowledge. In the Srikakulam
movement it is difficult to say that a particular theoretical under-
standing of the issues was developed. The period of armed struggle
was, of course, too short and brutal for the Party to have evolved a
40 A Space wUbin tbe Strusgle

conscious policy. It should be noted, however, that the Pany did take
decisions on the merits and demerits of each case, with intense and
often violent debates preceding every decision.
Life in the dalarns generated its own set of issues. We must note
that unlike in the mass phase of the movement, the participation of
women in the dalarns hecame very restricted. They were left out of
the initial spatt> of guerrilla actions like attacks on class enemies at
Bathupuram, Padmapuram and Konaka. The leadership and the men
in general seemed to have adopted a protective attitude. Such an
attitude was, however, opposed by the women themselves as is
evident from the discussions at an Area Coftunittee meeting. In this
meeting all the women were unsparing in their criticism of the leaders
who, they said, had carried Ollt some guerrilla actions without even
informing the women members. Some of them also felt that the
leadership had not been ablt> to tap the potential of Nirmala in
particular, and women in general. In her own self-criticism, Nirmala
admitted that she had not contributed much after the death of her
husband but hoped to do better in future. Incidentally, Nirmala had
returned to her dalam after a brief stay with her parents following her
husband's death. She had left her daughter and newly-born soil to the
care of her parents and returned to join the struggle, in spite of being
dissuaded by her parents and offered amnesty by the police. After
overcoming the initial bout of depression, she launched into a frenzy
of action and became a legendary figure and within a short period, a
terror for the landlords, before she was captured and killed in an
'encounter' in December, 1969.
At the peak of the armed struggle, there were about 100 dalarns
comprising nearly 500 men and 50 women, each dalam usually
consisting of five members. Continuously on the move, carrying large
quantities of food, utensils and arms, the dalam members led a
strenuous life. Their daily routine consisted of hoisting the red flag,
singing of the song, Arona Patakam, criticism and self-criticism
sessions, delegation of daily work. The work consisted ofsentry duty,
cqllection of firewood, cooking, cleaning, taking political classes and
literacy classes, and also going on raids. The literacy drive consisted
of taking classes for illiterate members, teaching first aid and hygiene
to villagers on their visits, learning the daily quota of Mao Zedong's
quotations by heart and discussing them-all in a day's work. Mao 's
 7be Srlkaltulam Movement 41

three principles of discipline and eight rules of behaviour were

constantly emphasized.
Women members, both tribal · as well as those from the plains,
always took active part in the daily criticism and self criticism sessions
and were unsparing in their criticism of mistakes of their comrades,
leaders or themselves.
Women shared the daily chores with the men and the work was
allotted by rotation without any discrimination. Some of the women
activists were in charge of such 'men's jobs' as political classes and
arms and ammunition, while the men cooked and cleaned. Women,
they proudly recall, were reported to be better sentries than men. In
the initial phase of the guerrilla struggle, however, the men adopted
some kind of a protective attitude towards women that spared them
from strenuous work, thereby unwittingly leading to reinforcement
of the traditional sexual division of labour. But over time, the division
disappeared as the repression intensified.
However, the role of women in matters related to arms, ammuni-
tion and attacks remained a contentious issue. A few exceptions apart,
women were not in charge of arms and ammunition. They were more
or less kept away from the job. The consequences·of this were often
disastrous as they became victims of accidents that they unwittingly
caused. For instance, Gunnamma lost her arm in an explosion caused
-- by mixing chemicals that were not-supposed to be mixed. But, more
importantly, it is this lack of training in arms and explosives that
resulted in their passive role when raids and attacks took place. This
was criticized by women and some men time and again in the
committee meetings.
Notwithstanding the participation of women in decision-making
and dalams, their general participation declined as the movement
became more militant and repression intensified. What is significant,
however, in this phase, is the supportive role played by ordinary
women of the villages, who were sympathetic to the movement. It
was this support that continued to sustain the hunted guerrilla dalams
for a while. For instance, they .o ften took great risks to keep the dalams
supplied with food and water long after the men had turned away in
fear. Usually they did this in spite of being dissuaded by their hus-
bands. They used to pack rice or flour or millets in !orig strips of cloth
and wrap them around their waists under their dress. On reaching the
•

42 A Space wttbtn the Strusgle

hide-out of the guenillas, they used to strip in the nearby bushes,

remove the hidden food and dress again. Police used to keep constant
watch over sources of fresh water in the forests, in order to trap the
guerrillas. Women therefore used to carry pots of water along secret
paths for the guerrillas. Even from the 'regrouped villages' women
continued to take ambalt (gruel) and tobacco on the pretext of
carrying their own food while working in the podu fields.
Cracking under police torture could have had-as it did on many
occasions--disastrous consequences for the guemllas. These sym-
pathizers, however, proved their steadfastness in this respect time and
again. Even in conditions of most brutal treatment by the police, the
women consistently refused to divulge the whereabouts of dalams or
the leaders. For example, a young tribal girl who was caught carrying
food was tortured by the police but she refused to reveal the tyde-out
of the dalam to which she was taking food. Later when she was
questioned by the dalam commander as to wbat made her endure
such torture, she replied calmly, 'How could I reveal where you were?
If I had, wouldn't the police have finished you off?'
Altogether about two to three thousand women faced prosecution.
More than a thousand of them suffered long periods of imprisonment.
The leading activists among them were also involved in the famous
Parvatipuram Conspiracy Case, an all-encompassing sedition and
conspiracy case that the State launched against the revolutionaries.
Six of the 140 accused in the case were women. Some of them stayed
in jail for almost eight years. Women were a.l so subjected to molesta-
tion, torture, and harassment of all kinds when the State began
regrouping the villages. Altogether, of the 157 people killed in the
so-called 'encounters', 17 were women, 13 tribals and four from the
plains.

Conclusion

In the agency areas.-as we have St:en earlier, no gender-specific issues

seem to have been raised but women were organized and mobilized
as an integral part of the Sangham. The women too appear to have
responded readily because the crux of the matter was really the
conflict between the forest/revenue bureaucracy/moneylender-
 7be Srillaltulam Movemenl 43

landlord nexus and the exploited tribals. lllis conflict was focussed
on by the Sangham as of overriding and immediate concern and
which could be resolved only through collective action. It was this
perception of a commonality of interests that propelled the women
to take active part in the different phases of the movement.
Further, the women continued to participate in large numbers
during raids on landlords, propaganda and public meetings that
followed such attacks. It was only when the movement entered the
final and most bitter period of military confrontation with the might
of the State that women's role became restricted.
The role of women, their position with respect to the leadership
and their life in dalams indicate the influence of prevailing patriarchal
norms within the- movement and in the society outside. Yet, in the
Srikakulam movement, a definite trend seemed to have emerged in
the process of the struggle that ran counter to the forces of patriarchal
oppression. The distinctive characteristics of tribal women that
separated them from the women of the ptains were the extent of their
involvement in agricultural production, marriage and relationships
with men, childrearing, family responsibilities and domestic work.
Thus the economic and social status influenced the differential par-
ticipation within the larger framework of patriarchy. Some of the
patriarchal norms of tribal society as well as those of the plains faced
stiff resistance during the course of the movement. The socialist ideal
of man-woman equality in the notional sense came to be put into
practice in the course of the movement, although it was never
conceived in clear terms. The breakdown of patriarchal practices thus
can be seen as a complex process and not as a sudden event made
possible by external interventions.
It was the decade long economic struggle led by the Girijan
Sangham that resulted in tangible gains for the tribals, and earned the
loyalty of ordinary women, sympathetic to the movement even during
the worst crisis period. This is evident from the courage and ingenuity
displayed by these women who were often found to be more depend-
able than the men. But such a supportive role could not be raised to
the level of more active participation during the final and bloody
phase.
The period of armed struggle was, of course, too short for the Party
to have evolved a conscious policy with respect to promotion of
44 A Space wtthln tbe Struggle

women's involvement, or to impan guerrilla training to men or

women. In the agency, as well as in the plains, the Party and men in
general tended to be protective towards women. comrades thereby
unwittingly restricting the women's active role. At least in the ud-
danam dalaJns there is evidence of women strongly protesting against
such consideration ·and they clearly demanded an equal role in the
'actions' themselves.
How-t:ver, it mt.1st be said to the credit of the Patty that a policy of
sexual non-discrimination was followed in matters of division of
work, political education and the literacy campaign.
After an uprising is crushed (or called off as in the case of the
Telangana movement), a major problem that confronts the par-
ticipants is that of rehabilitation. In Srikalrulam, when women and
children were finally allowed to return from the 'concentration camps'
to their villages, most of them found that their homes did not exist :
they had been either burnt or destroyed. With most of their menfolk,
and some of their women, in jails, the women had to rebuild their
homes and stan from scratch. When the jailed women were released,
they did not have much difficulty in integrating themselves, at least
emotionally. Not only were they given a warm welcome, the tribals
felt a sense of pride in the participation of their women, a pride that
is evident even today, two decades later.

Some of the women In Srlkaknlam Mo"Rment

( • indicates tribal women)

•t. Btddlka Sukleu : Arrested and killed at Kidvaye, near Par-

vatipuram in March, 1968.
•2. Ntmmaka Sukkulu : Arrested and killed at Uridi on 24 ~tarch,
1969.
•3. Kadraka Puma: Arrested atjoridiguda and killed near Kakitada
on 5 June, 1969.
•4. Samra Selja : Arrested at Mantikonda, tonured and killed in July,
1969.
•5. Mandangt Sayamma : Arrested along with her husband,
Machayya, at Baklaru and killed in July, 1969.
 7be Srillaltulam Movemenl 45

•6. Savam Sukku : Arrested, tortured and killed in Turrunaguda.

"7. Savara Suklru : Arrested at Antikonda along with three others
and killed on 5 August, 1969.
"8. ]agalt Btrl : Arrested at Jankulabadra and killed on 20 August,
196').
"9. Bfddtlta Cbandmmma : Arrested and killed at Kakili, on 18
October, 1969.
•10. Arlkajayamma : Arrested along with her husband and others
at Boddamanuguda and killed on 11 December, }96').
•11. Arll.ta Gaya : Killed on 11 December, 1969.
•12. Bfddtka Suru : Arrested along with her husband and killed at
Saki on 11 January, 1970.
•13. Komn,gt Sundarl : Arrested at Gadidapalu and killed in
January, 1970.
•14. Pant Sulrltu : Arrested at Tadikonda and killed on 6 April, 1971.
15. Pancbadt Ntrmpla : Born in Kavali village in Palakonda taluk
in a poor peasant family, Ninnala studied and acquired political and
organizational experience under the guidance of her husband,
Panchadi Krishna Murty. She was very popular among the women-
folk of Boddapadu where she stayed after her marriage. Women used
to com~ to her for advice and guidance on all matters. She worked
actively in the Mahila Sangham before joining her husband in guerrilla
dalams. She was in a depressed state and became inactive for a brief
period following the killing of her husband in May, 1969. She
re-joined the dalam after leaving her daughter and son in the care of
her parents and went on a rampage leading some of the most
ferocious 'annihilation' campaigns. Landlords and moneylenders of
the uddanam area were paralyzed with fear at the thought of her
onslaughts, and rumours abounded about her omni-presence. Nir-
mala, along with poet Subbarao Panigrahi, Ankamma, Saraswati and
Sahu, was captured while sleeping in the early hours of 22 Decem-
ber, 1969. Police subjected them to several hours of inhuman torture
before killing them in Rangmetia hills on the same day. Nirmala was
22 when she died. Even now, she is revered as a folk heroine by the
peasantry of the uddanam area.
16. G. Ankamma : Ankamma was from a poor peasant family in
Rajam of Tekkali taluk. She was an active participant in Mahila
Sangham campaigns, before she joined the dalam. At a meeting of the·
46 A Space u!ftbin tbe Slru!JRle

Regional Activists Committee, she delivered a brief but fiery speech

on the significance of the anned struggle. She panicipated actively in
the criticism and self-criticism sessions. On one occasion she
deplored the 'bourgeois' habits of some of the women panicipants in
wearing terylene saris and all sorts of ornaments. She followed
Ninnala's example by donating her earrings to the Party fund. Ankam-
ma was 18 when she was killed.
17. T. Saraswalt : Saraswati was a very poor peasant woman,
landless and homeless. She used to stay, along with her elder sister,
in the Communist Party's Yuvajana Sangham (Youth Association)
office in Boddapadu. The call for anned struggle inspired her to join
the dalam. She was killed when she was 19.
18. Choudhary Sampoornamma : Wife of Choudhary Tejeswara
Rao, one of the prominent leaders of the movement, she was drawn
into the struggle under the influence of her husband. They were
married in 1<XiO but it was only from 1967 that she got politicized. She
became an active worker of the Mahila Sangham at Kotturu and
Boddapadu in the plains. Later she and her husband went to the
agency area in response to the Party's directives, leaving their children
with her parents. She panicipated in a number of raids and annihila-
tions including the killing of Gudla Siddhanti, landlord of Tumbali
village in Parvatipuram agency. She was one of the six women
accused in the Parvatipuram Conspiracy Case, and lodged in Visak-
hapatnam Central Jail for eight years. At present, stie and Tejeswara
Rao are both CPI (M) activists working in Srikakulam town. She is the
district secretary of the women's wing of the Party.
19. Vempata~ Gunnamma : Ajatapu woman, she was the second
wife of Vempatapu Satyam. She was a member of the central dalam
bµt did not participate in guerrilla actions because she lost her arm in
an explosives accident in the initial phase of the armed struggle. She
was usually kept in charge of the arms and ammunition in the dalam.
At present, she lives with her daughter, Bharati in the village Gumma,
and is a Telugu Desam activist.
20. Vempatapu Mantkyam : A strikingly good looking Jatapu
woman from Sobba village in Parvatipuram agency, she was the third
wife of Vempatapu Satyam. She met Satyam when he and his dalam
members sought shelter in their house. When police repression was
intensified, she left home to join Satyal1l's dalam and married him. She
 7be Srlkaltulam Movement 47

was only 15 years old at that time. After Satyam's death, she wandered
around in the hills for nearly a month, in constant fPar of capture by
the police, surviving on roots and tubers. She was eventually caught
at Vottada but released soon after. Presently, she is working as a
kamali (water carrier) in a ITDA ashram school (residential school for
tribal children) at Sobba.
21. Vempatapu Bbaratt : Daughter ofVempatapu Satyam and Gun-
namma, she had her high school education when she joined the
movement. She was an active participant in guerilla actions and was
one of the few women who wielded arms. She was one of the accused
in the Parvatipuram Conspiracy Case and lodged in Visakhapatnam
Central Jail for a number of years. She is now in Gumma village,
married, with two children, and is a Telugu Desam activist.
•22. Santhamma : AJatapu woman of Chilakam, she was arrested
for providing shelter and food to the guerrillas. She was interrogated
after being tied to a tree and made to witness the killin& of two male
activists of her village. After being released, she got married and is
now in Oppangi village in Parvatipuram agency.
23. Medavarapu Ramastta : Wife of Medavarapu Ramana Murty,
who was a teacher at B;ldevalasa in the plains, and one of the leaders
of the movement. After her husband left his job and became a
whole-time worker of the Party, local landlords complained to the
police and had a warrant issued for his arrest. He went underground
and Rarnasita, alone in the village now with her children, .was har-
rassed by the landlords of the village. It was then (early 1969) that she
decided to join the movement after leaving her children with her
relatives. Ramasita could sing well and was always the. lead singer
during the village campaigns of the Girijan Sangham. She was one
.
of the accused in the Parvatipuram . Conspiracy Case and was in jail
for several years. Her husb~d was killed in an 'encounter' in June,
1970. At present, she is said to be in Bhimavaram, East Godavari
District, but we were unable to get any further information about her.
0
24. Varalakshmt : A tribal woman from Kotturu, she joined the
movement despite opposition from her husband. Initially, she used
to provide food and shelter to the activists, which was resented by
her husband. Conflict between the two increased and when she failed
to patch up with her husband on the Party's advice, she joined the
dalam on her own. She was subsequently arrested and her daughter
48 A Space wllhtn the Struggle

born in jail. On her return from jail after five years, the husband
disowned her. She is now in Ghanasara working as a farm labourer
and supporting her daughter and herself.

SOURCES

J. Aron Kumar Pillai., A Study on Caste and Class Poltttcs in

Srlkakulam Dtstrlct (AP): 1967-72.
2. Sumanta Banerjee, In tbe Wake of Naxalbarl Calcutta: Subar-
narekha, 1980.
3. Census ofIndta, 1971, Srikakularn District.
4. Biplab Dasgupta, The NaxaJUe Movement Bombay: Allied Publish-
ers, 1974.
5. Sankar Ghosh, The Naxalite Movement: A Maotst Experiment Cal-
cutta: KL Mukhopadhyay, 1974.
6. Liberation, Organ of CPI (M-L).
7. Manoranjan Mohanty, Revoluttonary Vtolence-A Study ofMaoisl
Movements tn Jndta New Delhi: Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ud., 1977. JI,

8. NaxaJUe Consptmcy Case, Complatnt-cum-Cba~beets, Vols.1-

20.
I
IL Telugu

1. Amam Veerula]eevUha Cbarltralu(Biographical Sketches of Mar-

tyrs), Part-I., Hyderabad: Kranti Prachuranalu, 1987.
2. Dtartes and Note Books ofAdtbbatla Katlasam, Arika Somulu, Dr
Devtrumt Malltkharjunudu, Panchadt Krishna Murty and P.U.C.
Appamo., (As reproduced in various volumes of the Naxalite Con-
spiracy Case).
3. TV., Savarala]eevana Samit (The Savara Way of Life).
4. Vasanthada Ramalingachari., Statement issued before the sessions
coun in Secundrabad Conspiracy Case..
 1'be Sriail1Hlam Movement 49

5. Vempatapu Satyanarayana, SrillaJtuJa Gtrljanodyama Sanksbtpta

Cbarllra (A Brief History of the Srikakulam Girijan Movement).,
Vijayawada, Socialist Publications.
6. Reports of Andhra Pradesh Civil J,.iberties Committee and Or-
ganization for Protection of Democratic Rights on encounter deaths.

mi~.

1. Information about the movement and women's participation, as

well as the Savara and Jatapu tribal customs was collected by talking
to groups of men and women in the tribal villages of Gumma, Sobba,
Oppangi, and Chilakam (in Parvatipuram agency).
2. Structured and detailed inteiv:iews were conducted with the
Telugu writer, Bhushanam at Chinna Merangi village (about 20 km.
from Parvatipuram town), V. China Veerabhadrudu, Tribal Welfare
Officer, ITDA, Parvatipuram, Digumarti Kamalamma, teacher and CPI
(M) activist in Srikakulam town, V. Chandrasekhara Rao, former
dalam commander and now in Visakhapatnam, Chilakam Naidu,
village elder of Chilakam, Balaram, Sarpanch of Chilakam, and
Choudhary Sampoomamma, Vempatapu Gunnamma, Vempatapu
Manikyam and Santhamma-all of them women activists of the
Srikakulam movement.
 The Anti Price Rise
Movement

NANDITA GANDHI

From the mid 1960s onwards, a number of struggles, protests, and

movements gained ground in every part of India and continued to
grow till they were quashed by the declaration of a state of Emergency
and the suspension of civil liberties by the Indira Gandhi Government
in 1975.
In the rural areas, the two communist parties, the Communist Party
of India (CPI) and the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) led
mass land grab campaigns which involved almost half a million
people in different parts of the country. Regional parties like the LaJ
Nishan Party in Maharashtra, autonomous Marxists like the Shramik
Sanghatana in Shahada (Maharashtra) and independent tribal leaders
found a tremendous response from lower caste da/Us, tribals, and
landless labourers on issues like prices and employment. 'Naxalites'
or radical, underground Maoist groups in West Bengal, Bihar, Andhra
and Kerala spread their areas of influence.
Independent of party structures, students in Gujarat spearheaded
an agitation against high prices which was supported by a coalition
of farmers, political parties, and individuals (the Nav Ninnan move-
ment, 1973). Bihari students drew inspiration from this widespread
 7be Anlt Prtce Rise Movement 51

mass movement which succeeded in toppling the ruling state govern-

ment and invited Sarvodaya leader Jayprakash Narayan to shape and
spread a Bihar based movement in 1974. In urban centres, strikes,
demonstrations and agitations had become regular occurrences.
Maharashtra recorded the maximum number of disputes and closures
.Jt those restless years of the early seventies and Bombay, as its
foremost industrial city, took the lead in totalling the largest number
of strikes, bandbs (closures), gbemos Oiterally, encirclements) of
officials or offices, Ondian Labour journal, 1974).
What was significant was the willingness, among the different
political organizations such as parties, trade unions and peasant
organizations, to form joint fronts. Secondly, coalitions which were
formed independently of these political organizations brought into
the political arena sections of people belonging to different classes.
lbirdly, most of the struggles were directed against the State. The
Bihar movement went ahead to oudine an alternative political and
organizational ideology.
Women were in the forefront ot most of these agitations which
swept the country in the period between 1967 and 1975. Some
incidents of their participation which have been documented f@Veal
the surprise of party cadres at the militancy and large turnout of
women (Omvedt,G., 1979). Landless women working in famine relief
programmes eagerly participated in land grabs and marches. Women
from the organized sector joined the self employed, casual workers
and lower middle class housewives for a common show of strength
against unemployment and prices. Probably for the ftrSt time after the
Maoist student groupings, young women students in Bihar and
Gujarat from peasant or small trading and middle class families joined
their colleagues to be /atbt charged by the police.
What become popuiarly known as the Mahangai Pratikar Sahyukta
Mahila Andolan or the Anti Price Rise Movement of Bombay (APRM)
was one of the many struggles against inflation. In 1972, the two
communist parties and the socialist party1 women leaders who had
individually, and through their parties, been taking up the issue of
prices, routinely met to discuss the possibility of joint action. A large
number of women answered their call to protest against inflation in
general and for the availability of foodgrains, sugar, cooking oil, and
kerosene in particular. The objective of the joint front was to pres-
52 A space Wllbin tbe S'"'881e

surize the govenunent to check the price rise and ensure an adequate
quota of subsidized essential commodities through the public dis-
tribution system. Sporadically, but faithfully, over a period of three
years, middle class and working class women-young, old,
housebound mothers, mabt/a mandal (women's club) members,
those working at home, on piece rate work or as domestic servants,
those belonging to unions or having joined the demonstration be-
cause of frien&, marched with rolling pins, plates and spoons,
gheraoed2 officials, and confronted state ministers. The newsmedia
widely publicized these enthusiastic and militant events creating
ripples of similar actions in different parts of Maharashtra and in
neighbouring Gujarat. The /atni morcba or the rolling pin demonstra-
tion attracted a huge number (estimates range from 10,000 to 20,000).
of women. Its surprised leaders hailed it as a 'new women's
movement', a 'popular consumer's movement' and as the beginning
of a 'people's movement.' The APRM came to an abrupt halt with the
arrest of most of its leaders during the Emergency in 1975.3
Apart from some newspaper articles, the APRM has not been
comprehensively documented anywhere. This is consistent with the
general trend where women appear but briefly through centuries of
oral and written Indian history. Only at certain times when move-
ments involved women, such as, for example, the Reform, or Inde-
pendence movements, has there been some documentation.
Recently, the women's movement, the spread of women's studies,
and establishment of women's publishing houses have triggered
some, mainly descr:iptjve, documentation and research on women's
political participation.4
Also interesting is the fact that, in the space of 15 years, the APRM
participants seemed to have forgotten their movement and slipped
back into routine life with barely any memories or changes in their
lives. This came home to me very forcefully when I first attempted to
meet and talk to some of the APRM participants. However, in 1983
the same leaders were eager to revive the anti-price rise movement,
as they once again found themselves facing similar problems: high
prices, a falling standard of living, unemployment, etc. The prices of
essential goods, especially tea, had become prohibitive. I atteoded
some of the first organizational and mobilizing meetings of this group.
 7be Anti Price Rise Movement 53

But their effons met with little response outside of their regular
activists and party members.
Both the above observations hinge on what can broadly be called
the study of women's political participation. 1bey raise two interre-
lated questions: why has women's political participation been
neglected in the social sciences and how can we understand move-
ments, especially women's movements? And can all women's
mobilization be classified as a part of a women's movement? The Anti
Price Rise Movement, 1972-75 is a good case for study as it stands
midway between the past which we can so easily consign to oblivion,
and the present in that many of the participants of the movement are
still available for us to be able to trace at least some facets of its history
through them. Secondly, it was distinctively a women's campaign
peopled only by women, and which was perceived as being both a
part of the women's movement and linked to a general struggle.
Tilis paper examines the relationship between women's political
participation, their interests and the women's movement. A mobiliza-
tion or movement only composed of women need be no different
from a general movement. In this context there is al.so the necessity
to differentiate between a movement, a campaign and an action. A
women's movement, even though it may emerge from a general one,
has its own dynamics, understanding and ideological thrust. The first
part of this paper considers some of the theoretical questions raised
by this and the second describes the devaluation of women's lives as
a result of India's policy of progress through capitalist development
and modernization combined with prevalent patriarchal and Hindu
beliefs. In particular it shows the effect of the economic crisis of the
seventies on women, their work and lives. The third part outlines the
nature of political participation encouraged by the State and its
machinery, and political parties and their structures. A two-tiered
relationship of the women to local leaders and the party is perhaps
the most effective way for mass mobilization but it has some important
inherent problems. The last part of this paper records the actions,
method and structure of the APRM which were initiated and super-
vised by its leaders who share a common background of class,
political involvement and understanding of women's oppression. To
understand the movement from the women's point of view, the main
 54 A Space wUbtn tbe Struggle

attempt was to seek out and interview as many women as possible

who had participated in it.

One of the consequences of the women's movement has been the

infusion of a keen sensitivity on the question of women's oppression
and their contribution in all spheres of life and study. Western feminist
academics (Mies, M, 1979; Stanley and Wise, 1983) have criticized the
social sciences for their male bias or androcentrism. The fact that the
social sciences happen to be a male preseive is only one reason for
this bias. More important and subtle is the conceptual framework and
methodology of social science research which has excluded a range ..~
I
of experiences, perceptions and contributions to society. Responses
to this exclusion come in the fonn of the 'corrective' inclusion of
women wherever they were found to have been ignored; in the
critique of sexist methodologies, for example, hard/quantitative data
collection versus soft/qualitative data and the objective versus the
subjective approaches; and in questioning the objectives of research
itself; askirig, that is, whether and how it feeds into the women's
movement 11lis feminist critique has resulted in a rediscovery of
women in research, usually with a filling-in-the-gaps approach,
which is of course very necessary. However, what is at the centre of
this ciitique is the importance of continually questioning and relating
the basic assumptions of research, its analytical tools and processes
· to the experiences and responses of people.
One of the most obvious reasons why women's political participa-
tion has been unrecorded is the emphasis of the conventional ap-
proach on individual or group political or public activities connected
with public bodies. Patterns of voting on the basis of income, class,
or education have been one of the most studied aspects of political
participation. 11lis approach limits its parameters to membership in
parties or groups, attendance at meetings, participation in campaign-
ing or some 'official' contact with the political process. The reasons
for women's lack of participation are thus not difficult to locate. Their
domestic responsibilities, lack of education, scarce leisure time, or
mobility, resources and organizational experience prevent them from
 7be Ant1 Price Rise Movement 55

joining formal politics. Such research has therefore been in.sensitive

to other forms of women's participation which tend to be less fonnal
and more connected with their lives and everyday consciousness.
Women have more readily resorted to direct, onetime, often illegal
actions, or performed support functions in long term struggles like
movements and revolutions. Such actions usually do not require
regularity, attendance, <M:bate, organizational functioning and official
responsibility. Women's political participation has been predominant
in price protests, food riots, land issues, crisis related work/wage
issues like famine relief, housing and rent issues, as well as alcoholism
and corruption.
In the 1960s, there were .several movements like the peace,
women's and student movements in many parts of the world, which
forced theoreticians to shift their analytical focus from the individual
to the dynamics of social movements. Structural functional theorists
like Smelser (1963) enumerated several conditions such as a
democratic framework, contradictions within the social order,
prevailing general beliefs and ineffective social control which deter-
mine a social movement. On the other hand, theorists like Davis
(1962) and Gurr (1970) emphasized deprivation or individual frustra-
tion and expectation as the key element in participation in move-
ments. Both considered such forms of collective behaviour as
spontaneous outbursts which wither away or become institutional-
ized. Resource mobilization theorists like Tilly (1970) see no dif-
ference between institutional and non-institutional behaviour. Both
are a rational pursuit of interests dependent on indigenous resources
like leaders, networking, pressuring power, and external resources
like professional organizers and formalized organizations . In
criticism, Zurcher and Snow (1981) at a different level, return to the
individual or subjectivity of the participants in the movement (Desai,
N.1987).
A recent crop of what has been called the 'new social movements'
(1970s) like the human rights movement, science, ecology, anti-
nucleur and neighbourhood associations movements has once again
provoked a political and theoretical debate. Some theoreticians have
noticeably diverged from traditional Marxist analytical frameworks.
Analysing Latin American new social movements, Evers (1985) obser-
ves that there is no one particular political situation, a dictatorship or
56 A space wUbtn tbe Stru/Jg/e

I
democracy, or a waning of left politics which encourages the forma- ......;

tion of a movement. Rather they are reactions and resistance to the

contemporary social development of capitalist societies which create
new forms of subordination and oppression. Laclau (1985) criticizes
the traditional left conceptualizing of social conflicts which links the
social agents, peasants, bourgeois etc., with the economic or the
'objective,' like the transition of feudalism to capitalism and the
political level in the form of representation of interests. Social agents
cannot be identified as coming from one specific economic or social
grouping. 1be relation between social positions, i.e. as a worker or a
resident in a slum, is not fixed but assumes an autonomy which
interrelates in complex ways. Consequently their interests are not
specific to their economic and social relations and their demands are
specific as well as for a role in the decision making process
(Slater,D., 1985).
What becomes evident is . that social movements emerge and
develop from complex, fluid relationships between the State and
society, the character of the dominant political institutions and ideol-
ogy, the form of capitalist economy and generation of new subordina-
tions and the 'culture' of political participation of social forces. To
hunt solely for a material basis for movements or, on the other hand,
to reject it, would reduce the attempt to understand the emergence
of a movement to a simplistic linearity and to mere description.
Economic causes and the reactions of the State are related to different
forms of oppression and alienation which find collective expression
in a struggle against existing social relations.
'Movement' theories, when not breaking up the participants in neat
groups based on class or social grouping, see them as a general mass
and women's participation is assumed to be no different from men's.
But for ·women to have participated and the movement to have
specifically mobilized them means that there exists another dimen-
sion-that of gender. The unexplored and undeveloped part of these
theories lies in the area of women's relationship with the movement.
How do women see the movement or its organizations channelizing
their experiences and protests, and how do these organizations steer !
1
and organize women? And what can be called a 'women's movement.•
Firstly, movements and their.researchers see women, all women,
as an undifferentiated mass, with a unified set of interests and illso
 7be Anlt Price Rtse Movement 57

assume that those interests are their primary ones. Mo lyneux (1985)
differentiates gender interests as those pertaining to women because
of their social positioning as women. Gender interests can be practical
or strategic. Gender practical interests arise from concrete conditions
or immediate needs and are usually formulated by women themsel-
ves. Family welfare, civic amenities like water or housing and prices
are the most perceived practical needs of women. Strategic interests
emerge from an analysis of women's oppression and from a strategy
for change. For example, the demand for equality or sharing of
housework comes from the understanding of sexual discrimination
and division of labour.
Women may not recognize or demand strategic interests. They
have to be constructed or evolved from practical ones. Class and
regional interests for example are quite likely to take precedence over
gender interests. There is no automatic transition from one set of
interests to the other. The movement can become the medium for the
politicization of practical interests. This has been the case for many
movements which began as small issue-based struggles like the
Greens Movement in Germany, the peace movement, etc. To what
extent the movement acts as a politicizing medium depends on how
it perceives its relations with women and the importance it gives to
women's liberation. In the case of a general movement, there is the
possibility of subordinating women's interests in favour of general
goals. This is usually justified for the good of the movement and
people as a whole. Strategically it may be necessary for the movement
to set itS priorities. The Sandinistas in Nicaragua mobilized women on
general goals, with the promise of realizing women's liberation after
the revolution. How and to what extent women's liberation is brought
in at a later date is a topic for debate. Most women revolutionaries
active in ongoing struggles are acutely aware of the history of revolu-
tionary movements which later tend to 'forget' their earlier promises.
The ideal would be to integrate the two movements, to politicize
women in the course of the movement by takirig up their is.sues, and
forming their own organizations, without compromising its broad
aims.
Secondly how can we define movements? Are all conflicts, strug-
gles and agitations movements, or on the way to becoming move-
ments? And what is it that makes for a specifically women's
 movement. Movements have been defined by two important features: -•
their ability for continued action and their aims. A broad definition of
a movement is a sustained effort made through collective mobili7.a-
tion to bring about change based on a pre-Oetermined or emerging
ideology (Rao, M.S.A.). A women's movement would presumably
· move from practical issues to broader ones leading to liberabon
within the context of existing political discourses. 1be Reform Move-
ment in India was mainly concerned with the elimination of social
excesses like ill treatment and atrocities and gradually moved to the
realization of a higher status for women. Since the 1960s, the feminist
movement has put forward as its aim the transfonnation of unequal
social, political, economic and ideological relations between women
apd men and the State. Most movements also present a strategy and
vision of change and a new society. Prolonged agitations and cam-
paigns especially huge in number have often been confused with
movements.
These, then are some of the problems involved in documenting
and analysing w.o men 's political participation. In order not to treat the
issue simplistically or rely mainly on obvious economistic or political
arguments, research and the methods of research will have to involve
themselves more with women and their forms of expressions within
the complex, inter-changing relationships with the State, develop-
ment, and political organizations.

II

'Women are the poorest of the poor,' Kashibai Adelkar, 45 years,

casual labourer, Chinchpokli, Bombay.

Women and the economic crisis

Post independence India's startling progress by way of the growth of J

industry, introduction of agricultural reforms, the establishment of an
export-oriented trade and a more or less functioning democracy failed
to benefit the country's masses. Rather, the majority of people, and
more so the womeri, experienced the effects of this transformation
 1be Anti Price Rise Movement 59

caused by agrarian capitalism and commercialization in the form of

poverty, social confusion and a class polarization.
One of the areas where the impact has been most noticeable is on
women's labour. The organized sector has not only virtually stopped
absorbing women but is steadily retrenching them. From 1951 to
1971, women's employment declined by 20 per cent in factories and
by 47. 7 per cent in mines and, in spite of the Equal Remuneration Act,
(1976), women are paid between 40 to 60 per cent of men's wages.
Household industries like leather, tobacco, weaving, etc., are dis-
banding as a consequence of cheap mass produced commodities
from factories and sweatshops. Trade and commerce also show a
substantial drop in women's participation from 1911 to 1971. Land
reforms and the green revolution seem to have cut the number of land
holding women cultivators by one third and increased the number of
landless labourers (National Census, 1971). Studies from different
parts of the country show how the smallest introduction of tech-
nological change has displaced thousands of women doing tradition-
al work like manual irrigation, harvesting, pounding and grinding
grain. (Kishwar M. and Vanita R, 1980). With the limited opportunities
in the organized sector and usurpation of work by men and science,
· · women have found themselves gradually pushed into the unor-
ganized, informal sector in which they perform casual, seasonal and
piece rate work in the most undignified and insecure conditions and
at low wages.
Demographically, the proportion of women to men has bee~
steadily declining since the beginning of the century. In 1902 there
were 972 women per 1,000 men and in 1971 the figure stood at 930:
1,000. The steepest fall has been noticed in the period between 1961
to 1971. In a perverse way the fall in sex ratio coincides with society's
general neglect of women. The mortality rate of girls aged 0 to 9 years
is much higher than boys, or 56 per cent for females and 41 per cent
for males. If the girl child survives the disproportionate allocation of
food and health care, she faces another handicap in the area of
education. Only 24.7 per cent of women are educated as against 42.6
per cent of men. Women's calorie intake is two thirds that of men but
their energy expenditure is at par or more than men, especially in
rural areas. Malnutrition, anaemia and poor use of health care facilities
(for every five men, only one woman uses a primary health centre)
6o A Space wUbtn tbe Stru/Jgle

are the main factors behind the high maternal mortality rate. Dowry
-....
murders and suicides among.st married women takes a toll of two to
five women a day.
Capitalist development and modernization policies, combined
with a strict patriarchal and Hindu tradition, have devalued women's
lives, displaced them from traditional employment in agriculture,
industrial work and even from commerce and trade. Illiterate, with
no skills to suit the changing job market, socially restricted and easily
stigmatized, they are all the more dependent on their families and
males. Women are not unaware of their non-entity status and oppres-
sion in the family but are cornered by helpless!le$ into a silent
acceptance.
'Prices affect everyone but more so women because we look after
the family. Then we have to look for work or do more work to be
able to buy enough' says Ranjana Koll, aged 35 years, a f15herwoman
from Mahim, Bombay.
The economic crisis of the 196os was amplified by the increase in
unproductive expenditure during the China and Pakistan wars in 1962
and 1971, and three years of continuous famine and drought in
different parts of the country. Contributions of foreign aid were not
enough to save the economy from heavy deficit financing. Prices of
all commodities shot up and blackmarketers ruled the market. Essen-
tial commodities like foodgrains, sugar and oil saw a 25 to 30 per cent
increase. Official measures to check inflation such as wage freezes .•
and credit controls only frustrated an already disillusioned and
economically battered people.
The 196os crisis had an immediate and tangible effect on the
working class family in Bombay. The average monthly income of the
working class woman and man in 1970 was about Rs 120 and Rs 290
respectively. And white collar workers earned between Rs 500-800.
A large chunk of the family income went into food, followed by
education, medicine and then rent, interest on loans, and lastly
recreation (Banaji,R.,1976). With the rise in prices, the food bill
doubled, placing even staples, the mainstay of the meal, and ..'
vegetables such as the lowly potato, and onion, outside the reach of
working class families. The picture which emerged from the variaus
individual and group interviews and 'gossip sessions' was that
women, as the ones primarily responsible for domestic arrangements,
 7be Anlt Price Rise Movement 61

were faced with the task of balancing devalued money, scarce com-
modities and family needs. The most obvious effect was the lengthen-
ing of their working hours to an inhuman level. They were forced to
buy low quality grain which needed more time to clean, and cheaper,
more tim~gfuels such as coal or cowdung cakes. This extra
load added to their already existing burden: spending long hours
carrying out basic survival tasks such as fetching water from far away
taJ)5, living and cooking in cramped quarters, maintaining unsteady
and leaking shacks, and tending to the family, relatives and villagers.
Their total working time inside and outside the house stretched from
roughly 11 to 14 hours.
Women who were housewives and might have waited for illness,
alcoholism or debt to seek jobs, were now in immediate search for
work. M05t of the women interviewed in slums said that' they were
forced to become self-employed because there were just no jobs
going around. The easiest way was to provisle meals for industrial
workers who could not afford to eat at lodges and eating houses.
Others became petty traders selling eatables, and inexpensive items.
Others without capital and contacts required for selling opted for
domestic \5CJ'Vice as servants in nearby middle class houses. Those
already involved in this type of survival level work found that the
sffiallest change, such as a price hike, or a temporary shortage of
foodgrains, depleted their already small profit margins.
The quest for work, the threat of a lowered standard of living and
extended working hours are common features in the life of a workins
class woman in Bombay. Women have always worked in their paren-
tal homes and have seen their mothers and other female relatives in
their matrimonial homes labouring, yet they see themselves as bour-
geois housewives, leaving the hearth for the outside world. M05t of
the working class women living in slums, and especially those who
participated in the anti-price rise demonstrations in Bombay, were
part-time workers or self-employed. Yet their work was never impor-
tant in their own eyes. They considered themselves primarily
housewives because 'the house is not and cannot be run on our
money.' In households where the wife earned as much as the hus-
band, it was seen as 'not a secure, but a seasonal earning.' For women;
working shattered the myth of the male breadwinner but paradoxi-
cally, also exposed their own vulnerability. Women's work to a large
62 A~ wUbm the Stru/J/Jle

estent aepended on men's associations and decisions. Their wages -·•

~

were not only insufficient for the survival of the family, they were also
irregular. Work which meant violating 'respectable' social norms
without even the payoff of financial security, independence or status,
was only a physical drudgery and viewed by the majority of women
as an extension of their domestic labour.
There was a clear sexwli division of labour which was actively
upheld by women. They were sometimes helped by husbands who
would cook for the family but would leave the washing for the
women. They would often shop but generally for big items and not
for everyday needs. Fetching water was a woman's job which in-
volved standing in queues in front of water taps and then carrying the
buckets and pots home. Child rearing was exclusively done by
women. 'Men are not by nature intended to do this work' was the
common refrain, qualified by 'then what are women supposed to do?'
A 'good' .woman was one who not only did not work outside the
home but also did not associate with strangers. Women, especially
Maratha women living in Bombay slums, have very few relationships
outside the family, their relatives, and at the most their neighbours of
the same caste and language (Gore, 1970). Lower middle class
women living in tenements, with a more or less fixed tenancy, had
more communication with their neighbours. But neither group was
inclined to form associations or groups, unlike their men who or-
ganized neighbourhood committees and occasional festivals. The I
small amount of time usually spent in socializing while performing
tasks like rice cleaning or helping each other cook for festivals, was
also wrenched away by the increase in work because of the price rise.
However, women were forced to come together to buy foodgrains
collectively at wholesale prices, and later to organize and protest
,publicly. ·
In yet another way, the economic crisis succeeded in strengthening
the housewife image. Employed men found themselves retrenched
or on strike, and the unemployed idled away their time on the streets.
The village land and the extended family which usually acted as a
fallback system for the Bombay working class was itself in dire straits .,
and could not be of any help. And the spectre of distress sales and
massive debts loomed ahead. The . woman, now the last resort
housewife, felt that it was her responsibility to feed the family: 'There
is nothing I can do about my husband's job, and God knows why the
prices keep rising. But I can work, and I can go with the party to
protest if it will get some food for the family.'
Taking the responsibility for keeping the family intact and
manifesting it in a variety of ways-by engaging in waged work or
protesting on the streets-were not only reactions to high prices,
scarcity of food and effons to feed their families, they were expres-
sions of the women's fear for their survival. Women were conscious,
on the one hand, of the oppressive conditions within the family and
on the other, of the Impossibility of their survival outside it. Good or
bad, the family gave them a social status and confidence of societal
acceptance as well as a set pattern of sodal relationships. They were
also aware that outside the family, their limited skills, as well as the
violence and patriarchal prejudices ofsociety, restricted their mobility
and opportunities for jobs. The economic and emotional merged to
give women a sense of insecurity. It was not surprising that they were
apprehensive and desperate. The economic crisis could easily pres-
surize male members to migrate to other cities or into withholding
their social and family responsibilities which would ultimately bririg
about the disintegration of the family, something that the women
feared greatly.

ID

Women came in contact with political parties mainly through the local
leaders and male cadres. The parties have always given some atten-
tion to women if not to their problems. One of the oldest Cooununist
Party leaders, Dange, always encouraged his wife to hold women's
meetings, especially during strikes, asking the efcimen to be patient
as the struggle would benefit them too. Mahila Mail.dais or women's
cl_u bs were formed for literacy classes and celebration of festivals.
However, the wife of the local leader or cadre who maintained links
with the women and the party did not have a similar position. The
worker/local leader was the representative of a more or less
homogeneous group with identical interests. He was in a position of
64 A Space wtthtn tbe StruiJg/e

power because of the services he provided to the people, the party -'•
and to industry. 1be local woman leader had no such power but
corrunanded the trust of the women in the area because of her honesty
and helpfulness. She was the one women approached in times of
need, and when the intervention of the party was required. She was
not so much a leader as a local mobilizer who had the qualities and
status of a leader in some cases.
Most of the local women mobilizers of the Anti Price Rise Move-
ment were very proud of their position. 'The leaders are at the top,
the people at the bottom and we are the link between the two.' This
was Tara Gadgil, 55 years old, a member of the Socialist Party and its
women's wing, the Samajwadi Mahila Sabha. The local leaders, unlike
the overall leaders, stayed in the area and were in daily contact with
women, their problems and moods. Tara Valanju of the Shramik •
Mahila Sabha said, 'I live very close to three slums. Whenever I went '
there, or if I met them on the way to market, the women would tell
me their problems and we would do whatever we could for them.'
Or 'I am not a corporator, but women knew of my connections with
the party and would come to complain about overflowing gutters or
garbage. I would take them to meet the leaders who in tum would
direct them. Sometimes something happened, sometimes it did not.'
The women mobilizers mostly belonged to lower middle class
backgrounds which was probably one of the reasons for their un-
finished education. They had not been drawn into the nationalist
movement like their husbands but had remained silent spectators or,
at the most, performed the tasks of couriers. One of the them,
SaraswatiJagtap, who remembered her husband hiding guns behind
their house, felt that her contribotion to the independence struggle
was not being ~n obstacle tc. her husband's activities. As they said,
'We became politically active through our gbar sansar,' or after
marriage, with the support of their husbands.
Their earliest political tasks were at the behest and advice of their
men. So for Shalini Raut, the wife of a Peasant and Worker's Party
leader it was a family activity. 'We were not expected to be political
pundUs but cook and look after the hundreds of people that came for
J.
agitations. We made arrangements for the leaders to have clandestine
II
meetings and canvassed for the party during elections. When the
women leaders of the parties spoke to our husbands in 1971, we
 7be Ant1 Price Rtse Movement 65

joined the Anti Price Rise Movement.' Jagtap's husband wanted her
'to attend study circles. I had to sit through people like Aruna Asaf Ali
speaking half in English and half in Hindi about capitalism and
struggle.' Sunanda Masdekarworked along with her socialist husband
in the Rashtra Sewa Dal during the nationalist movement and then in
the Socialist Party. 'This had its advantages and disadvantages. It gave
me a lot of opportunity to meet people and it also left me doing all
the dirty work after schemes and projects fell through.'
However, most of the men's support stopped at encouragement.
Women were expected to complete all their domestic work and then
engage in politics. Young mothers and unmarried girls were automat-
ically excluded. Usually women who were past middle age or with
children over 10 years could enter politics. Vandana Kamik, a 49 year
old housewife from Mahim, said: 'Luckily for us, our children were
grown up. I could start the day early, make the food, send the children
off to school and be free by the afternoon. Then we could do party
work like collection of membership dues, administrative jobs or go
and speak with the neighbourhood women. Most of us returned
home around 5 or 6 o'clock. When there were demonstrations or
meetings we would fll1ish our work early or request someone to look
after the home.' Mai Atlye, aged 60 years, from Girguam remembers:
The men laughed when I asked whether I could go to the meetings.
Why do you want to go walking about in the hot sun, they asked.
Why shouldn't I? I was not neglecting my duties as my daughter-in-
law was looking after the house.' At Chinchpokli, working class
women spoke of Tawdebai as the most active member of the move-
ment because she 'is a widow and, has no one to bother or prevent
her &Om going to morchas.'
The local mobilizers' relationship with their leaders was, one of
admiration and personal loyalty. 'Our leaders are clean,' they said,
'not like those politicians who are out to grab money and power at
any cost.' Women were not put through study circles or regular party
work like the men cadres but were drawn gradually into the organiza-
tion through personal contact and dialogue. Most of the local leaders
had understood the causes behind the price rise, and the necessity of
organizing, through dialogue, with the leaders. Problems or questions
raised by women were answered at group or individual meetings.
Because of the personal style of discussion, the local mobilizers
66 .A Space wttbm tbe SlrulJsle

usually also picked up the tone and rhetoric of their leaders. 'Why ·-·•
have the prices risen? What can one expect from the C:Ongress?
Government people take bribes from the traders, so they don't care
what happens to us poor people. They say there is a scarcity, then
where is all the food that our country has produced. They hide it and
then behind our backs put it on the blackmarket. It is the duty of the
government to provide its people with food or they have no right to
rule.'
All the local mobilizers vividly remembered the Anti Price Rise
Movement and all its actions. 'There was no meeting which I did not
a~end. I would wait for our leaders to tell me about a gherao or rally.
Not everyone was called for gheraos.' Their role was of trusted
lieutenants who could be called upon at any time to support the
organization. During gheraos, they were clandestinely and efficiently
called, by use of passwords to bypass police vigilance, to the place
where the concerned government official or minister could be con-
fronted. Until they actually arrived at the place of gherao, they had
no idea what the action was to be. At other times, they were asked to
mobilize women in their areas for a rally or procession.
Women are not easy to drdw out of their homes and work. They
usually had to be cajoled into attending meetings and rallies. The local
mobilizers developed their own method of mobilizing and organizing
women to attend political actions: 'During the Anti Price Rise Move-
ment, I would say that on the one hand you are earning money and
on the other because of rising prices you use it all up and there is
nothing left to save. SO we have to do something. This appealed to
them because all of us need to save money for emergencies.' 'You .
cannot say look, the prices are going up, so we have to take out a
morcha. No one will come. Everyone knows that no matter what we
do prices will keep going up. Rather I would say, look, there is no
kerosene, you know that because you have returned empty handed
from the ration shop. let us go and meet the official... then they would
come.' Sometimes, the local mobilizers would use street comer meet-
ings to explain the necessity of organizing or invite the leaders to
speak in their areas. 'It makes a difference if women hear about all
• I
these things from the leaders who are also able to speak and explain
better.'
 7be Anti Price Rise Movemenl 67

A large number of women responded to the call of the local

mobilizers and their leaders. Al the peak of the APRM there were as
many as 10,000 to 20,000 women marching down the streets with
rolling pins in their hands, shouting slogans and waving flags and
banners. The majority of them came from the slum tenements and
trade unions organized by the local moblli7.ers or the party leaders.
Mrinal Gore, the President of the APRM committee had been working
in the Goregaon area of Bombay for 30 years, taking up issues such
as water supply, housing and corruption. Ahilya Rangnekar, the vice
president, had been active in communist party trade unions in Bom-
bay for most of her career. Manju Gandhi, another vice president and
Prema Purav, the treasurer, had both been active in the textile mill
areas and the communist party women's programmes. Their political
allies, the Peasant and Worker's Party, had develo~ a stronghold in
the Koliwada area after the Samyukta Maharashtra Movement of 1956
for an independent linguistic state. A smattering of middle class
women from voluntary organizations and mahila mandals lent the
movement 'respectability.• Kamal Desai, the joint secretary of the
committee said, "The poor are always out there: it means that they are
really moved. It was also a big thing for the Press which would
photograph and write about them. The movement got tremendous
publicity.'
The two-tier relationship of the local mobilizers and the women
with the party, fairly similar to a patron-client relationship, is even
stronger amongst women because of their utter inexperience and
bewilderment with anything official. The most obvious consequence
is that the women's first loyalty is to their local male/female leader
and not the party. Women with a common identity such as workers
or slum dwellers remain divided on the lines of caste and regional
chauvinism instead of forming a.somewhat homogeneous group. For
the party, it is an organiz.ational weakness not to have direct contact
with the people except through an intermediary. The fortunes of the
party in a particular area, then, lie in the hands and wishes of the local
leaders. They guarantee a vote bank, mobilize a numerical strength
for rallieS and give calls for strikes. Parties have, for years, tried to
either co-<>pt these leaders into their ranks or break their hold over
the people. These efforts, however, have not been very rigorous for
several practical reasons such as the perennial shortage of
68 A Space wllbm tbe Struilgle

man/woman power to do painstaking, daily 8J'll$root5 level work

and training of indigenous leaders. Parliamentary politics demands
--·1
the investment of a great deal of time and effort in electioneering
which detracts from building networks and programmes. The two-tier
system provides easier, more expedient access to clusters of people.
Secondly, this system wades on payoffs of services i.e. as long as
the leader or party can deliver, they will be rewarded with political
loyalty and votes. As one of the women said very apdy, '1be party
needs us as much as we need them.' This attitude should be differen-
tiated from one of expectations and accountability. In a trade union.
for example, a worker expects the union committee to provide
services but it is with a sense of belonging and association. The social
diversity and different loyalties and identities provide an easy ground
for clientalism which functions as a deal between different persons.
As a political method, it circumsaibes people's participation by either
'fixing' things or directing people to a certain action. During the
APRM, slum committees in contact with the Samiti or their parties, had
promised to mobilize women. F.ach family sent one member, either
the wife or the daughter-in-law, to the movement's rallies. It was not
uncommon to hear many women say, 'I went to the morchas because
my man is in the slum committee. He said that after all the party has
done for us, it is the least we can do for them .. .' The underlying feeling
was if we do our bit then the leaders can do something at their encl.
And in spite of the leaders spending endless hours speaking to
women at street comer meetings there was little time and space to
acquaint women with information on collective bargaining, the offi-
cial channels of food distribution, political awareness and their rights.
Going to rallies repeatedly did instil confidence, and brought with it
a sense of euphoria and a feeling of collective strength. '1be first time
I went to a morcha,' a woman said, 'I was so scared that I might piss
in my saree! I had never gone to that part of the city. It was a totally
new experience for me.'
Comparatively, the impact of the two-tier system on the local·
mobilizers was different because of tneir curious personal and loyal-
ty-bound relationship with the leaders. It tended at times also to be a -
I
. '
more individual, than community-to-party relationship. They were in
almost daily contact with the leaders with time and opportunity to
exchange ideas and infonnation on the political situation, etc. It is
 7be A nit Price Rise Movement (:I}

therefore not surprising that they could easily pick up the rhetoric of
their leaders. They were, apart frpm the leaders, the most regular
participants in all events and at all stages of the movement. A sincere
and deep politicization made them acutely aware of their democratic
rights and infused them with a sense of militancy and spirit. The
leaders could, without hesitation, call on them at any time and for any
event. The success of the many gheraos during the APRM, in spite of
severe police vigilance, was mainly due to the unquestioning willing-
ness of the local mobilizers and the careful military-style planning.
Unfortunately, personal contact, combined with a touch of awe, and
loyalty, is usually associated with this kind of allegiance. This in-
hibited any real debates or exchanges of ideas between the leaders
and local mobilizers. If dir.-erences cropped up, the local mobilizers
. would simply drop out, rather than face their leader's ire, or tackle
their polished oratory, class and education. It is not surprising then
that the local mobilizers during the Anti Price Rise Movement were
very efficient as conduits but did not emerge as leaders, who could
suggest and take a particular course of action when their own leaders
were forced to go underground.
Thirdly, the two-tier relationship system encouraged and main-
tained vertical linkages of women to the leader and to the party, rather
than horizontal ones between women. One of the main advantages
of this was that the samiti could mobilize different castes and classes.
The Anti Price Rise Movement was unique in bringing middle and
working class women together to support each other. Party affiliated
organizations with a network of contacts can mobilize a mass of
women, and demonstrate collective strength which can threaten State
power. Undoubtedly, the Anti Price Rise Movement mobilized the
largest number of women since the Samyukta Maharashtra agitation
in 1956.
Horizontal linkages are ties between women which manifest them-
selves in self-organization, local activities, informal networking and
support to each other. Women's identity and energies are usually
concentrated in the family. It is common for them to readily accept
and be proficient at organizing family wedding banquets but hesitate
to undertake responsibility for a community festival like Ganpa ti Puja.
Urban women, for a number of reasons, did not build upon or
fonnalize their sakbt support systems or religious women's gather-
70 A Space wllbln tbe StniBBle

ings. The nature of party mobilization encouraged local leaders to

.•
rally people. Women and men party cadres went on rounds of the
neighbourhood to appeal to people and announce the time and place
of departure for the rally. There would usually be one male escort for
a group of women or they would be with their neighbours. There was
little time or space for making acquaintances. Some of the local
mobilizers did narrate incidents of women pooling in money for bus
fares for those who could not afford it or going in groups with red
flags to avoid paying train fares. But it appeared that, by and large,
women walked into the rallies like invited guests or passive par-
ticipants. They remember the novelty of the experience, their excite-
ment, and a sense of collective strength. But it was not 'their'
movement. lliere was no feeling of owning the n1ovement nor a clear
memory of it. 11ie local mobilizers, on the other hand, had formed
••
strong relationships with each other on the basis of a common
socio-economic back8(0und, involvement in politics, and their com-
mon ties with the leader. Their feelings of solidarity, their sense of
empowerment so changed the routine course of their lives that they
could recall incidents and details of the movement with pride and
excitement.

IV

'Was it called the Anti Price Movement? I only remember the big latni
morcha, we waved our latnis like swords and felt strong enough to
fight mountains. Of course, the prices did not come down, but we got
some rations. Then the latni went back to the kitchen, and now I have
only a red flag for remembrance.' Says Saraswatibai, a 55 year old I
domestic servant from Matunga, Bombay.
In August 1972, Meenaxi Sane, the president of the Bhartiya Mahila
Federation, the state branch of the Communist Party of India's (CPD J
women's wing, appealed to some 280 women's organizations and .I
individuals to come together for a discussion on the price issue. A ••

small meeting of nine women decided to call themselves the Mahan-

gai Pratikar Samyukta Mahila Samiti (the Anti Price RiseJoint Women's
 7be Anlt Price Rise MovemenJ 71

Front) and initiate a signature campaign and prepare a scheme for

controlling inflation to be submitted to the government.
The rationale for such collective action was not formally discussed
at the first meeting. All of them shared a history of joint action and
politics. It was therefore understood that 'prices affected women the
mOst severely because all of them, regardless of class, looked after
the family' (Mangala Parikh). Secondly, 'the women's movement is a
non-political one, so it is much simpler for us to come together than
parties' (Manju Gandhi). And, 'Instead of small groups protesting here
and there, we could be more effective and impressive together'
(Kamal Desai). Besides, as Ahilya Rangnekar said, 'There is no need
for such a discussion. It was assumed that there would be a common
platform from which women could take up the issue of prices, make
demands, and when the issue disappeared or there was no public
response then the platform would disappear.'
A formal conunittee with office bearers was considered necessary
for organizational efficiency and representation. The distribution of
office, usually a touchy subject, was speedily dealt with on the basis
of electoral success. Mrinal Gore, the only State Legislative Assembly
member, was nominated as the president because as an opposition
party member in the legislature she had some standing with the
government All the city level municipal corporators were recom-
mended as vice presidents. The composition of the samiti underwent
some minor changes in the course of its three year life, but for most
of its active period it maintained the following order:

Post Name Affiltalion

President MrinalGore Socialist Women's Wing

(Socialist Party)
Vice Presidents Ahilya Rangnekar Shramik Mahila Sabha
(Communist Party-M)
Mangala Parikh Samajwadi Mahila
Sabha (Socialist, PSP)
Manju Gandhi Bharatiya Mahila
Federation (Communist
.Party)
72 A space wttbtn tbe Stru/Jsle

Pramila Dandavate Samajwadi Mahila

•
Sabha

Secretary Sushila Gokhale Bharatiya Mahi1a

Federation

Joint Secretary Kamal Desai Socialist Women's

Wing

Treasurer PremaPurav Bharatiya Mahi1a

Federation
The objective of the samiti was to pressurize the government to
hold prices down and provide adequate foodgrains through the ''
1
public distribution system or ration shops. Small demonstrations were
to be held to register the discontent of women. Then a public meeting
was organized in September, 1972 which attracted hundreds of
women. This unexpected resounding success and a sympathetic
press coverage encouraged the samiti to plan a dhama (sit down
strike) for the next month. The well-attended and colourful dhama
staged in the congested commercial area of Bombay established the
identity of the samiti.

Structure and mcllMMI

The samiti functioned quite informally, meeting at different members'

houses, taking on-the-spot decisions, and dividing up respon-
sibilities. No minutes of meetings or records were maintained. Money
was raised as the occasion demanded, through donations. Samiti
members kept in touch with each other over the phone and each of
them in tum Wonned their followers. Individual samiti members
decided whether to involve the samiti in a particular action or take it
up by themselves. Mrinal Gore, for instance, took out a procession at I
.''
a milk dairy in Goregaon under her own banner in January 1973.
The samiti did not bring out any literature or position papers other
than memos or press statements. Its demands were verbally articu-
 7be Anlt Price Rtse Movemenl 73

lated by the members of the Bhartiya Mahila Sabha (BMF) at a public

meeting as:
all black or unaccounted/illegal money should be destroyed.
trade in essential commodities should be nationalized.
all essential commodities should be distributed through
ration shops.
the government's policy of deficit financing and indirect taxation
should be halted.
hoarders, food adulterers, blackmarketeers and income tax
evaders should be severely punished (Gavankar, 1982).

The samiti's emphasis was primarily on action and mobiliution. It

solicited complaints about the availability and prices of foodgrains
and other essential commodities. A delegation of women would meet
the official in charge and gather information. If they found the official
replies unsatisfactory, a dhama or meeting would be organiz.ed to
highlight the particular problem. At times, the entire samiti would
pitch in to organize a rally or morcha. One of the first intensive
campaigns was on the price of milk. In January 1973, the Press had
published excerpts from corespondence between the state govern-
ment department and the milk dairy which revealed that not only was
the price of milk about to be increased but its fat content was going
to be reduced. And this was to be done without informing the
consumers. The samiti swung into action with a delegation of women
going to meet Mr. S. B. Chavan, a state cabinet minister and spon-
taneously gheraoing him in his own office. The minister escaped from
the enraged women on the pretext of going to the toilet!
The samiti soon perfected the an of gheraoing along with other
dramatic and symbolic forms of action. Complaints of din and pebbles
in foodgrains prompted a kacbra-tula(weighing the din) demonstra-
tion. Women were asked to collect all the din found in grain dis-
tributed through ration shops and bring it to a demonstration.
Hundreds of women in April 1974 saw a 'weighing' of an effigy of the
Chief Minister against the collected din. The old, traditional practice
of the king weighing himself against alms and gold to be given in
charity had been creatively modified to suit the time and the issue! In
February 1974 a cut in the quota of rations provoked strong public
resentment. The samiti announced a gbanta vadan, or sounding of
74 A Space wttbtn tbe 5'"'88/e

bells. This fonn of action was meant to involve all women, especially
.•
those with small children who could not come to rallies. At an
appointed hour, 10.00 p.m., women were to come out on the streets
and beat empty plates with spoons. Hopefully, said the leaders, the
noise, the death knell of the government, will reach our rulers. A
scarcity of kerosene disturbed even those women who might have so
far remained aloof because they were forced to use coal or even cow
dung cakes as fuel. Surreptitiously but surely, a group of women
entered the government secretariat and made their way to the cabinet
meeting room, whipped out several empty kerosene tins with which
they made a deafening noise until they were arrested (August, 1974).
Behind all the eye catching symbolism was the basic, hard work
of mobilization. 'Mobilization means talking to people, in ration
shops, in homes and in street comer meetings. People don't come
because there is a call in the papers. We have to speak, explain
appeal ... party workers have to organize by putting up notice boards
and calling women to attend meetings' (Ahilya Rangnekar). Each
samiti member claimed the highest mobilization, undoubtedly a sign
of status as well as strength.
The momentum of the Anti Price Rise Movement was maintained
by interspersing marches with representations, debates in the legisla-
ture and direct pressurizing actions like the gherao. An additional
factor was the spread of the campaign on its own accord to other parts
of Maharashtra. In Nagpur, 5,000 women on the streets marched
waving mtlo (sorghum) rotis attached to their rolling pins. Pusad, the
Chief Minister's stronghold, also witnessed an anti-price-rise march.
The campaign reached its peak with the now famous and massive
latni or rolling pin march in October, 1973. The astonished and
jubilant samiti leaders, now began referring to it a 'new women's
movement' (Mrinal Gore), the 'popular consumer movement'
(Pramila Dandavate), the beginnings of a 'people's movement'
(Sushila Gokhale). The samiti declared November 26, 1973 as an Anti
Price Rise Day, and collaborated with parties and trade unions in its
protest against prices, unemployment etc. A black flag and black
balloon demonstration against the Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi,
provoked the BMF to withdraw from the samiti. The rest of the samiti
continued to function until the declaration of Emergency when they
 7be Anlt Price Rtse Movement 75

went underground and their activists abandoned the APRM to protest

·against the Emergency.
'All of us are old hands at politics. We began with the Inde-
pendence Movement. There is no way you young people will ever
understand the aunosphere then. Our lives, our very breathing was
political' Sushila Gokhale (BMF).
The willingness, need and militancy of the women was channelled,
shaped and developed into a movement mainly by the efforts of the
samiti. The APRM managed to proceed on its three year course
without much dispute and theoretical hairsplitting only because the
members of the samiti shared a more or less common ideology on the
oppression of women.
All the eight leaders of the samiti came from a middle class/upper
caste background, were college educated and were roughly between
the ages of 38 to 48 years. They had been drawn into politics during
the 1930s, a period dominat~ by Gandhi. Manju Gandhi nostalgically
remembered going to the Chaupati Beach to manufacture salt during
the Salt Satyagraha. Kamal Desai had organized women in her village
to go on a prabbatpheri(moming trip to the temple) singing patriotic
songs. Mangala Parikh joined the rest of her family in several British
jails.
A deepening disillusionment with the pace and ideology of the
nationalist movement prompted a leftward shift. After joining the
communist and socialist parties, the samiti leaders, as part of their
party work, joined the All India Women's Conference. The AIWC had
been set up by women sympathetic to the Congress Party as a
non-political body for the propagation of women's education and
welfare. The samiti leaders set up AIWC branches in different working
class areas, worked on its magazine, Rosbnt and captured key posts
to make policy changes in favour of toiling women. After many years
of power tussles with Congresswomen, they left to set up a parallel
mass women's organization called the National Federation of Indian
Women (NFIW) in 1954. The younger socialists soon followed with
the Samajwadi Mahila Sabha in 1956.
The samiti members shared a common understanding of women's
oppression. 'I think that women are more mental slaves. It is not that
they do not face oppression but a lot of it is because of their own lack
of self confidence. And the roots of this mental slavery lie in the
76 A Space wUbln tbe Stru/Jgle

prevalence of attitudes and customs derived from the anoent scrip-

tures such as the Manusmrlt1.' The usually quoted examples were of
Kanya daan or the donating of the daughter in marriage and the
concept of pattdev or the husband as god. 'Men, because of their
natural, biological advantage over women, could formulate such laws
to suit themselves. 'Woman,' continued Pramila Dandavate, 'gives
birth, so her work naturally differs from man's work, but this should
not mean the domination of one over the other.'
To this, Ahilya Rangnekat added Engel's thesis that with the riSe of
property and class society, women became dependent on men.
'Women should work to get out of this dependence. That is why we
have always demanded work and better working conditions for
women workers. After the revolution we will have the conditions for
providing all women with work so that they can break unnecessary
oppressive traditions and be independent. Look at the USSR. Soviet
women work, there is less male domination, there are more divorces
because women will not tolerate anything and everything.'
. It was the cumulative experiences of their political participation,
~liefs and personal Jives which helped crystallize their perceptions
on women's oppression. All of them struggled to live their politics:
wearing khaki, opposing their parents for dowryless, intercaste or
interregional marriages, and working to support their political hus-
bands. The samiti leaders were extremely proud of their harmonious
relations with their husbands and cliiktren. Working women should
'teach and persuade their husbands. It is all a matter of working it out.
There is no point in fighting all the time because there is nothing
wrong with the institution of the family' (Mangala Parikh). On the
other hand, non-working women should look after the home but not
restrict themselves to only household chores. 'How can women in
today's world say they will have nothing to do with politics? B•!cause
whether they like it or not it will come to them. The gove1nment
decides on the length of the rice you eat, your education, whether
you should travel in a bus or train. Women have to realize that they
too are citizens with rights and votes. For their own sakes, women
have to take part in politics or we as politicians can do nothing' (Kamal
.,
'
Desai).
Their decisions and lives outline a portrait ofbrave, unconvention-
al, dedicated WOl'Qen with a zest for life and politics, who have
 7be Anlt Price Rise Movemenl 77

managed, by using a rational, persuasive and managerial approach,

to combine their familial and political lives. They believed that the
strategy of women's organizations should be politicization. 'Con-
scious women are conscious voters. Like every interest group, women
should have their own lobby and representatives in legislatures'
(Pramila Dandavate). 'Women should be mobilized on issues which
affect them like water or prices, and secondly we should wage a war
against discriminatory social customs and tradition' (Mtinal Gore).
These perceptions of women's oppression and struggle were in no
way different from the official statements of the mass women's
organizations. NFIW states that its objective is 'to struggle by the side
of the exploited people with our menfolk to build common actions
which could change society into an egalitarian one. No doubt
women's organizations in this struggle will stress on the problem from
the women's angle, so that it becomes comprehensive to women and
arouses their interest but the effort should be to support all general
issues that would advance the welfare of the nation and therefore of
half the population: women' (NFIW 30th year booklet, 1984).
lluough the years NFIW has taken up such issues as women's right
to work, uplift of peasant and agricultural women workers, amend-
ment to the marriage, inheritance and dowry laws, literacy program-
mers, prices, children's rights, and world peace. The socialist
women's organization, the Samajwadi Mahila Sabha was visualized
as a non-political body with the objective of creating an awareness
among women of their national, social, and political rights and to give
women a social democratic outlook by taking up their special
problems. Anusuya Limaye, its general secretary, explained that the
organization believed that patriarchy had done a grave injustice to
women, but 'that does not mean that we are against men. Rather we
are against the system of male domination. Both women and men
should work together to get rid of this oppressive ideology.' It has
mainly concentrated on issues 'related to women's rights, prices,
employment, service programmers, study circles and income genera-
tion schemes.
78 A space wttbtn tbe Stru//sle

'Women alone cannot ,,,.Ire the Rtoludon', Smhlla Gok-

.•
h•le, BMP.

It appears that the samiti leaders drew upon a blend of two ideological
frameworks, that ,of Gandhism and Marxism, in formulating their
under5tanding and strategy of women's oppression. 11tey saw all
women as 'housewives' whose natural work is procreation, child
rearing and looking after the home. 'These biological beliefs must
have been reinforced by Gandhi who also gave characteristics like
active/passive, breadwinner/distributor, public/private to men and
women. 'Social tyranny'-in other words, tradition and the scriptures
as well as women themselves-were responsible for their own op-
pr.:-ssion.
With a leftward shift, the samiti leaders jettisoned only those parts •
'
of Gandhism which contradicted a class analysis, such as the concepts
of trusteeship, ram rajya etc. They accepted Lenin's advocacy of
special women's wings and women's issues. Unfortunately, they did
not tackle the thorny issues within both ideological frameworks.
Throughout its three year course, the APRM consciously limited
itself to the issue of prices and the alleviation of the housewife~s
hardships. Firstly, in taking up the issue of prices and the availability
of a clean, adequate quota of foodgrains, etc., the samiti aimed at
resolving some of the practical problems of women. But in its at-
tempts, it accepted the sexual division of labour and women's une-
·.
qual and disadvantaged position within the family. All women were
defined as houi;e:Wives, brandishing rolling pins and carrying bags of
dirt and pebbles found in foodgrains. Yet the majority of them were
engaged in some income generating labour. The impact of the price
rise on working class women was one of survival and on middle class
women of balancing the family budget. It provided the opportunity
of raising the co~plementary issue of domestic labour, its relations
with the production process and capital and with men and the family.
It could have been politicized by demanding a recognition of domes-
tic labour, legislation for compulsory creches and subsidized eating
•
places, and emphasizing men's responsibility for sharing housework.
Women's work, both inside and outside the home is unimportant in
their own eyes. The movement could well have become the mediiim
for projecting the woman as a worker. However this vital shift from
 7be Antt Price Rtse Movement 79

women's practical interests to their strategic interests, or their

politicization and transformation for women's emancipation and
liberation was not attempted by the samiti and the Anti Price Rise
Movement. Besides, important and vital linkages with other issues
such as women's employment, work conditions, and oppression
within the family could have been made to show the overall oppres-
sion of women and the necessity of revolutionary change.
The Anti Price Rise Movement was deliberately maintained as a
one issue campaign by its leaders because it was part of a broader
struggle against the ruling government. Its lack of structure and its
functioning were designed to mobilize the maximum number of
women to highlight an issue and support other struggles. Its anti-
government agitational approach was meant to politicize women by
educating them on the parliamentary and administrative framework
of the government whose drawbacks and wrong policies could then
be rejected by these political and 'conscious voters.' And without any
doubt, the samiti leaders were successful in raising an anti-govern-
ment consciousness. But how was it interrelated with; and how did
it advance, women's strategic interests?
The Anti Price Rise Movement with its ad hoc, single issue and
primarily agitation approach has all the features of a campaign. A
campaign is a series of actions which call for corrective measures
without challenging fundamental structures and relationships.
Prolonged agitations or campaigns are often called movements. A
women's movement not only specifically takes up women's issues
but links them with other issues and systematically questions basic
premises and assumptions regarding women's lives and work in
developing an understanding of women's oppression and building
strategies for the transformation of unequal relationships between
women and men in society. It develops a vision of change which takes
in the present and moves into the future. The only vision the Anti Price
Rise agitation had was to bring down the state government as in the
Nav Nirrnan movement in Gujarat. Perhaps it might have developed
into a movement had it not been so abruptly terminated by the
Emergency. Perhaps the militancy and enthusiasm of the mass of
women might have transformed the agitation into a dynamic move-
ment of women giving a new identity, pride and place to women in
the making of a truly egalitarian society.
80 A Spaa wtlbtn the Struggle

NOTES •

1. The Conununist Pany of India (CPI) was the first established

oonimunist pany which split in 1964 to form the Communist Pany
of India (Marxist) or the CPM. The National Federation of Indian
'M>men (NFIW) and its state branch the Blwtiya Mahlla Federation
(BMF) are loosely affiliated to the CPI. The Shramik Mahila Sabha
is connected to the CPM. The Socialist Pany has gone through
nurner0.Js splits and mergers. Women of the former Praja Socialist
Patty.faction belong to the Samajwadi Mahila Sabha. The others
worked informally without an official name.
2. Gherao literally means encirclement Its main characteristic is the
physical confinement of a person, factory or office with the objec-
tive of pressurizing and extracting concessions and promises.
Morcha is synonymous with demonstration, procession· or a
j
march. Dhama Isa sort ofsit down strike at which workers, leaders;
•
etc., sit for a period of time (often a full day) in front of the factory
gate, or public place to register a peaceful protest.
3. Under the Emergency Provisions of the Constitution of India (Part
XVID) the President (advised by the Prime Minister) can suspend
the right to freedom and the constitutional remedies. Critics have
accused the government of using this to justify preventive deten-
tion and banning of assembly of the people.
4. The University. Grants Commission, the a!>C1' body for college
education, has •nctioned a number of women's studies depart-
ments in cllfferent colleges. Along with its help, some leading
academicians have established the Indian Association of Women's. -~
Studies in 1982. There are other non-government bodies like the
Centre for Women's Development Studies. Kali for Women ls the
first women's publishing house in Asia.

SELEcrED REFERENCES
I
1. R.Banaji, 'The Working Class Family in Bombay', unpublished
paper, 1976. J
2. N. Desai, 'Organizing for Social Change: Women's Movement
in India,' unpublished monograph, 1987.
M.K. Gandhi, Women and Social lnjus1'ce, Navjeevan Publishing
House, Ahmedabad.
 7be .Anti Price Rise Mooemenl 81

4. R. Gavankar, 'Political Mobiliroltion in Maharashtra,' unpublished

thesis in Marathi, 1982.
5. M.S. Gore, lmmlgranlSand Nefsbbourlxxxb-Two.AspectsofLife
tn a Metropoltlan ctly, Monograph, 1970.
 The Bodhgaya Land Struggle

GOVIND KELKAR
CHE'INAGALA

1be late sixties and early seventies were marked by a dual trend:
increasing political repression on the one hand and strong move-
ments for democratic rights on the other. The declaration of a state of
Emergency in 1975 resulted in the seizing of all civil and democratic
rights of the people. Opposed to this was a large-scale people's
movement, particularly among students and other young people, for
democratic survival and its implicit extension for social equality and
gender justice. It was in this atmosphere of socio-economic upheaval
and political repression that the Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Vahini
(CYSV) emerged in January, 1975, in "Bihar. The CYSV aimed to
organize the anltmjan (the lowest persons among the poor and
downtrodden in the existing social system) to struggle for their
dignity, rights and humane existence. 1be CYSV leader, Jai Prakash
Narain, def1ned the Vahini as an instrument of Jok sbaktt (people's
power) which would struggle against raj sbaklt (State power) for a'
just distribution of development resources and land among the
resourceless and poor peasantry.
Soon after its establistunent, the CYSV mobilized a number of
whole-time women activists and launched a debate among Vahini
leaders on the :women's question. The debate on women's right to
land and acc:esS to productive resources, the institution of marriage,
men-women relationships, patriarchy, and women's role in the socio-
 7be Bodbga:o;a Land Struggle 83

economic process, for instance, brought about a sub&antial change

in intra-organizational and intra-familial relations among CYSV ac-
tivists.
The experience of the CYSV in·Ga ya is thus considered a model,
both in theory and practice. This study examines certain repre-
sentative aspects of this anti-feudal struggle where the student-youth
leadership worked towards the realization that such a struggle for
social transfonnation should also encompass changes in relationships
between men and women, both within the institution of marriage and
in patriarchal relations of production. This study has two foci : first,
an assessment of the theoretical debate concerning tht: _woman ques-
tion within the CYSV as well as its practical implications for the
movement, and second, the distributiqn of land ·to agricultural
labourers and dalttwomen.
Social relations within a community are not gender-neutral; neither
are the effects of redistril:iution of land. Land reforms in India have
been shown to have a differential impact on different rural classes as
well as on men and women within each class. By and large, women
have been losers in relation to the men of their class. Recent studies
in India indicate that planned changes from rural development and
agrarian transfonnation through land reforms did · not succeed In
1
halting the process of decline in the position of peasant women. In
a case study of Palghat district in Kerala, for instance, there was
conclusive evidence that changes in land relations from the 1920s on
affected women adversely.2
In the early seventies, the Committee on the Status of Women in
India received many representations from women of different states
regarding the discriminatory features of some of the new land laws.
In a camp of women agricultural labourers in May, 1980, in Baokura
district in West Bengal, similar home truths were pointed out by a
number of poor peasant women. 3 During our field work in 1984-85
in the villages of Etawah district in Uttar Pradesh, Devi, a bbangt
(scavenger caste) woman sharply remarked: 'No, women never con-
trol any assets, not even the children they bear, they are known as
their father's children. This has been going on for generations.' Raj
Kuman, a cbamarwoman, added:
84 A Space wUbtn tbe Stru/Jg/e

und is passed on from father 10 son. Even the jewellery 1hat is

a gift to a woman on her marriage is not given to her, it is kept
by her parents-in-law. If a man dies or remarries, 1he woman is
completely dependent on others for her survival. A man can
gamble or drink away his land bu1 a woman is always concerned
aboul her chiklren. She can never see them starve, she would
do all in her power to raise them to the best of her ability. So
land should be owned joindy by both the husband and wife.4

Similar reports came from the rural areas of Bihar where women
have been struggling against the prejudices of state officials as well
as those of the men of their own community towards women having
independent land rights. In the eighties, however, the government
was reported to have worked out a new policy thrust for land refonns .•
I
to make them more progressive and result- oriented. This new thrust
envisages (a) further lowering the ceiling limits; (b) completing con-
solidation of holdings in states where it has not made much headway,
for example, Orissa, Gujarat and Bihar; and (c) bringing land with
religious and charitable instillitions within the purview of land ceiling
laws. So far such land has been exempted from the purview of ceiling
laws. Further, in December 1988, the Ministry of Agriculture proposed
that at least 40 per cent ofpattas(land title deeds) be issued exclusive-
ly for women in future allotments of government and ceiling surplus
lands as well as homestead units. The remainin~ panas should be
issued jointly in the names of husband and wife. These provisions,
however, did not travel beyond the proposed plan statements.
Few dispute that the effective exclusion of women from possession
and control of land is largely the basis of their subordination and
dependence .on men in rural India. We have argued elsewhere that a
great deal of violence against women stems from their subordination
in the structure of material production, organization of marriage and
family, and sexual division of labour. These create gender specific
personalities-men tend to value their role as the principal one in the
national economy and as 'breadwinners' and supporters of the family,
while women are excessively undervalued for their dependence,
ignorance of the outside world and preoccupation with children and
household chores.6 ·
 ~ B<Jdbsaya Land Struggle 85

It would perhaps be some consolation if this 'development

blindness' towards women (either. natural responsibility for
housework, and childcare or exclusion from land/productive resour-
ces) was limited to government agencies. However, this is not the
case. Many mass movement-oriented organizations and left groups in
Bihar which have been noted for their struggle for dignity and security
of dalit and agricultural labourer women have not considered it
important to demand women's equal access to land/property and
parity of agricultural wages. Likewise, they have not questioned
differential consumption and its relation with different statuses for
men and women as constitutive of a family structure. It would seem
that mass movement-oriented NGOs, social aaion and left groups
have made no serious efforts to understand women's oppression or
facilitate the women's liberation movement. lbeirideological debates
and praxis have taken hardly any notice of the women's question. A
majority of them critically viewed the autonomous women's move-
ment and ridiculed the concept of feminism, alleging that it ignores
class analysis. These 'mass movements' and social action groups, like
Marxist scholarship, have not hesitated to use the criterion of marriage
in determining women's class position.' While it is true that marriage
does give women access to material resources, this is not the same as
having a direct relationship to the means of production. For women,
class is mediated through their sexual ties and related services to
men. 8 If such sexual ties are broken and related services withdrawn,
women no longer enjoy access to material resources. Class analysis
in India has not included the mediated class position of women.
These are difficulties in combining the specificity of the women's
question and the general theoretical interpretative framework. It is
true that women do not constitute a class, caste, race or community,
and that they tend to share most characteristics, interests and identities
with men from other sections in the complex process of social,
economic and political competition for power and resources. And yet,
for women there is a universal experience of subordination and
invisibility, non-recognition and under-valuation of their work, anc'
internalization of their subaltern existence that affects their participa·
lion at all levels. While arguing for a class, caste and genQer analysis,
it may be pointed out that if social scientists are unable to explain the
women's question in terms of existing political and ideological theory,
 I

what is needed is to recognize the theoretical lag instead of trying to 1

explain away a phenomenon, a social reality, because it does not fit
a received ideological construct. 9 We therefore argue for a new
historical social analysis which questions a partial, limited perspective
and attempts to understand the history of the past and the entirety of
social actions, both of women and men. This is not a study of women
in peasant movements with class and caste questions left out. A
historical study of women in an agrarian movement stresses social
analysis from below and it does not set itself against theoretical and
ideological choices.
Women are not an undifferentiated mass, nor do they constitute
an isolated category. One has to study them in the socio-economic
context in which they are placed i.e. class, caste, age and gender
oriented relations, the sexual division of labour, social practices that •
limit their role in the.family and community, the increasing sex-based
disparities and the growing process of violence, poverty and landless-
ness in the subsistence sector, as well as the increasing strength of the
mechanism of exploitation that feeds on and accentuates inequalities
related to class, caste and gender. If indeed there is no such
phenomenon as a specially all-women's movement, it may be that
there is a women's perspective to be observed on particular issues
and a slightly different approach to tactics/strategies employed by
women in initiating a struggle or in the process of participation in a
movement. Women's involvement in peasant movements has to be
understood both in terms of their class and caste oppression-hence
their-·militancy against the State and its representation in the trium-
virate of sarlrar(govemment), upper caste zamindar (landlord) and
mabajan (moneylender)-as well as their specific oppression in the
patriarchal family and community. Such theoretical questions regard-
ing the invisibility and marginality of women's role in peasant strug-
gles underlie the basic project of this study.

land relations awl the sodal position of women ..

'

NotWithstanding land reforms, the countryside of Bihar is widely

known for developmental backwardness and the dominance of
upper caste landlords. Although Bihar was the first state to introduce
 the zamindari abolition bill, by the time the bill got through after years
· of opposition in legislature, much land had been saved by the
landlords through benamt(bogus) transactions. Besides, an oppres-
sive and inefficient sharecropping system has been a drag on the
agrarian economy.10 The state bureaucracy has often been chided for
its clear inclination towards the upper castes and landlords. In this
vertical development, however, non-governmental or people's 'or-
ganizations have brought about a definite change in Bihar's
countryside, thouszh the degree and quality of the change have varied
from area to area.:1 1 It is in this context that we will discuss the CYSV
and its transformative impact on the countryside of 8odh Gaya.
Gaya is essentially a rural district. The great majority of the popula-
tion is engaged in agriculture. The Commissioner of Patna Division,
Bayley, writing In 1873-75 nO(ed:

In Gaya, the agricultural labourer lives really from hand 10

mouth, and is worse off, perhaps, than anywhere elSe in the
Division... the higher class of people are as opulent and con-
tented as any I have come across. lbey are a healthy self-loving
people whose wants are due· more to the.Ir false ideas of luxury
than to natural causes. lbe mass of the people, however, who
till the soil are in the abject state which is to be expected in a
country where ignorance prevails, and where wealth and in-
fluence are vested in the hands of a very few.... Among the
labouring class the remnants of slavery are still discernible being
almost confined to Kahar and Kurmi castes.12

Dr Buchanan-Hamilton noted in the early nineteenth century that

close to 75 per cent of the cultivators in Gaya were indebted. They
are generally mere tenants-at-will, not more than one in the thousand
having, or even knowing of, any right of occupancy;13 Regarding land
tenure in Gaya, he says: ·

At one end of the chain stands the zamindar or mallk who holds
the estate from Govenunent under the Pennaoent Settlement,
and pays his land-tax direct to the Govenunent treasury. At the
other end is the actual cultivator, called the jotdar or kastb-kar
who is mo5t invariably a mere tenant-at-wiU.14
88 A Space wUbtn tbe Stru/J8le

The expense of both making and repairing canals and other water .
'
sources for irrigation is 'entirely defrayed by the zamindars who
apix>int proper persons to divide the water among the peasantry.'15
In most parts of the district, the tenure is either nakdi when the
rent is paid in money, or bbaolt where the produce of the fields is
divided between the landlords and the tenant. Bhaoli tenure is of the
two kinds: danaband~ in which the probable out-tum of the crop is
estimated and apportioned between the landowner and the cul-
tivator; or agarbatat in which the division takes place after the crop
has been cut and stored. The bhaoli tenure was formerly almost
universal, but the increasing competition for land tends to convert
bhaoli into nakdi. One finds now that lands used for growing cash
crops or in the vicinity of towns and important markets are held on
short leases, for which a fixed money rent is paid, while in the more
rural tracts the system of dividing the crops still prevails.
Mr Bayley further noted, in 1875, that the labourer's wage gives
him subsistence, but only by the added earnings of his wife and the
other women in the family.16 'Most families in easy circumstances'
were reported to have bondswomen, who were assigned various
domestic and extra-domestic tasks, including the labour of rice
pounding and husking. Dr Buchanan-Hamilton speaks of numerous
women slaves called laundtsand men as ghulamswho were sold irI
Gaya.17 While most of the laundis and ghulams were from the Kahar
and Kurrni castes, the half-enslaved Kamias (both men and women) ~
formed the landless day labourers of the zamindars and religious I
institutions like the math, in this region. The laundis and Kamia
women were forced to provide sexual services to the zamindars as
well as to the mabant(the priestly head of a temple or math) and his
men.

Dominance of the math

The block of Bodh Gaya covers 23,886 sq.km of land. Of its popula- ..I
tion of77,252, th~ are 37,971 women and 39,281 men, according to 1
the 1981 Census. The region has a large proportion of scheduled caste
people: 14,482 women and 14,487 men. Of these, Mushars and
Bhuinyas are serni-Hinduized tribes who live a nomadic life. A dis-
 7be Rodb~ya land Struggle 89

tinctive feature of the block is that the township of Bodh Gaya with
it numerous monastries, temples and maths (religious institutions) has
traditionally been a place of worship for both Buddhists and Hindus.
For the past 1,500 years, Bodh Gaya has attracted many pilgrims.
Hindus undertook pilgrimages with the idea of freeing their deceased
relations from purgatory and procuring their admission to heaven.
These years, however, also saw the decline of Buddhism and the
growth of Brahminism. 18 Brah.minism, with its pioneering upper caste
status, was more convenient for the growing intermediate landhold-
ing classes, and less expensive than the vast unproductive and un-
economic monastic foundations of Buddhism. ·Besides, with its
monopoly of rituals, Brahminism has the capacity to reduce tribes to
caste peacefully and to tum itself into a better adjunct of the State. In
the process, 'the Brah.min class had begun to grow further and further
away from the producers, rewriting tradition to prove their own
importance, or to claim special caste-class privileges.'19
The Shankar Math (commonly called the Bodhgaya Math) was
reportedly founded several hundred years ago in 1590, when Gosai
Ghamandi Nath, a disciple of Shankarcharya, set up a small temple
to serve as a centre for meditation for pilgrims to Bodhgaya. The
Moghul rulers, ,. and later the British government, extended liberal
patronage to the math. In return for this the mahants remained loyal
to the rulers. During the first war of independence against the British
in 1857, the mahant sided with the British, for which mahant Gosai
Hemnarayan Girl was awarded the 'Certificate of Honour' in 1873-74
by Queen Victoria on the occasion of India's accession to the British
Crown. 20 With such patronage and support, the estate of the math
grew larger and larger, and by the end of the nineteenth century, the
Bodhgaya Math came to be identified as the 'biggest zamindar in Gaya
district.' AB early as 1932, the net annual income of the math was
estimated at Rs 1,00,000 and a trust was formed to look after the estate
of the math: 'scattered over a thousand villages spread out in about a
dozen districts of Bihar, the Mahant established 'Kucheries' in dif-
ferent areas.' 21
The mahant i.e. the priestly head of the math, is elected on the
death of the previous incumbent, and is supposed to be celibate. The
numerous descendants of the mahant are testimony to the non-ob-
servance of this precept. Until very recently, the mahants used to
 •
90 A Space witbtn the Struggle

openly practise a life of extreme lk:eniiousness and extortion, like ..

most of the upper caste landlords of that area. A peasanl, Dhansukh
Girl, was elected 10 the office of mahanl about a decade ago. His
second-in-command, Jairam giri, is Chief of the darbarles (a
manager), has political afftliations and was earlier a Minister in the
state government.
The math managed its vesi lands through ltacbebrles(courts) from
which its local managers directed farm operations, siored grain inputs
and controlled agricultural labourers, both men and women. In 1980,
the district adminisiration identified fifty three such kachehries in the
diSlrict of Gaya. As a representative of the math, each kachehri has an
assistant called a mudtya.. In addition, there are other functionaries of
the math, for example the gumasbtas, bambtl and diwan. All the
employees were paid in kind to meei their maintenance requirements
and also had a small cash allowance every month.
The math functionaries wielded total power over the masses of
poor peasantry. The oppression and exploitation of farm labourers
called kamias (the annual contract labourers, mostly from dali1 easies)
defied all rules relating 10 minimum wages. In 1980, their condition
was summed up thus:
•
They were eating a sort of stuff similar to sawdust. That was the
ground flour from the rotten paddy distributed to the people as
wages from the Math. The people can not pound and get any
rice (grain) from the paddy. So they grind the whole with the
.•
husk and eat it. .. We saw men and women carrying at the end
of their day's work little bundles of their wages. We found it was
one and a half kilo of the rotten paddy mixed with chaff, straw
and dust. 22

The close links of the chief administra1or of the math (Jairani Girl)
wilh the ruling Congress party further suggeSI a direct relativnship
with State power. Little wonder then that the bureaucracy turns a blind
eye to the total disregard of the policy of development and the
minimum wage notifications. There is a sex/gender dimension to the
math system, too. The mahant, the various girls, and the upper caste ·1
administrators sexually abuse maidservants of the math as well as
other women labourers who are employed on math farms. A woman
activist reported: 'The mudiyas are notorious for deceiving and
 7be Bodbgaya Land Struggle 91

entrapping young women from the villages, each one of them has
several mistresses.' Further, 'the Math uses its ability to exploit the
labour and bodies of these women as a means to demonstrate its
power. Government officials have also taken advantage of the situa-
tion to openly exploit these women.'23
There has, however, been some change in the latter half of the
seventies. CYSV activists, particularly about 20 of the women leaders,
attacked the rakbatl sanskrltt (literally, the concubinage culture;
sexual use of toiling women from dalit and 'low castes') of the math.
Subsequently, these women launched a debate on the women's
question within their organizations and critically questioned the
various manifestations of purusb mansikta (the male mentality) in
intra-organizational and intra-familial relations.
As a result of the CYSV-led struggle of poor peasants, most of the
kachehries have been demolished or abandoned by the math. For
instance, by early 1982 26 of the 53 kachehries were reported to have
24
stopped functioning. At one time, the Vahini had planned to take
over these .kachehries for non-formal · education and community
health programmes. This, however, has not happened: the CYSV
movement has lost the momentum of the seventies and, at present, is
at its lowest ebb.
The math lands were originally vested in a trust formed in 1932.
Under the trust deed, the mahant had no right to give away any trust
property. However, at the time of the abolition of zamindari in the
early fifties, the mahant claimed personal rights over the entire
property of the trust, including over 600 villages. The Bihar Religious
Trust Board challenged this claim and its contention was upheld by
the Patna High Court. The mahant then appealed to the Supreme
Court. Strangely, at this stage, the trust Board and the mahant came
forward with a compromise. Under the compromise, the court
decreed, in September, 1957, that 2,300 acres was the property of the
math or of the trust, and that the mahant was entitled to rights over
240 acres of this land as well as to a sum of Rs 1,000 per month for
personal expenses. The remaining land was decreed to be the per-
sonal property of the mahant, in regard to which the Government and
the Bihar Religious Trust Board were neither to be concerned nor
would they interfere with management by the mahant of the said
properties. It is important to note, however, that prior to the court
92 A Space wllbtn the StruslJle

decree, the mahant had sold or transferred all his 'personal' lands in
the names of 680 disciples (called gtrls), many of whom, in turn, sold
or transferred their land to others. Such transactions continued
throughout the 1970s. Even after all these transfers, the mahant still
held 1,712 acres of land in his personal name. The conunittee enquir-
ing into the math estate in 1980 observed 'that although a total of
1,712.26 acres of land is still held by the mahant in his own name, no
action under the Land Ceiling Act to acquire the surplus land has been
initiated by the Administration.•25
Nevertheless, the struggle against the math continued. Several
legal suits were filed against the mahant under the Bihar Land Ceiling
Act 1961, calling upon him to surrender 9,5n acres of surplus land
and also the 2,300 acres of the math property for distribution to the
poor and the landless. The Land Ceiling Act was not enforced for
many years after it was enacted. In the meantime, the mahant manipu-
lated things and formed 17 trusts by a Deed of Arrangement of 1970
in the names of each of the deities traditionally associated with the
math. The mahant's right to break up the Bodhgaya Trust was con-
tested and the government declared a substantial amount of the trust
lands as surplus.
A revjsion petition and appeal filed by the mahant was rejected
both by the High Court in December 1984, and then the Supreme
Court in August 1987. According to the Supreme Court order ofAugust
1987, the math can have only a maximum of 75 acres of land in the _J
names of deities, and 25 acres in the name of the seva~ the I
remaining lands are to be distributed to the landless and agricultural
labourers. As a result, in addition to 3,00C>' acres in math land which
was declared by the government as the ceiling surplus in 1979.,80,
another 3,679 acres of the math land has been declared surplus and
is thus to be distributed to the rural poor. This order of the Supreme
Court was hailed by the Vahini as signalling the 'total collapse of
social, economic and political power of the math' and strengthened
the determination of the CYSV to continue their stroggle for the cause
of the rural poor. _J

I
 7be Bodbgaya Land Strusgle 93

In early April 1978, the CYSV organized a protest demonstration by

agricultural labourers and marginal peasants against the concentra-
tion of land and power in the Bodhgaya Math. A popular slogan of
the demonstration which later also defined the struggle, was : Jo
zamtn ko boye jote, woh zameen Ila maltk bot (those who sow and
plough the land are the owners of the land) . Soon after, at a state-level
meeting of CYSV activists, it was decided that the struggle for the right
of agricultural labourers to land would take the form of strikes in four
blocks (Shergatti, Barchatti, Mohanpur and Bodhgaya) of Gaya. The
ceiling surplus and benami lands seized from, or given up by, the
math in the struggle would be shared by both men and women. There
were two important reasons for the selection of Gaya as the focal point
of the struggle: first, the disproportionate concentration of agricultural
land in the control of the Bodhgaya Math, and second, the famine-
stricken situation of the district.
Tov.'alds the end of 1979, there was a well-developed movement
against the Bodhgaya Math. Both women and men were members of
the Mazdoor Kisan S;unjti, which conducted the struggle. During
1978-79, the Vahini organized agricultural labourers and rnarginaf
peasants under the banner of the Mazd09r-Kisan Samiti. It employed
a long-term strategy involvirig a two-pronged attack on the math:
pressure created by militant and articulate cadres of the CYSV, and
strikes and mass movements by agricultural labourers and poor
peasants, mostly daily and other 'lower' castes, who were directly
affected by the power of the math. Each village was to have one
representative in the block level committee of the Mazdoor-Kisan
Samiti. The block committee, in tum, sent its representatives to the
district level committee.
Vahini activists had set up their 'movement officers' in little huts
among those of the bhuinyas and other dalit castes. CYSV women
moved about freely and unescorted, like their male colleagues, with
whom they worked in the villages. There was some risk of molesta-
tion, but the women were strong in their determination for autonomy
and equality. They lived with the poor, 'walking miles in a day from
one village to the next because there was not enough money for bus
fares, facing the lathts (bamboo rods) of the police and fighting
94 A space wUbtn the Strusgle

coundes.s court cases in which they had been implicated as a method

of haras.sment.' 26 One example is Anjali, a 26 year-old woman
•
graduate who, in 1979, decided to be a full-time worker of the Vahini.
She was reported to be working in a village in Bodhgaya 'in knee-
deep muddy water transplanting rice'.

The CYSV viewed the woman question as part of the general move-
ment, as reflected in two important slogans: Aumt Ille sabbabg bina,
bar bad/av adbum bat (without women's participation, any social
transformation is incomplete), and Aumt, banjan aur mazdoor,
nabin mbenge ab mazboor(women, the low castes and labourers
will no longer be at the mercy of others). In the Vahini's view, the
struggle for women's liberation is a struggle against the entire existing
class-caste-based socio-economic and political structure. Within this
structure, however, women are specially oppressed by men and their
concept of manliness. There is, therefore, a need to wage a specific
stru~e for 'freedom from man's exploitation and dependence on
him'. The women activists of the CYSV further emphasized that the
women's movement is not only a socio-cultural movement, it is a
movement for equal rights in the means of production (e.g. land) and
for a full share in all .spheres of decision-making. ...
Throughout the CYSV movement again.st the math, women con- •
stituted thirty to forty per cent of those actively engaged in the
struggle. They were in leadership positions in tfle struggle in the
villages of Gasainpesra, Pipparahattl and Shekhwara. Hundreds of
women faced the bullets of the math and the state police. Many of
them were injured in fights again.st the mahant and were arrested. For
instance, in August 1979, over a hundred women gathered in
Barachatti block to oppose the arrest of some Vahini workers by the
police, and many were beaten up by the police. In 1981, forty-seven
women in Shergati block and twenty-two in the village of Katokha
courted arrest. In 1983, over a hundred women in Mohanpur block
..,
were arrested for demanding employment and drinking water in their
villages.
 7be Bodbgaya Land SlrulJg/e 95

Despite women's panicipation in the struggle, inequality in gende1

relations in the movement did not change. Women still undertook
'double worlc'-both at home and in the fields-«nd continued to be
subjected to domestic oppression. They were considered subordinate
members of the organized struggle. For instance, women would not
sit on cots as men did, in the evening meetings of the Mazdoor-Kisan
Samiti. They squatted on the floor while men sat on cots. The Vahini
women activists were treated differently, as if they were guests, and
were shown some consideration for their urban middle class back-
grounds.It was only after some debate and on the demand of women
activists, that cots were removed and women began sitting in meet-
ings, 'as part of the meetings, instead of squatting in a comer'. Women
activists also made efforts to learn the local dialect, Maghi. They
conducted meetings in Maghi to encourage the village women to
speak out.
In the villages, it was not considered unjust for women to be beaten
up by their husbands. The prevailing feudo-patriarchal norms con-
doned such action. Some of the men activists of the Vahini also
regarded domestic violence as 'part and parcel of their culture'.28
Women in the village-level leadership of the movement faced hostility
from men in their villages. For instance, Manjhar, a dalit woman of
the village of Pippargatti was accused of being a 'woman, yet she
dominates'. 29 As a result, she was isolated. The men in her village
refused to co-operate with her in times of need. When her husband
returned on leave from his coal-mining job, he was warned by fellow
villagers that his wife would slip out of his hands, as in his absence,
'she had become a leader and freely moved around with other men'.
Manjhar, nevertheless, successfully fought her way to inde~dence
and played a significant role in the movement. There was, however,
a growing feeling among women activists that gender relations had
to be changed for any kind of transformative action to occur. The
Vahini women, therefore, began to openly question violence against
women, patriarchal control over children and students, and the
organization of hierarchical relationships within the institution of
marriage. Most of the leading women activists participated in con-·
sciousness-raising groups working against patriarchy and subordina-
tion of women. They fought hard to change public opinion on issues
concerning women and women's rights. Kunti, a thirty-year old
96 A space wUbtn lbe Slru881e

bhuinya woman from the village of Shekhwara, who had been very
active in the Bodhgaya movement since 1976, criticized men's 'ir-
responsibility towards and non-sharing of housework and child-care',
and their insensitivity to 'women's endless work in the home as well
as in the fields'.
Moreover, according to Kunti, 'men's control over women and
children is unforgivable'. In discussing patriarchal modes in the rural
society of Gaya, she blamed the State for promoting such nonns: 'It
is the woman who gives binh to a child, carries him in her for nine
months: then she rears the child which involves affection and all sorts
of sacrifice. But the child carries the name of the father. The sarkar
does not allow me even to give a name (of my choice) to my own
child.' In Kunti's opinion, these rules of legitimacy are quite abswd.
She very correctly thinks that the State fully supports the subordina-
tion of women and patriarchal control over their resources.
Some women of the CYSV made a joint effon to openly discuss
experiences of oppressive encounters in their own lives. They
demanded that they be allowed to function within the movement in
such a manner that their roles were not regarded as subordinate and
unequal. Their struggle was at two levels, for women's dignity and
against inequities in the existing socio-economic and political system,
as well as'tor women's equality and against male domination, includ-
ing that of men of their own community. The women cadres em-
phasized that a political movement has to fight against all causes of
women's oppression and exploitation. It has to equalize the relation- ' '
ship between men and women in all fonns, especially as this affected
the daily lives of Yahini workers and poor rural women within the
movement.
During the meetings of the CYSY, women activists raised questions
about their role and status both within the movement and outside.
Those questions were usually treated either as being of secondary
importance or irrelevant. The immediate task of the movement was
seen to be the fight against the math. Once the math satta (rule) was
demolished and the land distributed 'the socio-cultural change would
J
automatically entail a change in the social position of women.' Some '
~1
activists insisted that priority should be given to the struggle for
socio-political change. This insistence made it harder for women to
press for a specifically feminist perspective in the struggle. However,
 7be Bodbgayo Land Strusgle 97

the women were strong enough to question the patriarchal perspec-

tive and suggest that all forms of oppression ought to be resisted at
the same time, and with the same degree of commltment. They also
decided to have separate meetings for women activists, to discuss
issues specially as women.

In early 1979, during an evening meeting of the Vahini women, a

nine-year old dalit girl cried while reporting that her mother was in a
serious condition after being beaten up by her drunken father. The
father had come home heavily drunk and when the girl's mother
refused to sleep with him, she was beaten up. The man's drinking and
beating of his wife was routine. Also, 'He would beat up mother to
demand more money for drink.' This case triggered a debate on the
women's question, particularly on domestic violence against women.
Why were women subjected to injustice and discrimination both
within the family and the community? What were the social origins of
their subordination, degradation and dependence? To what extent
was the institution of the family responsible for creating and main-
taining ideologies and structures of subordination and exploitation of
women, while inherently resisting the participation of women in
decision making? What had the State done to transform its class, caste
and gender-based social relations? Had it changed its legal norms for
possessional rights of men over women, or its rules of legitimacy of
offspring, all of which reduced women to the level of mere objects?
These questions suggested a need for women's sbtvtrs(camps). In
the following years several such shivirs were organized. Through
discussion in these, a consensus was reached regarding women's
oppression. The consensus took into account both social and familial
factors. The State was considered as the main source of violence
against women. It supported the men who committed violence
against women, both in the family and workplace. It made little effort
to restructure relations of authority within the family and to enable
women to have access to property and other resources. Through its
family-centred programmes, its assignment of productive and
reproductive functions, and, above all, in its provision of land/proper-
98 A Space wtlbtn lbe S11uggle

ty holding rights to the (male) heads of households, the State seemed

likely to erode even further the rights which women had earlier
enjoyed.
The position of the CYSV feminists, as published in various articles,
can be summarized as follows: Violence runs along the lines of power
in the gender system. The family, with its basic axis of the sexual
division of labour, is the principal institution that underlies the gender
system. There is a need to examine familial authority relations accord-
ing to which wife-beating and other forms of domestic violence are
organized.
Similarly, there is a need to analyse property relations which the
familial authority structure realizes and maintains. Lower wages for
;.omen, their nlrginal recognition in the labour force, and the
disadvantaged position of women in health and education, have been
justified on the assumption that women's physical existence is secon-
dary to that of men. There is, therefore, a close connection between
the family and the organization of the political and economic system.
The praxis included two major related campaigns, against wife-
beating, drinlqng, child-marriage, and for social equality of women
as well as their rights to land and other. resources. Subsequently, the
women activists conducted meetings. m almost all the villages of ·
Bodhgaya, fanned womeh's vigilanc~ comniirtees whose tasks were
to keep a watch on wife~beaters and liquor dens. Men who beat their
wives were to be penalized by the village committees. Liquor dens
were to be smashed by the women themselves, although, in most
cases, such work was undertaken collectively by village women and
youths. ··
Children played an interesting role in the campaigns. They began
exposing their fathers and other men who beat up their wives.
Villagers in some of the meetings suggested that men who beat their
wives should not be allowed to join the Vahini or the struggle. The~.
however, were not carried out. A significant point emerged in these
meetings, i.e. in order to curb male violence, women of the landless
and marginal peasantry needed to have land in their own names.
Some of the women spelt out their fears thus 'If our men get the land,
they will beat us even more.'
Women activists of the CYSV questioned the hierarchical relations
within the institution of marriage, and the traditional feminine roles
 7be Bodbgaya Land Strus/lle 99

which were organized to keep women in a subordinate social posi-

tion. Most of the married women activists did not wear traditional
symbols of their marital starus, such as the stndoor (vennillioa,
generally applied by married women in the middle-parting of the
hair), btndt (dot on the forehead) and toe-rings, as these marked
women's inferior position. They no longer used surnames, which
were usually caste-based, and derived from fathers or husbands.
Moreover, they opposed the practice of kanya-daan(the gifting away
by parents of a virgin bride-to-be) at weddings. Some of the women
activists demanded an explanation from Jai Prakash Narain for per-
forming kanya-daan in the case of his adopted daughter.30 They
demanded simple weddings, and denounced the dowry system as the
worst kind of evil. They advocated wedding ceremonies, devoid of
the usual rituals, in which the bride and groom simply garlanded each
other in the presence of some friends and relatives. No Brahmin priest
was to perform the usual marriage rites. These were called the jatmala
(garland) marriages. Vahini activists, both men and women, made
determined efforts to encourage inter-caste marriages, and did not
publicize their caste names or surnames.
In protest against the institution of marriage, some activists decided
to live together with their partners, omitting public announcement or
legal registration of such relationships. The sharing of a sexual life
with one's partner was considered 'a personal matter.' They ques-
tioned the institution of marriage and monogamy as these were
tradition-bound, hierarchic in nature and oppressive for women,
allowing them no freedom to relate or communicate with others.
Tilese new practices did not, however, become widely accepted in
the area. Many women felt that living together without marriage was
likely to increase the possibility of men's desertion of and irrespon-
sibility towards women and their offspring. Further, in most cases, the
ritual-free weddings and living together without formal marriages
deteriorated into traditional, hierarchic man-woman relationships. In
some cases, the men subsequently engaged in permissive sexual
behaviour. Kunti, of the village of Shekhwara, preferred registered
marriages. 'In several cases of jairnala marriage, men proved to be
irresponsible, abandoning their wives and young children, or, throw-
ing them out to marry other women.'
100 A Space wllbtn tbe Stnll!g/e

Women demaod the rlacbt to laocl ..

In a village-level meeting on March 18, 1981, poor female peasants
and agricultural labourers demanded the right to land. In doing so,
they hailed their decision as 'striking a blow at the patriarchal percep-
tion in land distribution programmes.' Prior to the meeting, the
Mazdoor-Kisan Samili had prepared entidement papers for the dis-
tribution ofland. lbese were in the~ of men and some widowed
women who were heads of households in the absence of adult males.
Questioning the issuing of entitlement papers on the basis of 'the man
as the head of the household', the women pleaded for recognition of
their own role in providing for the family. They saw this role as
entitling them to an equal share in the headship of the household. In
our discussions with them, the women raised a host of questions such
as: we have ~rtidpated in the struggle: we have gone to jail too, we •
also face police repression. Then, why is the land to be distributed
only in the names of men? Why are we excluded from any right to
land? We are part of the struggle, so we should also get land in our
own names.' Some of the women further argued: 'If the men who are
today landless beat up their wives so badly, merely using the power
derived from being men, then tomorrow with land in their possession,
will they not become relatively even more powerful?'
The women's demands sent shock waves into the meetings of the
Mazdoor-Kisan Samitis as well as among the block and district level
offices. The demands were soon opposed by the male members of
the Samitis, who argued that: 'Men have ploughed land since the
known period of human history. And, that is why they are the owners
of land.' The women retorted by saying, 'Women sow the seeds and
do most of the weeding, why can they not be owners of land?'
The arguments escalated and grew into a full fledged debate on
women's right to land. Women activists of the Vahini played a critical
role both in allowing the debate to deepen the understanding of
women's issues and to further agitate and mobilize village women
around these issues.
To assert their claims on land distribution and to challenge the .
' '
.taboo on ploughing, Vahini women collectively ploughed some land
in the village ofBija in 1980. This was not however, reported. In other
villages. the women declared. 'We are ready to cultivate the land with
 7be Bodbgaya /,and Stru/JBle 101

hoes instead of the plough. But, we want land in our own names.' In
the village of Pipparghani, the women announced that they would
not allow land to be distributed at all if it was to be given only in the
names of the men. Besides, they decided to do away with all anti-
woman traditions. For example, in the countryside of Bodhgaya, the
people would perform a ceremony on the first day of ploughing and
sowing the fields. Before leaving home to work on the land, men
would oil their lathis and women would apply sindoor to each other.
Widows were not allowed to participate in this ceremony, nor were
they allowed to sow seeds. lbese ceremonies were discontinued as
a result of the movement.
In the Bihar State Conference of tht: CYSV in East Champaran in
February, 1982, women activists criticized the pat.riarchal attitudes
within the organization and argued for women's independent right
to land. They pointed out that the Vahini had not made any serious
effort to include women in decision-making. Even today, both the
CYSV and the Mazdoor-Kisan Samiti have merely a token repre-
sentation of women, in spite· of the equal role which women had
played in the struggle against the math. The major concern of the
CYSV, the women complained, was to seek women'.s participation in
the movement which made only a marginal c.hange in the women's
social position. The women further questioned the CYSV's overall
neglect of patriarchal issues: 'Women constitute half of all social
groups and without them any struggle is incomplete in its very
process.' The state committee did decide in favour of the women's
demand and directed the movement committee to prepare a list of
women who should have land in their independent names. The
committee was to further negotiate with the local administration to
issue land deeds in the names of women.
The movement committee, however, found it difficult to deal with
the local bureaucracy, which opposed women's independent right to
land and conceded at best, to issuing joint titles to married couples.
Vahini activists persisted in arguing that a great majority of the poor
peasant and landless women in Bodhgaya are left with the sole
responsibility for their families' upkeep and, 'if the land is in the
women's names, the family's earnings or loan money cannot be spent
on drink or frittered away.' However, the local bureaucracy showed
great reluctance in issuing title deeds in the names of women,
102 A Space within the Struggle

demonstrating their ignoi:ance of the plan policies concerning .

women. The following dialogue on March 25, 1982 between the
'
·-,

Circle Officer (a block-level administrator responsible for the distribu-

tion of ceiling surplus or government lands) and a woman of the
village of Bija (representing a mass of women who had gathered there
to demand the land title deeds in their independent names) shows
both the gender bias of the development bureaucracy and the poor
women's militant demand for the land in their names. 31

The Circle Officer (C.0) : The law is to give land to the landless
labourers.
WOMEN : Are we not the landless labourers?
C.O. : Men plough the land. Will you women plough?
I
WOMEN : Do men transplant the rice? Do they sow the seeds? We,
too are the citizens of the country, and like the men have the right to
vote.
C.O. : What difference does it make to you, if your husband gets the
land, and not you? Ifhe has the land, you too, as his wife, have a share
in it. Why do you oppose it?
WOMEN : We want our independent right to land. We do not ask for
alms. Our struggle is for women's freedom and equality. We have
been enslaved by men since ages. Now, we will not live in this
enslaved condition.
:«
C.O. : If you persist and do not accept the man's ownership of the
land, I will not distribute any land, I will not distribute any land at all.
WOMEN : We have taken a decision in the village that a title deed is
not to be received unless it is in a woman's name. You may ask the
men. If they disagree today, we will continue our struggle against
them, too.
C.O.: If we distribute land to the women, and then if a woman leaves
her husband and marries another man, what then?
WOMEN : After marriage we have to apply sindoor. Our names are
changed, the husband's names added to our names, while the men
take their father's name. You should raise these questions when the
land is given in the names of men.
 7be BodJ.,gaya J,and St"'f1.Rle 103

During this dialogue, some of the women felt enraged and showed
the tattooed names of their husbands on their arms. They said that a
woman 'o/Orks from dawn to dusk but still the man is considered the
karta (the decision-maker) according to Hindu law, while State
policies and development programmes regard him as the head of
household and first guardian of children. Why?

Women get land

Subsequently in 1982, land was distributed in the villages of Bija and

Kusa at an average of one acre of land per household. Of the total
1,100 acres of distributed land, about ten per cent-100 acres--was
distributed in the names of the women. This is very marginal and
inadequate in proportion to their participation in the struggle. Never-
theless, it is significant. 111.is was an exemplary effort in the history of
the mass/peasant movement in the country when land was registered
in the names of women and there was social acceptance of their
independent claims to it. Moreover, these women were not single;
they had male adult relatives. 111.is unstated criterion, i.e. that women
should be included on the list for receipts of land, (which V.15
prepared by the Mazdoor-Kisan Samitis and under the direction of the
CYSV), however, seemed to be the level of activity in the movement.
A woman's access to land meant a significant reduction in her
household's risk of absolute poverty and security in facilitating credit
from institutional sources. It further meant a substantial rise in the
woman's social position and less vulnerability to violence in the
family. It has been observed by some grassroots workers in
Maharashtra, Unar Pradesh and Bihar that single women-widowed,
divorced, deserted or abandoned-are working as agricultural
labourers on the farms of their brothers, uncles and brothers-in-law .
Separate land deeds in women's names, therefore, would help e!"lsure
that they would not be destitute. The Bodhgaya women who got land
were reported to be asserting: 'We had tongues but could not speak,
we had feet but could not walk. Now that we have land, we have the
strength to speak and w alk. ·3 2
Separate land deeds in women's names, however, was a shortlived
matter in Bodhgaya. Over the past several years, there has been a
104 A space wUbm tbe Slru/Jg/e

.l
growing trend of joint ownership of land. For instance, in 1987, some
5,000 acres of land was distributed in the joint names of husband and l
wife. The only exception was 65 acres of land in the village of Lebra
in the Mohanpur block, where separate land deeds were issued in the
names of women in December, 1987. This was achieved because of
the persistent efforts of the CYSV leadership in Mohanpur.
When we visited villages in Bodhgaya for our field work in Oc-
tober, 1987, we noticed that the women were no longer in a position
to continue their struggle for independent land deeds. They lacked
feminist militancy in the leadership and thus were unable to counter
the corresponding growth of the male mentality in the Mazdoor-Kisan
Samitis. Some of the women explicitly pointed out, 'We do not have
any woman leader like Anjali, Chetna or Kumud to represent our case
in the movement.' The village women have not yet developed a
leadership that is able to fight for their cause, either within the CYSV
or in order to be able to argue for their rights with the district and state
level bureaucracy. Most of the women activists of the CYSV have
either left the organization, or crossed the age bar of 30 years in the
Vahini, and have hence become inactive, or moved to other parts of
the country. The male activists, and a few women who are there, do
not seem to regard the women's independent access to land as a
crucial issue.
During our discussions with the village level leadership of the
CYSV, we found two reasons for their lack of interest in the issue of
women's independent access to land. First, the local bureaucracy
seemed less resistant to the issue of land deeds in the joint names of
husband and wife, as provided by the Sixth Five Year Plan. So in
negotiations with the bureaucracy, the Vahini leadership found the
problem rather manageable. Second, there is a great deal of opposi-
tion to separate land deeds for women among male agricultural
labourers and poor peasants, particularly among their representatives
in the Mazdoor-Kisan Samitis. They tend to view it as a threat to their
own 'male existence and patriarchal control over women.'
The field work team was repeatedly told of the 'lessons' of the
village of Pipparghatti, where in 1983, the Vahini maintained that
they would not accept any land deeds unless some were released
independently in the names of women. While the CYSV leadership
and the women kept negotiating on this the men of Pipparghani
 1be Bodbgaya Land Strugglle 105

became impatient and nervous and decided to take the land deeds in
their names. The women and the CYSV leadership thus lost even the
claim for joint ownership. 1be Pipparghatti men later admitted their
apprehension. They were afraid that in the process of negotiation
with the local administrators, they might lose any kind of right to land
due for distribution. The Vahini leadership, however, seemed to us
no more prepared for another showdown by the villagers.
Such resistance was noticed in the discussions with the leaders of
Mazdoor-Kisan Samitis. Gopeshwar, a 32-year old leader of the Maz-
. door-Kisan Samiti of the village of Muneswarpur (about 10 km from
·Bodhgaya and the neighbouring village of Pipparghatti) narrated
imaginary tales about women who had received independent land
deeds in 1983. In one of his stories, a woman of the village Kusa
received a separate land deed for one acre in 1982. Subsequently, she
fought with her husband, sold the land, moved to a neighbouring
village to build her house and m.arried another man there. She had
left the children too, with her ex-husband. This story of Gopeshwar,
however, proved, upon cross-examination to be entirely untrue.
Gopeshwar has the reputation of an emergent leader from amon~ the
dalit and backward castes and is well accepted both by the villagers
and the village-level leadership of the Vahini. Some militant women
of the village do not like him for his patriarchal ideas and anti-women
strategies.
There were, nevertheless, other leading members of the Mazdoor-
Kisan Samiti, who had different views on the woman question. For
instance, Loha Singh and Bansi of the villages Muneswarpur and
Pipparghatti respectively, stated unequivocally that 'at least 50 per
cent of the land deeds should be in the independent names of
women.' They questioned the joint titles to-land. Given the general
'male superiority' and 'male dominance' in rural society, land deeds
in the joint names of husband and wife would not really shift the
control of land in the women's favour; nor would their position
improve. Both Loha Singh and Bansi blamed the circle officer that he
did not agree to issuing separate land deeds for the women. As a
matter of strategy, they would not like to delay or withhold the
distribution of land as it was likely to affect the people's morale.
Notwithstanding, we felt that the local leadership of the CYSV was
106 A Space withtn the Stru881e

.
relaxed on the issue of women's rights and would readily accept the '1
predominance of men in land distribution.
Some of the village women who have played a leading role in the
movement against the math expressed their disappointment at the
growing marginality of the woman question. Badki, a militant woman
In her forties, said that the men of her community were interested only
in the woman's galabandi (keeping their mouth shut). She added,
'no woman in the village is going to get land because it is the very
men of the village who oppose the women's independent right to
land.' Later in our discussion with Manjhar, (who is a member of
Mazdoor-Kisan Samiti too) we sensed that she has eventually ac-
cepted the idea of joint ownership, though she would have preferred
women's independent right to land. She sounded apprehensive, that
in the process of fighting for the separate land deeds for women, they
might lose even the opportunity for joint titles.
Given the track record of the Bihar government on the repeated
drives and programmes to distribute surplus land acquired from big
landlords, and considering the stranglehold of the feudal-patriarchal
system in rural Bihar, the effective distribution of land among dalits,
tribes and women by the CYSV is no small achievement. Admittedly,
a total revolution is far from complete, and the CYSV is left with only
a few full time activists. There is no longer the visible turmoil of a mass
movement in the countryside of B~hgaya. The Vahini activists
concede that they have not been able to radically restructure society
and create a model of development which was a major premise of '
total revolution. But that the CYSV fought the math and depleted its
power is itself an example to be followed by a government which has
on its list as many as 297 big landlords who have between 400 to 4,000
acres of land and who control nearly SO per cent of the fertile
agricultural land. It is through the struggles of CYSV, peasant or-
ganizations and other NGOs in Bihar that nearly 300,059 acres of land
had been acquired and 200,039 acres had been distributed among the
landless and agricultural labourers.33
An important contribution of the CYSV, however, is not only the
crackdown on the feudal structure of the math. What is even more
significant is the awakening generated among some women of poor
peasant and dalit castes. There is determination to carry on the
struggle. Kunti, a bhuinya woman says : 'Akbtrl dam tak ladle
 7be Bodbgaya land ShUggle 107

rabengd (We will continue to fight till our last breath). This fight,
Kunti explains, is against the exploitation and oppression of women,
both as members of the dalit community and as women in that
community.
In June 1985, a development scheme was floated in Bodhgaya to
make bank loans available to marginal and poor peasants to buy
bullocks, agricultural seeds etc. In some cases women, too got the
loans as they had received some land in the land redistribution. Men
complained against these loans, saying that 'It is a problem to have
land in the women's names.' The problem was that they had to walk
long distances to perform formalities at the bank and be physically
present to receive the loan amount Women reacted sharply to these
arguments : 'Did we not walk long distances to do agricultural work
on wages? Have w e lost the use of our legs, now?' Women insisted
that they would themselves go to the bank to conduct their transac-
tions and buy bullocks, seeds and other necessities from markets.
Men's complaints were said to be baseless and manipulated in order
that the men could themselves have cash to spend on 'useless things. '
In their discussions with the Vahini activists the women said that
· ownership and control of land was the first step towards their social
identity. And, they had to be careful not to lose their rights to others.
Subsequently, CYSV women activists organized discussion groups
and asked poor peasant women : 'who should have the right to inherit
land from us? Why is it that the boy inherits land and the girl
housework?' In the movement, poor peasant and landless women
have asserted their right to land/property, but the question of sharing
of housework had been pushed aside. Why had it not been taken up?
Why have they not fought for their larger representation in the
Mazdoor-Kisan Samitis and other decision-making bodies? The vil-
lage women categorically stated that it was essential to have men
share the housework and raise women's numbers in the decision-
making process, in proportion to their participation in the struggle.
To the question of inheritance rights of women, their prompt
responses were in favour of the daughters-in-law. Regarding the
rights of daughters, women felt that a girl would marry in another
village and after the marriage the family of her husband would control
the land. During these discussions, there were several rural women
who suggested preference for matrilocal marriages. If a girl does not
108 A Space within tbe Struggle

have to move out of her village and the husband comes to stay with
her family or in a separate home for the two, a daughter would have
no problem about her inheritance rights.
There was an interesting case that came up during one of these
meetings. A young dalit woman, Shanti, of the village of Pipparghatti
was considered an active woman leader in the movement. The
Bodhgaya movement committee gave her some land to cultivate for
her subsistence and support of the family. (The land had been seized
from the math and was in the control of the movement committee).
Meanwhile, Shanti married a man from another village about 12 Km.
from Pipparghatti. Since Shanti had land in Pipparghatti, she refused
to move to her husband's village and insisted that her husband stayed
with her in Pipparghatti where she had land. Things came to a
breaking point. Finally, the husband came to stay with Shanti. It is
important to note that Shanti controls the land and neither her parenti.
nor the husband's family have any say in the matte r. Shanti became
an example of women's right to have access to land and other
resources in matrilocal marriages.
Patrilocality is the basic social relation in our society. Patrilocality
is not a matter of marriage and the exchange of women as wives but
is also a relation of production. Dowries, exchange of goods and the
right of men to own and control land accompany the exchange of
women. Women's rights (or lack of them) are determined by patrilo-
cal social relations. The rules of patrilocal residence governing
women have been considered to be a key element in the origins of
sexual stratification of women's role in production which enable men
to utilize and appropriate women's labour and products in ways that
ultimately enhance the authority of the husband's family.34 These
rules further allow accumulation in favour of the male line and ensure
the subordination of women. What is significant is that poor peasant
and landless women of the Bodhgaya movement have launched a
struggle against the patrilocal rules of residence . This struggle, though
at a very incipient stage, has been part of the women's struggle againSt
the concentration of land and power in the math.
 7be BodbsaYO Land Stru/!8le 1()1)

NOTES

1. Kalpana BarJhan, 'Women's Work, Welfare and Status. Forces of

Tradition and Change in India' (in two paJts) lic-0n0mlc and Politi-
cal Wee.WyVol.XX, No.50, December 14, 1985 and Nos. Sl and S2,
December 24-28, 1985: Bina Agrawal, 'Women, I.and Rights and
Household in India', typescript July 1986.
2. K. Sardarnoni, 'Clanging I.and Relations and Women : A Case srudy
of Palghat District, Kerala,' in Vina Mazumdar (ed). Women and
Rural Transformal1on, Tiro Studies, (ICSSR and CWDS), New
Delhi, Concept Publishing Company 1983.
3. Ibid, Editor's Note, p.x.
4. Govind Kelkar et. al. Rural Women, and Consctousness tn lndta,
Nev.· Delhi, forthcoming. Manohar Publications.
5. 7be nmes oflndta, New Delhi, December 21, 1988.
7. Govind Kelkar, 'Women and Rural Development Programmes and
Organizations In Contemporary China and India' in Noeleen
Heyzer (ed), Women Flln'l1i!rS and Rural Cbmf8e tn Asta, Towards
F.quaJ Access and Parttctpalion, Asian and Pacific Development
Centre, Kuala Lumpur 1987, pp SS-S7.
7. Christine Delphy, C1osetoHome, London, Hutchinsion, 1984. p. 38.
8. Gerda Lerner, 7be Crea/Wn ofPalrlarr;by, London, Oxford Univer-
sity Press 1986. p. 9.
9. Rajni Kothari, 'NGOs, the State and World Capitalism,' l!conomtc
and Polutcal Wee.Wy, Vol. XXI, No. 50, December, 13, 1986.
10. Arvind N. Das, Agmrlan Un~ and Soda &:onomtc Cbanse tn
Btbar 1900-1980, New Delhi, Manohar Publications, 1983; Prad-
han H Prasad, 'Political Economy of Economic. Development in
Bihar' in Btbar, Slagnatton or Growth eds. A N Sharma & Shaiblal
Gupta, (Patna, September, 1987): also Govlnd Kelkar 'Peasant
Movements and Women in Two Bihar Districts.' Typesaipt, discus-
ses in detail such features of the Bihar's society.
11. Arun Sinha, 'Peasant Movement and Change' in Btbar, Slagnatton
or Growth, op. cit. pp. 2S
12. W.W. Hunter, A Slattsttcal Account ofBen/Jal, ~- XXD Dtstrlcts of
Gaya and Sabababad London, Trubner & Co. 1877 pp. 73-75.
13. Ibid p. 9S,
14. Ibid, pp 100-1, Also Francis Buchanan, An Account oftbe Dtstrlcts
o/BtbarandPatna. Vol. I, Delhi, Usha Publlcalions, reprinted 1986.
IS. Ibid pp. 1~.
110 A Space wttbtn the S'"'lJ8le

16. Ibid pp. 95, 101

17. Ibid pp. 72-73
18. D. D. Kosambi, An lntroductton to tbe Study of History, Bombay,
Popular Prakashan, 1956 discusses the rising power of Brahmins
and the decline of Buddhism.
19. Ibid pp. 115-16
20. Abhijit Bhattacharjee 'Bodhgaya Math-Where "God" and his dis-
ciples run a Zamindari' in 1be Otberslde, journal of Socialist
7bougbt and Action, No. 74, March 1988, New Delhi.
21. lbidpp.11
22. S. Jagannathan, former President of Sarva Seva Sangh, qu()(ed in
7be Otberslde, March 1988 p . 13.
23. Manimala 'Zameen Kekar?j()(e Unkar' (who owns land? The person
who works it), Manusbt, New Delhijanuary-February,1983.
24. EK Tarllta, special issue on Bodhgaya, Patna, January-February,
1982.
25. AVARD, the Socialjustice&LegalSupportC-ell, Green Acres Or Red?
Bboomt Ando/an tn Bodh Gaya.
26. Neeraja Choudhry, 'Bodhgaya Movement,' Typescript,1984.
27. Manimala, 'Aural Ke Azadi' (Women's Freedom) in Samytk Varta
(Current Affairs), 1981. p.8.
28. Qu()(ed in Neerja Choudhry 'Bodhgaya Movement' Typescript,
1984. p.7.
29. Based on the fieldwork team's discussion with Manjhar, as
described in Govind Kelkar's field n()(es, November 1987.
30. A couple of activists of CYSV narrated this incident to Govind Kelkar
in a workshop of Nari Mukti Sangharsh Sammelan, Patna February
1988.
31. The dialogue was recorded by Chetna Gala.
32. Alka and Chetna: 'When Women Get land-A Report From
Bodhgaya' Manusbt, No 40. 1987, p .26.
33. Hemendra Narain, 'Bihar Newsletter-More About Land and
Landlords.' 1be Indian Express, Delhi, October, 13, 1988.
34. For a detailed diScussion, see Stephanie Coontz and Peta Hender-
son (eds.), Women'.s Worlr, Men'.s Property: 7be OrlBtns of Gender
and Qass, London, Verso, 1986.
 The Chipko Movement

VIMLA BAHUGUNA
(postscript by Madhu Pathak)
(Translated from Hindi by the authors)

When news of the Chipko movement, launched to protect the

Himalayan forests fT">m destruction, spread to the outside world,
people were aston.ished, for often it is assumed that new ideas and
new movements are born in cities where the intelligentsia live. What
surprised people even more was the fact that the front rank soldiers
of the movement were women, whose area of operation was often
assumed to be the home and the hearth. But the Chipko movement
was not an isolated event; rather it was the culmination of a process
that had begun three decades ago.
Gandhi's movement of non-violence attracted to India two young
western women, who were disillusioned with western materialist
civilization which,' they felt, had given birth to bloodshed and ex-
ploitation. They wanted to search for a new way of life. One of them
was Madelene Slade, the daughter of a British General, whom Gandhi
renamed Miraben. Miraben worked closely with Gandhi, and when
independence was in sight, she settled in the Himalayan teratat the
Kisan Ashram which she herself had founded. Later, she founded
another centre--Pashulok or animal world-at Rishikesh on the
banks of the Ganges. The story goes that one day she saw the river
Ganges, normally perceived as a river that nurtures all as her children,
bring in disastrous floods that destroyed the fields and houses on its
112 A space wttbtn tbe Struggle

banks. Miraben travelled on horesback, along with other residents of

her ashram, towards the source of the river to discover the reasons
for the flood. As they travelled further into the hills they saw the bare
mountain slopes and realized that something was very seriously
wrong. The forests had been destroyed, and this was not due to
ordinary tree felling, but because of commercial exploitation which
meant large-scale tree felling. Forest trees, which held the soil and
moisture in place, had been indiscriminately cut down. Miraben
warned us in the early fifties that commercialization of the Himalayas
would lead to destructive floods, but her words went unheeded.
Miraben later established an ashram at Devligaon in Tehri
Garhwal; here she wanted to start an integrated programme based on
agriculture, forestry and animal husbandry. But, she was unable to
carry out her ideas, mainly because of bureaucratic problems and
eventually had to leave India. The seeds of her ideas however
remained on Himalayan soil, waiting for germination.
Sarlaben (Catherine Hillman) was of aristocratic parentage like
Miraben. Daughter of naturalized British parents of German origin,
she had been jailed for her ancestry during World War I. This injustice
awakened the rebel in her. Later she came into contact with Indian
students and through them got to know about Gandhi. She realized
that the British in India were not on a civilizing mission, but were out
t9 destroy India's culture and self sufficient village economy in order
to further their colonial interests. In Gandhi's call for non-vi.o lent
action for swaraj(self rule) she saw not only a revolt against colonial
rule but also a step away from a mechanized, inhuman existence
towards a more humane life. In her autobiography she has written
that it was in the words of the dboH-clad Gandhi that she heard the
first meaningful ideas of her life. She came to India and joined Bapu's
nat taltm (new education) experiment. The climate of Wardha did
not suit her so, on Bapu's advice, she moved to Almora. As a result of
the August 1942 movement, several activists were jailed. Sarlaben
began to tour the villages with the idea of comforting their families.
She discovered that the wives of jailed activists felt great pride at their
husbands' participation in the struggle and shouldered all household
burdens uncomplainingly and with great courage. She realized that
the hill women had great potential for social action, and that this
potential, once aroused, would take them very far.
 7be Cbtplto Movement 113

Sarlaben was jailed several times during the freedom struggle. After
1947 she established the Kasturba Utthan Mandal at Kausani and
began to work for the development of the hill women. She trained
many girls who later became active in Vinoba Bhave's bboodan (land
gift) movement and in the gram SU\2raj(village autonomy) move-
ment. Several of them set up their own centres in villages which, in
tum, became sources of inspiration for many others. The ideas and
work of Miraben and Sarlaben came together in praxis at the Parvatiya
Nav-Jeevan Mandal at Silyara in Tehri Garhwal, one of the m05t
backward areas of the hills. One of the founders of the Silyara Ashram,
Sunderlal Bahuguna, was greatly inspired by Miraben, and had
worked with Sarlaben and in the bhoodan movement for eight years.
Silyara became a centre for development work that relied on the
people's own strength. An anti-alcohol campaign was launched from
here. At Dhansali, nearSilyara, a liquorcontractwasgivenout in 1965;
to stop this a satyagrabwas planned. Women used the Ramlila form
as a platform to campaign against the contract, and went from door
to door to collect rice to sustain their workers. This was the first time
hill women's organized power was used in public life. Seeing women
working against cultural degeneration, Shri Surendra Dutt, an 80-year
old ex-judge, was inspired to coun arrest.
The government did not, finally, open a liquor shop there, and in
the following year, the movement spread to other areas like Thal,
Badshahi Thowl, and Chandrapuri. In Badshahi Thowl, the picketing
was led by Shaheed Shree Suman's aged mother, Taradevi. The
women forcibly locked the liquor shop-Taradevi sat down before
the locked shop saying, 'either the shop will stay closed, or I will sit
here until my death.' The women also led a delegation to meet the
Chief Minister of U.P., Sucheta Kripalani. They took Ms Kripalani to
two villages and expressed their distress at seeing their hard-earned
gains flowing into liquor. Ms Kripalani ordered the closure of the
liquor shops and assured the women that no new shops would be
opened in the area.
The movement spread after this to Garur where the liquor.shop
adjoined the village. Young people from the village often sold their
riee, had a drink, and only then began their day's work. In April when
the contract was to be given out, as many as 2,000 women
demonstrated and challenged the administration to arrest them all.
114 A Space wUhtn tbe Struggle

The shop had to be closed down. After this the movement spread to
Kotdwar, and Lansdowne where many women courted arrest. Here
too shops were closed. In 1970 women picketed a shop at Tehri,
violating section 144. Many women, including some who were 80
years old, went to jail in this connection. Men threatened their wives
th.at they would be thrown out of their homes; the women retorted
th.at homes did not belong to men alone and they were, after all,
struggling to protect their homes from destruction through liquor. The
goverrunent announced prohibition in Tehri Garhwal and Pauri
Garhwal, but the contractors filed a writ in the High Court and
managed to get the liquor shops in Tehri and Pauri Garhwal reopened
in November 1971. However, the women had now seen how peaceful
life had been during prohibition. There was much less domestic and
village violence and fewer road accidents. To protest against the
reopening, women came in a demonstration from Ch.amoli and
Uttarkashi and from around Tehri. Shri Sunderlal Bahuguna sat on
hunger strike before the liquor shop and 10,000 people, 8,000 of them
women, demonstrated in Tehri saying: Uttarakband kt yeh /aJkar,
daru band kare sarlulr (This is the cry of Uttarakh.and: th.at the
government should ban liquor). Women went to Dehradun, Tehri
and Saharanpur jails with small children in their arms. Eventually,
prohibition was enforced in Tehri and Pauri Garhwal once again in
April 1972. This was the result of the women's collective strength, built
up through the years at the initiative of Sarlaben. According to poet
Kanhaiya Lal Mishra 'Prabhakar' who met the arrested women in
Saharanpur jail, 'Their courage mirrored the spirit of Gandhi.' The
anti-alcohol struggle taught women the value of collective action.
Uttarakh.and has always been a spiritual resource centre for the
country. Major rivers such as the Ganga and the Yamuna originate
here, and their waters have provided life support for the agriculture
of the plains. .However, the hunt for resources on the part of the
materialist world has invaded Uttarakh.and's forested hill slopes and
brought in complex ecological problems. Water sources are drying
up due to deforestation, fertile soil has panly been washed away and
partly been affected by chemical cultivation. Women's own lives are
becoming harder; they often have to trek as far as 25 km. every day
to collect fuel and fodder. It was for all these reasons th.at women took
up the cause of the forests.
 The Cbtpllo Movement 115

Colonial forest policy was based on Britain's need for wood for its
shipbuilding and land transportation. Europe's own forests had been
destroyed long ago, so the colonies were the next source of supply.
In 1830 the Malabar teak forests were declared State property despite
people's protests. To crush all opposition, a police officer, Col.
Walson, was declared conservator of forests. When the State acquired
control over forests in other pans of the country, popular protest
spread but was crushed through force. The early years of the twen-
tieth century saw many such struggles in Uttarakhand. The forest
movement of 1920-21 became part of Gandhi's movement for civil
disobedience. The government only managed to restore peace after
some forests were constituted into forest panchayats and handed over
to the village people's control. Protests also occurred in Indian states
where, following British policy, forests were nationalized. A strong
movement took place in Yamuna Ghati in 1930. The people there
unilaterally declared a free panchayat and called a meeting on 30 may
1930 at Tilari. The ruler's forces fired brutally on this meeting, killing
17 persons. Many people were jailed. The people's main demand was
that the benefits of the forest, especially the right to fodder, should
go to local people.
Although this movement was crushed, discontent at the forest
policy continued to brew. After 1947, 30th May began to be observed
as a sbabeed dtwas(martyrdom day) ; on this day each year people
would coilect to ho.Id discussions on forest problems. When, in the
late sixties and early seventies, the message of gram swaraj spread in
this area, and Uttarkashi was declared an independent district, a
meeting on forest issues was organized at Tilari Maidan. On this
occasion, a declaration on forests was prepared on behalf of the
people, and thousands of people took a pledge to redeem this at the
Martyr's memorial in 1969. This declaration was publicized in the
villages of the area by activists of the Gram Swaraj Sangh, and became
a fundamental document of the Chipko Movement. A local issue
became important at this time: the government's giving of a forest
lease to a contractor from Bareli in preference to the villagers, caused
much discontent in the area. Representations on this issue through
'legitimate channels' yielded no results. Sarvodaya workers were busy
at the time with the liquor issue, but as soon as the anti-liquor
campaign ended with full prohibition in five districts in 1972, they
 116 A Space wUbtn tbe Stn4ggle

turned their attention to the forest issue. In the months of October and
November 1972, Swami Chidanandji Maharaj, head ofDivyaJeewan
Sangh at Shivanand Nagar, toured the area for 30 days to see what
was happening. Swamiji had also played an active part in the anti-liq-
uor struggle, and had led a delegation of three women to meet the
then President, V.V.Giri. During his 1972 tour he spoke at many
meetings about the environmental pollution he had seen in the West.
He aL"O discussed the deliberations of the first International Environ-
ment Conference that had recently taken place at Stockholm. He gave
! . the s~ogan to the people that the Himalaya~ range was the father and
.,1 . the nver Ganges the mother of all mountain people of Unarakhand.
1
".° '. \Their sacred task was therefore to protect both.
1 The theoretical basis for the Chipko movement was built up thus.
Against this background, the practical work of the movement began.
The fll'St demonstration was on 11 December 1972 at Purola in
Yamuna Ghati, the birthplace of the 1930 forest agitation. The
demands included an end to the contractor system of forest exploita-
tion, supply of forest produce to villagers at concessional rates, and
forest revenue settlement. The second demonstration was at Ut-
tarakashi on December 12, and the third on December 15 at
, Gopeswhar, district headquarters of Chamoli. People pledged here
\ to not permit the cutting of angu (ash) trees for making agricultural
implements. Meanwhile an Allahabad sports goods company arrived
with a permit for felling 50 angu trees. This incident added the spark
, to an already inflammable situation. People had angry discussions
about how they would resist the fellers, and from among them the
suggestion came that if the company's workers insisted on felling the
trees, the people would attach themselves (cbipak jayenge) to the
trees. However the occasion for this did not arise, although at the
intended felling site people demonstrated with nagadas, the tradi-
tional village drums meant for gathering people together. There were
many women at this demonstration and when one of them was asked
why this particular form of resistance was chosen, she retorted that if
a wild animal came face to face with a mother and child, the mother's
natural reaction would be to hug the child close to her. This in how •
close the women felt to the forest.
This kind of agitation was repeated in Kedarghat, in Chamoli
district. In the next year, when a forest was auctioned at Joshimath
 Tbe Cbtplto Mooement 117

tehsil's village Reni, women led by Gaura devi drove the fellers out,
saying the forest is our parental home ( matka).
Until now, women's feelings and concern pn this issue had
remained suppressed because of men's predominantly economic
way of thinking. This problem came into sharper focus in November
1977 at village Advani in Tehri Garhwal's Hewal Ghati. To the great
sorrow of the village women, the men of the village agreed, at the
instance of the forest officer, to allow trees to be felled. In this crisis,
Sh!-ee Dhoom Singh Negi came to the village, and sat down under a
tree on hunger strike. On the fifth day of his fast, the village women
announced their decision to hug the trees marked for felling: they
were determined to save these even at the cost of their lives. To
publicize their resolve they arranged for bhagwat katbas (scripture
recitals) and this religious forum became a platform for consciousness
raising on the forest issue. When the katha was over the women
reiterated their resolve. Soon after this, the government sent a forest
officer to win over the women. A delegation of women met him in
broad daylight, holding lanterns: they wanted to dispel his ignorance
and tell him that when forests are cut, new forests do not spring up
in their place as the soil and the water sources dry up. The forest
officer poured out all his 'scientific' arguments in favour of forest
felling, and ended his speech with a slogan: Kya batjangaJ ke upkaar,
Leesa, Lakdi, aur ~r(what are the benefits of the forest: forest
produce, wood and commerce). To this Bachni devi, the leader of the
women countered: Kya bat jangaJ ke upkar, mtllt, pant aur bayar,
ztnda mbrre Ila aadbar(what are the benefits of the forest: soil, water
and pure air, the ~nee of life). The thousands of women present
at the meeting repeated this slogan after Bachni ~. Clearly, they
had a better scientific understanding then the forest official,' but,
unlike him, they were not free to articulate it in the same way.
A few days after this a large contingent of the Provincial Armed
Constabularly (PAC) arrived in Advani, and paraded the streets with
arms in order to terrorize the people. On the first of February 1978,
the contractor went to the jungle with the tree fellers. The PAC
contingent followed close behind. Before the axes could strike, the
women hugged the trees and attached themselves to them. The armed
force had to tum back.
116 A Space u>fthtn tbe Struggle

Shortly after this, a forest auction was arranged under heavy police
security at Narendre Nagar. The demonstrating party, including eight
women, broke the police cordon and entered the auction room. Late
at night, the group (consisting of fifteen men and eighteen women)
was arrested and sent to Tehri jail. In December 1978, at Kemar in
Kanger path, forest fellirig was begun using local labour. Bhagwat
katha style consciousness raising programmes, coupled with Shri
Dhoom Singh Negi'.s hunger strike and speeches, succeeded in
making them stop this work.
In January 1979, in Vadiargarh where 2,500 trees were marked for
felling, the contractor led a large party of workers to the area.
Saivodaya workers rushed to the spot. The local leader was bought
off with bribes, so women from Kemar, 100 km. away, came and
camped in Vadiargarh. Felling operations were scheduled even at
night but the women stood close to the marked trees and foiled the
axemen's efforts; then, hearing the axemen elsewhere in the forest
they rushed to the new felling site to protect the trees there. The
situation became very tense. To preserve the non-violent character of
the movement as well as to raise the morale of the· protesters,
Sunderlal Bahuguna went to the area and began a fast in a small hut
in the forest. The contractor's men set fire to this hut, but luckily
Bahuguna realized this in time and came out. On the thirteenth day
of his fast a very large police force came and arrested him in the
middle of the night. The police then camped in the local high school
and began to threaten the demonstrating women as well as those
providing them with shelter with dire consequences if they did not
abandon the cause, but to no avail. The women who had come from
outside continued to guard the forests, and the local women to
mobilize in the surrounding villages, provide shelter and do guard
duty. Tree felling had to be abandoned; however the labourers who
had been brought in from Nepal could not go back without specific
orders. So they continued to camp in the forest as well, with the police
periodically threatening them and demanding they continue felling:
the impasse continued.
The movement gained new momentum after Bahuguna's arrest.
The folk poet Ghanshyam Sailani travelled to many villages inspiring
people with songs (composed by him at various periods between
 7be Cbtplto Movement 119

1972 and 1978) on the forest movement. These songs have become
part of the Chipko lore and are still sung in the villages:

Cblpka perbon par ab na llanm dya

]anglee sampattt ab na looten dya

(stay close to the trees, do not let them be cut;save the forest wealth
from plunder)

]angalu llati kati ltbarba parbtge

Bum egt samaltaal barltba IJ""8e
Kharba Ulba bhat bandhu sabht llalhlba bola
Sarlrari neeti se jangal bacbola

(arise brothers and sisters, organize to save the forests from the
government's misguided policies: the forests have been cut to the
roots, the hillsides are lying bare). Old people and children, men and
women all over Uttarkhand sang together:

Aaj Himalay jagega

Kroor kulbara bbagega
Perb gtrane wale socbo
Dbarti ma ki ltbaa/ na nocho
Bhale kulbare chamkenge
Ham perbon par cbipkenge
Latbi goli kbayenge
Apne perb bacbayenge

(The himalayas will rise to protect their forests and drive out the
axes. You who would cut the trees, think twice before you skin
mother earth; even if the axemen come we will hug our trees; in the
face of lathis and bullets, we will protect our trees).
These songs spread the message of Chipko far and wide; the
movement gained momentum and Bahuguna continued to fast in jail
for 24 days. Eventually the government agreed to discuss forest policy
with the agitators, and this phase of the movement was temporarily
halted. It was resumed when the government went back on its word
120 A space wtlbln tbe StruRRle

and prepared to recommence felling at Dugamdar patti. Once again

the women came together to resist and save the forests.
It took another year and a half for forest felling to stop. When Mrs
Gandhi won the election in 1980, she invited the Chipko leaders to
New Delhi for talks, constituted a committee of scientists and govern-
ment experts to study the problem, and pending submission of the
committee's report, banned commercial forest felling in the
Himalayas at heights above 1,000 metres.
Although the Uttar Pradesh government's report did not come out
in support of this ban, the central government had the report placed
before senior scientists and environmentalists. As a result of their
recommendations commercial felling of green trees was banned for
fifteen years above the Shivalik Talhatti. Food, fodder and fuel bear-
ing trees were to be plant~ within a three kilometre radius of villages.
The people's right of access to dry twigs and leaves was also upheld.
These recommendations have not been complied with in toto, but the
fifteen year ban on felling is still in force. The women of Chipko have
added to the world's consciousness ()f environmental issues sig-
nificantly by their slogan of '.mUHpant aur bayar. Major afforestation
programmes have also heen launched as a result of the movement.
However, forest officials are unable to live down a 100 year legacy of
commercial exploitation. Therefore auctions of dry timber continue
to take place, and commercial plantations like poplar are still en-
'
couraged rather than soil and water conserving species. The women's
movement for a rational forest policy, thus continues.
The Chipko movement did not stop with the end of commercial
forest felling. At a second stage large-scale educational work among
the people became the main focus. Dr Indu Tikkekar continu~ to
run the bhagwat kathas as a platform for getting women together in
order to create awareness on forest issues.
The women of the hills have gained enormously in self confidence
through the movement. They can now articulate their own long term,
larger needs cl~y. Thus, in Shreekot women were outraged when
they saw the preparations for planting commercial species. They
immediately went in a delegation to the forest officials and managed
toBet a counter order sanctioned for planting of socially useful trees.
These, they offered to look after and guard themselves.
 7beanpl«>Mooement 121

In the same spirit, women of the Silyara Mahila Mandal undertook

the care of a forest depanment nursery, on the condition that if they
came across any environmentally unsound soil or water depleting
tree like EucaJyprus, they would uproot and destroy it. The work of
Jupeli Devi, the President of Silyara Mahila Mandal, in caring for the
nursery was praised by the forest officials too. The women continue
to be vigilant in order to ensure that the forests are used in the people's
interests. When, in 1986, they found that drywood trees were being
felled into small logs and sold, and that at the same time people were
chronically short of fuel wood as well as of wood for reparing homes,
the women once again took to the streets. The same Jupeli Devi led
a delegation protesting against the New Forest Bill and saying that the
government's social forestry was only on paper. Women could do a
much l;>etter job of it. To prove the point, she had members of the
Mahila Mandal dig 20,000 pits and plant 1,700 trees.
The purpose of the Chipko movement was not only to save the '
forests, but to establish a caring and mu~Uy supportive relationship ;
between human beings and nature. Spreading these ideas among i
people is also a part of the movement, as is establishing these '.
nurturing, caring values. The movement against environmentally )
destructive limestone quarries in the Doon valley is another one in I
which women are playing a leading role. ·

Postscript: llttarkhand women

continue their struggle

MAOHU PATiiAK

The Chipko movement is a response.to the disutrous environmental

situation in the hills. As a result of this struggle, commercial felling of
non-aduh bees was stopped Women .also began to plant ~ and
other fodder in their villages. But the danger to the hills was not only
122 A Space wttbtn tbe S'"'8/Ile

due to felling. Limestone mining had been going on for several years
in and around Dehradoon. Once people became aware of environ-
mental issues they began to resist this as well. A writ petition was filed
against this in the Supreme Court, and the Court constituted a com-
mittee for the inspection of these mines under the jurisdiction of the
Director General of the Nagpur based Indian Mining Bureau. The
conuninee graded the mines into 'A' 'B' 'C' and 'D' categories after
inspecting them. The Barkot mine, about 40 km from Dehradoon at
the confluence of the jarwan and Sinsyaru streams were graded 'A'
which meant that it could operate as before. nus mine had been
under operation for the last 24 yeal'S-{he contractor's lease had
expired in 1982, but he continued to occupy the mining site on the
basis of a 'stay order' that allowed him to do so until he had lifted his
ore.
Once the people get to know of the verdict of the inspecting
conunittee they decided to oppose the operation of the mines. A
youth organization, thejuwak Mangal Dal, and a women's group, the
Mahila Manda!, took an oath on July :.!5, 1985 that they would not
allow excavation at this mine which threatened their very existenee.
The contractor and his agents were perhaps unaware of the gravity
of the situation for they decided to reopen operations at the site from
17 September.
Once this date was announced, the group had no option but to
resort to direct action, on 16, September they set up camp in Sinsyaru
Khala and sat on dbarnato stop the contractor's trucks and labourers
from reaching the mine site. The contractor came to their public
meeting to present his side of the case and offered incentives if the
protesters withdrew their action. The women persisted in their action
nevertheless. Subsequently the contractor set up a tent with a few
labourers nearthe women's satyagmbasite, and tried to tum tht issue
into one of environment versus employment. The real issues, how-
ever, were fuel, fodder, soil, water, and subsistence for the people
of the area. The women asked the counter protesters why they were
seeking employment that they knew would destroy the village.
The women were fighting for the right to live on their land with
dignity, and because of this they came under constant attack. The
contractor's men tried other tactics: they abducted a 14 year old girl.
Her father; Kalam Singh of Barkot, weeps as he remembers how his
 The Cbtplto Movement 123

house was broken into, his daughter gagged and abducted. The gag
was apparently only removed after reaching Hardwar. The police,
totally unsympathetic to the struggle of the people, did not even
register an FIR.
Of the families whose lands are close the excavation site, many
have left the area, in the last 10 years. As the sources of livelihood
have degenerated social and cultural values have been affected as
well. The people of Navikala village, closest to the excavation site,
today admit that their women have not felt safe in the forest for the
last several years.
The women feel that whatever destruction has taken place in the
past, further destruction should not occur, and that they would not
like their lives to be dictated by the dynamite blasts of mines. Blasting
had damaged several village homes, and the village people lived in
constant terror that they or their cattle would lose their lives to fatting
stones. The dhama was maintained continuosly from 16 September
1985 by women, men and children. The contractor's trucks were not
permitted entry to the mine during this time, causing him heavy losses.
On September 27 there was a public meeting. The men left early
for the meeting. The women were about to depart when they spied
the contractor's truck leaving the mine laden with stones. They
immediately stopped the truck, and compelled the driver to leave the
spot without this vehicle. The contractor kept up these tactics, tried
to give himself a pro-employment public image, invited journalists to
write reports with this bias and tried to provoke the agitation to
violence. The demonstrating women, however, carried on w ith
peaceful picketing and maintained they had no personal enemity with
the contractor, let alone with the workers who were like theil
brothers. Their struggle was based on the principles of survival and
dignity. Eventually the contractor filed a suit in the Supreme Court
alleging interference in complying with court directives. At the time
of writing, the picketing was continuing while the matter remained
subjudice.
Some intellectuals, whose commitment to environmental issues is
limited to discussion and debate, have argued that if this particular
mine was indeed dangerous it would not have received a .favourable
grading from the inspectors. The village people counter this by raising
questions about when and by whom the mine was surveyed as well
124 .A space wllbtn tbe St1Uggle

as the survey methodology. Why should we, they ask, accept a wrong
judgement just because it has been passed? They remain determined
to continue the struggle.
 The Adivasi Struggle in Dhulia

NIRMALA SAIBE

In Bhaler village of Nandurbar ta/uka in the Dhulia district of

Maharashtra, an adtvasiwoman was beaten up and sexually assaulted
by a landlord in August 1978. Although this sounds like an ordinary
everyday incident, what made it different was the kind of reaction it
elicited and the course of action it sparked off. This once, the Adivasi
woman did not go away quietly. She went, instead, to her organiza-
tion, the Shramik Sangathana, and together with Shramik Sangathana
activists, as well as women from a neighbouring village, decided to
protest against the behaviour of the landlord. The women took the
case to the police and when, after a few days the police had still not
acted, reported the maner to the village sarpanch and the police patil
on September 9, 1978. When there was no response even from here,
they decided they would have.to take matters into their own hands.
They went to the landlord's house, forced their way in, pulled him
out and paraded him on an ass through the village. The police were
quick to act this time, and were urged on by the sarpanch and the
police patil. They came the very next day and arrested the women
and the Shramik Sangathana activists. The women did not mince
words with the police: 'We know whose side you are on,' they said,
'you would not take legal action on our complaint so we decided to
punish the landlord in our own way, knowing that you would arrest
us.' On September 21, about five to six hundred women demonstrated
outside the police station in Nandurbar.
 126 A Space ~thtn the Struggle

There are many such incidents and stories of the strength and
courage that Adivasi women have acquired through coming together
in the Shramik Sangathana. From being in an absolutely downtrodden
state, these women have developed and fought militant struggles that
are a source of inspiration for other women's organizations. How did
such militancy come about ?
The Shramik Sangathana, an organization of landless labourers in
the Shahada, Taloda, Nandurbar and Akkalkua talukas of Dhulia
district, came into prominence in the 1970s in Maharashtra and
became a focal meeting point for many left activists. All four talukas
are tribal dominated and the history of the last two hundred years has
been that of tribal dispossession of land and settlement by non tribal
farmers from outside in the fertile agricultural belt. These 'new'
landlords, the non-tribals, have used cash loans and service bondage
to cheat the tribals of whatever small plots of land they owned and
continue to keep a strong hold on them. After independence the
Indian government went out of its way to provide irrigation, co-opera-
tive structures and facilities as well as capitalist farming inputs to the
farmers, leading to their gteater prosperity and to further impoverish-
ment of tribal landless labourers. This was the objective situation that
gave birth to the Shahada movement.
Around 1970, Ambar Singh, an educated tribal working in a Sar-
vodaya organization, felt the need to do something for his people.
Before that the tribals had borne their oppression meekly with a few
occasional outbursts. The rape of a pregnant women at Padalada in
1
1970 was the turning point. This was what made Ambar Singh decide
\ to work wih the adivasis. He began as a religious teacher - the
·· people called him Ambar Singh Maharaj - and through bhajan
\mandals(religious singing groups) began to discuss with the adivasis
the atrocities perpetrated on them. In the initial phase he sent petitions
·~nd applications to the authorities for a redressal of grievances, but
the character of the organization changed rapidly. In 1971 he formed
the Adivasi Sewa Mandal which, six months later, organized a con-
ference on bhoo mukti(land liberation). This drew many city-based
volunteers and left activists who then continued to work in this area.
In May 1972 the Ekta Parishad was formed by the Gram Swaraj Samiti,
and in July 1972 the Shramik Sangathana, an organization committed
to struggle, was born.
 Tbe Adtvast Stnq/gle tn Dbulta 127

We>men in the Sbramlk Senp•hana

Like women from any other toiling community, tribal women from
Shahada faced many problems such as low wages, irregular work,
long working hours, sexual harassment by landlords, and the total
absence of supportive facilities like creches, medical care and mater-
nity benefits. In addition, they also faced oppression from the men of
their own class. Men drank away a big shai-e of the meagre income,
beat their wives regularly and left them to cope alone with the
housework.
In the early years of the movement women's participation was
quite small. Their attempts at public speaking were ridiculed by men.
Ambar Singh, however, was very supportive of women and en-
couraged them to break their silence and assert themselves. He
admonished men who betrayed a lack of sensitivity to women's
problems and encouraged women to resist the goondatsm of the
landlords. One of the ways in which they did this was to use 'tradi-
tional weapons' such as chilli powder. Male activists working with
Ambar Singh were keen that women come into the struggle in greater
numbers as it concerned their lives directly and it was important for
them to determine and achieve control over their own lives. But it was
extremely difficult for these men to approach the women as the latter
were not forthcoming. Many of the women later confessed that they
used to resent the fact that the activists had only spoken to their
menfolk until then. This, they felt, denied their involvement in the-
struggle. However, gradually during the course of the struggle, and
at worksites where they were iri groups, they opened up with male
activists to a much greater extent that they had done earlier. Initially
only small numbers of women took part in the actions, but over time
their participation increased. The 1972 boycott of elections saw a
major involvement on the part of women, as did the satyagraba for
the liberation of the peasants' lost lands and the struggle to maintain
unity before strike breakers during a wage dispute in Parivardha
village. Nonetheless, the movement remained dominated by men.
There were, however, a few women like Bhuribai from Kurangi and
Bajabai from Moad, who made a significant impact. They asserted
their rights within the organization: when men expressed a desire to
negotiate the women's wages the women insisted they would do so
128 A space wttbtn tbe S'"'8gle

themselves. A relationship of trust developed slowly among the

women leaders and the male activists and, as a result of this, the issue
of women's unequal participation in the different campaigns and
actions was discussed.
One of the decisions taken during the above discussions was to
plan a sbtbtr(conference) which would bring together women from
various villages. 1be plan was to discuss and share the problems that
made their involvement difficult, and to find ways around these. At
about the same time a campaign against corruption in drought relief
work brought women out in large numbers. Demanding employment
and regular payments, they sang songs, r.aised slogans, spoke at
meetings and, for the first time in their lives, broke out of their
isolation and apathy to fight for their survival. Through this ex-
perience they gained a sense of solidarity and strength.
Thus, in 1972, the first women's conference at Dhulia took place
in an atmosphere of hope and optimism. All the practical arrange-
ments relating to actual mobilization, ensuring adequate food and
water, etc., were carried out by the women. The subjects for discus-
sion were (1) wife beating (2) alcoholism and (3) self protection.
Participation in the conference exceeded all expectations: the or-
ganizers had expected that there would be at the most two or three
women from each village. Instead there were about fifteen. More,
those who stayed behind in the villages, collectively undertook the
responsibility of childcare and housework for. the delegates. This
became an established practice for later shibirs too: that women in
the village would stay behind to look after the others' families. In
return the latter were to share their experiences of the conference with
the village women.
Without doubt, the conference was a great success. While discuss-
ing alcoholism and its effects on women, several of the participants
spoke strongly about how liquor drinking led to wife beating and
stressed their opposition to it on this.. rather than on moral grounds.
It was in the middle of this discussion that they spontaneously decided
to march to the liquor den and break the brewing pots. On their way
they were joined by women from many other villages. The wave of
liquor pot breaking spread all over. In some villages the women and
young people jointly took the responsibility of eradicating liquor and
matlla dens.
 7be Adtvast SbuRgle tn Dbulta 129

Women also.began to beat up men who beat their wives and to

force them to apologize. Both wife beating and alcoholism were
considerably reduced as a result of this. Infonnal women's commit-
tees came up in many villages which took up the issues of women's
rights and dignity. Before 1972, in these areas, the landlords exercised
the right of the first night, particularly on the wives of saladars.
Practices such as this, as also the sexual harassment of women,
declined as the women's organizations grew stronger.They dealt out
exemplary punishments in several cases: in Kuranji village a rich
landlord's son was tied up in the open on a cold night as he had
wilfully knocked a woman down while driving his motorcycle.
Women also played a leading role in organizing morcbasagainst the
Crop Protection Societies (CPS) which were goonda organizations set
up by the landlords in answer to the SS's growing power and strength .
•
The aecood shlbir 1973

As the women's committees grew stronger and more militant, a need

was expressed for another conference. This time, apart from wanting
to share experiences, women also felt the need to know more about
the wome n's movement outside of their own environment. So a
second conference was held in 1973 and this time women activists
from outside (mainly Bombay) were involved as resource persons.
Among the topics that were discussed were: the relationship of the
women's movement to the worker's movement; the role played by
women in various liberation movements in history, for example in
Russia, China, Vietnam, and the w omen's movement in India. Several
of these subjects were introduced by some of the urban women •
activists and were actively debated by both rural and urban women.
At one point, an opinion was put forw:ird that alcoholism increased
poverty and could be stopped only through persuasion. This called
up a strong reaction: many of the rural women felt that poverty was
due to structural causes and that strong organization, rather than
persuasion, was the best way to tackle it. They also agreed that liquor
drinking, especially in cities, was difficult to attack as an isolated issue,
and was linked to many other problems, like low wages, unemploy-
ment etc. The enthusiasm for fighting liquor that was born in the first
130 A Space ulftbtn tbe S'"'&IJle

conference took a more mature direction in the second one, with

alcoholism and other social problems being seen to be connected
with larger general W\Jes. These shibirs also had the result of making
women come out much more openly subsequently: in 1973 they
played a major role in drought relief work and in 1974 nearly 500
women took part in a massive rally at Dhulia.

The role of women durlna the Emeagency

During the Emergency the SS came under attack. Some male activists
"".~re arrested and many went underground. As a result, the women
took on the entire responsibility of running the organization. They
also sheltered their comrades and protected them from the police,
dodging police guards, crossing flooded rivers. bisically strengthen-
ing the organization through their work.
In October 1975, about 65 women from Shahada, Talonda and
Nandurbar took part in a two day seminar for women at Pune. They
spoke of their struggles and about their feeling of solidarity with other
women in struggle. Later, they visited the Tata Group's TELCO factory
and challenged the publicity handout that eulogized the Company's
provision of lunch and transport to the workers as 'welfare' measures.
Their claim was that these measures were, in fact, meant to assist in
regular and streamlined production.
Through the Shramik Sangathana experience, adivasi wome n have
emerged as a strong force. Many of them became leading activists of
the SS. Notable among them were: Bhuribai, Hirkana, Sukamabai,
Tapibai, Thagibai, Saraswati, Pitabai, Sumabai, Virnlabai, Sukhbai,
Bajabai and others. These women led the struggles of women within
and outside the SS. They developed and maintained contacts with
various women's groups outside of Dhulia, particularly groups in
Nipani, Belgaum, Kasegoan, Bombay and Pune. Although male ac-
tivists played a major role in generating this ferment, in 1979 the
women organized themselves into a special group called the Shramik
Stree Mukti Sangathana (SMS). One of their first actions was organiz-
ing a huge rally against the reported beating and torture of a Muslim
woman worker by a factory owner in Shahada town.
 About 700 women participated in this rally. They announced that
they were ready to take up the cause of all oppressed women. In this
they were acting on their own initiative, without the help of any
outside middle class women activists. However, male activists within
the Shramik Sangathana extended considerable help and were sup-
portive of the women's decision to Sland on their own feet.
Handling the entire organization of the rally, from printing leaflets,
obtaining police permission, arranging a stage, microphone and so
on, helped the women gain a great deal of confidence in their abilities.
After this experience a number of women began to go from village to
village, taking up cases of individual atrocities, sometimes rallying
women on th~ spot and holding people's courts to deal with offences.
Sometimes women were helped to bring offenders to Shahada taluka
if necessary.
In one village they came across a case where a woman labourer
had become pregnant because the landlord had forced her to have
sex with him. When the women planned a protest rally, a local male
activist advised them against it, maintaining that the woman would
back off at the last minute. He advised them in.stead to settle things
diplomatically with the landlord. The women refused to consider
such a course of action and the matter was everuually brought up in
an activist meeing of the Sangathana. Here, a further allegation was
levelled at the women: that they were ignoring the advice of an
experienced local male activist who had a fuller grasp of the whole
situation. However, after a long discussion, a major decision was
reached: this specified that while the SSMS would consult with local
activists and village people, they were free to make their own
decisions and to determine the future course of action. It was also
specified that such autonomous decisions would be binding on all SS
activists who would be bound 10 help in the4" implementation. This
was a major step for the "u111cn and is proof of the movement's
commianent to building up a strong women's liberation movement.
Several creative experiments were tried in the next few years.
During 1979-80 (the peak period of the SS) the organization tried to
evolve a new form of collective marriage at which expenses were cut
down and the ceremony was simplified: the couple would take their
vows before a portrait of Ambar Singh Maharaj. Such marriages were
extJemely popular with the women.
132 A Space wUbtn tbe Struggle

In the 19n election the SS fielded two candidates, one man, Wahru
Sonwane and Bhuribai, a woman activist. Although Bhuribai was
initially reluctant to contest, she eventually agreed and participated
enthusiastically in the campaign along with the entire organization.
Surprisingly, the men did not respond negatively to her candidature
and the women, of course, were extremely supportive. The SS took
this opportunity to go to the people with their politics and Bhuribai
and the entire organization learned a lot about election politics. This
campaign also gave a boost to the organization which had lost some
momentum during the Emergency.
In May 1980 an exhibition on women and health was mounted at
Prakasha. This drew an excellent response from the women and, on
popular demand, had to be reshown several times. The anatomy of
male and female reproduction and the technology of sex determina-
tion of children were especially interesting to women and caused
animated discussion each time as these were areas where women
suffered physical, verbal and psychological abuse due to popular
ignorance.

•
The Hme coofcttnce, 1981

In continuation of the practice of holding regular shibirs, the SMS

organized a huge stree mukti mela(women's liberation fair) at Huse
in 1981. The enthusiasm, organization and participation exceeded all
expectations. Apart from what took place in the discussions, the
success of the mela also depended on the local women who had
organized collections of foodgrains, cooking oil, salt and other neces-
sities. More than 2,500 women came to the conference from distant
comers of Shahada, Taloda and Akkalkua talukas, many of them
having walked all the way. In the discussions among rural, urban,
middle class, dalit , caste Hindu, Muslim and adivasi women, the
realization that all women shared a common oppression , as well as
the sharing of song and dance late into the night, generated a
tremendous euphoria as well as a sense of solidarity and sharing.
The Huse conference was, in many ways, a high point for the SMS.
It was after this that they began holding monthly shibirs in different
areas. The discussions here covered wide ground: apart from practical
 7be Adtvast Strusg/e tn Dbulta 133

issues the women discussed theoretical questions such as feminism,

capitalism and socialism. Women activists also worked on the cultural
front, arranging garba (dance) programmes where new songs about
stree mukti were developed and sung. Discussions led to adivasi
women, among whom a sense of their class oppression was strong,
also recognizing and admitting that patriarchal oppression existed
even among their own class. Effons were made, mainly at the instance
of some male activists, to begin adult literacy classes for adivasi
women activists. Although initially women did respond, this effort
could not be sustained for long as the women were unable to give
time to the programme regularly, given the heavy burden of their daily
chores.

At about this time (1981), a debate about organizational strategy

assumed importance in the Shramik Sangathana. Until this time the
SS had been an independent political organization with its leadership
being provided by a group of full-timers who, though Marxist, had no
.
a.ff?!iation to anv -political party. The group had no formal hierarchical
structure. The SS had village representatives as well AS representaiives
from tarun mandals who could be men or women. The full-timers
conducted regular village meetings and had to refer all decisions to
the people for sanction/consensus. The women's organization,
similarly, had no formal structure. An informal group of SMS aL1:ivists
were involved in mobilizing women.
By 1981, however, the debate had become centred on the
question of whether the SS should continue as an independent
organization of landless labourers, or whether the group should join
a national party in order to be more effective. There was a strong
feeling that unless there was a link with a national party, the organiza-
tion would stagnate. Finally, in late 1981, this particular group decided
to join the CPl(M). The others, along with some Marxist activists who
had provided both intellectual and material sustenance to the group,
went on to fonI! an independent political group, the Shramik Mukti
Dal. Although at the time of this split, everyone agreed that activists
were taking these decisions in their individual capacity and that the
134 A 5paa wUbtn tl.1e Sll"ull81e

SS would continue as before with its full-timers continuing to be so

regardless of party affiliations, these organizational debates inevitably
spilled over into the villages, the tarun mandals and the SMS, and
ultimately affected them all.
In 1982, another traumatic incidettHook place. An adivasi woman
activist staying in the Sangathana office was physically approached
by a male activist. She was shocked by the incident and reported the
matter to the other male activists whose initial response was con-
fusion. However, after some hesitation, the activist concerned was
asked to leave the organization. Interestingly, this decision was taken
without consulting any of the members of the SMS. The male activist
in question had expressed his readiness to accept the collective
decision of the women in this matter, and the women themselves
were confident they could handle the issue. Thus, they were all the
more indignant that they had not been consulted and called a meeting
where they suggested that all those men who had ignored the
women's organization while taking a decision on a matter concerning
women should be suspended. While this step established the
women's strong feeling for democracy, the incident itself and its
handling traumatized the women and, as a result, their morale began
to sag. ,
It was at this point that a number of women activists from outside
(these included the author) came into the SMS to work in the organiza-
tion. This period, f1'0ITI 1982 onwards, was spent in attempting to
strengthen the organization through monthly shibirs, at which efforts
were made to involve local professional women such as balwadi
(children's) teachers and health workers. However, the women had
to confront other problems during this period. The government had,
by now, responded to the SS by pumping traditional development
inputs and programmes into the area. Cattle development was an
important programme that was being pushed; however its effect was
to tie up the women in cattle care and the search for fodder
throughout the day. Notwithstanding the fact that it did improve their
economic status to some extent, this programme increased their
working hours and took away from them the time they could give to
organizational work.
At this time the issue of personal laws fo( women had become
important at the national and state levels in the women's movement.
 Tbe Adtvasl StntJl.R/e In Dbulia 135

In Shahada women activists of the SMS took up the question of adivasi

personal law as it applied to women and also began to raise quest.ions
about the pos.sible application of the revised Hindu personal law to
adivasis. Several regional leaders, for example Sharad Patil, were in
favour of applying the Hindu revised law to adivasis. After heated
discussions over several months, it was decided that two conferences
would be organized on this subject in different areas of Shahada.
These took place on March 12 and 13, 1983 at Kathrade, and on March
16 and 17 at Talawe. Each was attended by about 30-40 women who
had been elected by their village to represent them. A few activists
from the urban centres of Maharashtra (mainly Bombay and Pune)
also participated.
The conferences debated issues such as the provisions for main-
tenance in adivasi and Hindu law; the women's own receptivity to the
application of Hindu law to them, and their ideas about the revision
of adivasi law. The traditional judicial system of •'1e adivasis, the
panch system, was also discussed from the women's point of view.
Did this give any security to women ? Did they want change in it, or
did they wish.to opt for civil courtrooms?
The following suggestions/ideas emerged from the discussions:

1. The usual age at marriage for adivasi girls was far too early.
Girls who married at that age were unable to dlscuss their sexual
problems with anybody and felt defenceless;
2. Girls and boys could choose their own partners, with help
from elders if necessary;
3. 1be marriage ceremony 'Was long and expensive and needed
to be cut down. 1be women were unhappy with the idea of
bride price, as they felt that this amounted to selling their
daughters;
4. Divorce, contrary to popular belief, was not easily obtainable
by adivasi women. If a woman wanted a divorce, she had to
refund the bride price to her husband. If she wanted to divorce
and marry another man, the second husband had to refund the
bride price paid by the first husband to the girl's father;
5. Men were allowed to have more than one wife at a time while
women were not allowed polyandry. The women felt strongly
that no one should be allowed to have more than one spouse
at a time;
136 A Space within the Struggw

6 . Custodial laws among the adviasis were discriminatory: in

the case of a divorce, the father was assumed to be the natural
guardian of the children and was given cutody.
7. Adivasi women had no property rights and did not inherit
either from their parents or their husbands. A widow could
cultivate her husband's lands in !ruSl for her children. On remar-
rying she would lose this right.
8 . In general it was felt that adivasi law was unjust towards
women. Nonetheless, the women were not in favour of having
Hindu law applied to them and wanted their own laws to be
codified to match their aspirations and needs.
9. The traditional panch system was unfavourable to women:
only the older men got to be panches. Wo men were not even
allowed to attend panch proceedings. It was common
knowledge that whatever the panch collected by way of fines,
was frittered away on liquor. This was why women felt that their
inclusion on the panch was necessary: they could at least ensure
that the money was not wasted. However, they preferred a
reformative and corrective approach to the panch rather than
going to court, which process they felt was both time consuming
and expensive.

It was in the same spirit that the women of Changaon fought for their
share of the community money which grazers pay for the use of
village lands after the harv~st, and which is noramlly appropriated by
male 'heads of households'. The women used their share for organiza-
tional activities and even contributed a part towards the.shibir expen-
ses.
SMS work continued throughout 1983 and 1984. Women and men
went on a membership drive in 1983 and faced considerable landlord
violence while moving through the villages. In 1984 many women
came to Bombay to participate in a big dbarna (sit-:n) of landless
labourers. But, divisions within the SS affected the SMS as well. While
some women joined the CPI(M), others joined the Shramik Mukti Dal
(SMD). The kinds of processes they were exposed to differed. Al-
though the SS and SMS were never formally dissolved, activities and
struggles after 1984 were often conducted from the platforms of the
CPI(M) and the SMD.
After 1984 the old SS office lay locked and unoccupied for several
years. This led to other problems, for the people did not have a place
 7be Adtvast Struggle tn Dbulta 137

to meet, even if they wanted to work from SS/SMS platforms. How-

ever, informal, issue-based and people to people linkages among SS
members continued, and in 1988 two leading activists, Chandar (now
in the CJ>I(M)), and Titagibai (now in SMD) came together and
occupied the old SS office. Amazingly, once the office was reopened,
people began to come back. It seemed that in the minds of people
the Shramik Sangathana was still alive, and that the crisis in the
organization had mainly been one of leadership. After 1988 some of
the older activists of the SMS met and decided to work towards
rebuilding the organization. Although this w ork has begun, the pace
and tempo of the earlier years has been difficuk to recapture.
Two issues need to be considered in greater detail: it is important
that we l<X>k at some of the leading activists of the SMS in order to
understand the character of their leadership and, equally, we need to
analyse the relationship between the SS and the SMS, particularly to
ask the question; was the SMS autonomous or was it merely a wing
of the SS?
When we l<X>k at the lives of the women leaders we find that it was
mainly the slightly older women, with relative economic stability and
family support, who came into the leadership of the SMS. Did the
process of organizational involvement lead to a different perception
of themselves and their own lives? Perhaps some of the stories of the
women can throw some light on this.
In 1975-76 one of the activists, Hirkana, was recently married. The
daughter of a small landowner (which made her relatively better off
than others economically) Hirkana had been educated upto the tenth
class. Her involvement in the SMS came through her husband who
was one of the leading activists of the SS. It was the support of both
her parents (who l<X>ked after her small son while she was busy with
activist work) and her husband, which allowed Hirkana to involve
herself more fully in SMS work, particularly during the Emergency
when she was extremely active. Having even a minimal education pul
her at an advantage, and she showed a keen interest in learning more
about wider issues that affected women: indeed, in time she became
one of the pioneers of the SMS. However, although she herself was
one of the key people in the health campaigns of the SMS and in spite
of the fact that her husband was a full timer w ith the SS, she was unable
to control her own fertility and had gone through several miscarriages
138 A space wttbtn tbe Stru/Jg/e

and abortions without, in this particular case, receiving much support

from her husband. Today, Hirkana lives in her village with her two
children and, because SMS work has slowed down, feels a great sense
of frustration in her life.
Any discussion of the SS is incomplete without reference to
Bhuribai, one of its most fiery leaders. Bhuribai came into the move-
ment in a dramatic way: her husband was a maharaj, a singer of
bhajans, and a follower of Ambar Singh. It was her husband who
encouraged her to participate in the activities of the movement and
finally she reluctantly participated in a morcha where she was ar-
rested, along with several others. 11lis was her first experience of
political action, and although initially she felt fearful of further invol-
vement, she was encouraged by the fact that while in jail, it was mainly
the movement activists, rather than her relatives, who came to visit
her. After her release she began coming to the shibirs and the
meetings. When the 1974 shibir took place she was unable to attend
because of a family wedding. However, all through the days leading
up to the wedding, she felt restless and could not senle down to work.
It was her husband who convinced her to go , and in spite of being
beaten up by her in-laws, she managed to make it to the shibir.
After the organizational split, Bhuribai joined Sharad Patil's
•
~tyashodak Communist Party. But she was unable to work for it in
the same way as she had done for the SMS because she felt that the
party had a very hierarchical structure.
Thagibai, another activist, was married to a petty thief. Her efforts
to reform him and make him join the movement were unsuccessful
and she herself came in for a lot of censure from the village elders
and her own family, for her involvement. This led her to leave home,
after which the Sanghatana became her whole life. Being a powerful
speaker, Thagibai represented the SMS at many places; she was also
involved in organizational work and played a prominent part in
developing the SMS. Complications came up in her life when she
became involved with another Sanghatana activist who was already
m,arried. Although the two stated their intention to marry, some
Sanghathana activists wanted to expel them both from the organiza-
tion, their main criticism being that as a leader of the SMS, she could
hardly deprive another woman of her rights. Nonetheless, Thagib:ti
settled down with the man and she now has two daughters by him.
 7be Adlvasl Slru&Ble tn Dbulta 139

In discussions with her and others, I realized how much of a problem

it was for women within the movement to articulate their sexual needs
at all; and for many of them, the only way open ifthey did feel sexually
drawn to someone, was to go in for marriage.
A more serious problem that came up in our discussions was the
diffetent standards of morality, particularly in relation to sex, that
operated for men and women. A woman activist was expected
somehow to be above 'nonnal' women in observing strict codes of
morality and abiding by them. Even ifshe manied, her earlier relation-
ships, if any, stayed with her in that they could always be used by the
conununity against her.
1be relaltonsbtp between tbe SS and the SMS: From the time that
the SMS came into being, the question of its relationship with the SS
was the subject of much discussion. As SMS activities began to
increase, this question assumed more importance. Every time activists
within the women's group organized a shibir or a monthly meeting
they were faced with the usual dilemma: ought they to obtain permis-
sion of the Shramik Sanghatana ? Was it necessary that the SS approve
the topics of discussion, the meeting place etc.? ·
1be issue of autonomy, hoever, raises other problems. It is clear
that the SMS was independent of its parent organization only in
certain limited ways. Plans for meetings, shibirs etc., had to be first
placed before a meeting of full time activists of the parent organization
and while in theory, the SMS was free to take decisions regarding
women's issues, the matter had to be first discussed with SS activists.
Several of the women activists of the SMS had come out of the main
body and their primary attachment was to the SS. This meant that SS
activists, particularly male ones, could exert tremendous pressure on
them and in many instances, they felt tom between the two organiza-
tions. In addition, in many ways the issues taken up by the SMS did
not challenge the patriarchal values of society in any major way.
Issues such as rape or alcoholism were taken up but were tackled
mainly as class issues. An attempt was made to discuss the question
of the unequal relationship between male activists and their wives,
but this discussion soon petered out and was not resumed.
Any struggle of landless labourers against oppression must involve
women. Indeed, often the attitude of the activists towards women is
a crucial factor in determining this. In Shahada, although there was
140 A space wttbtn the StrutJ&le

an awareness among activists of the need to involve women right

from the start, all activists were not very clear on the importance of
this. More, since they were supposed to have worked for the Shramilc
Sanghatana from the start, any criticism of their attitudes was con-
strued as a criticism of their work in general. The failure was, in a
sense on both sides. The SMS saw themselves as independent and
therefore 'limited' their activity to women's issues and did not try to
involve men in these; the SS activists (and often the two overlapped)
saw the SMS as a women's wing and therefore 'let' them be involved
in what they saw as 'their' issues. But clearly it was not enough to
have established an independent women's organization. The ques-
tion of the oppression of landless labourers w as not one that applied
to men only. Similarly, the question of women's oppression was one
that the SS needed to confront as half their members were women.
The day-to-day life of adivasi landless labourer women was inex-
tricably tied up with the work of the SS.
A further complication arose because, just as members of the SS
could also belong to any organization or political party of their choice,
so also, theoretically at least, members of the SMS could be members
of external women's organizations. Most of the time, however, such
freedom was purely hypothetical. Any external afftliation affected the
SS, and this in tum affected the SMS.
Once we understand that the very existence of the SMS depended
on its relation with the SS, we can see why the changes in the latter
have affected the former. Nonetheless, though the SMS and the SS
may have been organizational failures, they have left lasting changes
in the lives of the people they mobilized: the women, particularly,
have a strong sense of their oppression. Any future growth - and
since there is no question of going back, the only way nO\V can be
forward - will have to build upon these changes.
 The Kerala Fishworkers'
Struggle

NALINI NAYAK

Introduction

Over the last ten to fifteen years, the struggles of fishworkers in Kerala
have been much in the news. Previously, there was no history of
protest in the fishing communities. Violent struggles first erupted on
the east coast of Madras as a result of the intrusion of mechanized
trawlers in the inshore waters. As early as 1964 the Tamil Nadu
government issued an order protecting artisanal fishermen. The order
gave them an exclusive three miles from the shore as a trawler-free
zone. But these orders were never enforced and trawlers continued
to operate very close to the shore. Clashes often occurred between
catamaran fishermen and trawlers. As a result, buoys were placed at
sea and fishing areas were demarcated. A patrol boat was also
employed, but nothing worked. Many fishermen who were involved
in nabbing trespassing trawlers were arrested and kept in jail. The
state government later enacted a Fishing Regulation Act which
prohibited night trawling.
Fisherwomen from south Tamil Nadu protested against· the
government's granting of a license to import automatic net-making
machines. As many as 30,000 women engaged in webbing nets at
home or at net making centres were threatened with losing their jobs.
After mass rallies and hunger strikes the authorities agreed not to issue
any more impon licenses for net making machines in those areas.
However, later the machines entered Pondicherry and Kerala and this
had the same effect on the women.
In Goa, fishworkers launched a long agitation against trawlers as
early as 1977. 1bey were able to maintain a very long relay hunger
strike for more than one year and pressurize the govei-nment to stop
trawling operations in coastal waters. Consequently a new Marine
Fishing Regulations Act was enacted by the state government in Goa.
The Goan Fishermen's Union argued that the trawlers cut and destroy
'rampon' nets, that they destroy the fragile ecology of the shallow
waters where most fish breed, that big trawlers and purse-seiners,
supposed to operate in the deep sea, work in shallow waters and thus
compete for resources with the mmponJlarr-the traditional fisher-
men who work with rampon nets. 1bey demanded a trawler-free
zone of up 20 km. from the sea shore and also asked for more bank
loans for artisanal fishermen. The Goa State Fishing Regulation Act
was challenged by big boat owners in the court.
The first big .clash becyveen catamaran fishermen and trawlers
occurred at Madras in May 1976. Many lost their lives. Since Tamil
Nadu was under President's rule at the time, no action was taken.
Though catamaran fishermen were caught and handed over to the
police, a trawler which violated the rules, was let off without any
penalty. Tilis irked the fishermen who started burning many boats
and, by end of 1978, 16 fishermen lost their lives and 110 boats were
destroyed. Women also took part in the agitations and blocked roads.
Finally, clashes broke out in Kerala in 1978 and intensified in 1981
and have taken place repeatedly since then. The struggles in Kerala
started off with an ecological demand to ban trawl fishing and purse
seining because they are overefficient technologies and .hannful to
the regeneration of fish. It is interesting to understand, therefore, how
and why these struggles were sustained and what has been the role
and place of women in this struggle.

Kerala has a coastline of 590 km. Along this coast live some of the
most knowledgeable and daring fishing communities in the country.
 7be Kera/a Ftsbu10rilers' St"'81Jle 143

Most of the fishing population lives around the 45 main natural fishing
harbours and has been stable for centuries. Expansion all along the
coast and migration in search of better fishing grounds is a common
feature today. There are now about 222 fishing villages in Kerala.
The fishing community is not homogeneous. There are Hindu,
Muslim and Catholic communities, the Hindus being about 51 per
cent, the Muslims 21 per cent and the Catholics 23 per cent of the total.
This community is also socially stratified on a caste and class basis
although the caste variations are not very significant. Each community
generally resides in a compact geographical area and although it may
be in close proximity with another, it is physically distinct. There are
only a few instances where the Muslims and Hindus live together. In
all three communities, religious identity is probably the most impor-
tant identifying factor.
Fishing is a wholetime occupation for these communities and as it
requires a cultivation of skills, children start going to sea from a very
early age. Fishing techniques in Kerala are old and varied, until
recently and were unrivalled by modem technology as they had
proved most appropriate. The fishing craft and gear had evolved
traditionally to suit the marine terrain and the specific local species of
fish. The means of production have determined the relations of
production although sharing of the product has always been on the
basis of work put in. The type of fishing and size of the fish landings
determine the marketing pattern. In the south where fishery is diver-
sified and quantities that are landed nOl so large, small merchants--
mainly women-handle the bulk of the catch. In the central and
northern regions where landings are larger, big merchants in their
mOlor vehicles handle the bulk of the catch. It is in the transactions
between the producer and the merchant that all kinds of exploitation
takes place, for example in determining the price, repaying debts to
the moneylenders and in credit purchases which are never repaid in
full.

Government lnta wentlon

In the fifties there was active government intervention in fisheries

development. The idea was to tap the abundant fish resources that
144 A Space u•ithin the StruAAle

the artisanal sector could not catch with their traditional technology.
Development meant modernization and export orientation to earn
further foreign exchange for technological advancement. It was at this
time that the much spoken about lndo-Norwegian Fisheries Project
was started in Neendakera, Quilon, promising greater catches, fish
for internal consumption and export as well as greater work oppor-
tunities and earnings for the fishermen. A total investment of Rs 48.27
crores was made in fishing in the period 1951-84. Trawl fishing was
introduced by the Norwegians and while catches improved, things
came face to face with disaster within two decades. Between 1951-61
the average production was around 2.5 lakh tonnes. In 1970, it was
3.92 lakh tonnes. By 1973-74 it reached a peak of 4.4 lakh ~onnes. But
after that there has been a downward swing and in 1987 the figure
was back to around 2.6 lakh tonnes. In this process the catch of the
mechanized sector has increased vis a vis the artisanal sector, but this
has meant that mechanization has simply taken away what could
easily be captured by the former. In 1980, only 14 per cent of the
fishermen had an income from the mechanized sector. Then the
government began to change its strategy and motorize the artisanal
sector. But this again has not proved to have sustained results. So
despite rising investments the catches have continued to fall and in
general the fishworkers continue to live in a state of poverty, iust
managing to survive.

Women in the fishing community

The division of labour in the fishing community is gender specific-

men are in production and women in distribution. Women in a large
part of the Catholic and Hindu communities go to the markets to sell
fish, but those from Muslim communities may be engaged in other
wage work. It is the women who go to market to exchange fish for
other things the family needs and, despite this. significant role in the
economics of the household, they are regarded as subservient to their
men. They have no role in decision making in the community al-
though the community is generaJly matrilocal. Despite the fact that all
fishing communities are so centered around their religious institu-
 7be KenUa Ftsbworilers' Struggle 145

tions---the church, mosque or temple--women are totally excluded

from religious bodies.
All the religious groups have their own images of the ideal woman.
The sea is female and takes the shape ofKadalamma, the sea goddess.
Women are said to be impure and so are not allowed to enter the sea.
But they are expected to be faithful to their men·else Kadalamma will
be unmerciful to their husbands at sea. No such fidelity is prescribed
for the men.
While at home a woman is either at the fire or with a suckling child
at her breasts. Even old women easily offer the breast as a pacifier to
grandchildren; often, a woman with breast milk will offer it to a
hungry, unsatisfied yelling baby. Women say they continue to breast
feed for one and a half to two years because this is the way to avoid
another pregnancy and, what else can one feed a baby on anyway?
So there is a constant 'threat' of pregnancy as women are completely
at the' disposal of the men. Yet, in itself the sexual relation is seen as
unclean, or rather, the man is contaminated in sex and is obliged to
bathe before entering the sea again.

Initiatives with flsbworktts In Trlftodnun district

In the early sixties development schemes were making inroads all

over the country. The famous Indo-Norwegian Project had just been
launched in Kerala but concentrated on mechanized fishing in the
more naturally protected coastal areas. Trivandrum was an area
where fishermen used the old catamaran and dared the rough seas.
The majority of the fishworkers were. Christian. They had been
converted to Christianity over 400 years ago and the church had laid
deep roots in the minds, hearts and cultural traditions of these
fishworkers who, on their part, were the mainstay of the Latin Church
in Trivandrum district. They were the ones who were mobilized and
taken on to the streets of the city to oppose the newly elected
communist government of 1957. The pretext was that the communists
were taking over the educational institutiol1S-Qn area in which the
stakes of the Church were very high. During this struggle the only
victim of police firing was a woman. Ironically, the majority in the
fJShing community have continued to be illiterate and survive at a
146 A 5pqce wt/bin tbe S'"'BIJle

level of subsistence. The Church, on its part, had played the traditional
role of amelioration of poverty through alrnsgiving and charity. It was
the Bishop of Trivandrum in the late fifties, who envisioned a
development programme for the f1Sherpeople. This was a very
~ive move for that particular historical time. He engaged a
team of social workers to work with the community.
Although it took a few years for the social workers to understand
and get really involved in the community, the living together provided
better scope for acceptance and a keener observation of the reality
which paid dividends in the long run.

In the mid-sixties fishing appeared a lucrative occupation, but the

fishworkers remained poor. Where did their earnings go? It is true that
they did, indeed? indulge in some wasteful practices which had their
foundation in the firm belief that 'God will provide for tomorrow'. But
these beliefs were also the means through which the fishworkers
were exploited by.moneylenders and merchants. When God did not
provide for the morrow, there was the moneylender offering easy
cash on condition that the catch of the morrow would be sold by him,
with five per cent of the catch being his share.
Or again their great faith in God manifested itself in their belonging
to the Church which they supported proudly by paying a tax of five
per cent of their daily earnings. Here again, the right to collect the tax
was auctioned to the big merchants who actually paid only a portion
of it to the Church because it was paid in a lumpsum.
The contradictions and the various class interests within the com-
munity itself began to surface. How could harmonious community
development be a possibility when the unjust economic order was
institutionalized with bondedness and indebtedness being an integral
part of it? And the movement to oppose these structures began. This
resulted in the formation of the f1Shermen's co-operative sociefy,
which in itself was a formidable task as it involved a struggle and the
will ofself assertion on the part of the fishermen. But they succeeded,
much to the ~ of the powers that be. This initiative proved to
be the base for future developmenti in the sector.
 Tbe Ken:lla Ftsbu'Orilers' Struggle 147

The strugle within a RnlRRle

When the cooperative was being planned, no consideration was

given to the fact that women played an important role in the sale of
fish, with the result that they were completely left out. The coopera-
tive became a male institution. Productien was seen as a totally male
activity in the usual manner in which women's work is discounted as
being non-productive. But it Wf interesting to note that it was the
women who dealt with the cooperative. It was they who took over
once the fish reached the shore. It was they who went to the coopera-
tive office to collect the cash. It was they who raised a hue and cry
when things went wrong. When opposition~ at each point to the
functioning of the cooperative-for example when the moneylender
wanted to construct a marketing shed on public property-the
women were very active in stopping it. It seemed to be a common
feeling that 'if our women understand, we will not have too many
problems', pejoratively to express that women are the trouble makers;
but that they matter all the same.
Gradually by 1972-73 the women began to express a desire to get
together. This they managed to do. But what did coming together
mean? What did the women want to do together? This they discussed
among themselves. 11le older group wanted a pious association as
there were none in the village. The younger women reacted to this:
'these pious associations tum out'to be gossip centres', they said. On
the other hand, they had no objection to coming together to pray and
to discuss village problems.
In the initial stages one member of the team took the responsibility
of preparing the agenda for the meetings and they decided to meet
once a month. According to what the women wanted, the meeting
consisted of three parts: the first was a religious reflection, not a
traditional prayer, but reading and reflecting on a bible text. These
were very animated discussions,
a) because women had never listened attentively to bible texts;
b) on listening to them in a context, they began to realize that they
were not moralizing on 'spiritual life' but had to do with day to day
life.
c) there were two ways of interpreting the texts: the traditional
other-world interpretation and the here and now·interpretation.
148 A Space wttbtn lbe SlrUlJIJ/e

Ttte second part was educational: a class was held and a range of
subjects were discussed. The third part concentrated on day-to-day
village problems and how they would be tackled.
It was amazing to see the wealth of ideas that came up and the
interest women displayed in looking at local issues. Once the process
gained momentum, emphasis was laid on the process of group
formation. This had the following aspects:
1. Some official procedure had to be created: for example mem-
bership to the general body, and an elected committee to take
executive responsibility. This was indeed an important task as it was
also the way of building leadership in the community. It was stressed
that only women, and not young girls, be committee members, even
if the women were illiterate. ·
Weekly meetings of the committee were held with the community
organizer. At these, decisions taken at the general body were dis-
cussed, action taken, and the next month's meeting prepared. It was
important that these women learnt the general principle of ad-
ministration such as keeping a record of their own discussions. Soon,
they began to conduct the monthly meetings themselves, with the
president presiding, the secretary reading the report, the members of
the committee taking up one subject at a time for discussion, the
treasurer keeping track of the accounts etc. Although the community
organizer was therefore officially not part of the committee, she
necessarily had to play some part in facilitating the process.
2. Participation of the members both in the meetings and in the
activities. Here, the following things were taken up:
- the manner in which discussions take place
- speaking and listening
- not being afraid of being laughed at and feeling free to ask
questions etc.
3. The structuring of the organization from the point of view ·of
continuity, for example looking at:
- regularity of meetings;
- regularity in participation;
- contribution to the organization in terms of a subscription;
- records and accounts.
 Tbe KenUa Flsbu10rllers' Struggle 149

The monthly meetings took place almost without fail from 1974 to
1985. Participation was, on an average, between 30-60 women. The
committees were elected every year but were normally re-elected for
a second year so that they gained some experiences and inde-
pendence in handling things on their own.
Gradually, they began to feel they had a real role to play in their
village. Taking up local activity and small local issues were the initial
steps. Making petitions, going as a group to meet authorities and press
for services like the clearing of garbage, disinfection of the wells,
absence of teachers in the local schools etc. gave women confidence
in relating to the authorities. Later, the discussions concentrated on
certain specific problems: in the market the diff1CUlty of reaching the
market on foot, the long hours away from home because of it, the
refusal to let women fishvendors use public transport, high and unjust
market taxes etc. Women wanted to tackle these issues as well.
Just as the cooperatives spread to other villages so did the women's
organizations. In other areas too women began to get together, even
conducting local programmes. Groups began to meet each other and
were enthusiastic about taking up conunon issues together.

Into wider issues

As it became evident that women were determined to take up larger

issues which would require an agitational role.as well, empowering
women to face this task took on a new dimension, in which mobiliza-
tion was identified as the main task, the location of action shifted from
the local to the district level and it was realized that local political
forces had to be contended with. In 1979-80 the women took to the
streets to demand their right to transport to go to the market. It was
the first time in the history of the fishworkers that they went to the
streets to demand something as their right from the government.
Accustomed to listening only to politicians who would come and
make great promises during election campaigns, the people had not
realized that they had any further claim to the government other than
casting their vote for the politician they thought would deliver the
goods.
150 A Space within tbe StrutJ81e

Hence mobilizing tor their rights was a new phase of conscious-

ness in enhancing their own lot. This phase brought new experiences,
although the struggles had limited success. The women were not
granted permission to ride on state public transport, but the fisheries
department organized separate transport for women fish vendors.
Although this succeeded in reinforcing the stigma about the 'dirty' and
'smelly' fisherwomen, it was the only workable solution at the time.
A great deal was learnt in this process. How does a demand get
represented to government? Data have to be collected, the demand
has to be clearly stated and the slogans written up. The organizational
details also have to be worked out. Women found they had to be
willing to forfeit work in order to take part in the protests, as well as
in following them up, meeting the officials and so on. They had to be
ready to collect funds, stick posters etc. Women saw how the
politicians they had elected to power treated them when they ap-
proached them with their demands.
They saw how they used the loopholes in the law to wriggle out
of any real commitment and they began to see how the entire system
was inter-linked. To fight was the only way out but it would be a long
struggle. Such consciousness made them aware of their class position,
and they began to realize gradually how the interests of the various
classes are antagonistic. This made some of the women more militant
and willing to take on leadership positions. They became the
mainstay of the movement. It is interesting to see how very different
personalities come to the forefront. These were not necessarily
women who are concerned with detail, process etc., as in the earlier
phase, but women of daring, willing to address the group, willing to
rouse other women and give them the confidence to participate, not
hesitant to lead a demonstration and to shout slogans.
The same problem of maintaining a balance between action,
reflection and process continues to be the crux of the organizational
process although the parameters are wider. It was this dynamism that
women carried into the broader struggle of the fishworkers when, in
1981, they went into a massive protest against trawl fishing.
 7be K""'1ltl Ftsbworllers' Stnl/Jgle 151

Prawn fishing began to collapse in 1978. At the same time some

varieties of fish also started disappearing. '11m, coupled with the
growing competition for fishing grounds between the artisanal and
mechanized sectors, made the already impoverished artisanal fish-
workers realize that the only way to protest was to take the law into
their own hands and, if necessary, use violence to oppose the
trawlers. Battles began to take place at sea and the fi.shworkers found
support among the Church leaders who were sympathetic to their
cause.
Efforts were made in 1979-80 to raise the question of fish depletion
among scientists and the government. In Trivandrum women had
already begun to complain about the drop in the price of fresh fish as
the frozen fish from mechanized boats began to flood the city's
markets. No scientists, leave alone the government, were willing to
accept that there was a potential crisis in fisheries. Over-enthusiastic
about the windfall catches of a few years ago, they felt that traditional
fishworkers were against the modernization of technology which had
anyway come to stay, and which the fishworkers would eventually
have to acCCP,t even if many of them withered away in the process.
Tilis, according to them, was the process of 'development'.
1n 1981 when the left front ministry was in power, and probably
to avoid repeated violence in the fishing sector, the Fisheries Minister
innocently announced a ban on trawl fishing forJune.July and August
and repeated it with great urgency three days later. The issue had
turned political and Trivandrum fishworkers took the lead in con-
solidating the spontaneous struggles of the past: they had a prolonged
agitation demanding the enactment of the ban. This agitation lasted
21 days with all the leaders, male and female, on hunger strike. The
entire coast of the two southern districts was mobilized in all forms
of public protest, until finally the government condescended to
institute an enquiry commission to look into the matter. And s0 it has
gone on since 1981. The first commission report which came two
years later, was not accepted. The fJShermen asked for a demarcation
of fishing zones, they asked to be accepted as workers, they asked
for more welfare from the government. Each year sinca 1981 they
have been going out in protest in the monsoon months. Some fJShing
152 A Space wilbtn tbe Struggle

restrictions have been enacted, for example the reservation of the 20

km. inshore waters for artisanal fisheries, the ban of purse seining and
night trawling as also other welfare demands like grants for school
children, old age pensions, accident bonuses etc. But the regulation
measures, though enacted, have not yet been executed, with the
result that fishworkers are locked in struggle and litigation with the
State.
One of the only real gains to the tishworkers over the decade is
the fact that they have gradually become organized. A sector that was
totally marginal to mainstream politics and considered only a vote
bank of the Congress party, and which was dominated very much by
the religious leadership, gradually began to take a stand for itself.
Despite the fact that many of the fishworkers are owners of their craft
and gear they realized they are all workers and registered their own
trade union at the state level. Initially even the trade union threatened
to take off on a caste basis but this was opposed by the Trivandrum
base. For the first time an independent fishworkers union was formed
which included members of all religions. Today the independent
union is the largest union in the state, and is the only one that comes
out in open agitation. But the fishing community today, like all others
in Kerala, is infested with other unions of mainstream political parties
and is, by no means, totally organized.

A word on structutt

Men and women are members of the union officially, but, except for
Trivandrum district, this has not been a reality until recently. If the
man had membership it was presumed that his wife would participate
in union activities but she had no place in the official body. This has
subsequently been changed with pressure from wome n in
Trivandrum.
The union therefore has units of its members in each village. Each
unit has a president, vice-president, secretary and treasurer. Many
villages make up a ta/ukand the presidents, secretary and vice-presi-
dents of the units make up the taluk committee. The taluk committees
again have their presidents, vice-presidents and secretaries who,
together with other presidents and secretaries, make up the district
 Tbe Kera/a Flsbworllers' Stnlggle 153

council. Local action, if any, takes place at the taluk level-rarely at

the unit level. The presidents, vice presidents and secretaries of the
dlstricts make up the general council at the state level. At all levels
there are co-opted members 'on the committees and there may
generally be supporters. 11lls structure has generally provided for
autonomous action at the district level and a great amount of
democracy at the state level simply because such an independent
union does not have the wherewithal to centralire.

Gce•lng back to the women

Women in all districts have taken to the streets in large numbers. Even
in Alleppey where women (the wives of fishermen) are largely wage
workers in the coir industry, they have come out militantly to par-
ticipate in the struggles. They have been present in large numbers in
the marches, the gheraos, the road and rail blocks, and have courted
arrest and been very militant Although there was some talk about a
women's wins within the newly growing fishworkers union in
Trivandrum, it was eventually decided that there was no real need for
a separate women's wing. So although women continued to meet
autonomously at the local level, as members of the union there was
only one front and one platform for discussion.
It was soon very clear that the women were ·as active as the men;
or more so, in the struggles. But very few women actually came into
positions of leadership. The structure of the union had a great deal to
do with this. In the three-tier system it seemed obvious that only the
men climbed to the top. Then, with meetings at some distance from
home, the women often could not participate as they would not be
given permission by their husbands to do so, or they themselves
would have had problems about leaving their homes or their children.
Meetings would also be late in the evening, often stretching into the
niSht. Despite all one may imagine about the 'progressiveness' of
Kerala, no woman is safe on the streets after dusk and she is very often
harassed during the day too. These are some of the reasons why
women simply could not make it to the top.
154 A space wttbtn the S'"'B81e

The wom•n qucacioa

It was during these years, the early eighties, that the woman question
began to be raised as a questio~ne that applied to the activists as
well. Although there was quite a detailed analysis of the fisheries
sector, and of the division of male and female roles within it, what
was not understood earlier was how the ideology of patriarchy had
penetrated to maintain these divisions to the advantage of the men.
These divisions were taken as 'given', as something that was fixed; all
that wa.c possible was a linle more freedom and a linle more
democracy. Questions from other feminist friends such as 'why don't
women go fishing', 'why don't women cycle to the market instead of
walking miles' were earlier turned down as 'intellectual theorizing
and utopian ideas'. But they gradually became serious questions. It
seemed to be true that it was because men owned the means of
production, that they exercised a right over women, and that too
when the women contribute substantially to the household income.
In many ways the growing women's movement around the
countty stimulated a new thinking process even in the fishworkers'
movement. For the first time the problems of women fish vendors also
became the problems of women and mothers. At fll'St the women did
not want to talk about these problems, considering them private, but
it became more and more clear that nothing would change in the
private sphere unless it became public and women took these up as
their issues too. Wife beating, rape within marriage, all kinds of
harassment began to be talked about and women wanted to do
something about it all.
It also became a tradition to organize larger discussions on the
occasion of Mother's Day-where working women from marine
artisanal sectors gathered. Incidentally, these were mainly women
from independent unions. Various topics were discussed in the:;e joint
gatherings relating to the legal rights of women, the growing atrocities
on them, the religious and ideological oppression of women etc.
Gradually, women began to want that their men also participate in
these celebrations so that they could begin to understand these issues.
Subsequently, by the mid-eighties, Women's Day began to be or-
ganized at a more decentralized level so that local participation could
be enhanced, local atrocities on women could be highlighted and so
 The Kem/a Ftsbworllers' Stru(Jgw 155

that men could also participate, although this last attempt was not
really successful. Consciousness of the woman's question also made
the women aware of the manner in which the flshworkers union did
not reaJly take the question seriously. Besides taking considerable
pains to inform the men about the need for this and explaining why
the woman's question was not detracting from the other working class
issues but \Was an integral part of it, suggestions were aJso made as to
how these could be taken up within the struggle. The first was an
organizational suggestion i.e. a way in which wome n would slowly
rise to leadership positions. It was suggested that a rotational par-
ticipation should be tried in the committees at the district level. nus
was mainly because it often happened that the elected women for
some reason would not be able to participate in meetings, in which
case the women's voice was often not heard. This suggestion could
not be carried through because, according to the men, the women
did not put the point across convincingly enough. Another reason
was that, at the back of men's minds was the idea that leadership
required ideological clarity that developed graduaJly and how would
this be possible in a situation of rotation? The second was a question
of strategy, that the issues relating to women that should be taken up
as union issues were mainly wife beating and drunkenness leading
to violence. Although these were broadly accepted, the men expected
that it would be the women who would take up these issues, almost
as if they had nothing to do with them.

With greater awareness of the growing atrocities on them, the women

in the union felt the need to tackle this issue. In 1986 there was an
instance where the police sparked off a riot in a village in central
Kerala. Plunder and rape and other kinds of violence were meted out
to the women whose husbands had deserted the village on hearing
that the police were planning an attack. The issue was blown up by
the press but the women were initially afraid to testify that they were
raped because this would jeopardize their futures. On this occasion
some of the women activists from the fishworkers union went to the
spot and invited some of the victims to Trivandrum, the state capital.
156 A Space WUbtn tbe StruslJle

On their arrival, discussions took place with trade unions in the city
and support was sought for the village march to the Secretariat. A
commission of enquiry was instituted. For these negotiations, the
women's wing of the fishworkers union was one party and although
there was no official women's wing at the time, the banner they
spontaneously went under was the Coastal Women's Front.
Then again in 1987 there was a case of murder in one of the coastal
villages which was hushed up as suicide. It was the local women's
organization in the village that brought this to light and it was they
who were willing to follow it up if some leadership was given. Again,
under the banner of the Coastal Women's Front a local all party
conunittee was formed. A case was filed and a postmortem of the
buried body demanded. The autopsy revealed that the case was
indeed a murder.
Later, in 1987, this women's front also went into joint demonstra-
tions to protest against salt (widow immolation) and, in that year, the
Women's Day celebrations were organized jointly by the Communist
Party of India (Marxist) Mahila Federation and the Coastal Women's
Front. This conspicuous autonomy that the women's front seemed to
exhibit began to be challenged finally by the men in the fishworkers
union. The women seemed to be convinced that it was their right to
organize autonomously as these were important issues that had to be
taken up. They were forced to do this on their own as the men showed
no interest in even discussing them. Moreover, the women felt confi-
dent that they were able to take an issue to its logical end without the
assistance of the men because it was in any case they who always did
the dirty work of running around and organizing when any issue had
to be taken up. Some of the women felt that they (the men) were
reacting because the women were no longer at their beck and call,
and women's issues should in any case be taken up autonomously.

The aoludon

Eventualiy, the whole question had to be debated and clanfied both

for the women and for the men. Why was there such a great need for
autonomy and what was the best working solution? At this point it
must be stated that the male leaders in the union, although visibly
 7be Kem/a Fisbuiorlaers' Struggle 157

~ by the stand that the women had taken, were open to

suggestions as to how the woman's question could be integrated into
the union. But what they wanted were clear-cut answers, doubt-
proof, which of course the women were not in a position to provide,
nor did they feel that that was how the issue would find a solution.
At the state convention of the union, the Chainnan of the National
Fishermen's Forum had spoken about a social movement union in
which a broader understanding of the struggle, including both the
ecological and women's issues, would be integrated into the working
class struggle. At this convention, the only 'vocal' women's state
committee member confronted the gathering on their lip service to
the women's question, saying that women were even refused mem-
bership in some districts of the state. She emphasized the fact that
unless the men took time to study the issue, to see it in the social
context and to analyse it, they would not be able to understand it.
Somehow she got the state committee to agree to make a special effort
to see that some seminars would be conducted first on this subject
and also that special interest would be taken to attend to issues
relating to women at local levels.
Subsequently. from the early part of 1988, effo rts have been made
along these lines. It was finally decided at the district level (one
district) that there would be an autonomous women's committee
within the union. This committee could co-opt women who could
support it and, this committee, chaired by an elected woman member,
would have the freedom to decide on issues they wanted to take up,
as well as the freedom to determine their own plan of action and
propose it to the larger district committee. But these decisions were
taken after a long process of discussion and analysis. Efforts were
made to build in the woman question into the broader analysis of
society, showing how patriarchal structures like caste and class
penetrate all areas of life.
By this time women activists were also able to identify the ways in
which modem technology affected women. Modernization in fishing
was turning women into wage workers at the prawn peeling sheds
or throwing them o ut of work altogether. So landing sites began to
.b e monopolized by large male merchants and women lost access to
fish for vending. Gradually, with the depletion caused by over fishing,
women had to go to distant sites to purchase fish. This added to their
158 A Space u'itbtn tbe Stru8J<le

burden, the more so because as the sector began to modernize greater

pov~rty hit the people. In these cases women had (and continue to
do so) to find all kinds of ways to keep the home ftres burning.
Women are also becoming greater victims of violence as men are
forced to become more aggressive at sea and, when this pays no
dividends, come ashore to drown their sorrows in liquor and take
their aggression out on their women. For all these reasons it became
more obvious that the fishworkers union had to see the depletion or
ecological question as linked to the technology question and the
question of patriarchy. As the male leadership began to take cog-
nizance of this as well they could understand why the women's
question should be an integral part of the union. However, since they
have been unable to work it out so far, the only solution has been for
autonomy of the women's wing within the union. This autonomous
committee within the larger union has only just started functioning
and only time will judge its effectiveness.

Developing a feminist perspective within a trade union is no simple

task; neither is it easy to sustain participation and leadership of
women in union activities. Developing a feminist perspective is a long
process which does not happen if mere structural changes within the
union take place. These are the first steps but if they are to be effective
a number of other changes have also to take place. For instance,
simple things like seeing that meetings take place at times that are
convenient for women. Even if this happens, the next question is who
will look after the children at home or cook the food if the woman is
expected to be out for a fairly long time? And there are numerous
other such examples. The perspective can be built up only if women
constantly participate and are as vocal as the men in carrying
decisions through. This is still a long way off. If women are given no
voice in any other social forum where the men are present, then it
takes quite a while before they can be themselves at the level of the
union. It is, moreover, very difficult for the men to acquire the
patience that gives women time and space to develop their own
thinking. The men want everything clear and properly thought out,
they do not realize that they too have to contribute to the thinking
process. 'Then the handling of women's issues itself is a long and
painstaking work because it involves not only factual issues but many
beliefs, accepted norms and taboos that have to be questioned, as
well as many psychological barriers.
Sustaining women's participation in leadership and in the daily run
of things is also not an easy task. Finally, and in spite of everything,
all the home burdens still fall on the women. Women who go to work
and then have to attend to all the unforeseen happenings in the home
like sickness, family problems etc., are already hard-pressed. For
them to still find time for organizational work is simply asking too
much. Such women often are goaded on by their sheer will to do
something, but even here, it is difficult for them to grow. 'Ibey are
good at the level of action and mobilizing and on this front they act
as leaders, but then how do they cany an argument through? How do
they build up a wider understanding of problems? They are too tired
to concentrate at sessions and to follow any logical arguments. How
do such women then convince the men who want to have everything
clearly thought out if they have to ratify it?
So while concluding that there has been a marked evolution in
understanding the woman's question in the fishworkers' union, only
the funire will tell how this actually helps to develop a feminist
perspective in the struggle.
 Bidi Workers in Nipani

CHHAYA DATAR

Women's issues, connected as they are with wider socio-economic

issues of exploitation and oppression, have their own specificity and
require special attention and special strategies. It was once believed
that by providing education, health and gainful employment the
process of women's emancipation could be facilitated. Years of
experience have proved that this was a simplistic equation. It was
against this background that I decided to study women at the
grassroot leve l in the process of organizing. I felt it particularly
important to look at the process of transition as that, often, is where
so much potential for change can be seen unfolding.
I did not want to make a choice between rural and urban organiza-
tions because getting permission to study the women was important.
Many organizations affiliated to political parties would not be willing
to allow an outsider to come in contact with their women members.
Out of the four organizations I approached, only one invited me to
conduct the study. The letter accepting my proposal clearly said, 'Ours
is not a women's organization, it is a trade union which has all women
members.' I found this perception typical of left male organizers. For
them a trade union has a revolutionary character, whereas a women's
organization is a part of reform activity. This reminded me of the
debate during the early part of the freedom struggle which divided
the reformers and the so-called political leaders around the controver-
sy of priorities of action. The same debate continues today and the
 Btt:lt Wmillen In Ntpant 161

left parties firmly believe that women's issues are peripheral to

working class and political movements.
Chikocli Kamgar Taluka Mahasangh is a trade union of women
tobacco workers who process btt:lt (leaf cigarettes) tobacco in the
factories of Nipani, a town the border of Kamataka and Maharashtra.
Bidi workers here have a long history of organizing, although at
present they are not so active.
When I decided to study the organization I had several questions
in mind. How do women perceive their own organization? Do they
divide their problems into public problems faced at the workplace
and private problems faced within the family? Do they consider that
the organization should only deal with problems at the workplace?
Or do they speak of their personal problems too? How does the male
membership (if any) respond to these issues? I was also keen to
know how the workers in the infor.nal sector get organized. Are they
able to get all the rights prescribed within. the labour laws? What
impact does organization have on the industry?
My methodology was to be one of participant observation. I
wanted to observe their struggles, to study how the union functioned,
how it was structured and to attempt to understand the potential of
women workers for self determination and self-activity.
My basic ideological premise was that such efforts often become
attempts to bring change 'from above'. It is often the case that
ideologically equipped intellectual activists articulate the grievance.s
of the masses, formulate demands, mobilize the people and try to
create a space for themselves as leaders. In times of political crises,
they use this mass base for political confrontations in which they are
engaged. As opposed to this process is the process of empowerment
through self-activity which the women's movement has developed in
recent years. This process is based on simultaneous changes at all
level of relationships, between men and women, ~. castes and
between human beings and nature. The approach assumes that
mobilization of masses by a leader is only one of many strategies to
bring about change. Self-reliance, self-government and self-activity
are some of the other strategies which empower women/people
individually and collectively.
a
In this article, which is a part of larger study, I wish to present
mainly the structure of the Nipani union, the Issues dealt with by it,
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pm\celyi !itAfe'~ 'rts,.;;enJbbitr!itot1e' h6Jses
beat wilh'{lss t'O' the·aftlt~~rit'paist/\Yhill:> ~1~t\ 11le-W.bo11~IOWSt'h\ ili~
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·(·-''rile' ctillt:'dl:li· lt:itngar' 'ra'hitca' 'Ma'hi1s'.iHg1'i" bffil:'t ·~as''ilts&' tll~
~<fen~'Of Sii~h'Jbshi;iihe ~ify:oftH~(LJriro\-1. ' "nii§uHiotl~
workers in the inforirtal ~!bi' ' C!ould'tiot ils~fiC' itb'~a' f6?trial'~e
s· ~e.' 1J&tfi'~ w::iS' aityplcll S1rtau~wn; Hoose witfi·a ·lafout1Sltfue1ifhat
1~ tiiMJa'Y
1 'b0gies:1 aSingle! dlitk r&w-of"rdbm§!.Pr~·~s ii~e;~tl
&&~l&iat't;quares 6f1HgHtf rbm:ttte•re·o•i glas!i liles·ililat'<>il th~ root!
As we drank tea;' fulhifu~' ~tted1 :dfopp:irig·:rn;_ulwarl'ien' "w~r'S
sruellilng ~f' tobatci)-dfiM; ~ilftle 1:01 greett':t.ls-;J Oriti.•tif•thitrri-:tpPdlred
oottfltk!ntlylit thedoor~u'*1 ~ rtli1t"1e~~pcsofn las~momtts
RW!ttt~~hip<ihdsf. iberreatty ·trYf :tl\e- eveitittlg,:or :wOO'lenlWouid,JoSci
c<>rl'ftt1etwe.1n:their eftlctenify _, r\n<imet:came ilO•ask! 'Vihettie.:1hep forin
wa'S'tead1f'&tltheSii~y Gandhi penSion·sdleme:$orrieone,else.came
atHf 1;f~.dt~ ~J tl'tie' bldt·w0rktfrst;c1\ildn!n;s-~dla~bip.s ·hilt!
ISl!if!f1'13WMU~.~<·.· ~,,~~·· : l ·, l l;:.>1 ;· .. ·,.· .. , .. , ....:;1°: '.ti,. . ... (>( f:'1 : · 1· l . J: );.~··;:..:: 1 -.)
ri i :1 iftttei artern66il,, •wsked·tne·bldt wC1rR~ ·Wfl'h'Sum~· sl.lblwk
jo:sfii·s wlfe;i·'lli€.fi6uge!j 1~e~ 'clami; :anct&rk:' ll~s introdU~ro
St9me·iliHitafifw&kers: Sbnal>hai, unfit·'5t>'fnerlme :~gts· ti :Wlddw!'.~
00-Uragellil~ rfllil'ri~cl'agaltti LaXrttllY.li,t ~ chikf~Widow; hati Of)ted"tti
nte:~it<te~dtffltTy.With 'the ~up~iofller o~ersr: rii<a~ritclu~
~> llaliigl1ters-ltt:.iaw sat tblllnk bitils ':·A girl':chlld•was ~tttmg ~'iie!tt
~t; Of-'ffie' ~dm~r(!tuek'ih~ ~ttle!' kiar·ends irBlcte tile 'rolled bidiS:
Subhadrabai described the process, 'At i'light'~·iinlrf~ ;the>tei~
l~~:ind1tten~'Ji them:1nc11 wet•luiE! dothittJ fk~p diem
st>ft:J ~Y'~~te·hti~~st~iScnooii1ny~i¥~s.,fire..fca~
in a neat shape by using a standard piece of iron. After my morning
chores I start rolling the bidis. Hardly half of them are rolled during
the daytime. My back starts aching. I cannot move my legs anymore.
 .. ..

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The darnpneM in the floor creeps throi.igrl rtiy tir&a:: ·i:in2e·yb\.I Jilio;
are at home everybody expects you to continue doing the household
chores. Husband comes, you give him water. A child shits, you clean
him. That really sl~'tH~~tjit1 tllftJn!'i<~~ · 9b!·~
homebased work as it was difficult for young women to go out and
work~ oiten :men:WotJtd ·harailstherrlion ~noads~ i.i •. • :L. ..., ·' , .,, ;-:·
· ·" · Stigancthi~I· ~ ·tb' toll '2;000 bidls ·armav11she.·.fldd:been
'I~ aft& her -nine chlldteh' sincte the :tifllle" he.i·hust>and died.
'Plie~! days~· the domestic · dtores were · perlormed·· by' her eldtt
~ti$fiterwflO'ttall·t;eie:A deseited bY her. husha¥1d: 'Her l'Nb SOOS>~ll(
'to S<!tlOOI btit the daughiets had 1dropped out·arvarious s<ages: J alsO
"met a wdi'ktt who
had Heen hlackllsred by alfthe•employets bec;tU5e
·df he[ 1inilitancy:·'She was Victimized as·sllC'W'aS' considered tor be~
fitlIOme aCtlvi5t: Back in rh:e··union ·bffice ·1notked a woman wlm an
ar™lt:t-lve f:iee''and bright' eyes s itting In the comer.' Sh'e·WU S\IShlla,
il'~·1,aild a'Wbtkerma,bldi facm.y,! 1Many(IC'Vdasis al.so w0tked
'as'tobilceou·bidl--worl<ers;in Nipani. .-, .:1. ·i , : • ' ·· · ·' . ,· , . . 1
· ; A'lobact:ti faC:tory is" Usulill~'a sto~ ~ttUre1 without' ventilation.
1

r1 "'~s1 told·that tob:icfu·shotikl iidt re·ail'ed whilc·being processed;

this' Was wtYyitJie roortfts ki?l't dark: 1'he atm~ inSide was full
o(cftiSt anct rioise. · Th~ ivomenisii1d,-'when 1we j6in; i'o; a month we
'are'notlaf>le·to·swallow focid; 'we fed·na\:Jseated all' the time.:.we feel
·giddy. The~II ~ ou~ bcidies·cannot be wipe{! offwith'sciap/·' A
big machllie W'.is ilisblted ahtf"W'Omen srood in 'queue to f~ ~~ a
toba'cco lea~ into!.it. ;f was told that tl\e machine- had ·it\creased
'prodUctiviiY:·' 'Many women held- the · ~ · bf ·their' saris ao-oSs their
mouths to protect themselves from me dust. All 6f. them had their
_.,_,_ :..lo-.~ .., .. .' ' . • ' ' . . ... . .
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". r. ~uid n'ot ~- manyiriert around: ·sarne were'ainYihg jute·b ags

on·tfiCfr b:fe~. ·The clerks·vrel-e all' men: No toilets were provided.
~te were-tivo 'seplirate:pitche..S for· water: apparently, the ca-sre
.Rhlth:J w6meii would :not drink water from·the 5ame pitcher as the
·untc)uchablCIS (apj>roxfiruitely half the women'were·c~te Hindus, the
' bihe&were·urnduch'ablell).' .- ..· ··1•. "'' . .. · , • :., ,.. 1.· •• . , : : .
·.;·;: Wfl.iit:r tiliklh-g 'td theili' i : realiied _'that :seve·rat ~ivislons ''exi5tcil
atiitih~tl1~1~o.tien': 'ffib5e'Wbtki.ilg in big fadoiie5 and In Sritan·ones
were divided because me small factory owners did not observe any
labour rules. Then, mere were differences between women coming
from villages around Nipani and the ones from Nipani town itself.
Old and young, married and single, everything divided them unless
they remained united consciously.

The union •ml Im •rrod•cecl lntflulloas

The Chikodi Taluka Kamgar Mahasangh consisted mainly of tobacco

workers working in NipanL There were 35 large and medium fac-
tories and 45 small fac.tories. According to the factory inspectorate's
estimate, 3,000 workers were employed in these fac.tories. But ac-
cording to the attendance at public meetings there must have been at
least 5,000 workers in this industry, many of whom could have been
temporary. The union had been registered in 1980, and on an average
2,000 women paid membership fees on a monthly basis. The ac-
counts were properly maintained and submitted to the labour com-
missioner every year. The members had been given identity cards.
There were four paid full-timers: Balasaheb Tawale looked after
legal matters; Sadashiv Jadhav attended to the routine matters, such
as writing down grievances, filling up various fonns for scholarships,
leave, etc., mobilizing women for meetings, and so on. All of them
were literate, including Akkatai, the only woman full-time activist.
Other than Balasaheb, nobody understood English. As Nipani is a
part of the state of Kamataka, and a disputed area between Kamataka
and Maharashtra, Kannada is the official language of the state and
English the second language. However, people in Nipani generally
speak Marathi. Subhash Jo.shi earned his living as a lecturer. Advo-
cate Avinash Katti was the president of the union, and acted in an
advisory capacity.
Apart from these six people, there was an executive body of
leading women workers, the most active women on the shopfloor,
from the tobacco industry and from bidi factories too. This cominittee
was an informal body, nominated by the union office bearers, which
met every Sunday and discussed many issues besides their inunediate
grievances. The full-timers kept the committee informed of all the
happenings, and future plans. There was also a large consultative
body which consisted of two women from each fa<.1ory, where the
union had a base. These 60-70 women got involved in the delibera-
 BUit Wm-.S tn Ntpant 165

lions when a campaign or struggle was being launched. Although

not an office bearer, Dr Dhruv Mankad ran a clinic for the workers in
the union office and helped in the union work. None of the office
bearers was affiliated to any political party, though they informally
interacted with political groups in Maharashtra. SubhashJoshi was a
member of the Mahatma Phule Samata Pratisthan where people with
social democratic tendencies gathered. Druv Mankad was a Marxist
without any party afflliations and active in the Medico Friends Circle
and the People's Science Movement.
This helped the organization to remain unpressured by a central
body, and also ensured that discussions developed in wider groups.
The advantage of this is that the trade union does not remain a static
body, but is linked with wider movements. The women activists were
· also exposed to new situations through workshops and conferences.
The disadvantage is that many issues are taken up too quickly because
of pressure from outsiders, without allowing them time to emerge
naturally. The way the devadasi issue has been handled is a good
example of this.
There is also a certain inherent informality in the structure of the
union. The i.nion offtce was situated in the residence of Subhash
Joshi. Though its timings were limited to between eight in the
morning and eight in the evening, in practice, the office was open
from seven in the morning till almost midnight. This accessibility was
an important factor in retaining the vitality of the movement. Also,
the atmosphere was confidential, and the women could discuss their
personal problems and seek advice. They trusted not orJy Subh::sh
Joshi, but also his wife, Sunita. Her presence in the house was very
reassuring for them. In this way, the union represented an alternative
support structure in the social life of the women. Sunita's involve-
ment had grown gradually, and had flourished because she could
relate to the women workers closely.
Sunita's family and many other personal friends of SubhashJoshi
formed an informal support group outside the union. A lawyer, Ram
Apte, himself a union leader and a social worker from Belgaum,
charged very moderate fees for his appearance in the labour and
industrial courts on the workers' behalf. An important contribution
came from the student group called Ninniti in Nipani. They volun-
teered to take part in mobilizing activities and presented a street play
 166 A Space wtlbtn the Struggle

' ,' .. ,.,, I ,;,, ·' ;' J ' o)' 1'•

along with the women. Subhash Joshi could also draw sympathy
from some small traders and shopkeepers, who were again.st the rule
of ~£.hand ~~ _a ~cw. .kipg o~ ;N~~!" ~~. ~e~,i~n~
setting.up,of1.<;~u~r:'s.setjety,(9r,tqe_ Yt,~~: -1~!l~~. ?:lf!~#
r,he \V<>:l"~'s µffi90 to:~\\'.. ~!'Id .;L 1bP,pge., ~fP".~f) tji,~·f.Iitlp,ql~, flffi
;md the wofki11g.clai;s.has; ~n .~, i _., , , ' , . , !; i:u! ;i .;; .. ,. 11 ,., ·,;~ "'"'
. . Of~. ~-a~. ina~iµs:i~Pt· the_si~. 1 A.111 thtr:IJil:i,c!~~
.c lass pec>plp ~ho·Pfilrtj(;ip~~ Gi4!not,~~S&a~Y.~~~ :Y.\*?P;.P.f
a new- p;iety, ~ir ~lafion$iP. ; ~.inlY.· ,rema,in~ ;w.i..W. fa..\JR}?~~~
Jo.sh4 ~.diii~: ~~:<o $.e ,WQfT!!!l"l ,~~y, t;F.;l;!p~}P,, th!; ,~
of the students. The fact that Su~~Jq.sttl .W*.fl~hn;U.rt;.qi;gpi,q~~
:~~an ~4¢,iid~~g~. ,.A!i.th\s;~~~ ~~- UW f+~W.,c/~ of
p0wer ~e ,cqqg:Jl~9. in! ~ ·~d;s; ~q.d. tl«? ~t: .ffi~i$,~,µ,-
.siable.for. tlle..ug~ ,.. : .. ... . ..... · ! , 11 , ..
, · 1.
,. .. : ."... , ,,··. . .............
.. . . :· 1· · ·,··;i . .-.' .\, {· i·
j • • • • ••• •
~ ..
·. .0llf! · more . ~~cy .. ~' 1tAAt ;~9.•:~l~,,<;l~ : .y.;9~ .~W.Hl
Nipani, i<>thei: tha~. ~µqita ,.aqc.i her:s~rs, ..~4.. P.~~,.i/l ,~~
various a<;tivilies i;pqnso~d. QY:.tht; uqi.oa:. A.Jtffi~ fll~. rµ!~~a~C}((~
· ~- women 'S'-'orkeo; ~pad· defJ-0.ite\Yr i.itfeg~ :Wem, .-iV.'1)4';~ . ~ ,~
:~ommiuec ., ~~s . (orpi.e.cl :fo,. i;irgaoi~e.. fhe, &t~~~; ¥~ti , ~~~ :~
programme, the ladies club.s refused to work w~ . w,e;,~.~Jl
worke~, ·T hey sajp,<:lW~YtPa\.fP~ w~ .af~ Pf ,th~,~~~~ the
,wom~P wprjters: we,re ~l!ow.~,t!'.>. fo.it in the au,qi~p~t; ~o ~ th~ .!;l~,
whU;h ~~tq .bepresenreqqµfir:!g .t,he.Y*", .. . .. ,,,. ,,, .,;·: i; '. , · . •
. ,,. . . . ..-..' . 1\ , ' , • , ' , • I ' I • I ' 1 ' ' ' 1

.
, , •. ' ·' , ' t . , , •
;

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.
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:It rs·natu-tarror 'WOr'rlen wo&ers' lri ·'t11e ~tlfOnnal St!ctot liwitg !(jfll d1e
brink of sutiiivalid !lensitive and' arutibus abbut:theitjbb'~t)eds oe
and working:ronditiOris:; But the tinusual aspea Of tl\e;Nipati tnGve-
merti ts th:it"it"~sd support~<Fthe: ibclil "peasanr 1agitation' f0r better
of
. prices tobacoo! whicl\' ttid-riot·biing the womeri lmy'gainS! libere
were many other social issues tob>·w hlch· did not' fall'Withiii ns fomw
framework, ··Which •the ul'lion took 1Upi '1lle 'diver.liry:of- the1:issues
•tackled by tlie ui1l.ol\'gNesit·the chatacterof'a:latser nitiri'cmem; ·The
.'~ 'Catt "~ brotldly i tl.assifidt:llS 'ec0nbmiC\;;50eijtl;,.he8lth i"1\d
'
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. :. ., ,

; .,f • , 1 ; ;t • . :,, ,I ~• ~ ,,•' i. : ' .. , /. > "<•.. •t·•·,,

, . ., ,· • ,. •!1 I. f '• '• 11
··I. ··•• ·~
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 BUii Wmilm In Nf{Janl 167

.
Economtc issues: The plight ofbidi'worbe~<as hb~..WO.~
has been acknowledged at the national level and three major laws
have been enacted since 1966, which extend all the benefits awarded
·tdt~iMI fal'tOtY law; •kfh~~ W6ti<ers!' 0f :course;-rhl~ ttoes
·ni:it trleaWtMt~ fliw!!ili~ 1mpteniet1tal tocaUrbY the tiJidi l'(lanufab-
turers, or by the government officials. In Nipani, the rrumufact~
·f't()du¢tng-laN.lle1'1hiictis do1ob6er.fl:laJl·tW laws, m~~ of
1tiie rttili~, of• wbdceh. ·J\.!bwl•all.ovep •Kamaeakli: thetbi.di1woinu1
~somt!wha~organiled~dr<Joigetthe~~of~·blws··But,
·:,ttlttiesame"1mt', t~:wurker.1;whon:>lt 0unlabelledbidis1are1deprived
<of the-ba:stc 'nght!s sucti as nJii'limum: w.iees ~leave wases, and:there
ils>l'lt!1.queSOOhotia 1p~ideru,fund., :Ihescb;disarecaliedeitlm-blaak
bidis, or sarlulri bidis (i.e. favoured by the ~~,, rnhfrre. .ate
,few•workmiWOd<ieg• kro1blaitk tbidis..Ml::Nipani.·,rBUt• Uut<~ is
;.i:llii:R!3Sing:;· 1 l·> 'ff1·;;~1 : 1-.~:r 1~ 1 11 . .. f j • ,J ,, 1 . .; 1 , : : ~ . · .,11·;,!1 .~ : 1 !, 1)·1... , ,.._,1.J
n· ,,.rnte m'0St•important<.11i<!i sponmnecDus crontJktB F&kie ¢lace -aaDUn<I
.tlie!.isSfle!of'dl1'atbkllli<. .·Onderlme mme:of.~aohboi1 aibitraty
.rejiet!tlori ! ~r:so-ca}.!Jed- ' def«tlve '; ' . oidis.,is·,qu!'ttr: :a1domac!>n
·~n1 Though·the Nht:iiays·that a.maximifin of1fme per.tent
.Of.bldis·dlnibe ttje~, :in: tealily. ciheeket.s use theit own..mc.retion.
l~i\> hllve<bttlf1strugglihg·•~lllSIJ tilis eJttra; e:wlottalion:and·.die
CUJtj(jft h:lsf Stlppoi:fed· thentl '" .J ·,. '' ' · I ' JI i ; ' Ii '.I: ·!Ji •.-:; !'.); !! ( I • l ! •1 1111.<f I;
O~niwt>meh; p3'1'tictilartyuade•untoo:aetiVlil!siiare srh~ootand
·' 1 '

l ~~ ¥idf .g1veti sufficlcnt•ra•·nlwattriafs;to work Wtth: Jrt'hM ~

'$ves;tt1~ m'Wailtu ' All Ith~ \vorkers 1are 'dcaftrwith ·tndivldually,
others do not come to know of this injustice and it does not become
i• •gerler:.l'i~· ·Eiten':Sb, .s'ome'm41itahti~;woPi:ersil:umD taldefi up
<me eause-Of.thclt' collea~'. •The 1peti0d:bdtwdln 197~ ,W'aB..hm
~·IMcH e¥oots. ·When a few·workers1resistJ Wias ga-d1e c1<1ur.i81f.to
1~1¥ btjhiJld,the~\11· :·ttow~r; todayoth~:woikms ·anhn01 loJ\gfril as
·ru1ft!. , .. •Sort\eiioffr1them -.rompbiO:-(bf iricttasedld0mcilstia1 ra8p00-
~ some;feetdiat~ey·~ ddi1e their.sh{lte< ! .L·J1n·,rn·Jlqrll i
griir~v~~\he1'miori wllS1fOrthed1~'f'Jlanneial.~rtur&alden
rJiiact-: ·~· Shi'eeftlt1g ·Bldt' 'Faltt0¥y >M!.B·to «iOl!IEI ;~u:.r>'Jl\ei \Jnian
"'corisutted !~·~mtinr 19.'orkers•211<t it1<wastdccided•tha(l 'ihey~
~oracc~pt 'ltiieit 5'ilary'~ 'they weft! gwdn'3! proinisEi thlit t-he &ccory
1 ~1d·felfflaiW~n ..~~lkt.lri\y•disp~fed'bv·thtf\Vo~~yil?kkd
results. The owner decided to keep the factory;'0j!;eRJ f1roVi&dl.the
1;!Jr1·J~~- ..;rl: r~< ' ;,,:·11 J')~. ~! J!'t1 ,f: ~.1ti1 ·1, 1 r1c;1.11:Jr1 ·;t 11 ·,fr·1f~ .! .l>H<! l 'J:)ft i~
-.•!I i :r1r1·:J .;.~<ri,;
. :J·t· .itl ! r 1r> Jr 1·J11 J .l! 11;~: r·>IJ ,•:,1 <1: .:·f 'Jr: 1 ·~ ! :'J'/. ' /. 'l".J' /·.J f)flJ :
168 A Space witbtn tbe Stru8Ble

women were ready to roll bidis inside it. Some women did not like
the proposal and dropped out, but the majority were ready for the
new system.
Legal actions have been taken too, mostly against arbitrary
retrenchment. Often disputes are taken to the labour court, but this
takes a long time. Also, there are no punitive measures if the judge-
ment is not accepted by the owners. In some cases the workers have
been reinstated but many cases are still pending. Legal action also
involves considerable expenditure for which the union had to rely on
the membership funds.
In spite of the commitment of the activists, the union has not
devised any methods to activate the women themselves. It relies
mainly on their spontaneous reactions to issues. However, women
do feel confident that the union will help them if they decide to fight,
although if they are not willing to take that step, the union is not able
to help them. 11lis was proved during the recent incident at the
Shreerang Bidi Factory. After running the factory system for a year,
the owner once again decided to close the factory down and offered
a paltry compensation to the workers. The women had become so
weary that the majority of them accepted the sum on the spot. Very
few came to the union office to consult office bearers. By that time it
was too late and the union realized that no effective action could be
taken.
Till some time ago, the Bidi Workers Welfare Cess Act (1976) and
Bidi Workers Welfare Fund Act (1976) had not covered the tobacco
workers. Then, recently, a recommendation was made to bring
tobacco workers under the puiview of these Acts: this was the result
of the workers' demand in 1980 that the Minimum Wages Act be
implemented. Daily wages at five rupees per day and a working day
of eight hours were the two major demands in 1980. The main thing
was to keep a proper register to maintain the service record of each
worker. Previously, since no record was maintained, the workers
would shift from one factory to another, according to work
availability. The wages were paid every week, and no other benefit
was offered to them.
Since 1980, implementation of the Bonus Act was on the agenda
and every year the bonus demand went on increasing, from the
lump-sum amount in the first year to a minimum 8.33 per cent of the
 Btlit Wor~ tn Nlpant 169

tOlal wages in the year 1982. In 1983 the women wanted to go a little
beyond the minimum. For the first time In 1983, the union made the
issue of negotiations with the workers' representative an important
iMue along with the higher percentage of bonus. This was a major
step, which was resented by the owners. 1be public meetings were
attended by thousands and calculations were made in the case of each
worlcer on the basis < her service card. It was a very educative
process. A new point was raised that leave wages and holiday wages
should also be included in the total annual emoluments when cal-
culating the percentage of the bonus. This would have added Rs 15
to 20 to the total amount. The union prepared a table of the number
of workdays linked with the amount of bonus calculated on the basis
of 8.33, 10, 11, 12 and 20 per cent. Many workers were illiterate, but
used to take the table home and, with the help of their sons and
daughters or neighbours, would calculate the amount for themselves.
This created a great deal of fervour among the workers.
The union Introduced another issue which is being fought ex-
clusively on the legal front. The leaders had realized that to avoid
paying for various legal provisions the owners gave the workers new
appointment letters every three months, thus denying them a per-
manent status. Also, they were not paid lay-off compensation when-
ever work stoppage took place. The pressure from workers for more
regulpr work, and more workdays had been increasing because of
the pauperization process and the lack of any job in the sunoundings.
Hence the union decided to take up the matter and challenge the
owners in the court of law.
Victimization In the bidi and tobacco industry not only punishes
the militant women but it erodes general militancy. It is used by the
owners to split the unity of the workers. The case of Sushila Naik, in
the P .V. Desai factory struggle, is an example. The owner was ready
to settle the dispute provided Sushila, the leader, was thrown out. It
would have been a short-term solution, but the leaders in every
factory w ould have felt denToralized in the long term. The union's
adamant stand led to a closure and Joss of jobs for 55 women.
The issue of mechanization also has been a major concern of the
union. In reality, since 1976 the process of mechanization had been
gradually replacing traditional skills of women by small machines.
While winnowing was carried out by big fans, sieving and grading
 170 A Space u>tthin the Stnigsle

\V~s 1 tlblWb~\f'l'rilichlhe a~ommodating eight sieves at a time. The

ste:ns and midribs were powdered by grinding machines. Calcula-
lions showt:d that the productivity of one woman worker had gone
·<lp·hm!e Hines txX:iti~·or'1tt~~ m!c!Hine~/ in· '1982; ta '!1ig >.1Ut<;rhat1c
·rtt~dari~ ~lis" lrii.1a•Mt ·hy:R:lr.ih ·Toootc-o· i>r&essirig·U>lnpany-Jfh
1N1p~ tll !M machlfk' iril're'-.ise8 the'pt<xfottl\.ity of'ii W-blfl'.e; ~ tiWtell.
·'t\1..8 1orth'ree iliote'·~uc.:i,:. macHlries wouICI: red<iCel ttte · ~df
"\V6rt<~ ih']':llpaiii f;y thoLsa'rtd\i."'Bat! th~ hevrtrtae:htfte' .,.;as irsl~
·(ttM~ctby'iii~ Unidn'. ll 'demartded that a' spetiaI·lefy'i:ie"lliid!on'fne
t6w.icctf pi&e~ ny 'this:mach'irie;·pointing out 11iat it simitar tey.y
··~1;ced on ili~~hlne'-rotle'd-hidls: 1t ~61'. togethet v.iutt pel:'lpi& in·GUJaiu1
_ivho' ~re' ifyiii~ to' ·&hiariire' 1oh3tco:Workers ~ho .f.lced:a 1~iihtlilr
"ihf~k i ~'Bi i.lppeall ~g id 1he1lahour l'6rni11issfun-e-r; the Ial)Ou~ alid ~ilil
·!\vi!ffare ·mirllsim br Kaitt.itil_l<a!' :uid bfip~!oiernif;g •the pioble~·of
'tli~p1aJeiiiellt, 1ot· tl\e; wol'ltt!rl>; ·'ilie ·unioil r rtildtigeif1iid ~ "lh
~ St'or)pfrig"fortfier· goven'ltftent Sissi'Stance' t6·'..Jriif!s 'Wnklli l\VaMed ito
'iH5taff'rl'ie' ~lnacmne: : ·; ·i" " .' -r! ·.oa ;.-,, 1 ·,;,,,,, ·;tJ : J:i: .J , ,, !;-v;;
1:

' ·; 'Rl:i'(~n~hlilbtir 'of' ol<:f~r wc>'rri&ri' WltHi)uf liny :~o~sa~··wlrs

another i~ue '.whlcti ~·a'd 'a'Cqliii'et! soin'~ !intpdrtaricti(ih lrea-nt ~­
: ~f61\!1 ilrlidltlzaii6h tt!(>k1plat.'e;bll1C'r'WOrrien~ regl.ltarr.11 Hi the
1ln<Iustfy ;V.Hth6ur 'fatilltle~ rbi-pensk.>ti oi' pro.Jldeii1 -furKI: WheW'tlie
·'ptt!s.~urb' fof ·in'ipteirieri1ai'ior1 ci :Vanous' raw~ 1ocreasoo; itie ~ts
.sl'~i;red 'ii:l'reooct'ttt~ir' ll:ibirrtil:s: Orie eaiSy'W:ryourwds ~J:ti't!ilie
- ~n''t.l'r\fft' aft~r·a inedicil1exmni'tiation; and' rerrencti-Wer. Notter of
·\¥ie'wdtl(~·r~tx>sses5ed tllrtlft.-erittlbies1oipl<dve·or dlsprov\! ma~ 1tteiy
1
't\a11 'k:icHed the ligti'of retlretn~6t.· inre·6Wflers ~i<Jet:I ttcict~
·'e.xalnJHe'1iiifd' dettify·~ pe6p1~~S'' ageJs.! ,· 'The' woMeri'1s0oni bcl:MHe
··&uit{)ug:·aiia' reni~d ·'tb ·~~LJ:lttiit>tb- 1 a 1 1kd161' 'elX'ahilil.ml)iv. Hl nie
demand was either for compensation base'dldn l'iff>O'tH~liif<'caR:ffia­
~ifuiis"cffl ;&ie~ge yea~' bf~~· ~t! w~~r; or' tbrlc?tihlitttiltt<;n of
·JW0~_! ,·J~r.: ~i J! 1·,: :1· :;!r·! 1 it;1· ;r:·J~ ~-.:1 .J· • !') ri lli<1::·.,:r~·· 111 1111::il l1 ri :.iriJ
ni · b6sulie1 6'1'th~'~bnsilbe11t-WaS'a'nbtlfer1~r1t~a~MJeffig
·1Lsed ~bf i'fi~ 'm~iruigerileilf· :'. 1fle 'i!im&ii.seeriled 'Id :mM! t"ait~rlf<> 1
11
a·r\W-Ci~:iie IB~'developmbrlt ~s ~le-it\ tHe p~ orthe<l1i~­
,_ti6'ii'. 11h 1~~:1oi\g '/-lJn!.' ltie 1ciogl1~ was;tia g6ing •tc:faffeet•Oid~r
"~M 'If '«-oWtCJ 11:!a'd1o'th'e m~alla't'io'rl' o"f lfie>'new; mactii~!' THerufflOn
~a.liz~'ilial'it.~?is 1-veiy. dimC:Ult tW tlY.iUd\ge ttld •ctdsure<ili1~is
·., f l j 1£, f!'i' J' ,r tr >·_, r• •;1 •'" 1. f i · 1·,.f ! ;-;1 .t'l ., >r iJ. r1c 111 1.. \i:lr. i i J'.•lfl 'ft 1 ' : ! :,..;.., ~:.,r1' 1"'
"I.11.11; : t•);;I ,. · , : 1:.·• :·:t i · :.' · ·'" ' ."J· ··t~I 'J;' l J ( ~·. \:. .i 'J )~ : : .. . l!i..lJ. 'J' ' fil. fi( ' .!(Jli
( i ' )' 1•• . .
,..._,r1i;i •! r 11 l!1 .1f1... ":··i : .· J: :~ . . ;; !~ .i •.l ll;.J,,... !1·r11•!::l.>1:1• ~:.r1; ,,1.'.c!'"}t 1•i1 .11U1.1M
!JJ!lt1J
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 Bidi Worem in Ntpani 171

·~· )~ " ···. , . ,,\ : (\1' \\\·,, ·• ,)'·l\L.f : ~1

it wasconsidered a fundamental right ·m the management: . 1nis wi I
therefore continue to be a long drawn out and costly t>attle.
;;· i·~~. tJJe;. ri: Y:;~~i,, f.~.~??'., ~tru.&8!~. ~; lll,ai<?,~ ~~is!()'? .~~s .~l<en
~·~~?'ff, c?-~~':!.~ns. amc?~~ , a~l .t~e, :W<?r~:c:~:.. J;;~~cf.·,,~~..~~~X
a(J.ega!lons. wcr~ .heard <f(t\;r the failure ot the sfru~~lc ·wl1en
~~e;y~y- 1051,it'ieir.j;';i!is..,'Fioni ·:he' ~gl~nir18 ·1h~>st! 'wl-i<>~>Wied 'io
~roP. ~ui beCao~'or some· i}eoonal ~.iS<>n~ weif! O.~ti-.iciii.~<l ~nciw~·~
¥..t. 9eferef·l·~rr:·~·~i<>ns,. :·:!.he ·rea<le!.~Nr. ~~ier· mha~~ ari* ·,i~:.J~ ;~
£.re~i~~-.~~- ~11~ th~ ~09r.; ~e~ k.~Pt open .fo_r o.is:us~.ions:_- fi.11.t~
three metnoos, 'direct mllit:ti'lt act1on, legal' a<.'tfon, and loht;'yil'ig' With
'.t~~·~o~~m·~~!t'. \Yere '~n~efi~k~·n:, 1'1laj actions w~rf ·F~~o~f:i~#d
along ,witfl_planned actions:. t>urliig t'l1ie' 'jail bharo' agitalior( ·Mit!n
the :P,?.lri:i!' refi&:d io arrest iHe·sticond hatch, the wor'fien'. decided'ro
sit crowri in the 'in~rkei ·sq-ua'r~' until theit 'colleague~ 'Who h:iil' be'eh
jine<i '~eit!'r~ieasM.: S'u&Ha~Joshi ·~as 'i~ jail.' ;;rid'1he. woinen'ibok
th.is'ciecisl6ri in his ab!itihc'~. i The'moSt diffi(:urt decisli::iri ~its i6 ~c&pt
'de'f~{'and «-iihc!raw:'Che;ioss ofpreStlge ~med it>bt! 111ote im!pdr-
'taf\c ·fot:ifie VJomeh Chan anYfhirig.else:' Nevertheles5;'the 'SJC"month
·r~fl8'si{:lri iii(r6'tii qfth'e dwner's office had giv~n them l:ili'Jdetit!tY.
1t\vas ·a1lorlga'nd p'ainfut'C'icpendrlte, exai:ertnted by'fJar;andhunger,
6Jt llie ~l'nd of' 5biici,aiify.. otr'ere<l by an the·women;'iriciuding 'oJi-
~-ktei'S i6:t!ie ifldu5try:wasunique.' Alt ?ubiic·m~rigs \v~re.~nrerri~­
lyvvc!li' attended.:• Many who wete «>utsidets;'t>ff'ered id 'gb td jait.
Subfulsh 1&.hi'sJ -
iWife'·partidpa'·tect ·1n ttie·• 'jail ·bliiro'!'W61
' •
rierf Had ;lb
.ti'~t 'the ruinau~ sprea·d-by the.oWriet5 abOut'the hai+Owitig'oorl'di-
'iidr1$Yn fait; 'a·nci marty ses..'lio'r1:s'were'cievdcea tc:i ·driiWili'g'a''plc!ttire df
prison Ji(e. Often women took a longer time than men to gefcori-
~ihcfd. . ..
. 'liiit'...bhce they,w"cre; their1Tivol\fetnenfwas'
', _ .un't>an1re11tid.
' "'i:tt~"orlto.h w'iis'~ts<>'ir15tn11nenca1 'i.il setting' up ~~raflnstifilffi)ffi.
The'"'<'>itt~rr ~nre<l io h3ve· ilieli- o\Vn cbrlSu~er'st:iop'aS"mlii\Y 'fiilr
price shops were not run properly. The union took the decision to
,e5ta61i~l\1 ·a 'Women·s' Muttipu~ Co:operatiVe socrety!TThis 1was
·ro~1'ned on 22July ·1982 and tile shop--Mts ~br1 117)0tfuberi1983,
~ fueinl:se'tstup tlft~ ~·ety :was'iCstrtC:t'ed l'd irorttt!n; arid·urioffi-
.dauf.' td ~en ·workers: ·Flvemen were·employed lo run the Sho'p
-~rid't'd k~p; :a=ccoi.ihfs:" Lalet;'a.:Y0ung1woriiatYwas iilSt> :~.
··~rdi~ ein~y~S; odiei \flan 2 secrehiry;' ~hb'a&:ke'pl'~de{;ul\hl,
~~Wi~'~ tsrtiliughters: bf<~cd:»and'bitjt 1 \i..oticers!: '· ,_,, l'.Jrll• •
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172 A space wUbln II# Stn4/18le

The society managed to supply foodgrains to striking women

workers and adjusted the cost in their accounts. Thus it really acted
as a support structure during a crisis. It also provided a 'constructive
image' of the union activities for the middle-cl.a$ people. However,
women members did not become more active in administrative and
policy matters as they lacked the confidence to carry out official work.
Indebtedness is very common among the workers and there are
many dubious small saving schemes-cum-loan disbursement
schemes which charge a high interest rate (which often goes up to
240 per cent per year). These are run by unscrupulous people who
are able to extort money through social pressure, or by bullying.
The union began a credit scheme with capital raised from workers
which charged a much lower interest. The interest on the deposits,
i.e. the weekly saving which ranges from Rs 2 to Rs 10, was kept at 6
per cent and the interest on the loan was charged at 24 per cent. Loans
were given only for periods of under one year. After two years the
union decided to formalize the credit system and make it a part of the
Women's Multipurpose Co-operative Society. At the same time the
upper limit of the amount of loan was extended from Rs 500 to Rs
2,000. The rate of interest was brought down from 24 to 15 per cent.
The credit-worthiness of the person was judged from her long as-
sociation with the union. No formal nonns. were applied as they
would have been unrealistic when dealing with the poorest strata of
society.
Although the effort is admirable, the facility has reached only 487
women out of the 7,000 tobacco and bidi workers. The task was
enormous, and the union was able to touch only the tip of the iceberg.

Sawalt: There are a number of devdasis among the women tobacco

and bidi workers in Nipani. Outside the workforce too, sonle dev-
dasis exist, who either beg for a living or sing on auspicious oa.asions.
Some awareness has been generated among the devdasis within the
union and it was decided that a support-cum-rehabilitation centre
should be established at Nipani, not only for devdasis but also for
other women in disuess.. The job, already being performed by
SubhashJoshi informally, could now be performed collectively and
systematically. Sawali was formed as a public trust and went into
operation in April 1985. The government of Kamataka displayed a
 B"'1 1Vor6ers 'n Nfpam 173
keen interest in sanctioning grants for the routine expenses, provided
the responsibility of the initial expenses of setting up the institution
and conslructing the building was taken up by the trust.
Sawali seems to have the potential to develop and involve women
workers in its various acdvities. Subhash Joshi was aware lhat a
special effort needed to be made to see that the centre did not become
another bureacratized institution. Efforts were being made to as-
sociate outsiders with it. In this activity too Subhash Joshi seemed
much more motivated as compared with his other colleagues in the
union, as also with the women who formed the trusl The Kamataka
government made it obligatory to include only women who were
going to be the beneficiaries of the centre as part of the trust.
Unfortunately all but two women on the board of trustees were
illiterate. All of them lacked the confidence to conduct any formal
administrative work. The language used for drafting letters etc., was
English. In this situation it seemed inevitable that Subhash Joshi
would be more involved in the institution than the women themsel-
ves.

Social ~ Life in Nipani revolves around the tobacco industry,

where the union is seen not only as an economic counsellor who
helps in bargaining better, but is also perceived as a moral force with
a social sanction. For example, the union premises have been used
to perform marriages, with the leadership acting as arbiters in cases
of dispute. Among other things, the union represents a progressive
force in the eyes of the workers and if anything goes wrong in their
marriages, they feel assured that the union will intervene.
One such incident relates to divorce proceedings between a
newly-married couple and their relatives. The bride and her mother
were not union members, but belonged to the poor sections of
society. The bride asked the union to intervene and help her escape
from the house of her in-laws to another village. Both sides ap-
proached SubhashJoshi for a settlement.
The groom's people were more keen to shift the case to the caste
jurors, but the bride insisted that the proceedings be held in front of
Subhash Joshi. She wanted a divorce and thOl!ght she would get a
sympathetic hearing in this assembly, rather than within a caste
 •
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:· ,,: t(f// 1i;! r :: ~ 1 ~ 1 :1 1 , : 1;.: • • ; •i . ' '• .,. i f 1 f i<Jl f! 1 .:· ,1 !; ~ ,·JlcfJi rl ·11!f:·,rr1
!1 :·.•: ! i '!\ .' •,..1( f 11 ),.· ·,. .-: •J 1· :1i ,· : · . ·.,· • • :~ ·;; i : r;;. 11 1 l~ · ·: i .: : :. ,,. !· .' •;,. ;:·:,. I. ; ;f;f f
RQ..,.~~(1 the; ~~p >.~ !'IJjpaJ)j . w ,a"!~ri; ,C?f !10~.. '!n,~ ~ . i~1'19.W~~
~flA~8 SaJ'o'~'s ~qiv~ij,e,s, aoP,, ')'ai})fl8, (~r: mo~ , ~'l'R'!AAs, f.9· .J9i~
J~Jllf~z:i#C\lil., J1 i;i JP.,li?Qrl~ IP, ~~~pJh:Jt !fie,P~~ ~g~i~
~ .dcivAAsi«CJ.Js:tOJl;l...ba~ npt, fk!"'«;le>pe,Q ,from ~ilhi~ bµ~ 111,)~~ ,tOc;
«;fJ.~~~ Pf: ~~L :t:efQ~~r;s ,\i~ct Ba~. A.~'111v..,, ~~ ~_waµ\ ,$H~~ ~/l»f
lw ~fU!W.i~?n.~mipj~tra1~v~ .p,c:;p;qn o;yi.rh goo4, !Jl~il~n8f1,ffil~
fqf, ~•.~~chf ,progfllffiro.~- •,JW1 :4'1~ p~~.of µiypl,":in&: q\Q~c;.wq
1J1~,w~n11eP1 i.r,l «Qi;ic;eptual~il)8 iinq pe~iswq·rn~~ing is_x.ttl ~9.pi;.gjl},
Th~, ~~a~Jtiti. µnaw;i.fe J~a~ ~la!i~ 1 qf i~ii.:;9lv~"1eo; ~X f~Hffi
~t~tu1e,ip,9194~~i~~qw~. , ~t9"1¥.h'\Y~a: fllA'!Pe~fi'3JWl~
m~~me~ Peca~()~ i~;'!oppeal.~, tl;i~ Jl\.IQ!i<:)~~F fii: ~Y J;tf11<,.J)W
~s~pwg,~ngth; ~.l*-h. f911\es,~. of-~!1Jp<>.vv~IJ1il~n.t. q~J!'9~f1, !P;
JJJ(.; l~g~eni:i~ii l ! .... ,tt .• · ~ ;·.·!1 !: 1 r1i·... ~1 I· ·· ·.·: .. . . 1 , , 1/111 : r· ·· :~ 1 ,. . ~ 1·· :· ..-1
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'Meallbr :W.01king with tl:lbiti!o :leads·to,nall6ea ,~iddinrtss·rarJfJ,MOIJlik

ing as tobacco dust accumulales in ~ll:ings; DE Dh~ MJtnkllQ, WM
hWitaet .IJ p!~"d~$.alY. ,ini·U'le.,"n,iqQ., PN~li•i pJ;if\Q.,tld.to, i:GVJect
s}isteinlltK: :data "~ lkle .f!ffet:lB;of. 10Qaf;<'J~ ,qn Vf.om~n. fie ,l\'..a~ ·~W
inlerestectin, rt?.~acch. pn UMiliWfJl9~: .qwclicine,, ~ ,~c;n~~d .!pr ~.t
up ;a; team .of 'ba~@C>t· dQClQl's! ;umng. t)le wQ~,i wo~~. :~n: ~'1r.~
ftactori.~s meeriI\8S.~~!held 1Q9,w~IQp.tOO iq~ ..Ma11y.w9men-o/.e re
fmird ·«>: .be .a~_ing;.a,s in{ofmal, midwlv~s, ; 1 ijow~~r, :i:!esR!!e. tms
entb\.lsiasm the id#a,Jlllas,~ Pllll>'1ed1,aPW!f«t-?4)1 ~~&f l.~~-gj:'
·tiullt oot~, ~o(@r,M~~",, """";' ,,., !/ 1: • . , , •!. : , .. .. 1: .. "'' ''·
·,; i 11'blt; ~ieo;on:he21th: brou,;it..~ct 'an .a~areness-abQl)t ~~e
tmVkoilment-aoo: l~k of baSic,-amerutifls;r..aild1,the.. need; for; ~
·housingr) NO "1tt.eotion.had beien paid tO-ti1iilip!'!ibi<mL fot Iii:lpng,tim(:
\IS ti1e.wlion was preoocl:l]!Jied widl ~~ttt.Jggle's., ID,uriflg: l98i7·the
ru~ roolc--an·lntet'Cst-ifl:ithis :i5sue ,amt rnanaged.Joiget land:~linQ­
;tiwtdd ffom the·m~ipality,foi dla:btdi'iwo1keM:-On the .whole.then
seems to be 100 much emphasisoneoonorhicissue$;v.bile issues s.uch
as-imprt>Vibg ~· qual»y,ef~ite .werjt,lou.c~· l.JP:PO: put·nQt take11 up
:setiaJS!y,:" Thili .seems. .tQ 1b.e a·:if,pkal.-anG\ , iµdjtiQn~l ·;trwl~ ; ~9'1
--=-·-'- .. ~ ; :· ' •_}".).~ ,.i .:1.•., ,,_
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• ::!:~' 'l1 ; f"'. \ •' ',' : J;(; i; l ...·1;'.'.· , !• 1'1 ~ · .· ! ;'f " 1,··.· ::! .
t· ··1 f "'. ' ,•• ', '.•I •· { • ••11 :·r
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:,:

Political Issues: The Shetkari Andolan in 1981, demanding better

prices for tobacco, was a political phenomenon hecause ii did nol
concern itself with the immediate economic issues of the union. It is
176 .A Space wttbtn tbe Struggle

likely that it was SubhashJoshi's personal involvement in the move-

ment which led the union to become involved in it later. 1be women
had a sense of solidarity with the peasants because some of them
came from peasant families. However, the unity was not forged on
a permanent basis. There was no reciprocal support from the
peasants when the workers fought a losing battle with the P.V. Desai
companies for six month. The campaign boosted Subhash Joshi's
personal image as a capable leader. It provided a good experience
of methods of agitation for the women. They also realized that the
tobacco factory owners whom they had identified as their enemies
were doubly so as they were also the people were who controlled
tobacco prices. But the campaign brought no immediate gains for the
workers. SubhashJoshi's contesting the assembly elections in 1982
was the culminating point of the Shetkari Andolan. The women
participated whole-heartedly in the campaign for their leader. In
retrospect, however, some of them felt that contesting the election
was not the right decision. If elected he would have shifted his
attention from union work to other political issues, and this would
have affected the union adversely.
In 1983, two union activists, Balasaheb Tawale and Ashok Pawale
contested the municipal elections. SubhashJoshi also worked for the
campaign, forming a front against the most powerful tobacco mer-
chant in town, Devchand Shaw who, for the last few years, had been
controlling municipal affairs through people under his command.
Though Joshi claimed that the decision had nothing to do with the
union, obviously the popularity of the two contestants was based on
their union activity. Many women volunteered to campaign on their
behalf. Subhash Joshi's support of the front was important: the
middle-class did not identify totally with working class issues, but had
faith in the leadership of Joshi and in his honesty and sincerity. The
front consisted of small traders too. Thus it was not a product of
militancy but an alliance. It won, and the union members were proud
of the victory. Control over local self-governing bodies has always
been the first aspiration of the working class.
It has to be noted that women workers were not asked to par-
ticipate, nor were they asked to contest. It was only for one seat that
a personal effort was made by Subhash Joshi to see that a woman
candidate contested. This was a reserved seat for scheduled caste
 BUit Worlai1rs In Ntpant 177

people. A meeting of leaders from aU the castes was convened: these

were aU male leaders. SubashJoshi tried to persuade them that they
should support a woman tobacco worker who was capable and
popular. The men did not agree. They bargained that they would
accept other front candidates provided the decision for this seat was
left to them. Subhash Joshi held a separate meeting of the women
workers and convinced them. They liked the idea but were not ready
to confront the male community leaders who have traditional powers
over matrimonial affairs as well as over funeral proceedings. Thus
the political sphere, the centre of power, was monopolized by men.
This phenomenon is particularly interesting: in many households
women were the main breadwinners and they were organized and
militant. Despite this they were deprived of electoral and political
power.

7be re/atU:msbtp between members and the leadership: Ninety-nine

per cent of the tobacco workers are illiterate. Though they wo rk in a
factory, much of their work is manual, and is not really industrial in
character. Rather, it is basically an extension of agricultural work. But
they have a sense of unity and strength after having worked together
for a long period of time. After unionization this sense of strength has
increased. Some women emerged as natural leaders although they
too had to fulfil certain criteria: firstly, they had to have leadership
qualities, the courage to speak up, articulate a grievance and argue it
out, a sense of strategy and tactics, and a militant attitude. Then, they
had to be in a position to stake their jobs and give time to the union.
Typical shop floor leaders were either young, single women or elderly
women, who had somebody at home to look after the family, finan-
cially as well as workwise. However, in spite of this, very few women
made it into leadership positions, and even fewer new people come
in. Although there were grievances against the leaders among the
women, they (the women) were also unwilling to drop them (the
leaders) because so few of the others are willing to take on the
responsibility for leadership. ·
The u·nion does represent a new life and a new hope for women
workers. Even the non-members who typically represent the prag-
matic attitude of a vulnerable person would, in fact, attend public
meetings, as they have a great deal of sympathy for what the union
178 A ~ wUb1n tbe S'"'B/lle

is doing. For the members, the union does not offer any special stan•s
as do the estab&hed unions in the big cities. Despite this they want
to be a part of the union. As one of them puts it, 'To be in the union
means to live like a human being'. 1be union offers them human
rights and hwnan dignity.
Among the leading women too, there is some confusion about
what the union represents and a· typical patron client relationship is
often what they have in mind. 1be shopfloor leaders also do not rise
above their immediate surroundin~. They depend mostly on the
union leadership to provide overall direction and devise broader
strategies.
Within the union, therefore, the women accept a division of labour
which is based on sexual and educational lines. Mobilizing col-
leagues, collecting monthly fees, making women buy shares for the
Multipurpose Women's Co-operative Society, these jobs are per-
formed by shopfloor women leaders. Administrative work which
requires keeping accounts, preparing documents for legal suits, etc.,
is performed by male full-timers. Negotiations with the owners on
various issues .were caITied out until now by the male leadership.
Recently, the shopfloor leaders joined the negotiations over bonus,
which was resented by the management. Many do participate in the
capacity of trustees of various formal institutions. But it is more of a
formality rather then genuine deliberation. Women are never made
to think or conceptualize the running of these institutions. They have
not thought of these areas as their responsibility. They are given the
space to ask, to control the union leadership through the democratic
processes, but they still feel inhibited because of their conditioning
- they accept hierarchies created by education and the sexual
division of labour. To make them overcome these barriers will
require extra efforts on the part of the union.leadership.
Some results were noticed when I conducted three workshops
during my re5earch, and it appeared to me that the women needed
more space to realize the potential within them. 1be leadership was
always in a hurry, since they wanted to see tangible results. However,
more discussion and experimental action are needed on the question
of how to neutralize the effects of social inequalities within the
organization. The process of self-enquiry and reflection has to be
initiated and nurtured patiently. ·
 Btdt W01am in Ntpani 179

The union has made some efforts to break existing hierarchies.

The job of sweeping the office is rotated among members and even
Subhash Joshi has to perform this task once a week. A number of
other practices also create a friendly atmosphere between the women
and the male leaders. The majority of women are middle-aged and
do not feel any inhibition about speaking to younger men in the
union.
The union is obviously trying to go beyond the formal scope of
dealing with economic issues. The leadership is sensitive to the needs
of women, to their special problems. The result is that so many other
structures are being developed to deal with these problems. The
recognition of the need for spontaneous action on the part of workers
is a positive aspect of the union. 'Let the workers make mistakes, the
union will stand behind them' is the principle, which encourages
militancy and initiative among the women workers. More reliance on
militancy and direct action rather than lobbying and legal action is a
sign of their maturity and understanding of the class nature ofsociety.
The leadership has shown an openness towards the people belonging ,
to different ideologies. The activists are encouraged to participate in
different workshops and conferences.
Against this positive background certain inadequacies endanger
the process of empowerment of women. Firstly, though the union
leadership is meticulous in formulating demands on the basis of
labour laws, it has not shown sufficient rigour in studying the overall
economic situation of the industry and processes of transformation
which operate within it. Hence the economic issues have remained
narrowly defined and an awakening about the problem of
mechanization came very late. This is true of social issues as well.
The institutional revolutionary attitude is displayed while taking up
an issue and formulating a position on that, but no academic approach
is developed in the long run. The devdasi issue is an example of this
approach.
The methods used for mobilization are typically methods 'from
above': powerless people rally around a charismatic personality, and
are led by him. The workers show militancy but may not necessarily
get emi)owered in the process. The strength displayed comes out of
passion, and numbers, but it may not get consolidated. In Nipani, in
spite of efforts in the right direction, on the whole the process of
180 A Spaa wUbtn tbe Struggle

mobilization resembles the process go ing on elsewhere. 1be p rocess

of empowennent of women workers is not visible. Many initiatives
taken by women are not followed up by the leadership because of
their own understanding of prio rities, and the women themselves
keep o n waiting for the leadership to give directives.
The industrial a~phere does provide them the atmosphere of
a melting pot, and encourages them to become one community, but
transfonnation takes time. As individuals the women wo rkers feel
helpless a.nd dependent. This is an ideal ground for a patron<lient
relationship to develop. In Nipani too, despite all the openness and
democratization of the union, the relationship between the women
workers and the leadership can be described as a patron<lient
relationship. Within the leadership too, one person, Subhash Joshi,
wields more power because of his popularity. The three colleagues
he has trained in administrative and agitational skills mainly provide
stability to the organization and nothing more. There is a fear that the
institutions created by the union will not remain answerable to
women anymore. Also, this kind of a mass base can be easily
manipulated by a leader for his political ambitions, even though
Subhash Joshi has shown considerable restraint.
If women do not become self-active in the process of organizing,
it w ill not become 'their' movement against class dominatio~ and
patriarchal domination. In the absence of this process of empower-
ment, the trade union and its associated structures at Nipani will
remain a mass base, vulnerable to manipulation.

NOTES:

1. In the border districts of Kamataka and Maharashtra, the girl who is to

be a devdasi is dedicated to Goddess Yallamma before she reaches
puberty. The girl is supposed to get transfonned in to an incarnation
o f the gocides.s herself. She is rnanied to God Jamdagni. Thereafter
she is sup~ to be a 'pennanenlly married' woman, since God is
e ternal. She IS l"l()( allowed to marry any living man. She becomes a
.
~rlestess and Canies a Yallamma idol on her head to beg for alms. She
510
~ songs in praise of Yallamma and is invited for auspicious oc·
casions. She can, however, be a mistress of a man who fonnally
I
 Btdt Wor6m In Ntpant 181

promises IO look after her. TilCSC days devda.sis arc also lured into the
prostitution business.
2. 1be Stree Mukti Yatra (a women's theatre fetlivaD was organized by
Stree Mukti Sangathan and Maitrini, two women's groups, in 1985, in
WCS(em Maharashtra. I was one of the active mc1nbcrs in this venture.
1be idea was to reach people using several media in order to raise
awareness about women's issues.
 The Tamil Nadu Construction
Workers' Union

GEETiiA

A movement of construction workers has taken root and acquired

statewide tharacter in Tamil Nadu in the past ten years. The unioniza-
tion of construction workers outside the party fold first began in
Madras and gradually spread to other districts of Tamil Nadu.
The Tamil Nadu Construction Workers Union is a trade union with
a difference. Unlike a conventional union which would basically
demand benefits from employers, this one has fought for the self
respect of construction workers. Among the union's demands has
been social and governmental recognition of construction workers as
a part of the labour force, their rights as labourers, as also the
regulation of employment in the construction industry through legis-
lative enactments. The role of women in the movement Is significant
not only because of their militancy or their participation in the
struggles in large nwnbers, but also because specific issues concern-
ing their position in the construction industry have been raised by the
women workers.
Construction is an industry basic to human society. It is seldom
acknowledged that the construction of roads, dams, bridges, fac-
tories, buildings etc., provides the basis for economic development
Ironically, although the state and central governments are the largest
employers in this sector, and spend crores of rupees annually on
 7be Tamil Nadu Conslrua1on Wm.,,' Union 183

COMtruction work, particularly as part of state developmental activity,

this sector remains tolally neglected as far as the workers are con-
cerned In Tamil Nadu alone construction workers number nearly 25
laJchs and the all-India figure is approximately 2 crores. Women
workers are the IDOllt exploited in this sector, which remains socially
backward, a condilion that is reinf~ through the extensive use of
child labour.
The industry is organized In bodl public and private. sectors on the
basis of conttacting, sub<ontracting and labour contracts. Whether
the: work involves building factories or railway lines, it is all given,out
on contract. Neither the principal employers nor the contractors take
any responsibility for organizing the labour process or for the
labourers. All contractors, big and small, whether in the private or
public sectors, have only a small number of workers on the musaer
roll. This is true even of public sector undertakings such as the Tamil
Nadu Building Construction Corporation. The major pc>rtion of the
work is divided and given out: a skilled worker with a group of
workers under him will undertake a turnkey arrangement to complete
the task. Thus masonry, carpentry, bar bending, painting, welding,
mosaic work, earth work and concreting are undertaken by different
labour groups.
There is a hierarchy of relationships in this industry with the
principal employers standing at one end with their maMive capital
outlay and the impoverished wage labourers at the other, with the
different layers of contractors and sub-contractors in between. On the
lowest rung of the hierarchy stand the women labourers known as
cbtlabals, in Tamil, 'small person'. It is they who do the most arduous
part of the work, namely lifting and carrying construction material
such as bricks, monar, water and sand. Balancing a dozen bricks on
their heads and climbing three ladders at frequent intervals requires
considerable skill and stamina, but the work done by women is said
to be unskilled work. There is a strict sexual division of labour: men
dig the earth, mix the mortar, carry cement bags. They are called
pevtals, meaning 'big person' which symbolizes their status. Women
are employed only as 'unskilled' hands in mllSOnry, inosaic, concret-
ing, earthwork and carpentry. While some pevials are able to acquire
some skills through informal on-the-job training, such opportunities
are denied to women.
184 A Spac.e wUbln tbe S'"'BS/e

Workers are recruited by malstrles (foremen) and houseowners

from local areas or from their native villages, and sometimes from
marketplaces in villages, small towns and cities. A problem peculiar
to the workers in the construction industry is that unlike the fattory
situation where the place of work is fixed, and the product of labour
goes:.into circulation, in construction it is the latter that remains fixed
after the work is compl~. while the workforce shifts to a new site
and acquires a new employer. 11lis constant mobility of labour fton1
site to site coupled with the system of contracts and sub-<:ontracts
poses serious problems in organizing the workers, and in securing
any benefits for them from the employers.

Coadltioas of woak

While the big employers on major sites sometimes offer continuous

employment for over a year, on an average, the workers in the
housebuilding sector get employment for three to four weeks at a
time, while those recruited from the marketplace get employment for
only one or two weeks at a time. The monsoon months bring a rise
in the price of bricks and this brings house construction to a halt. Since
the industry does not provide a lay-off wage, these are periods when
the workers tend to become indebted to moneylenders (sometimes
the moneylenders are contractors and sub-contractors themselves). It
is during the monsoon also that their shacks and makeshift huts in
cities get flooded and many workers move back to their native
villages. Their rural links help them to survive during this period.
Since employment is mainly through maistries, no records are
maintained by contractors or principal employers for the workers.
Despite the provisions of the C.Ontract Labour (Abolition and Regula-
tion) Act, except for the companies' direct recruits, of whom there are
only a small number on any big site, the construction workers are not
provided with either an employment-card or a wage slip Thus they
have no proof of employment and even after working in the industry
for several years, they have no service records.
The wage rate in general bears an inverse relationship to the
regularity of employment. In any particular city or town, the bigger
the construction, the lower the wages. Everywhere, the wages are
 7be Tamil Nadu Conshualon Worien ' Unfon 185

lowest for women. Women suffer along with men from the long hows
of back breakif\8 work, lack of amenities and l!Ocial security. In
addition, they face discrimination in terms of wases and opportunities
for acquiring skills_Indeed, often the men, because of relatively better
access to opportunities for improving skills, are able to move up the
hieran:hkal ladder and get better wap. No such facility exists for
women. Actual differentials may vary from a few rupees to upto ten
rupees a day. In Sinaganp, where there are no male unskilled
labourers and women do all the ancillary tasks in masonry, earthwork
etc., their wages have not reached the levels prevalent in other towns.
Wage rates are, however, very much dependent on the existence of
the union. In villages, small towns, slums, markets and construction
sites, wherever the union exists, it ls responsible for fixing the wages.
But migrant labourers, recruited directly by sub-contractors from
villages in the interior, do not have even this protection and get the
lowest wages.
Construction work ls hazardous and accidents involving simple
injuries occur every day while fatal accidents are not uncommon.
Falling from heights, electric shocks, cave ins etc., are the major types
of accidents which occur. lbere are no safety norms on construction
sites, nor are accidents compensated for. On big sites it ls not uncom-
mon for fatal accidents to be hidden by contractors and employers,
with entire families being forced to go back to their villages in order
to 'keep them quiet'. Unless there ls pressure from the union no
accident gets compensated for.

Bad though the conditions are for male workers, they are much worse
for women. Women carry heavy loads often to the very end of their
pregnancies and sometimes deliver their babies while still at work.
After childbirth, it ls common for women to return to work within a
month. The babies are generally left in cloth cradles that hang from
trees. Children grow up on sites, older children are left to care for the
younger ones as there are no creche facilities. There ls little or no
access to education and children are exposed to all the harzards of
the site. Basic amenities such as drinking water and toiltes are not
186 A Space wllbtn tbe Slnl/l8le

provided at sites, even in public sector undertakings. To answer

nature's alls , women have to go hunting for dark places. They
frequently suffer from neck and chest pains as well as fever because
of exhaustion. Thus, every fortitight or so they are compelled to take
a few days off work, something they can ill afford. Since there are no
mcdicaJ facilities, they have to spend money on medicines etc., from
their meagre earnings. The total lack of security means that women
survive by working as long as their energy lasts. By the time they are
fifty they have completely lost their capacity for work.
Child labour is widely prevalent in construction. Boys and girls
working in the industry are usually children of women workers who
get pulled into the work because of the need to earn whatever is
possible, and also because for the children thernse~es. since there
are no educational facilities, <here is little else to do. A considerable
percentage of the women workers are heads of households, and even
where this is not the case, women often have to bear the burden of
supporting the families as the men use up all their earnings on drink.
The incomes of women and children thus, are often central to the
survival of several families.

Construction workers began collectivizing in the early thirties in

Tuticorin; this later spread to many other towns. In the early stages
they formed guilds whose activities included:
(i) Stopping work once a month and holding monthly meetings;
(ii) Fixing of wages and wage enforcement on the principle that
no member could work for a wage lower than that stipulated;
Though the guilds were effective locally in towns and villages,
unskilled workers, including all the women in the industry were
out.c:ide their purview. Although attempts were made to generalize
guilds and form a state level organization, these were unsuccessful
because of the unregulated nature of the industry. In addition, ac-
tivities at the state levels consisted mainly of holding meetings and
passing resolutions that free implements should be provided to con-
struction wokers and that cement should be distributed only through
 Tbe Tami/ Nadu Construction Worilen' Unfon 187

the guilds. The guild phase lasted only tor a very brief while and was
fairly limited in its perspective.
Guilds were basically groups or organizations of workers with a
particular skill and were an expression of their solidarity. Each guild
operated on the principle that one worker should not substitute for
another. This was an effective weapon against victimization and
retrenchment. In cases of victimization, no olher worker would offer
his or her services and this would pressurize the employer into
approaching the guild for a settlement of the dispute. Wages were .
also fixed in a similar way at general body meetings and were
enforced on the principle that no worker would work for a lower
wage than what was fixed. Thus, if any employer refused to pay the
stipulated wage, no worker would work for him. Guilds were not
divided along party lines, but they did create a hierarchy of skills
among the workers which was ultimately divisive. When the union
came in this was one of the problems it had to face and the process
of creating untiy among the workers was an uphill one.
The difference between the two phases, that of the guild and the
union, is brought out in the different flags that symbolize<;! their
identities. The guild's organizational flag was yellow in colour (in
order to denote auspiciousness and the social importance of construc-
tion work) and carried on it depictions of implements of the trade,
such as mason's spoons etc. The union flag on the other hand was
one third yellow and the rest red, and carried on it the outline of a
building. Herc the social importance of the activity was combined
with the need for struggle (red), involving the blood and toil of the
workers.

A brief history of the 1mloo

In 1979 the construction industry faced a severe slump. It was also at

this time, because many workers were out of work, that the need to
organize was voiced for the first time. The year began with an acute
shortage of cement and, at the same time, its widespread availability
(along with steel) in the black market in Madras. The month of that
Qanuary 15 to February 15) is the first auspicious month after the
monsoon and normally witnesses a spurt in construction activity. This
188 A SpaCe wllbln tbe S'"'IJgle

time, however, there was no such spurt, instead things came to a

grinding halt.
Hundreds and thousands of construction workers banded together
spontaneously and converged in demonstrations outside Fort St
George, then the seat of government. There was some hope that the
newlyelectedAnrul DMKgovemment would look into their demands
sympathetically. The workers demanded fair prices and relief for
those who had been laid off because of the slump. Although women
participated in these demonstrations, they fonned only a small nwn-
ber, approximately ten per cent.
It was as a result of these demonstrations that activists involved
with construction workers met and decided to form a trade union
which would demand that:
(i) a commission be set up to fix minimum wages;
(ii) provision of the ESI;
(Iii) a sum of Rs 10,000 per person from the Chief Minister's relief
fund to be paid to victims of fatal accidents;
(iv) creches be set up at construction sites;
(v) a separate law be enacted for the protection of construction
workers;
(vi) a twenty five per cent reservation of houses by the Tamil Nadu
slum clearance board;
(vii) free implements.
Subsequently, the next few years were marked by demonstrations,
picketing, and hunger strikes by construction workers. Over a period
of time guilds from twelve districts affiliated themselves to the union.
Women's participation in demonstrations increased rapidly and soon
they could be seen in large numbers both in Madras city and the
districts. ,

The Union and lrpladon

In 1981, at a seminar on construction workers, a group of lawyers

made a preliminary attempt to draft a bill to protect construction
labour. The bill contained a provision for a welfare fund which could
be utlilized to provide housing, medical care, creches and educational
 The Tamil Nadu Const1ucNon Wmwrs' Unton 18')

facilities for children of construction workers. Copies of the bill were

circulated to central and state governments, members of parliament
and the legislative assembly members. It was subsequently filed as a
private member's bill in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha but it did
not come up for discussion in the former, while in the latter it was
discussed only in November 1985. At the end of the discussion the
union minister for rural development stated that the union govern-
ment was in the process of framing a legislation to protect construc-
tion labour. Meanwhile the Tamil Nadu government introduced a bill
in the state legislative assembly entitled the Conditions of Employ-
ment and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill W83 which had one serious
flaw: it did not take into account the shifting nature of the employer-
employee relationship in the industry.
The union, the Tamil Manila Kattiga Sangarn, formed a committee
to suggest amendments to the Tamil Nadu government bill. In addi-
tion, a state-wide campaign culminated in a mammoth conference in
Madurai in February 1984. Addressing the budget session of parlia-
ment a few days later, the Govemer promised to amend the bill to
register all construction labour in the state, provide compulsory
insurance and to provide Rs 10,000 from the Chief Mininster's relief
fund to the families of victims of fatal accidents. Although all other
reconunendations were ignored, this at least provided a ray of hope.
Nonetheless, agi~ons continued. Then, without any notice, the
bill was suddenly passed without including provisions for registration
of workers, or for payme'nt of compensation as promised in the case
of fatal accidents. This SP-afked off picketing by construction workers
in Madras; women were in·the forefront of this campaign and agita-
tion, and demonstrations were held throughout the state. Although
the government tried to pacify the workers by making gestures such
as offering them a self-insurance scheme, the union refused to accept
these. As a result of the unity built up in the course of this campaign,
the workers took a stand in the general elections (which were
announced soon after) that they would put forward their view during
the elections and would not support a candidate who was not willing
to give a written undertaking that they supported the demands of the
construction workers.
190 A space wttbm tbe S'"'IJ8le

Gowaoment 11:1'-..I .. o awl women

The state government's Act included, in its fourth chapter, special

provisions meant ostensibly to protect women construction workers.
The union raised several questions about the validity of these
provisions and these questions were the subjet-1 of considerable
debate among the members. Section 27 of this chapter laid dOwn
restrictions on the employment of women. It stipulated, as the Fac-
tories Act does, that women 'in construction' would not be allowed
to work after 7 p.m. The women felt that this, instead of protecting
them, would deprive them of-existing employment opportunities. In
concreting work, for example, the work has to be completed in one
stretch, and if women c.ould not work continuously, their places
would bt: taken by men1 In faet, concreting provided employment to
large numbers of women, and what they really needed were proper
overtime wages. Since they worked in groups, they did not in any
case need protection after dark, thus such measures, they felt, were
diversionary and patronizing.
A second provision related to maternity benefits. The Act extended
the benefits of the Maternity Benefit Act to construction workers. But
because the employer and the place of employment kept shifting, it
was not possible· for women to claim these benefits at small and
medium construction sites or even at large ones, especially those
where identity cards are not issued. Instead, they felt that this legisla-
tion would have the reverse effect and would make employers wary
of employing women. Similarly, the extension of benefits such as
provident fund etc., was also farcical given the frequent changes in
the employer-employee relationship. Thus, the state government, in
framing this legislation, revealed its total ignorance of the specific
conditions of the industry as well as its disregard for the real interests
of women.
While these agitations continued the union also kept up the
pressure on the government to frame a central legislation on construc-
tion labour. Seminars were held to discuss possible clauses for in-
clusion and, at a seminar organized by the Tamil Manila Sangam in
Delhi in 1985, various unions of construction workers resolved to
frame common demands and to wage a common struggle to achieve
these. The seminar identified the government's special responsibility
 The Tamil Nr..du ~ 1V0tir•s' Union 191

to construction workers given the uruegulated nature of their in-

dustry, and it was suggested that comuuroon labour boards be set
up at various levels. In addition it was also suggested that a welfare
fund be set up with the principal employer making a compulsory
contribution of 2 per cent of the total cost of construction. The money
thus collected was to be used for housing, education of children,
prvvision of aeches and childcare.
The seminar's made special mention of women
and suggested that they be given skill training in order that they could
become masons. Women were to be represented on the board in
proportion to their numbers on the workforce.
At the end of the seminar a national campaign conunittee for
central legislation was f01med which formulated a bill on the basis of
the seminar's recornmendations. A signature campaign was also
carried out and over 500,000 signatures were collected. The petition
that was prepared was handed over to the petitions conunittee of the
parliament on December 5, 1986 by a nationally constituted repre-
sentation of eonstruction workers. Meanwhile, local campaigns con-
tinued.
In Madras on 18July 1987 construction workers took out a huge
demonstration demanding implementation of minimim wages and
implementation of the seminar's recommendations; this was followed
by a convention of construction workers in which representatives of
organizations from all over the country took part. To focus on the
specific problems of women a special session was organized where
women representatives spoke of the discrimination in wages and the
resistance to acquiring skills that they faced. They also reiterated their
special needs such as creches and clean drinking water at worksites
and in and around the home.

The uoioo •nd the role of women

Today the union's membership is largely among the small and

medium housing sector workers, both in urban and rural areas. Apart
from campaigning at the national level, the union has also taken up
the Issue of accidents and has been working hard to obtain compen-
sation for victims of accidents. Here, they have had to resort to both
192 A Space wUbm the Slrussle

legal and direct action, and women have played a major part in such
disputes, often helping to resolve the Issue or taking part in large
numbers in direct actions. The ex-gratia payment of Rs 10,000 for
families of accident victims that the union had been demanding was
sanctioned (by a government order) after a long drawn out struggle.
but even after this, very little action was taken at the implementation
level. Thus the union's statewide agition has continued and a writ has
been filed in the state High C.owt at Madras.
Violation of labour laws on big sites anJ non-payment of mini-
mium wages to women in the districts are Issues that have been taken
up as campaigns in the past one year through legal literacy camps for
both female and male workers, and also through direct action. The
union has also been campaigning again.st police harassment, and for
housing.
The union has branches in residential areas, in villages, in towns
and slums or market places where workers assemble. Each branch
has a membership ranging from 30 to 200. Branch unions elect the
executive committee and the office bearers, this includes the secretary
of the women's wing who Is elected by the women members. The
paying membership of the union is about 20,000 of which about 30
per cent are estiffiated to be women, although often the campaigns
and agitations have drawn much larger numbers. The women's wing
of the union was formed in order to encourage women to participate
in union activity. Women's participation is noticeably higher in
Madras than elsewhere. In Madras city, women workers constitute as
much as 40 per cent of the membership of the union and are very
vocal in the: monthly meetings of the unit as well as in the general
council. But, in spite of this, and other than in a few units, women do
not get elected to general posts in the union. Although it is true that
involvement in the union has helped the women to be more militant,
and to articulate their problems both at home and at work, there are
still very few of them in leadership positions.
The union has, apart from taking up workers' problems at work,
also begun to play a major role as arbitrator in domestic disputes, in
organizing marriages and amitrating in disputes relating to them, as
well as helping to organize funerals etc. In particular its role in
arbitrating familial disputes among members and supporters, in
negotiating tricky inter-caste marriages and divorce arbitrations have
 7be Tamil Nadu Construction Woriim' Unton 193

made it a social force in the lives of workers in many cities, towns and
villages.
Thus, the union has played a fairly major role in articulating the
issues raised by workers, as well as in articulating the rights of women
in the industry. However, it is important to remember that though
women have come a long way since union activity began, they still
have a considerable ground to cover in this respect. Although efforts
to break down old taboos and barriers are being made, women still
suffer from wage discrimination and skill barriers. Men's wages are
hiked up faster than women's so called unskilled labour and there is
considerable resentment among women on this count One of the
major problems that the union faces today is the tension between men
and women workers on these issijes. 'There is no adequate apprecia-
tion of the high degree of skill required to perform the 'unskilled' work
of women. This is true no< only of the employers but also of male
workers within the union. For example, assisting a mason and an-
ticipating his exact requirements so that work can progress smoothly
requires a high degree of skill, as does climbing scaffoldings and
balancing loads of bricks. However, these are not considered skilled
activities. These problems continue.
 Workers' Struggles in
Chhattisgarh

ILINASEN

This paper examines the role of women in a large worker-based

movement that developed during the last 15 years in Chhattisgarh.
Although based on trade union work, the movement has acquired
dimensions that go beyond conventional trade unionism. The work
with women, too, has developed beyond trade unionism although
the nature of the base has had an important bearing in shaping its
character. And the entire movement has drawn strength from, and has
in tum strengthened, the experience of the 'Chhattisgarh question' in
state and national politics. ·
Chhattisgarh is the name given to the seven easternmost districts
of Madhya Pradesh, namely Raipur, Bilaspur, Durg, Rajnandgaon,
Raigarh, Surguja and Bastar. This is an administrative categorization
as well as a sociO<Ultural and linguistic entity. Chhattisgarhi is the
common spoken language (a derivate of eastern Hindi) although
many of the tribal groups retain and speak their own languages.
Geographically, a large part of the region lies in the valley of the
Mahanadi and Sheonath rivers (Bilaspur, Raipur, Durg and Raj-
nandgaon districts); the outlying regions are hilly and in the east lie
on the Chhotanagpur plateau (Surguja and Raigarh), and to the south
(central and southern Bastar) lead on to the Deccan plateau. The
valley area grows some of the best rice in .India and is known as the
 W01wrs' Slru/Jsles In Cbbatttsgarb 195

rice bowl of the state of Madhya Pradesh. Peopled by indigenous

tribals (who fonn over 80 per cent of the population in Bastar, Surguja
and Raigarh) who constitute the bulk of the local peasantry, as well
as by the older stream of immigrants from Uttar Pradesh and
Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh contains some of the country's richest
mineral deposits, coal, iron-ore, bawtite, tin, uranium, quantzite
dolomite and limffstone. This has led to a post-independence spurt in
mineral exploitation and mineral-based industry, and subsequently ·
to the setting up of public sector giants like the Bhilai Steel Plant at
Bhilai, Bharat Aluminium Company and National Thermal Power
Corporation units at Korba. This industrialization has brought a fresh
wave of immigration of educated unemployed in search of jobs into
the region from Bengal, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and other parts of
India. Being better educated than the locals, these people have
managed to take advantage of the best opportunities. Despite the
tensions and strains produced by this, life in th( countryside is much
as it has been for many years, with social and cultural life containing
many traces of tribal influence. F.conomic life has come under strain
due to persistent drought for the last several years, and this has led to
large-scale outmigration from rural Chhattisgarh.
It is against this background that the Chhattisgarh Mines Shramik
Sangh (CMSS) emerged in 1977 at Dalli Rajhara, in the southern part
of Durg district. The Dalli Rajhara iron ore mines have been captive
to the Soviet-aided Bhilai Steel Plant since the inception of the plant
in 1956. From the beginning, the mines have been worked on a dual
system of partial manual operation and partial mechanization. CMSS
today represents over 8,000 workers at Dalli Rajhara and was born in
1977 out of a spontaneous revolt of the manual mine workers against
the central trade unions which had, until then, been supposedly
representing their interests. In actual fact, there were glaring dis-
parities in the working conditions and wages/benefits of the manual
mine workers and the workers of mechanized iron ore mines, also at
Dalli Rajhara. While the mechanized mines were worked direct by the
plant (i.e. regular workers of BSP), the manual mines were worked
through contractors. The manual mine workers were thus assumed
to be employees of the contractors and enjoyed none of the facilities
that the regular workers had. Although l!he regular employees were
educated, skilled workers were drawn from the local tribal and
non-tribal population. 1bere was thus a regional coruradiction be-
tween the two sectioM of workers, as also a class contradiction.
Contract workers were drawn mainly from landless and poor peasant
households around Dalli Rajhara and other parts of Chhanisgarh. The
regular employees from among whom the trade union leaders were
drawn came mainly from middle/lower middle class households from
outside Chhattisgarh.
CMSS thus began its journey with a heritage of strong class and
sub-national interests, and this has guided the nature of its functioning
in the 11 years of its existence. The organization fought its first major
battles on the issues of houses and housing allowance for the contract
workers. Through its sttuggles, average daily wages for the piece rate
manual mine workers rose from the pre·1977 Rs 4 per day to Rs 29 in
198~. However, two important aspects of the work at Dalli Rajhara
need to be commented on before we proceed further. The first is that
the union has faced very severe state repression and hostility from the
SAIVBhilai management, such that its survival itself appears to be a
wonder of sorts. In June 1977, in its third month of functioning, the
demonstrating workers of CMSS who were on strike for their demand
for housing allowance, were fired on by the police in the dead of
night, and eleven workers were killed. Later (in 1983) this police
action was condemned by the judicial enquiry committee set up to
investigate the incident. In 1981 again, the leading union organizers
were arrested under the National Security Act, only to be set free by
the Review Committee in two months time. The extremely militant
posture adopted by the union may have been responsible for this
reaction, but there is no doubt that the union had to fight inch by
painful inch for each gain.
The second point that needs to be stressed is that the union has
gone beyond mere workplace organization and has developed an
organic link with the total lives of the workers. Once again this may
have been facilitated by the tribal and tribalized origins of most of the
workers who have a very strong sense of community. Not only has
the union taken up many ~n-economic issues at a programmatic
level, it has also attempted to go beyond mere.programmes and action
by extending the concept of organization to the workers' whole lives,
to their past, present and future. Thus, in going beyond mere bread
and butter issues, CMSS is unique among trade unions in the country.
In 1979-80, when the wa_ ges had already markedly improved, CMSS
led a successful and women-based anti-alcoholism campaign among
the workers, opposing alcohol not on any moral grounds, but on the
grounds that it drained hard-won gains and pushed them back into
the pockets of the exploiters. The mass mobilization of working class
households that was achieved during this campaign stands as a rare
example of mobilization on a social issue. Union activity has
strengthened the working of workers' co-operative societies that have
successfully bid for mine tenders, and out of the union experience,
workers have developed a cultural team, several schools in working
class areas, a health programme and a hospital. All these activities
have been organized and built up by the workers themselves. While
middle class cadres have been involved in some of them (most
notably in the health programme and the hospital), the day-to-day
running of the programmes (including the hospital) has been in the
hands of worker volunteers.
The union's efforts have rescued from the depths of the Raipur
District Gazetter the history of Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh, a tribal
leader of the 1857 resistance in Chhattisgarh, and placed his history
before the workers to celebrate and learn from. It was CMSS that
began the practice, in 1979, of ~ommemorating December 19 as the
day of martyrdom of Shaheed Narayan Singh who, on this day, was
captured and executed by the British. The state government's initial
reaction was to dismiss this as gimmkkry, but the huge worker's and
peasant's rallies that CMSS managed to organize quickly prompted
the government to ~gin its own parallel martyrdom day celebrations.
Narayan Singh's village was adopted by the state four years ago, and
a stamp in his memory issued in 1988.
The union has made special efforts to democratize leadership and
decision making within the organization. While a basically centralized
pattern still exists (and will continue to exist in the foreseeable future)
efforts to enlist representation from the general body in the executive,
to channelize feedback from executive to mass, and to build up
executive level leadership from the 'ranks' makes this a very different
organizational experience for the workers involved.
Since 1979, the union has been engaged in a running battle with
the Bhilai Plant to save jobs. In an industrial climate highly favourable
to rationalization and reduction in the labour force, the union has held
198 A space wllbtn tbe StnllJBle

at bay BSP's plans to mechani7.e the sections of the plant worked by

manual workers as mechanization will mean the retrenchment of the
manual contract workers. At the same time it has consistently fought
for abolition of the contract system and the regularization of contrac-
tual workers under a technological mix more suitable to the needs of
a highly populated country than blind heavy mechanization. In this
ideological stand, and in the union's efforts to seek a conscious link
with working class/peasant struggles in the history of Chhanisgarh,
one recognizes a basic fight for the assertion of the dignity of this most
downtrodden section of the working class in one of the most under-
developed regions of India.
Although CMSS today has spread to the mechani7.ed mines, the
workers belonging to it are mostly first generation workers with
strong links in the villages. It is through these links that the union has
become involved in several rural actions for soeial justice. The most
important of these were in (1) Bohranbhadi where an issue of cor-
ruption in a grain bank was involved and (2) Nadia where a temple
of the Kabirpanthi faith owned all the village land in trust, and where
an ambitious mabant(temple head) tried to appropriate this land for
personal gain. The entire village, with union support, rose up to
prevent this and to preserve the communal character of cultivation of
village land. Because the rural action did not strictly fall within the
union's legal ambit, a loose organization named Chhanisga.rh Mukti
Morcha grew up to encompass it, and its representative was returned
to the State Assembly in the last general elections. The union and the
CMM developed an organizational flag in red and green, symbolizing
worker peasant alliance, and this was later adopted by all organiza-
tional affiliates.
Women's involvement has always been a major feature of CMSS
activity. In the manual mines of Dalli Rajhara, where CMSS has its
base, women constitute roughly half the workforce. This is because
the nature of the work makes it convenient to work in pairs (husband
and wife teams are common), and also because among the Chhanis-
garhi small and marginal peasant households from among whom the
manual mines workers have come, women have always participated
fully and equally in agricultural production. This pattern of women's
work in the manual mines is in sharp contrast to the pattern in the
mechanized mines, where the skilled workers are only males. In the
 Woriim' Struggles tn Cbbalttssam 19CJ

existing situation, skill and educational requ~nts for work in the

mechanized mines have debarred women as they have debarred the
local population.
In CMSS, women have participated in all union struggles and
activity. They played a major role in the flJ'St strike of 1977, as well as
in the 1981 movement to secure the release of union leaders arrested
under the National Security Act. Women are elected union office
bearers from the mines in equal proportion to their numbers. How-
ever, because the panel of union office bearers has representatives
also from transport agencies where women do not work, their total
proportion among office bearers is less than that of men. Women
played a leading role in the anti-alcoholism campaign. In propagating
the philosophy of this campaign, in organizing moballa (residential)
committees for the detection and punishment. of offenders, women
were much more active than men. ThefQTiller related to this campaign
especially because alcoholism was ea3ily seen to be related to wife-
beating and the whole range of violence againSl women. In addition,
with men drinking away their earnings, the burden of sustaining the
household fell on the women.
There has never been any economic discrirninatiort against women
in the rni.Qes. All manual mine workers are piece-rated and earn in
direct proportion to their productien in raising ore. Certain special
areas of women's oppression have, however, been especially noticed
in the industrial climate of Dalli Rajhara. One of the first areas to be
so noticed was the sexual harassment to which women were sub-
jected by lumpen elements. While generally true of all women,
working class women were particular victims of this. Old timers in the
mines have many ~orror stories of the pre-union times when contrac-
tors and their henchmen used sexual violation of women as a tool for
subjugating not only the women but also their menfolk. With their
newfound strength however, the women were free of such harass-
ment and were prepared to tackle this strongly. In 1980 when CISF
jawans attempted to gang rape a young tribal girl, it was protest
demonstrations by the CMSS women that led to legal proceedings
being initiated against the offenders.
Experiences like these led, in 1980-81, to the launching of a
'women's front' known as the Mahila Mukti Morcha. This was
200 A space wUbtn tbe Struggle

designed to campaign for women's issues, act as an intervening body

in cases of wife beating, marital dispute, abandonment of women etc.
By this time the union had emerged as the most powerful com-
munity organization in the area, so such cases were brought to it by
the aggrieved (mostly women, though occasionally men) in
hundreds. Since the fonnal union structure was unable to cope with
this flood, and since most of these cases concerned women's rights
anyway, they were referred, quite naturally, to the women's organiza-
tion. At this point, we need to look briefly at the position of women
in general in Chhattisgarh, and to certain specificities of the social
structure here that have a bearing on the position of women.
Chhanisgarhi women do not wear purdah, and except among
Brahmins have, along with men, the freedom to terminate married
relationships and to remarry. Marriages and relationships are general-
ly terminated on both sides because of extra marital affairs and the
desire to contract other relationships, and not because people want
to be on their own. The second and subsequent marriage ceremonies
are simple and do not have the festivities and gift exchanges of the
first (formal) marriage. In some tribal communities the second hus-
band refunds to the first the cost of marriage which the latter has
borne. Often, a man buys and puts bangles on his second wife; this
is why they occasionally refer to women of second and subsequent,
marriages as 'I have put bangles on her.' Women similarly say, 'He is
not my husband, he has put bangles on me.' First marriages are
important social occasions and occur at a young age. Children are
born early, and it is quite common for a girl of twenty or so to be the
mother of two or three children. It is customary law with regard to
these children that acts as a control mechanism in women's otherwise
total freedom to end heterosexual relationships. For it is considered
that the natural father an.d his family have a claim to the custody of
the children and the male children have a right to his property. In
practice, all kinds of complex custodial arrangements are worked out,
because women often feel that fathers are unable and unwilling to
care for the children but keen to exercise their 'rightful' claim. Such
cases are generally settled by arbitration through community elders,
or, as in this case, community organization.
Although women in Chhattisgarh enjoy many freedoms denied to
their sisters elsewhere in the country, this is not in any way to suggest
 Worien' Struggles tn CbbattlJflarlJ 201

that the ideology of female subservience does not exist here. On the
contrary, even in this situation the male authority and dominance is
quite clearly to be seen in social and cultural life. Wife beating is
common. Chhattisgarhi popular consciousness is also steeped in
superstition and faith in witchcraft. While men with supposed super-
natural powers are venerated as batgaswho can drive away evil from
the sick, women with supernatural powers are termed tonbts and
credited with casting spells alone. Witch hunting and ritual lynching
of tonhis are still common in villages in Chhanisgarh.
However, apart from social problems, there was another reason
why the union in 1980-81 was favourably inclined towards the Mahila
Mukti Morcha. There was genuine concern about the fact that women
were not coming into the union leadership (even shop floor leader-
ship) in the way men were doing. It was felt that women's social and
cultural backwardness could be overcome if they had a separate
forum in which they could develop their leadership capabilities
through day-to-day organizational experience, public speaking etc.
Between 1980-81 and until 1986-87, the Mahila Mukti Morcha
(MMM) functioned as a social force in the 'camp' (i.e . unplanned) area
of Dalli Rajhara where contractual workers and other unorganized
workers lived. The women also took over the anti liquor-<:ampaign,
and picketed the liquor shop and organized patrols to detect of-
fenders in the mohallas. Women lobbied for public support and
administrative action for demands like separate to ilets at the bus
stand, punishment to hooligans harassing women at the cinema hall
and, as a corollary, a separate enclosure for women at the cinema.
The MMM women also took on the task of mobilizing women's
participation in the rural struggles in which the union and the Mukti
Morcha were involved. For example, on the Nadia Math issue a very
large all-wqmen rally was organized at Rajnandgaon in September
1982. In preparation for the rally MMM volunteers went several times
to the village to mobilize women, to speak to them about organizing,
and on the actual day of the rally MMM women went in very large
numbers to join the demonstrations from the village.
MMM's public programmes drew considerable numbers of
women, for the entire women membership of the union was also
deemed to have membership of MMM. Regular organizational meet-
ings were held by the executive (during this entire period there were
202 A space wUbln tbe SlrUIJ8le

two elections to the MMM executive out of the general body of union
women) and by the women on the executive of the union, a group
of about 100 or so. 11lis smaller group also went through a process of
theoretical analysis and discussion on the women's question with
several women activists who visited Dalli Rajhara from time to time.
The most significant achievement of the women of Dalli Rajhara,
however, has been in their strong statement, in theory and practice,
of women's inherent and equal rights as workers. At the time the
union was growing roots, women workers, although not dis-
criminated against with regard to wages, did not enjoy any of their
rights as women workers. They had no access to maternity leave or
benefits, nor were there any creches at the work site according to the
statutory recommendations. The union, men and women, had fought
for, and by 1980 achieved these rights. However, the 1980 growth of
the union and the women's organization was in the shadow of the
mechanintion threat. The SAIVBhilai management had never seen ·
contract labour as a permanent feature of the mines, and had in fact
used mine leasing to contractors as a 'safety valve' factor in ore
production in the early years of plant installation in factory and mine.
Temporary fluctuations (shortfall and excess) in steel production
were regulated through operating the safety value. After 1975 how-
ever, with the production in the plant being stabilized, and with plans
for Bhilai's seventh blast furnace going ahead, plans for mining
centered on mechanizing the total ore production at Dalli Rajhara and
other (smaller) iron ore mines. But while the contract system and
contract labour were seen as a temporary exigency by the manage-
ment, the contractual workers with over twenty years of service in the
mines, saw a stake for themselves in the industry. CMSS was estab-
lished on the issue of parity with regular workers, and a major union
demand since its inception is the unfulfilled demand for
'departmentalintion' i.e. absorption into the regular workforce of the
plant. Since full mechanization will necessarily entail retrenchment
of many presently 'unskilled' contractual workers, the union has
linked its demand for departmentalintion to an anti-mechanization
stand as well.
The union's argument has been that the technology mix in an
industry should reflect the conditions of the country in which the
industry is located, and that in a labour intensive economy like ours,

•
 Wo1'm •5tn1B8les tn CbbafflsflarlJ 203

full mechanization was a threat to the entire woriting class. It has been
union pressure that has kept at bay plans for full mechanization, and
the manual mines are currently running on an operations mix in
which cenain functions are performed entirely manually (shovelling,
breaking into size) and others (washing, screening, loading) are
mechanized. The union has also, over the years, built up considerable
public support among the intelligentsia and the national press in
support of its cause. Once the management realized the nature of the
deadlock, they began to look for ways in which they could retrench
'excess' workforce without coming into direct confrontation with the
workers. One such tactic was floating the voluntary retirement
scheme for women workers. Under this scheme, women workers
who had more than 15 years to go for superannuation were offered
large and attractive cash compensations by the BSP ifthey 'voluntarily'
gave up their jobs. This came at a time when the women at Dalli
Rajhara had already become aware of how mechanization could
adversely affect their participation in other industries, (mainly textile
and coal mining). The effect was electric. The CMSS and the MMM
both took a very strong stand on the non-acceptance of the voluntary
retirement scheme, and took conscious steps to deepen its own
understanding of the adverse effects of mechanization on working
class women. Later, in 1987 at the captive Hirri dolomite mines near
Bilaspur, a situation arose in which the management offered
regularization of employment to the male partners of working
couples on the pre-condition that their women accept voluntary
retirement. To make the offer irresistible the man to be regularized
was offered a posting at the Bhilai main plant over 100 km. away. The
majority union at Hirri was a branch of the CMSS. Women from Dalli
Rajhara went in a large body (over 300) to Hirri, held meetings and
discussions there, and in 1987 convened a large seminar of working
women on 'Mechanization and Women' to which women from all
trade unions in the region were invited. Although the Dalli Rajhara
women under the Mahila Mukti Morcha banner have made very
significant advances, certain problems have also arisen due to the
Morcha's style of work. We consider some of these below. There is,
first of all, the close link with the trade union that we need to look at.
MMM developed o ut of the trade union experience, and even now
the links between MMM and CMSS are very close. Members of MMM
204 A Space wUbtn tbe Stn4/18/e

are CMSS members themselves or belong to CMSS families. Unlike the

trade union front however, membership is much more loosely
defined. In the 1982 MMM elections, office bearers were chosen
mainly from among women CMSS office bearers. In a few cases,
women elected to MMM office were not currently union office
bearers, but had earlier come into prominence through union work.
MMM meetings are held in the union office, and the union machinery
is used to collect funds or organize programmes. This close link has
had two kinds of effects on MMM's work. On the one hand, MMM has
benefited from the union's support. All union facilities have been
extended to it. Articles on MMM have regularly appeared in the union
newspaper. The women themselves have felt a strong identification
with the trade union, and indeed often do not see a dichotomy in their
organizational affiliation. But, on the other hand, this has meant that
MMM has never acquired a clear identity or organization of its own,
and after a point such close ties are not necessarily supportive of
independent growth. MMM has developed a theory and practice on
the women's question that is class and situation specific. But ~
women feel a strong sense of solidarity with women where specific
oppression takes forms different from their own, for example with
dowry victims. They also feel quite strongly on the issue of unequal
power relationships within working class families. But by and large
such questions are suppressed, for the union leadership (i.e. leader-
ship of all Mukti Morcha and red/green organizations) is not clear
whether the women's question should be allowed to get into such
'divisive' channels. The MMM, because of its close links with the
union, has also faced problems about generating leadership. The
burdens of MMM work, added to those of union work, appear to be
overtaxing some of the women who have been providing leadership
from 1977 onwards. Exhaustion of the old guard is a problem on the
trade union front as well, but whereas the trade union has managed
to generate new leadership, MMM, in the absence of a strong inde-
pendent organization of its own, has been harder hit by this
phenomenon.
Women's work as it has developed at Dalli Rajhara, and the stress
on women's participation in movements with their own specific
issues, has had repercussions on other movements in Chhattisgarh.
The rural struggles at Nadia and Bohranbhadi have already been
 WorWn' Stnll/8les in Cbbatttssarb 205

referred to. 11le movement for the release of bonded labour in the
eastern part of Raipur di.strict, strong since 1983, has adopted the
red/green flag and has also used the Mahila Mukti Morcha banner to
mobilize women. But the most significant 'other' unit and action has
developed at Rajnandgaon, 60 km. away from Dalli Rajhara, among
teJttile workers and their families.

Women lo a lieallle wonas uoloo:1be Rlljnandp<>O Kapcla

M9'ftlcM>r Sangi•

1be Rajnandgaon Kapda Mazdoor Sangh (RKMS) is a new trade union

in what is perhaps the oldest industrial undertaking in Chhattisgarh.
Rajnandgaon, headquarters of a di.strict administration, lies on the
Bombay-Howrah railway, and has long been an important cultural
and commercial centre, in contra.st to Dalli Rajhara, which lies in one
comer of the region and which owes its development solely to the
commissioning of the mines. The Bengal Nagpur Cotton mill (BNC
mill) at Rajnandgaon began production in 1896 under the patronage
of the Rajnandgaon royal family and in collaboration with Shaw
Wallace, an agency house based in Calcutta. 11len and now the main
product was various grades of netting used for mosquito proofing and
other purposes. 11le workers of the BNC mill have always been in the
forefront of working class struggles in the region and the earliest
worker organization here dates from 1919-20 when Thakur Pyarelal
Singh led a militant struggle for regularization of working hours. The
history of violent confrontation between BNC mill workers and the
state machinery dates from this period, when (in 1922) a worker was
killed when the Rajnandgaon State Police fired on demonstrating
workers. Subsequently, formal trade union activity began in 1938
under the leadership of R. S. Ruikar, at the time a prominent leader of
the national movement in the Central Provinces. BNC mill workers
made a significant contribution to the growth of the trade union
movement in the region, as well as to the growing national move-
ment. The control of the union shifted between 1938 and 1984
variously from the AITUC (at first genuinely an all India labour
organization, later closely affiliated to the Conununist Party of India)
to the HMS (Socialist inspired) and to the INIUC, the labour wing of
206 A space wllbtn tbe S'"'BIJle

ruling Congress (I) party. The ownership and management of the mill
also shifted from Shaw Wallace/Raja Balramdas to Ram Kumar Agar-
wal and Raja.ram Gupta (both noted indigenous entrepreneurs)' and
finally in 1972 to the public sector National Textile Corporation. After
1972 the control of the mill management by the NTC and the conttol
of the trade union by the ruling party's INTIJC gave rise to a situation
of stagnation in the workers' movement which was bogged down in
a series of manoeuvres and counter manoeuvres in the interests of
ruling party factionalism. The corruption and alienation of the union
leadership from the majority of workers, their unwillingness to take
a strong stand on working conditions in the mill, (in 1984 the mill was
still using antiquated machinery from .1896) all led to an explosive
situation which was brought to. a head by the inttoduction of the
'workers participation in management scheme' in the BNC mill. In the
given situation it was perhaps inevitable that the old union used this
scheme to increase workloads of ordinary workers, and that in
spontaneous revolt against what they saw as the last straw, over 3,000
of the 3,500 mill workers broke away from INTUC to form the RKMS,
a new and independent union that established immediate and close
links with Dalli Rajhara.
The Rajnandgoan Kapda Mazdoor Sangh's militant stand on the
workers' participation in management issues, its demand for parity in
wages with other NTC units, Its demand for a total review of working
conditions to be followed by rectifications, soon made it a strong and
militant organization and brought it into conflict with both the mill
management and the INTUC union. Despite antagonistic tactics fol-
lowed by both of these, RKMS retained a strong hold on the general
body of workers. The issue of working conditions was a particularly
emotional one. No review of working conditions In the mill had ever
taken place; once a woman worker had fainted due to excessive heat
shortly before the formation of the RKMS. RKMS's strong stand on this
issue, more than anything, rallied the majority of workers behind.the
new union. ·
In the second half of 1984, the BNC mill workers led by the RKMS
went on strike for five months and a period of unprecedented
crackdown ensued. The mill management took a totally non-con-
ciliatory stand, refusing even to negotiate the strike demands with the
RKMS on the ground that the INTIJC affiliated Rashtriya Mill Mazdoor
 WorArets' Struggles tn CbbafflsBarb 207

Sangh was the only recognized union and, as such, the only union
legally empowered to negotiate and settle disputes. At the same time
the INTIJC union embarked on a course of violence and intimidation
ofRKMS workers, beating up individual workers, disrupting meetings
and demonstrations. At the climax of the struggle four people, all
RKMS members and supporters, were killed. While one person was
killed following an attack by INTIJC members on a demonstra-
tion,three died when the police fired on a group of unarmed workers
and their families. Soon after this, on 12 September 1984, curfew was
imposed on the working class residential areas, and during the three
days of curfew, workers' homes were attacked by policemen as well
as lumpen elements and men and women were systematically beaten.
Many women were molested. The strike was resolved in December
1984, perhaps in an effort by the Civil Administration to restore
nonnalcy before the parliamentary elections. But the events of 1984
left behind a legacy of bitter violence, and an unbridgeable polariza-
tion of all sections of the population in Rajnandgaon. After 1984 the
main activities of the RKMS have been organizational. In October 1985
the union became involved in another partial strike on the issue of
illegal dismissals and suspensions. This was resolved successfully (for
the union) in 1987. Through this entire period the effort has been on
strengthening the organization, on deepening ~he qualitative under-
standing of union cadres and on reaching out to the people in the
surrounding countryside through a series of village meetings explain-
ing the issue in the BNC mill struggle, and the principles on which
RKMS is based. RKMS activists have also lent their support to strug-
gling workers in other industries, for example in Rajaram Maize
Products and Archana Potteries both at Rajnandgaon. Along with
these smaller unions, RKMS adopted the red and green flag to signify
its alliance with the Dalli Rajhara workers' movement.
Although women do not form a5 large a proportion of the
workforce in the BNC mill as they do at Dalli Rajhara, they ha.v e been
involved in the Rajnandgaon struggle in a major way. One interesting
feature of the RKMS struggle is that in demonstrations and in union
work both family members of workers, and also people from the
working class mohallas with no relative working in the BNC mills,
have been involved. Most remarkably, many women--wives or
sisters of workers-and several neighbours have gone on demonstra-
208 A Spaa wUbtn tbe Stru881e

tions and dhamas for the demands of RKMS workers. The credit for
this large involvement of 'non-working' women in a workers' move-
ment must go to the women activists of the RKMS, who have spared
no pains to make this possible. When Section 144 was in force in the
Motipur area where 80 per cent of mill workers live, it was a women's
vanguard which broke it and courted arrest. Between August and
October, 1984, 35 women demonstrators had been jailed, only 18 of
them actual mill workers. Women have faced physical attacks, moles-
tation and personal humiliation in the Rajnandgaon struggle to an
extent never experienced at Dalli Rajhara. A women's demonstration
was lathi charged by the police on August 14, 1984. The police fired
10 rounds of tear gas shells to disperse these women demonstrating
in front of the Collectorate, but not one woman left. Following this,
220 demonstrators were brutally kicked between the legs and their
clothes and saris were tom off. In the curfew-bound period following
the police firing, several women were molested by policemen as well
as lumpen elements--a Civil Liberties report later revealed that at least
three women had been raped by policemen.
In the 1985-87 strike also, women in the spinning department of
the mill played a leading role. Under their leadership meetings were
being regularly organized in Motipur and Tulsipur (working class
residential areas of Rajnandgaon) as well as in neighbouring villages.
At these meetings, women would explain the nature of the move-
ment, and urge the women listeners to organize in support of the
movement of textile workers and around their own demands.

D18cusslon

The involvement of women in the two trade union struggles that we

have outlined here has been significant. In terms of sheer numbers
alone, such involvement is remarkable. Indeed, this also raises some
interesting questions about women in movements ·and political
processes. We notice also Certain points of similarity and dissimilarity
in the way the women's question has surfaced in the two movements.
Perhaps one can begin by recounting some positive achieve-
ments. Their considerable numbers, as well as their militancy in every
struggle have made these women stronger, both individually and
 collectively. Many have come through this process to emerge as more
confident persons, more aware of social is&lcs, as well as of their own
potential. A concept of women's equality and strength has seeped in
to the consciousness of women, and of the men in the unions. While
it is true that the unions have not done too much work directly
towards altering the power suuctures within homes and towards
changing the domestic distribution of work, there is no doubt that this
has come indirectly under attack. With the union stressing women's
equal right to fight and to lead, and with women out on union work
so much, families have had to make various adjustments to domestic
work demands, and this has included sharing of housework by male
household members. Similarly feminine role stereotypes have had to
change. A woman who has once challenged section 144 or the police
picket is a more assertive person than she was earlier and men and
women have accepted this. Women who are active in union work
have gained the respect of men and women in working class areas.
Paradoxically the same women, with rare exceptions, have accepted
male authority in their own personal/family life.
An important aspect of women's involvement in these struggles is
their organizational loyalty. This point needs comment. In the prevail-
ing climate of rivalry between unions and political skullduggery in
the area, some floor crossing from the RKMS and CMSS has taken
place although the number of those desening has not been numeri-
cally significant at any time. What is remarkable is that, with one
exception, women members of either trade union have not been
involved in these deals at any time. We can go on to mention the major
weakness of both these movements (where women are concerned)
from this. And this is that despite such militancy and loyalty women
have not emerged into more than middle level leadership in either
U(lion. The executive members of RKMS are all male, although there
are women in the CMSS executive. One of the factors behind the
emergence of the Mahila Mukti Morcha (MMM) at Dalli Rajhara was
a conscious recognition ·of this failure of women to emerge into
leadership. However, in both cases women's relative lack of mobility
(due to commitments to children and domestic duties) as also their
lack of physical security (combined with men's greater familiarity with
a leadership role) have prevented women from going beyond a
·certain point in union leadership. It is here that the limits of the 'new
consciousness' can be seen most clearly. If men have (of course,
naturally) assumed primary leadership, the militant women of CMSS
and RKMS have (equally naturally) allowed them to do so. And it is
here that one must ask whether this is inevitable, or could the scenario
have been different ifthis or that factor had been ahered (for example,
if there had been a more strident advocating of'specilkally' women's
issues and a sharper battle on women's oppression as women-the
puzzle within the puzzle really is: to what extent would this have been
feasible within the given structure of two trade unions struggling with
their backs to the wall).
Certain differences regarding the issue of women can be seen
between the two movements. Whereas Dalli Rajhara women have
been organized through a highly centralized trade union, have taken
part in the movement as trade union members, and have been subject
to trade union discipline, the organization of women at Rajnandgaon
appears to be much more informal. With very few exceptions, Dalli
Rajhara women involved in the struggle have them.selves been
workers and trade union members. At Rajnandgaon, however, there
are many women in the struggle who have not at any time been
workers of the BNC mill. Women trade union leaders ofRajnandgaon
show a highly sophisticated understanding of the value of the
housewife's role in the working class family when they explain this
phenomenon. The precise phrase used by one activist was if a woman
has a right to bring up a man's children and live on his wage labour
she also~ a right to participate in struggles in which he, as a worker,
is involved.
The paradox is that it is in Rajnandgaon that the movement has
stayed closest to formal trade unionism. In Dalli Rajhara a number of
social programmes strongly based on woman power have been taken
up by the organization, chief among these being anti-alcoholism. To
tackle more effectively women's issues that do not strictly fit into a
trade union framework, a separate women's front has existed at Dalli
Rajhara since 1980. The level of activity of this front has varied at
different periods of struggle, but it has succeeded in generating a
significant debate on women's wage labour, the status and the con-
sequences of women's displacement from the labour force that has
been woven into the entire fabric of CMSS's line of struggle. None of
this has happened so far in Rajnandgaon. Although the RKMS is a new
 WoiWts 'Stru/Jsles tn Cbbamsgarb 211

organization, the BNC mill workers have a long history of unioniza-

tion and struggle. Women have worked in the mills from the begin-
ning. However, there has been a reduction in women's numbers in
the workforce in the BNC mill between the beginning of the century
and the present. In the absence of precisely maintained data either
with the mill management or with the older unions, it is difficult to
quantify this. However, it is a fact that today there are no women in
the weaving and colouring sections, where they were earlier
employed. An estimate with which RKMS women concur is that the
female wodcfon:e in the mill has shrunk by one third since World
War II. It is the contention of this author that the substantial involve-
ment of non-mill working women in RKMS struggles is to be traced
to this long history of unionization, to a tradition of women working
in the mill, and to a concept of the working class as a whole in struggle.
At the same time, the two markedly different theoretical positions
regarding women in struggle, with CMSS advocating and basing itself
on women's direct involvement in wage labour and RKMS proclaim-
ing the non-wage working women's equal rights in a working class
struggle, stem from two different sets of historical experiences.
One question that is often asked is whether women's participation
in a movement has any qualitative effect on the nature of the move-
ment as such. From the experience of these two unions one feels that
this is a simplistic problem to pose. While the presence and involve-
ment of large numbers of women has certainly exerted an important
effect on the range of issues (including women's issues) that have
been fl!~ within the movement, pethaps equally important has
been the fact that both of these unions are relatively unburdened by
hierarchlcaJ bureaucracies. And, as importantly, they have made a
conscious· political and ideological attempt to see trade unions as
centres of more than economic activity. In other words, the organiza-
tions themselves have had certain special features that have facilitated
the inclusion of a large member of social issues in their scope. Of
these, women's issues have been an important component. There has
thus been a dialectical relationship between the nature of the or-
ganizations and the extent and intensity of women's participation in
them.
We have analysed the 'women's question' as it has swfaced in
these two movements. It is important to remember that these are both
212 A Space wUbtn tbe Struggle

ongoing movements, subject to laws of development and change.

This article therefore does not represent any kind of final assessment
of the movements and issues discussed; rather it should be taken as
a point in the prc>ceM of discussion and debate that is going on within
these particular movements, as well as within the larger women's
movement in India.
 The Assam Movement

SHEILA BARTiiAKUR
SABITA GOSWAMI

As5am came into the public eye in 1979 when the mass upsurge
against 'illegal' foreign immigrants focussed public attention on the
state. The most striking feature of the anti-foreigner movement was
the unprecedented participation of women, which surpassed all
records-even those of the Independence movement. However, the
movement can be better analysed and probed only after considering
the strategic geo-political and socio-economic conditions of the state
and its history.
Assam was ruled by the Allorm, a shan group of people for roughly
six centuries from 1228 to 1826 A.O. Prior to the Ahom era, Assam
was divided into small kingdoms and ruled by tribal chiefs or small
kings. The presence of Austric or Austro-Asiatic, Dravidian, lndo-
aryan and the lndo-Mongoloid elements gave this area a rich and
diverse culture. The Ahom period was characterized on the one hand
by the stabilization of the people of Assam with their language and
culture as an Aryan speaking Hindu people, and on the other by their
stiff resistance to Mohameddan aggression from Bengal. The Ahoms
were responsible for bringing Assam under one political organization,
and it was they who repulsed Moghul attacks and finally emerged as
 214 A Space wttbm the Struggle

the supreme power. Women also participated in these wars. Purdah

has never existed in A.s.sam. During the Ahom regime rajmatas
(queens) took a lively interest in matters of public administration.
Phuleswari Kumari, wife of the Ahom king Shivasinha (who offered
the throne to her in order that the state be better ruled) is one of the
better known women rulers. Moola Gabharu, wife of an Ahom
General, was considered to be the epitome of women's courage and
• fought valiantly against the Moghuls after her husband was killed. ·
Also known are Radha and Rukmini, wives of Raghav Moran, a
General of another clan, who fought against Ahom rulers. It is said
that Radha and Rukmini were so skilled that their aancbals could
withstand bullets from the opposite camps. References to women in
Ahom chronicles prove that they were held in high esteem by society
and they made their influence felt in public affairs.
Ahom rule continued till the Burmese invasion in 1819. The Bur-
mese marched towards the British Indian frontier in 1823 and finally
lost the state: with the treaty of Yandaboo in 1826, the Burmese
government handed over Assam to the British. The British however,
were unable to elicit the help of the local people in administering the
state for various reasons, th~ most important of which was the lack of
western education and understanding of the British system on the part
of the Assarnese. Bengal, on the other hand, came under British rule
much before A.s.sam was annexed. The Bengalis were well-versed in
western education and the British system of administration. Hence,to
run the administration in Assam, Bengali officers, clerks and profes-
sionals were brought into the state by the British, thus marking the
beginnings of resentment against the'foreigners'. The introduction of
Bengali as the court language of Bengal was another factor for
large-scale migration of Bengali speaking people into Assam. Since
Assam was part of the administrative unit of Bengal, this rule became
applicable to Assam as well and Bengali became the official language .
This step was based on the assumption, strengthened by the
Bengali babus, that Assamese was only a dialect of Bengali and not
an independent language. This also led to the imposition of Bengali
in the schools of A.s.sam with effect from 1836. The feeling of neglect
.and domination by 'outsiders' crystallized. Continuous effons on the
part of Christian missionaries and the Assamese elites led, in 1873, to
the restoration of Assamese as the official court language and the
 7be Assam Mowmenl 215

medium of instruction in schools. This happened only in the Brah-

maputra valley, while Bengali was retained in odter parts. lndttd, the
first grammar in Assamese was published by William Robinson and
in 1873, Michael Bronson published the first English-Assamese dic-
tionary. After strenuolis efforts by the Assamese in 1874, Assam was
separated from Bengal and became a province which was directly
under the control of Governor General in Council.
In 1905, further disintegration of Bengal took place and the
province comprising Eastern Bengal and Assam was created, and was
administered by a Lieutenant Governor. A steady but gradual migra-
tion of both Hindus and Muslims towards Assam began from East
Bengal. In 1911, when East Bengal and West Bengal were reunited,
the capital was transferred from Calcutta to Delhi. Assam was reverted
to a Chief Coaimissioner's Province with the capital at Shillong with
a legislative council. However, migration of the immigrant Muslims
continued and they spread to the swamp areas along the Brahmaputra
valley. In 1931, the Census Superintendent Mr C.S. Mullan cautioned
the authority about this migration and its probable impact on As-
samese culture and population. He predicted, 'It is sad but by no
means improbable that in another thirty years Sibsagar district will be
the only part of Assam in which an Assamese will find himself at
home.' This was said in the context of large-scale migration from
Mymensingh (now in Bangladesh). In 1937, the Muslim League
Government headed by Sir Syed Mohammed Sadullah was formed in
Assam. Under the 'grow more food campaign', Sadullah encouraged
heavy immigration and engineered systematic settlement of these
'land hungry' hordes of Bengali immigrants. It was the latter who
introduced cultivation of jute in Assam. In 1946, Assam was to be
included in Group-C with Muslim majority East Bengal (present
Bangladesh). Mahatma Gandhi was against this plan. He wrote a
letter to the late Gopinath Bordoloi, a freedom fighter and the first
Chief Miilister of independent India's Assam, who led the Assamese
resistance group against this amalgamation. The Mahatma said,
'Assam must not lose its soul. It must uphold it against the whole world
else I will say that Assam had only manikins and no men. It is an
impertinent suggestion that Bengal sho uld dominate Assam in any
way ....Tell the people that even if Gandhi tries to dissuade us w e
would not listen. If I bring my Gujrati manners to Bengal, I w o uld
216 A Space wUbtn lbe StrlllJgle

expec.t the Bengalis to expel me.• Gandhiji even decided to offer

saJyagraba and lead a movement against the Congress ifthe decision
went against Assam.
India became independent on August 15,1947 and East Bengal
becameEastPakistan.Onthewesternborderoflndia,amajortransfer
of population took place between India and West Pakistan. But on
the eastern border the policy of population transfer was not made
compulsory and the border remained open and unguarded. During
the Indo-Pakistan war of 1965, many Bengali Hindlis left East Pakistan
and came over to Assam. In 1971, during the Bangladesh freedom
movement an exodus from Bangladesh (erstwhile East Pakistan)
swept Assam. 1be last wave of migration from Bangladesh was at the
time of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's fall. A large number of Mujibur
Rahman's supporters came acroM the unprotected Indo-Bangla bor-
der. Western Assam shares the border with Bangladesh without a
stretch of 'no-man's land' or any foolproof check post. A
homogeneous group of people live on either side of the border. Due
to poor economic conditions in Bangladesh, the influx of refugees
continues unabated. A second group of immigrants who have come
into ~ are the Nepalis. They came initially as cattle grazers and,
although the Restricted Area Permit was introduced in 1950 and was
made compulsory in order to come to India, it was not implemented
in earnest. Groups of Nepalis migrated in search of work in the
collieries, daily wage eaminS' and fourth grade government jobs.
After the departure of the British from India, colonial policies
continued to exist in Assam. While the British had opened up poten-
tial for tea and oil these were, however, not developed by inde-
pendent India's government, particularly for the benefit of the locaJ
Assamese. Where tq is concerned, although the plant is grown in
Assam, economic benefit is derived by West Bengal as Assam, until
~ently, did not have any tea auction centres or indeed, even the
means to export directly. All registered offices of the different tea
companies are located in Calcutta; this denies employment oppor-
tunities to the Assamese. The general feeling among the local popula-
tion was that for every developmental project or industry, Assam had
to resort to agitation. They asserted that Assam contributes to the
country's coffers with oil. Indeed, the first refinery for oil was started
by the British at Digboi in 1880. In spite of tlUs, however the first
 7be Assam Mooement 217

Indian oil refmery in the public sector was to be f;Stablished outside

Assam, but using Assam's crude oil. The Assamese launched an
agitation to compel the central government to set up an oil refinery
within the state. Oil being one of the richest natural resources, the
Assamese hoped its presence would lead to economic development.
Despite being a basically agr-..rian state, modem methods of
agriculture are almost non-existent in Assam even after forty years of
independence. The cultivators still depend on the monsoon and,
more often than not, the fields are swept away by the ferocious
seasonal floods. No plans have been executed for the permanent
control of the River Brahmaputra. Harnessing of water resources for
power generation has not been done although there is tremendous
potential for this. The industrial infrastructure in the state is so
negligible that the process of urbanization, an index of a rising
economy, is very meagre. Transport bottlenecks provide another
reason for the state's poor economic progress. It was only in the early
eighties that Guwahati, the premier city of the north east region, was
connected with the broad-gauge line. Metre guage was brought to
Assam by the British in order to facilitate tea export. Even the first
bridge across the Brahmaputra connecting the north and south banks
of the river came into being as late as 1962. While the immigrant
Muslims concentrated on the agricultural base of the state, immigrant
Hindus settled for petty trading in the urban areas.
It was factors such as accumulated resentment over economic
disparities by the post-independence governments of the state and
the centre, coupled with fear of sociO<Ultural and political annihila-
tion on the part of the Assamese that led to the massive anti-foreigner
stir in 1979. Though the apparent thrust was the apprehension of the
Assamese that they could be reduced to a minority community in their
homeland, like the Tripuris, economic backwardness, and growing
landlessness were important factors in the movement. The basic
. issues were the detection of illegal foreigners; deletion of their names
from electoral rolls and their deportation. The Assamese demanded
compilation of a National Register of Citizens taking the 1951 Register
as its basis, sealing of the open Indo-Bangla Border and granting
constitutional safeguards to the Assamese people.
The apathy and callousness of the successive political govern-
ments, and their pampering of the illegal immigrants who were their
218 A Space wttbtn tbe 5'""18/e

vote banks, led to a complete loss of confidence, on the part of

Assamese, in these governments. It came as no surprise therefore, that
when an apolitical organization like the All Assam Students Union
(AASU) took up this cause, thousands of people joined in with a will.
The immediate incident that sparked off this movement was the death
of Hiralal Patwari, a Member of Parliament of Mangaldai Parliamen-
tary constiruency in Mlrch 1979, necessitating by-elections to that
seat. During the revision of voters lists in April 1979, 70,000 com-
plaints were registered challenging the inclusion of illegal foreigners
in the lists. Meanwhile, political instability at the centre after the fall
of the Janata government led to cancellation of the by-election. Later,
there was political instability in the state which resulted in the imposi-
tion of President's Rule. However, the state assembly was kept under
animated suspension. At this point, the AASU made a comparison of
the census figures of 1951-61 and 1961-71 and found the variation
very alarming. According to the 1971 census, Assam had recorded a
population increase of 34.98 per cent as against a 24.80 per cent
increase in the all India level. The then Chief Election Commissioner,
Mr Shakdher, admitted that Assam's voters' lists were full of foreign
names-. The AASU called a meeting of all sympathetic; organizations
to form a broad base to fight on this issue. This led to the emergence
of All Assam Gana Sangram Parishad (AAGSP) on August 27, 1979,
which comprised representatives of the AASU, Asom Sahitya Sabha,
Purbvanchaliya Lok Parishad and Asom Jatiyatabadi Dal (both
regional political parties), apart from a few others.
The movement gained momenrum with the mass rally of Novem-
ber 6, 1979 in Guwahati. lltis was the beginning and there was no
looking back. Tens of thousands of women attended the rally and
actively participated in satyagrahas, and picketing in front of the state
government and election offices. They demanded the deletion of
foreigners' name from the voters' lists for the ensuing parliar:ientary
election of 1980. Women were the moving force behind this move-
ment. They launched dbarnas and round-the-clock picketing at the
residences of potential candidates in order to obstruct the filing of
nominations. Defying one such picket, a parliamentary candidate,
Begum Abida Ahmed, filed her nomination with police escort: this
incident led to the death of Khargeswar Talukdar, a srudent picketer.
He was declared the first martyr of the movement.
 7be Assam Movement 219

II

Having succeeded in preventing elections in twelve parliamentary

constituencies the leaders turned their attention towards oil, the liquid
gold of Assam. An intensive picketing programme at oil installations
was announced by the AASU. From December 27, 1979 thousands of
men and women squatted, stood and shouted slogans outside the
gates of various oil installations and refineries throughout the state,
including Narengi in Guwahati.
Neerja Chowdhry, a Delhi based journalist, described the scene of
picketing thus:

It was midnight. But at Narengl, the site of Oil India In Guwahati,

over 1,500 men and women were picketing to prevent crude oil
from being pumped out to Bongaigaon and Baraunl refineries.
They sat peacefully on the durrees spread out on the verandah,
a few walked about on the lawns, others were engaged in
discussions, while some played cards. About 4-00 women
dressed in their peaceful white and red mellbla cbadors (the
Assamese dress) were huddled together singing Gandhiji's
favourite bhajan, Ragbupatt Ragbava Raja Ram. This was fol-
lowed by some Btbu (Assamese spring festival) songs.

A group of women belonging to the tribal women's welfare and

development association and Shillong Mahila Samiti also participated
in the picketing at Narengi to express their solidarity with the common
cause of Assam and Meghalaya whose socio-cultural identities, they
felt, were being threatened because of the huge influx of foreign
nationals. The show of defiance on the part of the agitators gathered
momentum within a few days. The Assam Tribune reported that
'Female picketers, including old ladies, outnumbered their male
counterparts in the picketing.'
For some considerable time after the oil blockade began, not a
drop of oil flowed out through the Narengi pipeline. Attempts were
made to break the blockade which, however, continued with full
force. On January 18; 1980 when thousands of women demonstrators
were picketing peacefully in the oil installations in Duliajan, there was
a sudden and brief warning followed by indiscriminate firing by CRPF
(Central Reserve Police) personnel. Four people died,.many women
 •
220 A space wttbtn tbe SfrulJgle

were injured and hospitalized. Among those seriously injured w e re

Doleswari Gogoi, Pratibha Devi and Bina Keot.
Before the Duliajan incident there were some communal distur-
bances in the North K:imrup area of lower Assam. The army was
called in. But what followed was a nightmare for the village rs. A
number of women, including unmarried girls and pregnant women,
were raped by army personnel. According to reliable sources, follow-
ing the magisterial enquiry, 17 cases of rape and 23 cases of molesta-
tion had occurred in Nalabri sub-division. The actual number of
victims, however, was clearly much larger as many women would
hesitate to report cases. Women were also beaten up mercilessly.
These atrocities were widely condemned. On January 17, 1980, the
AASU and AAGSP observed an anti-oppression day throughout the
Bhramaputra valley to protest against atrocities and harassment of the
public, especially the women, by the security forces in North Kamrup.
And on January 18, a similar anti-oppression 'women's day' was
observed throughout the state. Women organized rallies on the
occasion and demanded punishment of the guilty persons.
A discussion on the foreigner's issue took place in Delhi on
February 2, 1980 between Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and the AASU
delegates, but no conclusion was reached. A second round of talks
also failed. As a consequence, the agitation was resumed with
redoubled vigour. AASU and AAGSP by a joint decision called for an
indefinite mass satyagraha from February 4, 1980. Sanjayya, a well-
known journalist commented that 'the sight of thousands of As-
samese, especially of women of all ages, walking throughout the
streets and offering satyagraha, had become a familiar one.'
Women sat on satyagraha and courted arrest outside the offices of
the district officials at different places in Assam. In Guwahati itself,
over 3,000 people, including 1,715 women sat on satyagraha and
courted arrest in front of the office of the district collector on February
4. On February 5, as many as Z,984 persons, including 1,729 women
were arrested at Guwahati. In most of the .groups female satyagrahis
outnumbered their male counterparts. Among them were many aged
women, as well as mothers with babies in their arms. A batch of 38
Khasi women came down to Guwahati from Shillong to join in the
satyagraha. Sonamai Barkakaty, an 80-year old woman of new
Amplapatty, was among those who courted arrest.
'
 7be ...wam Movnumt 221

Gradually, the oil blockade was Intensified. On April 3, 1980, the

Assam administration is.sued a clear warning to the agitators to
withdraw the oil blockade or !'.lee stern measures. The Chief
Secretary, R.S.Paramsivam, accused the leaders of the movement of
being cowards and takin(l shelter behind women. AASU and AAGSP
called this statement 'unbecoming of a high ranking civil servant', and
asked the women of Assam to join the movement with great deter-
mination to give a fitting reply to the Chief Secretary's assessment.
On April 5, 1980 the whole of Assam, other than the south-east,
was declared a disturbed area by the government. On April 18. the
Preventive Detention Ordinance was is.sued and in the early hours of
April 19, a number of leaders were arrested under the Act.
On the same morning an indefinite curfew was imposed on
Guwahati. In response, over 500,000 women rushed out of their
homes to defy the imposition of this order. At Narengi there was an
order to evacuate the agitators but the crowds began to move towards
Narengi in defiance of the curfew. There were lathi charges in three
different places. A total of 63 persons were hospitalized including a
large number of old women. On April 21 over 150 persons were
injured at Guwahati when police burst tear gas shells and swung their
lathis on protestors. Nearly half of the injured were women and girls.
Even old women were not spared and were punched and beaten.
Among the seriously injured women who were admitted in the
Guwahati Medical College Hospital were Dr Nirmal Prova Bordoloi,
Nirmala Saikia, Rajlaksrni Devi, Pumima Barua, Thaneshwari Medhi,
Mrinalini Das, Minoti Das, Runa Sarma, Rajlaksrni Bhagwati, Kun-
jabala and others.
Women also squatted on railway tracks to prevent the movement .
of trains carrying bamboo,. plywood and jute outside Assam, and
thousands o( them joined on martial sounds day, beating drums and
playing on other Instruments in a unique way of expressing their
protest. Large numbers of women were harassed time and again by
the police and were subjected to consdirable violence and torture.
Nonetheless, they did not give up their agitation.
One elderly woman of Coxalpara In lower Assam was killed by
CRPF personnel in her own house. Later, she was declared a martyr.
Rita Chowdhry of Sibsagar district was arrested under NSA and put
into jail for at least one year. Sheila Barthakhur ofTezpur was kept in
222 A space wttbtn tbe SlrUIJgle

internment from April 19, 1980 and released on May 24, 1980. Bijoya
Chakrabotty was extemed from her home district, Mongoldai, for
about two months. Among some of the leading women who joined
the movement were Bimoli Goswami, Niruparna Kataki, Niru Mahan-
ta, Abha Bora, Kuntala Delea, Sabita Goswami, Kumudini Gogoi, Bina
Sarma, Barul Sarma, Padurni Das and Pramila Barua. The movement
led directly to the growth of several women's organizations based
mainly in Assam's urban areas.
The women who had joined the movement ever since its beginning
had slowly taken up the responsibility of publicizing its issues. A
number of strikes were spearheaded by women's organizations; some
organizations launched intensive propaganda campaigns for the
movement and they showed remarkable powers of organization in
their work. One of the pioneer organizations was the All Assam
Lekhika Samaroha Samiti (All Assam Women Writers' Organization).
Towards the end of 1979 they organized a rally at Tezpur, which was
perhaps the first rally by women for the movement and which had a
far reaching effect on women in general. The Sangh also organized
seminars and discussions and published its journal which carried
articles, poems, songs etc., which helped to keep the movement alive.
During its three consecutive annual conferences held in Golaghat
(1980), Nalbari (1981) and north Lakhimpur (198~). the Sangh passed
resolutions reaffinning the demands of the movement. It submitted
memoranda to the Prime Minister for the immediate solution of the-
Assam problem. It also made an appeal to the Secretary General of
the United Nations to apprise him of the situation in Assam.
Some organizations also sprang up as a result of the excesses
committed by the police. The All Guwahati Women's Co-ordination
Committee in its convention on August 12; 1984, strongly L'Ullcrenmed
the state-wide police atrocities and demanded a judicial enquiry into
the matter. A case was filed in the ChiefJudicial Magistrate's court at
Nowgong, by two girls of Kurnargaon who were victims of CRPF
atrocities. Some members of voluntary women's organizations visited
the affected areas and met people; they also provided help to the
victims of police atrocities and to theit families.
The Guwahati district branch of the Eastern India Women's As-
sociation, Jagrata Mahila Parishad, Mula Gabharu Santha, All Assam
Lekhika Samaroha Samiti, Matri Bahini, Maligaon Mahila Santha,
 7be Assam Movement 223

Nalbari Mahila Santha, Narengi Ladies dub and many other organiza-
tions offered relief and donations to vic.tims. In addition, members of
these organizations spoke at lectures and meetings where they attack-
ed the government and exhorted women to rise to the occasion and
fight for their homeland. lbey collected funds in order to assist leaders
who were under trial or in jail. They also attempted to exert influence
on their husbands and sons to encourage them to support the move-
ment. In particular the All AMam Women's Vigilance Committee
appealed to the women of Assam to guide their sons, daughters and
other agitators to abide by the Gandhian ideals of peace and non-
violence in their fight for AMam.
On January 24, 1980, a women's rally was organized with Kalyanl
Dhukan as the convenor in the premises of Guwahati college. Here
women speakers strongly appealed to the people to maintain com-
munal peace and harmony. It was an oft heard conunent that what
the people witnessed in AMam during the period of agitation was a
unique phenomenon where hundreds of thousands of women came
out of their homes and joined the movement and kept it alive over
several years.

III

1be years 1979 and 1980 were years when the movement was at its
peak and when women's participation was at its height. After this, the
involvement of women declined and the movement, too, entered a
phase of stagnation.
The movement leaders urged the govenunent to find a solution by
May 15, 1981, or else a 'Quit India' notice would be served to the
foreigners. The next phase of the movement was a call for civil
disobedience. A ban was announced on export outside AMam of jute,
timber, plywood and bamboo. Occasional bandb calls of different
durations marked the phases ofthe movement. Frequent confronta-
tions with the para-military forces continued. Since the women were
always in the forefront of such confrontations, a potentially volatile
situation was often sobered down. Many women were injured in the
process.
224 A space wtlb'n tbe Strusgle

Meanwhile, reports of the formation of another goverrunent in the

state resulted in a gheraoof M.L.A.s and a march to Dispur, the capital
of Assam. Police resorted to firing to control the mob and an officer
on duty watching the melee was killed. On the other hand, stagnation
of the crude oil in the pipeline was a cause of great t:oncem to the
authorities. They wanted to flush it out. The goverrunent invoked the
Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958 and all areas within one
kilometre of oil installations and on either side of the pipeline were
proclaimed disturbed areas. Troops took control of oil installations
and the pipeline. In spite of non-cooperation on the part of oil
employees, crude oil was flushed out and mass picketing was unsuc-
cessful.
Mobilized by the women, children boycotted Children's Day
celebrations on November 14, 1980. They took out processions
demanding that the government give some consideration to their
future. The government took serious exception to the absence of
government employees during non-cooperation and warned them of
dire consequences. Many were suspended and few arrested under
National Security Act. The movement leaders met the national opposi-
tion leaders, and agreed to have tripartite talks with the centre,
national opposition leaders and movement leaders. For the first time
the movement accepted the importance of national political parties
for a solution. A series of negotiations were held and several formulae
were put forward. The movement leaders pointed out to the centre
that they would be willing to consider 1965 as the cut-off date.
By December 1980, President's Rule had to be revoked according
to the provisions of the Constitution and a Congress (I) minisuy led
by Mrs Anwara Taimur was installed. The movement leaders an-
nounced a Black Day and.total non-cooperation as well as complete
black out in the entire state. Mrs Taimur let loose a reign of terror. The
initially peaceful movement turned violent The first bomb was
planted in the oil pipelines, followed by the killing of Ravi Mitra, an
Oil India Limited official. The killing of Mr E.S. Parathasarathi, Com-
missioner for Upper Assam, by a high power time bomb was not the
end of the violence. Sabotage and sporadic killings came next. After
about six months, Mrs Taimur's ministry collapsed because of party
infighting and President's Rule was once again imposed. Soon
another goverrunent headed by Mr Keshab Gogio was formed which
 1be As.tam Mooement 225

lasted for only three months and was followed by another spell of
President's Rule. Data collection for the 1981 census was blocked by
the movement leaders and could not be carried out.
Over the various agitational phases, society became polarized. The
support base of the movement appeared to be waning. The move-
ment leaders earnestly wanted a solution. A lack of a clear vision
towards the economic aspect of the problem resulted in disillusion-
ment on the part of the people. The leaders lost considerable ground.
A number of unofficial and official discussions were held without any
result. On January 6, 1982, the Chief Election Commission announced
general elections to the assembly and by-elections to twelve of the
fourteen parliamentary constituencies (for two parliament seats of
Barak Valley, elections were held in 1980 along with the country's
parliament poll). This electicn announcement regrouped the society
in to two: anti-poll and pro-poll.
The movement leaders gave a call to resist the elections which they
claimed were held on the basis of unrevised faulty voters' lists infested
with the name of foreign nationals from Bangladesh and Nepal. The
centre decided to go ahead with elections by bringing poll officials
from outside the state as Assam's government officials refused to
CO-Operate. The government also announced as incentive for poll
duties one month's pay as honorarium. If killed on poll duty a gazetted
officer would be entitled to a compensation of Rs 100,000 and a
non-gazetted employee to Rs S0,000. Press censorship was imposed
on some selected newspapers. The leaders, workers and sym-
pathizers of the movement were indiscriminately arrested. The entire
state seemed to be under siege. This period can be considered to be
the darkest period of Assam's history. During the violent elections of
1983, anti and pro poll clashes between the two groups resulted in
thousands of people being killed while others were rendered home-
less. The most gruesome killings were in a hamlet called Nellie of
Nowgong District, 70 kilometers away from Guwahati. The tribal and
non-tribal Assamese clashed in Gohpur of Darrang District. There
were clashes in Chaulkhowa Chapari and Dhula of Darrang District
between Assamese and immigrant Muslims. The Congress (I)
trampled over the killings and emerged victorious with Mr Hiteshwar
Saikia heading the state government in 1983. However, the women
did not play any major role in resisting the elections.
226 A Space u>Ubln tbe StrujJg/e .

The general atmosphere in the state was one of gloom. The newly
installed government was termed as 'illegal' because the elections
were held on defective electoral rolls. The movement leaders gave a
call to boycott all the legislators. Here again, the women played an
important role in carrying out the dictates of the movement leaders.
As time passed Saikia as a shrewd politician, tried to calm the situation
down and divided the supporters of the movement. In the later stages,
it was only the major Assamese community, the caste Hindus, who
continued to owe allegiance to the movement leaders.
Gradually, the movement lost momentum and the response to it
weakened. The slogans ceased to appeal to the people. Meanwhile
the Saikia government tried to convince the citizens about deportation
of post 1971 migrants. Accordingly, a new act, the Illegal Migrants
(Determination by Tribunals) Act 1983, was introduced to facilitate
the deportation of the post-1971 stream of foreigners. This act was
applicable only to Assam whereas the Foreigners Act 1946 was
applicable to the rest of the country. This discrimination infuriated the
major Assamese community, but no agitational phase worth the name
could be organized. A series of discussions with Mrs Gandhi's govern-
ment yielded no results.
With the assassination of Mrs Gandhi, the national political
S;Cenario was changed and Mr Rajiv Gandhi took over the reins. As a
young Prime Minister, he was keen on some settlement of the
problems facing the country. After the Punjab Accord, the door for
the Assam Accord was also open. The movement leaders too heaved
a sigh of relief. Negotiations for a solution began. Interestingly, in the
series of discussions since the beginning of the movement till the final
settlement, there was no woman representative on the discussion
table, even though women had played a very major role in the
apparent success of the movement. .
The Assam Accord was signed between the Union Government of
India on the one side and the AASU and the AAGSP on the other, on
August 15,1985. Sadly enough, the Accord did not bring to Assam
what the people had hoped and striven for for six long years. The
much talked of 'cut off date' (the reason for failures in all the previous
discussions) was nowhere mentioned in the Accord. Instead, now the
movement sympathizers say that the Accord has regularized the
foreigners as Indian citizens upto 1971. Had this Accord been signed
 7be Asst1111 .'1<>t 'E'menl 2TI

earlier, when these proposals were put forth by the centre, many
precious lives would nOl have been lost. Identifying foreigners,
deleting names from the vOlers' lists, and deportation of post-71
immigrants is a never ending ~ as envisaged in the Accord.
Because of lack of imagination and bankruptcy of knowledge, the
movement leaders could nOl incorporate any major economic clauses
in the Accord which would benefit the downtrodden Assamese. Even
a clause on the control of the perennial floods in Assam did not exist.
The post-Accord period, nevertheless, was that of euphoria. Per-
haps the hope was that a new KOvemment in the state, and one that
was manned by the younger generation, would bring better days in
Assam. The signatories of the Assam Accord formed themselves into
a political party called Assam Gana Parishad (AGP) with the move-
ment sympathizers and prepared to fight the ballot battle along with
a section of Assamese intelligentsia. The women once again, with the
students, brought in a wave which installed the AGP as the victorious
one out of the 126 contestants of whom one is a minister for state at
the time of writing. It was only after much persuasion that a woman
member was elected to the Rajya Sabha later on.
In due course, the people of Assam, particularly the women, faced
the stark realities and came to terms with the futility of the Assam
Accord. Some young women, mostly urban, had joined the move-
ment with political ambitions. They were shown small mercies and
were given appointments as members or chairpersons in some
autonomous organizations or in lucrative honorary posts. The older
generation of women however, had joined with the ultimate hope of
getting a socio-economically better Assamese society. This section of
women are now frustrated . The expectations of a better deal in terms
of employment, industrialization and other developmental avenues
seem to have come to naught. The youthful government towing the
same policies as those of the previous governments, has not been able
to live up to the expectations of the people.
Filial sentiments were strong in influencing middle-class elderly
women to join the movement and work within it with dedication.
Interestingly, these women were only workers, and they carried Ol)t
the d ictates of the political organization of young students spearhead-
ing the movement. They never had a say in the decision making. The
AAGSP or the AASU did not have a woman representative in their
228 A Space wtlbln tbe Slnlll81e

forum. Interestingly, Assamese women have always occupied a place

of equality with their male counterparts. Even in the rural areas,
women shared economic responsibilities, assisting their men in the
fields, apart from all!<> contributing towards the economy by weaving.
During the movement, when we questioned the women, bodl in rural
and urban areas, about the reasons for their involvement, they said,
'Once we can drive away the foreigners, job opportunities for our
children will increase. Moreover, the pres.sure on land will disappear
and our children will take to the fields. They will get jobs'.
Women in the urban areas began mobilizing and formed various
women's organizations to work in a systematic manner. It must be
remembered that these organizations never took any decisions
regarding the movement. Women freedom fighters, social workers,
teachers, housewives, writers all took to the streets to register their
protest against illegal immigration in the state. They participated in all
the mass satyagrahas, martial sound processions by beating drums
and cymbals and blowing conches, picketing at the oil installations
and government offices. 1he administration was totally paralyzed by
the efforts of the women, so much so that the wives of the bureaucrats
picketed in their own houses barring their husbands from going to
their offices!
The women who took active part in the movement now regret that
they have nothing to look back upon and nothing to look forward to.
The future seems bleak. 1he movement that took many young lives
and marred the academic atmosphere of the state was of no avail.
Instead of going ahead, the growth of the state has been retatded. The
present government, an outcome of the movement, has become
individualistic. They have retracted on all assurances. People believe
that lakhs of foreigners have infiltrated into Assam, while the AGP
government claims to have deported only 240 foreigners over the last
three years of their rule. 1he dream of a better Assam has been
shattered.
 •

The Farmers' Movement in

Maharashtra

GAILOMVEDT
•

Introduction

Organizing a 'women's party' in rural India, contesting zt/Ja parisbea

and pancbayat samtti elections throughout the districts of
Maharashtra, seems an audacious, even impossible idea, in a society
in which widows and brides are still burned to death and women can
barely get an economic foothold to stand on their own feet. So
impossible has it seemed that the spontaneous efforts of rural women
to fight for political power have m<>Wy gone unnoticed by the main
wban-based women's organizations. The first mass supported caJI to
organize such a women's panel went unheeded; and one left leader
(Sharad Patil of the Satyashodhak Communist Party, a small adivas'-
based organization in Maharashtra) who did respond to the issue,
described it as a 'dream of restoring matriarchy' and charged that its
main male supporter, peasant leader Sharadjoshi, had turned from a
'pragmatist' into a 'romantic'.
Yet the Samagra Mahila Aghadi (All-Women's Front) is in the
process of taking shape in villages and towns throughout rural
Maharashtra, and the fight for power in the s}'stem of pancbayati mj
is becoming a reality.
230 A space wUbtn tbe StrrJ&gle

At the time of writing this paper, it seems almost too early to give
a full scientific analysis. The elections were scheduled for late
February, 1988, but were postponed indefinitely. (Till December 1989
zilla parishad elections had still not been held but were expected
soon). In particular, with the change in government at the centre (in
1989) the pres.sure to hold the elections is intense. In the meantime,
gram pancbayal elections were held in Maharashtra (March-June
1989), and while women's panels were not a Sanghatana policy at
this level, in four villages in four different districts 100 per cent
women's gram panchayats were elected, at the initiative of local
Mahila Aghadi branches. The Samagra Mahila Aghadi is just beginning
to emerge as an organization and still lacks a clear structure. The
question of exactly which political parties and groups Will support the
women's effort and to what degree, the question of which women
representing whichkinds of organizations and social forces will come
into it: these are things that are still to be decided. Of course, the hope
is that the main support will come from left, dalitand other progres-
sive political forces, but to what extent this will be realized is still
uncertain. Similarly, the Aghadi clearly has rural women as its base,
but the balance in this of middle peasant/middle caste, rich peasant,
poor peasant/agricultural labourer or dalit/adivasi women is still a
factor is be worked out And the greatest unknown of all is perhaps
the ability of the women's force to really challenge· the base of
patriarchal (and capitalist) power in the countryside, at the time of
writing embodied in the Congress 0), but also, secondarily in the Shiv
Sena, a fast-growing force in the rural areas of Maharashtra. It is an
'unknown' not only because the Samagra Mahila Aghadi is a new
force, but because the real power and aspirations of rural women
themselves and their readiness to fight remain perhaps an un-
known/uncertain factor to the organizers and activists who speak in
their name.
What can be said to be fairly clear is the general thrust of the
women's front. As embodied in its manifesto (see Appendix I), the
front aspires to represent 'the unity of women transcending the
differences of caste, religion, sect, language and province'; organizing
against economic exploitation, violence and goonda rule; and aiming
at moving in the direction of 'development from a woman's perspec-
tive,' with programmes focussing on providing drinking water
 7be Farmers' Mooemenl tn Maharashtra 231

facilities, heahh and nutrition, alternative energy sources for cooking,

as well as alternative productive employmen1 for village women.
Within this framework there is a recognition thal the women's fight
will also be against the increasing centralization of power and in the
direction of restoring something of the grassroots 'people's power'
that was part of the original dream of panchayati raj and remains a
part of much revolutionaty thrust.
At present, then, we can attempt to analyse how and why such an
attempt has emerged, and to look into the process of its formation.

W'OllM!D U pc•gpqta and ._ncultun1 lahcJan:n

Peasant women have been largely overlooked. Some of this may be

due to a generalized 'urban bias': it was not really until the 'new
women's movement' (arising after 1975) that academic studies of
women moved from middle class women to looking at dalit, urban
working class, low-caste and agricultural labourer women. But it has
to be recognized that much of this is due to the statistical biases
associated with the general 'invisibility' of women's work. The 1981
Census, for example, shows that though the largest section of working
women (37.3 million out of 45.9 million) were in the primary sector,
only 15.2 million were 'cultivators' while the largest number, 21.2
million, were agricultural labourers. Yet these census-based statis-
tics.- which show an ongoing apparent dedine in women's work
participation since independence, and which show agricultural
labourers and not cultivators as the biggest section among working
women--have been proved to be so heavily biased against recogniz-
ing women's actual work participation,1that we should now take a
decision to reject them totally, at least as a basis for beginning our
analysis. Numerous micro-studies (and my own observation) ranging
from those that deal with the jawarl regions of Maharashtra to those
that look at the rice regions of south and east India; from the hill
economy of the northwest to the adivasi areas of south Bihar, 2 provide
evidence that women of peasant families work as hard, or harder,
than men do, not only in various types of processing and supplemen-
tary work canied on in or around the home, but in the fields as well.
232 A Space wtlbm tbe Struggle

Thus, to get at least some initial adequate picture of the work and
position of women as peasant cultivators and agricultural labourers,
it is better to begin not with the census statistics but with the data
gathered from the various NSS sample surveys. I will briefly sum-
marize in this sec.tion what we can ronclude from this material. 3
First, it is. important to recognize that while there is a good deal of
inequality of landholding (to the extent that about 10 per cent of rural
families control SO per cent or more of the land), the data from both
the NSS surveys and the agricultural censuses show that the large rural
majority of toiling peasant families have, by and large, maintained
(and perhaps even slightly increased) their hold on the land. Put in
other words, there has been no process either of increasing landless-
ness, of a growing majority of agricultural labourers, or
'proletarianization,' or of increasing land concentration in the hands
4
of a 'kulak' or 'capitalist farmer' class. 0r, at least, such a process
cannot be shown from existing statistical data or from village micro-
studies. Currently, we may say that about 30 per cent of all rural
households are agricultural labourer families; of these about half are
landless, while the rest own small plots of land (1.3 acres per family,
according to the 1977-78 Rural Labour Enquiry). In addition, there are
about 12 per cent of rural households which are landless but which
depend on other sources of income (other fonns of labour) rather
than agricultural labour. Including those 15 per cent of families which
have small holdings but depend mainly on agricultural labour, there
appear to be about 6o-65 per cent of rural households who cultivate
up to 10 acres of land--the 'toiling peasant' section. This leaves about
10 per cent of rural families holding over 10 acres.
To this we may add that in caste terms there is a broad corre/atton
(but not an identity) of caste and economic position. About half the
number of agricultural labourers, according to the Rural Labour
Enquiry, are Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SCs and STs);
but the 'other' category includes not only artisan castes and religious
minorities, but in many places significant sections of impoverished
'peasant' castes such as Marathas, Kammas,Jats etc. Similarly, though
the SCs are more concentrated among agricultural labourers, a sig-
nificant section of them are also cultivating peasants. The STs are even
more heavily 'peasant' cultivators, though their hill-based land is
 7be Farmers' Movement tn Mabamsbtra 233

usually poorer and more undeveloped than that of the plains

peasantry.
What does this mean in terms of women? Among the agricultural
labourers and marginal peasants it may safely be said that women
work as hard or harder than men (aside from their cooking and
child-care responsibilities) in the field, either on their own land or that
of odters. Where men monopolize such 'prestige' tasks as ploughing,
women do a major part of sowing, weeding, harvesting, and animal
care. Caste prestige factors (operating not only among middle and
upper castes mainly-but also among dalits when they can aspire to
economic mobility) would lead to some peasant households attempt-
ing to withdraw their women from direct field work, substitute hired
labour instead, and maintain a kind of purdah system in the home.
But this is probably impossible for most of those with holdings under
10 acres (except for those very high castes, Brahmins and lbakurs,
for example, whose social bar against women working in the fields
is much more absolute). Even among these 'rich peasant' families
which do substitute hired labour for women's field labour on a
substantial basis, women of the families continue to do a great deal
of 'productive' work-including much home processing of agricul-
tural products, and a fair amount of supervising and cooking for the
hired labourers. It may safely be said that only among the very top
rural landowners--perhaps the top 2-9 per cent-is there sufficient
prosperity to free wome n in any significant fashion from both field
labour and agriculture-related labour in and around the home.
For this reason, I estimated in a recent paper that to the 15.2 million
women officially shown as 'cultivators' in the 1981 census, we ought
to add at least another 50 million women who, tn /act, work as
'peasants' but whose labour is unrecognized, socially invisible and
hence uncounted; (The same 1981 census shows 76.l million male
'cultivators'):5nus figure may seem exaggerated in comparison with
the census statistics, but it appears more realistic to me in terms of the
actual conditions of rural women's lives and the data on rural
households shown by the sample survey.
These masses of peasant women participate not only in the manual
labour of field work but also in varying degrees in the marketing of
agricultural products and in household decisions regarding produc-
tion (including purchase of inputs, animals, machinery, etc.) The
234 A Space wttbtn tbe Struggle

extent and variability of this is unknown to us because of lack of

detailed research. The major exception to this is perhaps the large
project on women in rice production being carried on by Joan
Mencher and ·K. Saradarnoni, and it is noteworthy that this study
stresses the major involvement, in production, of landowning women
as well as agricultural labourer women. Saraclamoni's comments
regarding the relation of women of landowning families to tech-
nological changes in rice production are worth quoting at length:

We had asked the landowning respondents whether they lis-

tened to the programmes for farmers broadcast over the radio:
1be majority listened, but most of them said they did not follow
all suggestions and advice. In answering about the choice of a
particular variety of seed or why change of seeds was made
between crops, one Kerala respondent said: 'When we sowed
only government approved varieties we had Joss. Now we use
both approved and non-approved varieties.... Brown hopper
attacks the new varieties, but the yield is high....Demand for
labour depends on weed and not on variety of seeds.' This single
answer leaves us with quite a variety of topics to probe. The
respondents like this woman were able to answer without
consulting anyone. They knew a lot about seeds and fer-
tilJser....We feel that these women, with vast experience In
producing and processing up to the stage of rooking and
serving, should be taken Into confidence before technological
changes are offered to them. The Tamil Nadu Women's diaries
showed their knowledge of Wllter management and they would
certainly have some sul!festions for effective and less expensive
methods of irrigation....

In other words, the position of rural women-both the majority

who work primarily on their own land as peasants, and the minority
who work mainly as hired labourers on the land of others is a dual
one. On the one hand, they remain oppressed under patriarchal
control in the home, ensnared in burdens of child-care and home
maintenance, caught up in the network of a patrilineal-patrilocal
family system which leaves them without landrights as such, and sent
away for marriage, always under the threat of violence, sexual
domination and physical assault both inside a.nd outside the home.
On the other hafld, they play a major role in production and some
 1be Farmers' Movement In Mabarwbtra 235

role in decision-making; and with this they~e increasing sections

of India's peasantry-are directly affected both by the processes of
drought and land degradation and by the exploitation involved in
marketing at low prices the product in which their labour is em-
bodied, in becoming more and more dependent on 'capitalistically'
produced, state-supplied seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, water,
electricity-caught up in processes which have turned the peasantry
from an 'independent commodity producer' to a worker for capital
and the State.
It is this duality which has laid the basis for women's involvement
in the new 'fanners' movement' in India, and subsequently, for the
thrust towards political power which has arisen o ut of it.

Womrn in the 'new pcznant IDDfement'

Since the late 1970s, India has witnessed the rise of what may be called
the 'new peasant movernent'-based not among tenants fighting
against landlords and moneylenders ( as in pre-independence strug-
gles) or among agricultural labourers fighting 'landlords' or 'kulak'
fanners, or among hill and forest-dwelling adivasi peasants fighting
against an oppressive State,' but mainly among middle peasants in
areas of intensified commodity production and fighting on issues
dealirig with their exploitation via the market, from opposition to
raises in electricity and water rates to movements for higher prices for
their crops. These movements have often been quite militant, engag-
ing in direct clashes with the police and other representatives of the
State; and both men and women peasants involved in them have
faced jail, latbt charges, police beatings and bullets. They have also
most often taken place through organizations that have arisen outside
the peasant organizations or 'kisan sabhas' that have functioned as
win~ of political parties (which explains, at least partially why they
are stamped 'rich peasant' movements: without leadership from a
recognized ~ of the working class, how can they be certified as
proletarian?).
These organizations include the Agriculturalists' Association
(Vyavasayigal Sangham) under the leadership of Narayanaswami
Naidu in Tamil Nadu (now relatively non-functional after the death
236 A Space wttbin lbe Struggle

of Narayanaswami); the Raitha Sangha in Kamataka; the Bharatiya

Kisan Union led by Balbir Singh Rajewal in the Punjab, and more
recently, bythe]at leader Mahendra Singh Tikait in western U.P.; the
Khedut Samaj led by Bipin Desai and the Kisan Sanghatan (Bharuch
district) of Gujarat; and of course the Shetkari Sanghatana of
Maharashtra which emerged in 1979-80 under SharadJoshi. Most of
these are now organized in a federation known as the Inter-State
Coordinating Committee (ISCC) through whose auspices a huge
peasant morcha on Delhi-involving a 50-lakh participation-was
planned for March 12, 1988.7
There has been a lack of study of women's participation both in
these and in many pre-independence peasant movements. In fact,
earlier analyses which accepted census-based statistics on the relative
lack of women's participation in work outside the home in peasant
families often led to an erroneous prediction that there would be little
participation in peasant movements as such, and thus to a tendency
to overlook the participation that did occur. For instance, in my own
earlier analysis, I have said:

In the post-colonial period, the main contradictio n has shifted

.quite thoroughly in India in a way that sets wage-earning
labourers and poor peasants against an emerging class of
kulaks/capitalist farmers... with middle peasants wavering be-
tween them. The significance of this for women's participation
is that among the middle peasants who dominated earlier move-
ments, women are less rich and economically active outside the
home, and more hemmed in by customs of caste status and
emphasis on seclusion. In contrast, women among the rural
poor invariably are important field worlcers and wage earners
and are sometimes more active and militant in these struggles
than the men. (1986: 11)

It is true that women are relatively independent and quite militant

among the rural poor, and especially in the 1967-75 period, their
participation in rural movements was marked and helped to lay an
important base for the rise of the new women's movement after 1975.
But the above analysis was erroneous in seeing the 'main
contradiction' as emerging between a rural proletar:iat and rural kulak
class; and although it is true that agricultural labourers, and especially
 7be Farmers' Mooernent tn Mabarwbtra 237

low-caste and adivasi women, have more social independence, it

underestimates the 'economic activity' and involvement in production
of the masses of peasant women.
In fact, it seems that at least in some sections of the recent peasant
movement, women's participation was important from the very
beginning. In the aise of Gujarat, women's participation was reported
in the very fll'St agitation of the Khedut Samaj in 1972, and in the recent
upsurge in 1986-87 it was so marked that two peasant women were
killed in police faring in Seprernber, 1987. Similarly, in Maharashtra,
women were prominent in the earliest agitations in Nasik district in
1980, in the agitations of tobacco growing fanners at Nipani in
1981-82, and most markedly in the upsurge in 1988, of cotton-growing
peasants of the eastern districts of the state. In fact it was the men's
anger at the police's beating of women demonstrators at Suregaon in
December that led to a clash resulting in faring and two deaths. In
Gujarat, the demonstrating women appear to have been mainly those
of the Patel-Kanbi cultivating caste; in Maharashtra they have in-
cluded large numbers of Maratha Kumbi women along with those of
related middle and •
lower castes.
In the case of the Bharatiya Kisan Union-led agitations in Punjab,
Haryana and western U.P., it appears that the greater social barriers
functioning to keep even the hard-workingJat caste women in some
kind of social purdah have hampered their participation in the move-
ment. As far as the peasant movement in the southern states is
concerned (Kamataka, Tamil Nadu), at present linle is known about
women's p~cipation. Generally, though, experience in more local-
ized movements involving both middle peasants and labouring sec-
tions shows that whereas the low-caste and labouring women may
more spontaneously participate, women of even middle and rich
peasant families who pride themselves on some kind of 'purdah'
tradition will also come out on demonstrations, and often quite
militantly, when they are given the scope and social support to do so.
It was this participation of peasant women in the recent move-
ments that laid the basis for the 'women's conference ' of the Shetkari
Sanghatana at Chandwad, a small village in Nasik district, in Novem-
ber, 1986. As one of the most massive gatherings of toiling women in
recent times-involving at least 30,000 women and perhaps three
times as many men--this proved to be something of an eye-opener
238 A Space wttbtn tbe Strusgle

for many participating feminists, and after an often frustrating 'inter-

national women's decade' in which so many of the struggles against
dowry deaths, retrenchment, and atrocities seemed to be lo&, gave
some renewed hope for a mass-rural-based women's upsurge in a
second 'decade of women'. The significance of the Chandwad gather-
ing, however, lay not only in its numbers (it is noteworthy also that,
at the time of writing, a similar peasant women's conference was
being planned in Gujarat), but also in the radical nature of many of
the positions taken. 'These, even in 'feminist' ternlS, went beyond mo&
of those of either the urban 'autonomous feminist' women's groups
or of the more mass-oriented party-based women's organizations.
Among these,

It was clearly stated that women faced a special oppression, that

whether of the (mainly but not entirely urban) exploiting 'India'
section or of the (mainly but not entirely rural) exploited
'Bharat,' women were exploited victims of violence and in-
security.

The conference adopted a resolution on women's land and

property rights whkh went beyond the empty slogan of a
'conunon civil code' to outline the means whereby women
might claim a share in their parents' movable and immovable
property and in the join! property of their family of marriage in
the event of divorce or separation. Even poor peasant women
at the ~onference coming forward to speak on this expressed
their claim. 'We want our share' (~).

The resolution on the 'political situation' stressed the fact that

women were the worst victims of the growing degradation,
centralization and goonda rule in the country and projected the
need for women's entry into political power: 'with a view to
breaking the impasse all women in Maharashtra should unite to
secure power up to the disttict level, and with this end in view,
all women's organizations should come together and present a
unified list of women candidates in the forthcoming (zilla
parishad and panchayat samitl) elections.'
 Tbe Farmers· Movement in Mabarwbtra 239

Sbldorl, the Marathi booklet published for the conference,-

written by Sharad Joshi after a series of sbtbtrs with peasant
women, which were also attended by a number of feminist
acti~ssed social and biological issues of masculinity
and femininity with less inhibitions than any other local litera-
ture on women (including that of the various Marxist and
feminist groups), treated lesbia nism not as an 'unnatural
deviation' but as a method-similar in function to Gandhian
celibacy-of living independently of men, and postulated some-
thing like an androgynous model for humanity. In the words of
the English translation of the manifesto written for the con-
ference, 'the restructuring of roles in the new barbaric age has
brought about a split and polarization of the basic, balanced and
androgynous human personality. Women are now caricatured
as epitomes of all the soft and submissive o r passive and nega-
tive characteristics. Male models, on the other hand, exaggerate
the harsh and the uncouth, the positive and the bellicose. Both
the female and the male of the species stand simultaneously
peiverted.' Such issues have not been taken up for public
discussion so far (even in the 'advanced' women's movement in
Maharashtra) yet they are a core part of the feminist movement
in the West.

Many of these positions (for instance the resolution on women's

land rights) were unexpected, especially to those of us who had
considered the Shetkari Sanghatana to be representing mainly the
interests of 'rich peasants'. In analysing them, however, it is important
to remember that none of the 'new social movements' of today is
growing in a vacuum. With the spread of communications in the
modem era, even women of the most seemingly isolated village, for
example, may get some whiffs of the new aspirations represented by
the contemporary women's movement; even boys of the most tradi-
tional peasant families may feel new stirrings about their own life,
their own relations with women; even village patriarchs may begin to
question themselves. Interestingly, organizing among rural women
has called up mixed responses among men-sometimes there is a
resistance among the majority to freeing women for activity outside
the home, but occasionally there is fum and even daring support from
a few. Whatever the problems of patriarchal institutions and male
chauvinism among peasants, they are no greater-sometimes only
240 A Space wttbtn tbe Struggle

less subtle-than those among the seemingly more sophisticated

urbanized middle and upper classes. The women's movement has
made some important advances, both in India and worldwide, in the
last decade, and the Chandwad resolutions have to be seen in this
context as well as in the context of the peasant movement itself and
the forces it represents. One of the strengths, of the new peasant
movement, however much it may continue to seem ideologically hazy
and confusing to those accustomed to the traditional formulae of the
left, has been its freedom from some of these formulae and a conse-
quent ability to respond rrtore creatively to some of the ways in which
·social forces are shaping themselves.

Women a tMI polldclll power

Throughout history, from the beginning of state society to the present,

whatever the dreams of matriarchy, the exclusion of women from
political power has been more marked than their exclusion from
'productive' work or even from property rights. The contemporary
era is no different Whether we count women in the U.S. Congress,
or the Supreme Soviet of the U.S.S.R. or in the political parties that
guide these it is hard to find a parliamentary body at any level,
municipal, country, district, anywhere in the world, where women
are a majority.
India is no exception: all during the period in which a women was
prime minister, heiress to a throne, as well as a force in her own right,
in the village it was nearly impossible for women to go to the cbowdt
cbowk, the central square where men sit and discuss affairs, to the
gram sabba or other local power bodies, except as nominal holders
of reserved posts or as a few exceptional individuals without much
influence. The relationship of the women's movement to power has
been one of petitioning and pressurizing, agitating and organizing,
but usually without much effect in the face of the powerful forces
arrayed against it; or seeking resources from state agencies or foreign
funding institutions-always a relationship of dependence.
This exclusion has certainly intensified the marked helplessness of
women to combat atrocities and violence, whether from w ithin the
family, social groups or private goondas of the State itself.
 7be Farmers' Movernenl tn Mabamsbtm 241

Yet the last decade has also seen a growing awareness among
women of the need to change this situation; this is evident even
among the supposedly most dependent and suppressed rural
women. In a series of seminars for rural women throughout
Maharashtra held in 1982-84 at V.M. Dandekar's School for Political
F.conorny in Lonavia, women talked of the bossism and corruption in
the village governing institutions, asking why they themselves could
not be satpancbes or sit in gram pancbayalS. In Uttarakhand where
women have been in the forefront of the Chipko movement while
their husbands were away in the plains seeking employment, they
have also been asking why the sarpanches, the gram panchayat
members, the co-operative society bosses, always had to be men.
Why not us?
In some areas attempts have been made towards this, though these
are mostly unknown to the wider city-based organizations of the
women's movement. One such effort, in lndoli village of Karad taluka
in Satara district, shows the obstacles women have faced. In this
village, notable for its role in the 1982 'parallel government' in the
region, Usha Nikam-herself part of a family of freedom fighters--
decided to organize an all-women panel for gram panchayat elections
in 1984. The response of the Congress village bosses shows how male
chauvinism functions. Using both derision of all kinds and political-
econornic pressures, they went to the husbands of each of the 13
candidates and told them, 'So, your wife wants to stand for elections?
Then you should put on bangles.' They promised instead to put up
men from these families as candidates; they threatened men from
agricultural labourer families and poor peasant families with boycott
of work and irrigation water. Under this pressure, all of the original
panel except Ushatai herself, withdrew. Ushatai, a determined
woman who has been involved in numerous local struggles, then
went around again, at the very last minute before the deadline for
filing candidacy, and collected another seven women who stood firm.
Notably, these were all from dalit, other low-caste and Muslim back-
grounds.
The lndoli women's panel was supported by men and women
activists connected with Mukti Sangarsh, a rural organization with a
base in nearl>y Sangli district. But in Indoli itself the organization was
weak, the women were isolated. The panel lost. But the women had
242 A Space wUbtn tbe Stru//8/e

stood up: this was the glory of their struggle. And the women's panel
did have one significant effect on the village politics of Indoli: in their
effort to combat it, for the first time the village ~ went beyond
the dominant Maratha caste to find male candidates from dalits,
minorities and 'other backward' castes in the constituency!
11te Indoli effort received some limited publicity within the
women's movement through articles in Manusbl and the Marathi
women's journal Bayza. Other attempts in western Maharashtra
began to be made. In Palshi(the main tahiAlaofSataradistrict)women
of a nomadic caste took the lead in forming a women's panel for gram
panchayat elections. They also lo&. But in a Shrirampur taluka (Ah-
mednagar district) village when women formed a panel to contest
co-operative society elections, they emerged victorious. A change
seemed to be in the air.
This was the background to the fmal resolution on 'the political
situation' In the Shetkari Sanghatana's women's conference. In the
context both of intervening in the growing violence-ridden and
communally-coloured politics of the nation and as a first step towards
dealing with the 'goonda raj' (which makes for Insecurity for women)
a call was given to all women's organizations to come together to
organize a united list of women candidates for the forthcoming zilla
parishad elections, the fight to take power at the district level (See
Appendix II).
The response to the Chandwad appeal from other women's or-
ganizations was, at the beginning, quite minimal. In general, the
emergence of an organized force of Shetkari Sanghatana women
aroused a good deal of ambivalence. On the part of the women's
organizations connected with the left political parties, there was a
some wariness of the Shetkari Sanghatana's mass force. Many women
leaders of the parties had often taken a domineering attitude towards
younger women activists of the urban feminist groups, as well as
towards smaller left (or 'far left') women's organizations, claiming to
have the real mass force of women behind them. But their organiza-
tions were also In a state of stagnation. A 'Bombay dbarnd called in
April 1986 by a united platform of all women's organizations in
Maharashtra (the Stri Mukti Andolan Sampark Samiti, which is
generally dominated by the left party-connected organizations) had
drawn only about 2,000 women, and some of the newer rural
 7be Farmers' Movement tn MabarasbtrP 243

women's organizations felt themselves let down by party-connected

organizations who had talked of mobilizing women in large number
for.ticketless travel on trains but had failed to do so. Now, such party
women leaders found themselves confronted with a mass force that
dwarfed their own and a leader (Shand Joshi) who had little hesita-
tion in pointing out this fact. In addition, the sharp thrusts at Marxism
found in sections of the booklet Sbtdorl (and its focus on violence
rather than property relations) provoked intense controversy on the
left. Relations between Shetlcari Sanghatana and the left parties even
those that found little to disagiee with in such basic demands as
remunerative prices-have often been tense, and this tension has
carried over to the relationship between women's organizations.
'How can we join with him when we disagiee with his bbumtlta ?'
asked one leader of the Mahila Federation (NHW).
The non-party feminist groups, on the other hand, have had their
own problems, arising out of their middle-class urban base, their lack
of orientation to mass work, and occasional hostility to male participa-
tion. 'Why should we go on this platform?' demanded one Bombay
feminist after the Chandwad session, 'we should build our own
platform.' The fact, however, is that the 'autonomous' feminist groups,
while they have made real contributions at the level of research,
writing and raising issues, and have taken up some issues of agitat,ion,
and brought a new dynamic to the women's movement, have shown
little capacity for mass work. They have been able to build no platform
of their own, but instead have remained dependent on State and
foreign funding for their forms of mass outreach. This has gone with
attitudes rejecting the necessity of mass work (including working with
male leaders and activists) in favour of discussion-oriented 'con-
sciousness-raising' programmes.
Thus, in the first months following the Chandwad conference, it
was only a few small rural-based non-traditional Marxist and socialist
. organizations (along with one other organization representing some-
thing like a 'new social movement', the Bharatiya Republican Party,
which had become the main political representative of dalits in
Maharashtra) that showed a readiness to engage in dialogue with the
Shetkari Sanghatana on women's issues. In ad:lltion, the notion of
women making a bid for actual political power was at this point rather
outside the imaginatiqn of most of the other forces in the state.
244 A Spaee ui#dnn tbe S'"'BS/e

The emea.,: nee ol the s.n.agna Mo,,,,. Agbodl: The Am-

bdban sbllllr

Thus, the Shctkari Sanghatana decided to go ahead on its own, and

from 27-30 June 1987 a training shibir was organized at Ambethan,
the small village near Pune which is now the organization's centre.
Conducting the shibir were Sharad Joshi, three other Shetkari San-
ghatana activists, and Vidyut Bhagwat, a Pune feminist scholar who
mobilized a number of university professors for talks on the
panchayati raj system. The purpose of the shibir was to train the
women activists who would be the leaders in their respective districts
for the election campaign. .
About 40 women activists attended the shibir. Most of them were
from a middle or rich peasant and middle caste background, but a
few were from dalit orOlher low caste and poor peasant backgrounds.
None had any previous connection with the women's movement as
such, but most had been involved in the Shetkari Sanghatana struggle,
and in the process had experience not only of going from village to
village organizing but also of confronting police latbtsand repression
as well as spending time in jail. Most were from fairly traditional rural
families, but a few of the activists had made inter-caste marriages (one
woman, low-caste, poor and separated from her husband practically
since their marriage, who had made her living as a tailor and became
known as a ktnanka~religious singer-for a period before joining
the Sanghatana, married a Brahmin boy nine years younger shortly
after the shibir i.'l a marriage celebrated under Sanghatana auspices).
The four-day programme consisted of lectures on the functioning
of the panchayati raj system, interspersed with discussions by
feminists on aspects of the women's movement and discussions
among the women themselves about the practical aspects of organiz-
ing as well as the obstacles they would face. During th.is, two impor-
tant processes could be seen to be taking place: one, relating to the
actual meaning of the zilla parishad election struggle (a movement
toward a radical understanding of the system), and the other, relating
to the meaning of participating in it as women (a movement towards
a feminist understanding, from identifying as peasant women to
identifying as peasant women).
 7be Farmers' Movement In Maharashtra 245

In the course of the lectures, one thing became dear: that the
institutions of panchayati raj, from the gram panchayats to the zilla
parishads and even the state government itself, were being increas-
ingly shorn of power, which was getting centralized in Delhi. What
took place at the shibir was, in fact, a masterly process of political
education, the kind of 'exposure of the system' that is the respon-
sibility of any left organization but that is usually done more at the
level of slogans. The institutions, from the state gcivemment to the
gram sabha and gram panchayat, were described; their functioning
was outlined, the 'powers' given to the zilla parishads were first
described,--dlen the next talk showed how the district collector and
appointed boards like the DPDB (District Planning and Development
Board, known by these initials though its official name is ZUia Niyojan
Vikas Mand.al) had authority to override practically anything. The final
talk on 'finances' gave the finishing touch: the discussion focussed on
low budgets and the uncertainty that attached to them with 90 per
cent of the income coming from earmarked grants of the state, grants
which can be, and often are, delayed, stalled or even halted to harass
political opponents. After this, it was hardly necessary for Shetkari
Sanghatana activist Madhavrao Shergaon Kar to characterize par-
liamentary politics as pbaswa (deception); the women themselves
now began to wonder whether, even if they overcame the numerous
obstacles they would face in standing for election, and won, they
would gain anything at all.
Second, as the women discussed exactly what they would do, how
they would go about selecting candidates, how they would answer
the questions and challenges put to anyone coming on a 'political'
stage, how they would face the kind of slandering that goes on against
women coming out of their homes, what points would be taken up
in their manifesto, what programmes would be taken up in the zilla
parishads, an important process of transfonnation could be seen
taking place . The w omen were, after all, members of the Shetkari
Sanghatana Mahila Aghadi which was a 'women's front' of the Shet-
kari Sanghatana; their first loyalty (as that of the men of their
household) was to the Sanghatana; their dependence on.its leader
Sharad Joshi was strong; their con~ct with the broader, mainly
urban-based, women's movement and feminist ideas was slight.
'Remunerative prices for agricultural produce' had been the focus of
246 A Space u1'thtn tbe Struggle

their identity in struggle. As activists, they were primarily from middle

and rich peasant families and from the middle castes; only a handful
had dalit, low caste or poor peasant backgrounds. Nevertheless their
movement towards a broader and even feminist perspective was clear
(assuming we do not identify 'feminist' with being anti-male). Tilis
came about in the concrete discussions on obstacles to be faced, what
questions they would confront when standing for elections-for the
most inunediate and first problems would be sexual slander-and the
basic question of whether women would be competent to handle
local political power. 11lis also came about in discussions on the
necessary process of convincing Shetkari Sanghatana men themsel-
ves and the men of their own households (interestingly, many women
remarked: 'my husband says, put up other women, but don't you
stand,' making it clear that at some level the active political involve-
ment of women does confront male interests). It also came about in
the realization that a really strong election fight would need the widest
possible unity-the involvement of women of all parties and all
castes, going beyond Shetkari Sanghtana itself to include women of
other organizations as well. The movement towards a new perspec-
tive could be seen in the criteria put forward by one Latur district
woman activist for selection of candidates: pakasb nako, purusb
drlsbttkon nako, jaltyawad nakO. women should put aside their
parties and come together as women; there should be no male ·
chauvinist perspective; there should be no caste divisions among us.
The final evening session began with a number of songs, a new
favourite being the one written by a male adivasi activist that ended
thus:

Let us go into politics

Let us take the lead in struggle
We don't want male power now-
Oh Venubai, why do you stay
Oppressed, suppressed,
Come to the demonstration.

Then Vidyut Bhagwat voiced the doubt that was in everyone's mind:
Can we really manage such a huge task.? Can we face the obstacles?
And even if we do manage, given our powerlessness in the zilla
 Tbe Farnum' Movemenl In Mabarasbtra 247

parishads is it worth it? '\\Quid it not be better to tty and have some
kind of agitational programme first?
nus led to an extended discussion, with some women expressing
their doubts while others voiced an unshakeable conviction that in
fighting for women's political power they were engaging in 'making
history.' lhen Sharad Joshi addressed these issues. Though women
had gathered with enthusiasm, he remarked, a certain skepticism had
grown after considering all the obstacles; bener that this should come
out now rather than laterl Let us analyse the forces in opposition to
us, he said, and listed these as the looting of the rural areas, leaving
linle funding for the zilla parishads (the Shetkari Sanghatana perspec-
tive), the insecurity and violence against women pervading society
and involving the rule of 'rural goondas and urban dadas' (the theme
put forward at the Chandwad conference), and the growing
centralization in the State which he described from the time of the
Constitution to the 'rule of Rajiv and Ribeiro'. 'Mahatma Gandhi's
thought was that power should flow from the bottom to the top;
instead it is flowing from top to bottcim.' Then what can women do?
•
While some development programmes oriented to women's needs
can be taken up, these should be restricted to the issues of insecurity
and violence against women as here at least women in positions of
power can do something. 'And now it will simply be a women's front',
stated Joshi. 'Don't even use the name of Shetkari Sanghatana. The
Sanghatana will support the women's front, but from outside. And
other organizations and political parties will be called upon to do the
same. Practically, we may hope that such support will come from the
dalits, left front parties and the minorities.'
In the discussion that followed, the name of Samagra Mahila
Aghadi was adopted for the front, and the manifesto to be drafted in
its name was to include the following points: (1) the major issue of
protection from village goondas and all forms of violence and
atrocities against women; (2) water tap facilities in every village; (3)
provision of alternate energy sources (gobar sas, fodder-oriented
social forestty); (4) medical facilities oriented to women's needs and
other health issues; (5) efforts to create new employment other than
the 'stone-breaking' of current drought-relief work; (6) search for
alternate funding to free the zilla parishads from their 'economic
slavery' to the State.
248 A space wttbtn tbe Slnlfl8w

The last day featured a talk by Neelam Gorhe, a longtime woman

activist who is currently secretary of the Bharatiya Republican Party,
on the 'participation of worn~ in politics.• Here again obstacles were
dealt with very frankly and discussions were held on violence in
public life, dependence on money, and above all, sexual slander. The
latter issue raises questions that are sensitive even for urban middle
class women's organizations (what if a woman really does have
'unorthodox' relations?) yet in the discussion that followed the
women appeared ready not only to face such slander themselves but
to never raise it in regard to others, to treat relationships as 'private'
for women as they are for men. Finally, in her concluding remarks,
Neelam Ghore said, ·women entering the public world is just a first
step and not an end in itself. The aim is to change the quality and
direction of political life itself.'
And so the shibir ended. The Sarnagra Mahila Aghadi had been
launched. It had at least a name and a manifesto. But what remained--
aside from the actual process of organizing the election struggle and
the question of how well the women's front would come forward--
was the question of the nature of the Sarnagra Mahila Aghadi itself:
how wide a front would it become? What organizations would be-
come involved, what parties would support it, outside of the Shetkari
Sanghatana and its women? Here the problems of autonomy and unity
came into sharp focus: in a situation in which no party-linked or
initiated women's organization has really freed itself from depend-
ence on the party and from being, in effect, a 'wing' of the party, in
which no 'autonomous' women's organization has managed to really
develop a mass base, and in which no united front has gone beyond
very minimal demands raised in a non-militant fashion or on an
issue-to-issue basis, the Shetkari Sanghatana has taken the initiative
to form the SMA, a name had been chosen and a manifesto adopted.
Did this make it an undemocratic process with othet women's or-
ganizations only being invited to come into a fatt accomplt? In fact,
the organization remains structureless; no executive committee
(karyakarn{) has been formed; this will be done only when it is clear
what other organizations will join, while it has been promised that a
representative of every supporting organization will be on the execu-
tive Oetter of Vidyut Bhagwat to parties/organizations, 10 November,
1987). Will the Aghadi be simply an organization dominated by the
 7be Farmers' Movement tn Mabarasbtra 249

Shetkari Sanghatana and Sharadjoshi? In fact, how autonomous it will

become will depend on how many other different activists and
organizations will be involved, and how autonomous the Shetkari
Sanghatana women themselves become depends on their contact and
interaction with other women and other tendencies. The tendency-
which was apparen1 among both feminislS concerned aboul
'autonomy' and among party-linked women and men--to see every-
thing in terms of Joshi's and Shelkari Sanghatana dominance was in
fact at least in pan a palriarchal disregard for the actual process of
assertion on the pan of the women involved al all levels. Nevertheless,
these were all troubling is.sues.

After the Arnbelhan shibir, evenlS connected with the Samagra Mahila
Aghadi appeared 10 subside for some time, at leas! at the visibly active
level. Nevertheless, some imponan1 processes began 10 become
evidenl:

(1) the consolidation of the Shetkari Sanghatana suppon for the

Aghadi;
(2) discussions with political parties regarding their suppon;
(3) discussions with other women's organizations and with inde-
pendent women activists;
( 4) organizing at the grassroots level.

These continued with and through tQree meetings of the Samagra

Mahila Aghadi-as the zilla parishad elections were first supposed to
be held in November, then November-December, then finally
declared for February 7 (with constant rumours, and pressure from
one faction of the Congress (I) to shift them to an even later date).
These took place on November 10 (in Sindkhedraja, Buldhana dis-
trict), on November 30 (Pune) and on December 13 (Nagpur). Of
these, the first and third were held in connection with Shetkari
Sanghatana programmes and included largely Sanghatana women,
while the second was called for the major women's organizations in
western Maharashtra. Keeping these dates in mind, let us examine
these processes as they went on until the middle of December, 1988.
7be consoltdatton of Sbetltarl Sangbatana support; As in any
organization, large or small, so also within the Shetkari Sanghatana
there are factions, and different tendencies. Attitudes towards
programmes on women's issues formed one important dividing line,
though differences were not expressed openly but rather in terms of
silence and passivity. At times it was noticeable that younger and
newer activists were often enthusiastic; older and more established
ones remained silent. Though the zilla parishad election programme
was 'officially' a part of Shetkari Sanghatana activity from quite early
on (the Chandwad conference had, formally, only 'called on' the
Shetkari Sanghatana to support it; an April 1987 executive meeting
mentioned it but only in the context of organizing the training shibir)
little action was taken until the elections began to seem~ reality. In
Sangli-Kolhapur, for instance, where organizing was new, women
were not at all involved and the Samagra Mahila Aghadi programme
was not even mentioned in activist meetings until as late as October.
(In contrast, in another nearby district where the Shetkari Sanghatana
as such was equally new but drew on earlier organizing among poor
peasants and worlcers on Maharashtra's Employment Guarantee
Scheme projects in a drought-prone taluka, and where there was a
militant leading woman activist, Chetna Gala, Samagra Mahila Aghadi
formation started quite early). For a long time, the situation seemed
to be that while Sharad Joshi and a few other male activists talked
confidently and determinedly of fighting '100 per cent of the seats,'
others expressed skepticism about fmcling any women candidates at
all in their areas.
Many of these issues were resolved in the November 19 meeting
held in Sindkhedraja, a small remote village, the birthplace of Shivaji's
mother, which was chosen for the start of a 24-day pmcbaryatra in
eastern Maharashtra. At a joint meeting of the expanded executive of
the Sanghatana (regional heads, some district heads plus other lead-
ing sympathizers and activists) and some 75 women activists, Sharad
joshi-5till the undisputed leader of the organization-made clear his
commitment to this as a priority programme. The Sanghatana had
three major programmes coming up, a huge rally in Nagpur; two
rallies in January with V.P. Singh and Datta Samant in Sangli and
 7be Farmers' Movement tn Maharashtra 251

Sholapur-important as a counter-power to the peasant rally called

by Vasantdada Patil in Sangli on November 4--and the projected
Delhi March of 5 million peasants on March 12, 1988. But the zilla
parishad elections were to be discussed first. In this, some of the
women themselves raised the question of men's suppon. One put it
this way: 'we feel some doubt about the male activists: are you
supponingusonlybecauseSharadJoshisaysso, ordoesitcomefrom
your beans?' Thereupon another leader (probably one of the op-
positioni.sts) rose to say, 'It's not that I agree with everything Sharad
Joshi says...but this is a Sanghatana programme and we'll all put 100
per cent suppon into it... And who knows? It might prove to be a
shoncut to remunerative prices!' Other male activists indignantly
refuted the women's questioning. Concrete aspects of financing (an
estimated Rs. 20-30,000 is usually spent by each zilla parishad can-
didate, far beyond the capacity of Shetkari Sanghatana or any or-
ganization involved) and propaganda were discussed. Following this
meeting, there was a discernible difference in male activists' suppon
and activity for the Aghadi.
Dtscusstons wttb other polU1cal parties: Political pany leaders
raised various types of objections, but most could probably be sum-
marized under the charge 'impractical' or 'impossible,'-the 'romantic
dream' objection. This, in fact, was a sophisticated version of the
common-sense male chauvinistic objection to women coming into
local political activity (bayana jamnar kta? Can women manage it?)
For the parties, however, there was a bit more than a direct and crude
patriarchal attitude. The fact was that·few panies had more than a
smattering of active and vocal women members; finding candidates
meant they would either have to go outside 'normal pany circles or
activize hitheno inactive women of the households of male activists.
Both, in different way1>, raised threats to normal procedures of acting
(especially when, as is often the case, the chance for a zilla parishad
or panchayat samiti seat is often a kind of reward for an underpaid/un-
paid but aspirant local cadre).
Along with the 'impossible' objection wen! another: 'In fact all this
does is 10 split a developing unity of left and progressive opposition
forces at a time when people are getting disillusioned with the
Congress!' Here was a new version of the familiar charge of 'splitting
!he unity of the working class'.
252 A Space wttbln tbe Struggle

Ondeed, while it is true that there is a massive disillusionment with

the established party, this applies almost equally to established
politics: the people are not necessarily ready to shift their trust to a
united opposition even when putting forward attractive slogans.
Support could as easily shift to the 'new politics' of militant Hin-
duism-as a mid-December by-election in Bombay's Vile Parle con-
stituency showed. Here a 'new politics' of women backed by a united
opposition could catch the imagination of the masses throughout the
state-while even with only Shetkari Sanghatana support the
Sarnagra Mahila Aghadi would remain a force in many areas. In any
case, the purpose of women coming forward was not simply to be
calculated in terms of electoral victory-and this itself was a challenge
to the parliamentarism of the opposition).
Many of these objections became embodied in the almost imme-
diate discussion in tenns of percentages, 'How can you speak of 100
per cent seats? Why n()( say 50 per cent?' lbat is, let women fight in
fifty per cent of the seats, give up organizing the rest and let the usual
(male) candidates contend. This, it has to be noted, was different from
saying, 'We'll help on this, but if it proves to be impossible to find a
really good woman candidate-quite likely in tenns of limitations of
time and organizational resources-dlen why not support a progres-
sive man?' This was like saying, let 'normal' (i.e . male-dominated)
politics prevail in 50 per cent of the constituencies. Almost all the main
political leaders remained fixed on this. By the December 13 meeting
of the Sarnagra Mahila Aghadi at Nagpur, a front of six opposition
parties formed to fight the zilla parishad elections (Janata, BJP,
Bharatiya Republican Party, Kamgar Aghadi, Peasants and Workers'
Party, Congress-S) was talking of 60-40 per cent seats. While allocat-
ing a majority of seats to women appearedgenerous, the fact was that
by that time Shetkari Sanghatana activists were claiming that they
could put up women in all of the constituencies in several districts
each of Marathwada and Vidarbha and one of Nasik, and could also
cover 1/3 to 213 talukas in several more districts-that is, a coverage
of about 50 per cent of the total constituencies. What the parties'
'generosity' then amounted to was saying that in the remaining
constituencies, aside from a handful of party women who might be
put up as candidates, 80-90 per cent of the constituencies would be
reserved from men. A 'sixty-forty' split could also be said to be a
 7be Farmers' Movement tn MabanisbtrP 253

recognition of the social-political balance of power in rural

Maharashtra: as an opposition force to the Congress and reactionaiy
forces like the Shiv Sena, Shetkari Sanghatana probably out-weighs
the total political party opposition in over half the rural areas.
Finally, an objection was raised by some left and dalit activists to
the call for women of 'all parties' to come into the Aghadi. 'Do you
mean to accept women of BJP and Congress?' This rai<;CS some
important issues of feminism, i.e., whether an 'all-woman' unity is not
itself inherently progressive. Beyond this, however, and at a practical
level, the objection seemed naive. As far as the BJP was concerned,
there are simply not enough BJP women at the district and village
levels to 'flood' the Aghadi in even a minor way. The Congress is, in
fact, a different case, since a large number of rural women coming
forward in some kind of public life do in fact have Congress connec-
tions, not necessarily out of ideological loyalty but because Congress
tends to be the only or main existing political body in countless
villages, which gives them some kind of scope. Yet the left has always
aspired to separate the 'masses' now behind the Congress, and bring
them under left leadership. How then could an objection be raised to
Congress-connected women coming into a front whose manifesto
condemned the goonda raj of 40 years of independence?
Dtscussions wtlh am;I wUhtn other women '.s 078antzations: There
were no organizations that sent activists to have discussions in any
official/organized matter with activists of Samagra Mahila >.ghadi:
some discussions among individual activists did take place; others
were internal. By the November 30 Pune meeting, only two women's
organizations (one working in rural areas of Sangli district, another in
Pune and surrounding rural areas) had declared their support; and
representatives of only four organizations attended the meeting. In
temlS of the major party-linked women's organizations, the main
pattern seemed to be that the top leaders of the organizations reacted
more or less as the party male activists, while the more district and
rural-based activists (like women activists generally outside of the
party scope) reacted with more enthusiasm. In the Decembe~ shibir
of one broadly left-linked women's organization (whose constitution
declares it to be independent of any party affiliations) the secretary
and president, both from district towns and with a history of working
with women's groups and rural-based groups outside the party
254 A 5pac,e within tbe StTuggle

framework, declared their support to the proposal for supporting 100

per cent seats for women and the Aghadi; while urban-basedold-time
party women succeeded in imposing the 60-40 ratio.
Urban feminists are a different matter, and here the general lack of
response seems to be a combination of two factors: indifference,
resulting from being wrapped up in numerous other programmes
(from the salt issue to questions of legal reform and organizing
numerous all-India or 'all-Asia' conferences on these) and not seeing
their link to rural women's fight for political power; and active mistrust
and suspicion of male dominance in the Shetkari Sanghatana.
In sum, the question of the Samagra Mahila Aghadi raised differen-
ces wttbtn every women's organization-not to mention am-
bivalence within the minds of individuals-and as of December 1987
these remained, in the large majority of cases, unresolved.
Gmssroots organtztng: In terms of actual preparation, by the
middle ofJanuary Shetkari Sanghatana activists reported that 100 per
cent women panels could be formed for seven districts of Vidarbha
and two of Marathwada, while in several other districts about half the
•
talukas were covered with 100 per cent candidates. Only the Konkan
region, three districts in western Maharashtra, and two in the far east
of Vidarbha were almost completely untouched. This, of ocurse,
reflected the areas of strength of the Shetkari Sanghatana.
What was the nature of this coverage? A 'Marathwada regional
meeting' called on January 15, 1988 showed the nature of one such
district coverage, in Parbhani About 40 women activists and two
hundred male activists were in attendance. The women present
included several outspoken district leaders, (one a wife of a
newspaper editor), a few unmarried girls with the rest being poor
peasant women, most apparently illiterate. The first part of the dis-
cussion, dominated by male activists, was on the basic election
compaign. Activists reported that 51 zilla parishad seats and an
additional 102 panchayat samiti seats were completely covered, and
that in addition each seat had 'back-up candidates', (chosen primarily
from wives of activists, in case the main candidates were rejected for
technical reasons). Each constituency was to have a (male) campaign
manager, who would be responsible for all details of the campaign,
including protection of the women candidates from kidnapping (not
abnormal in such local elections). 'You won't have to spend any
 7be Famwrs' Mooement In Maharashtra 255

money,' said some of the men; 'simply buy turmeric and red powder
(ltum-ltum) and women will go in bullock cuts through the villages
and hold women's meetings with baldt-ltum-ltumceremonies.'
While the dependence of the women for technical help in a
campaign was clear from this, there was a quite outspoken male-
female debate in the subsequent c&cussion of how issues should be
presented while campaigning. One of the men objected that all the
talk about goondaism was in fact anti-male; one of the leading district
women activists responded to this, not with the immediate assurance
of not being anti-men but with reference to some of the reasons why
women seem to be anti-men. Only later in her speech was there a
reassertion of the campaign being anti~loitation, not anti-men.
Two of the unmarried girls present talked of the barriers to women
going out of their households. 1be meeting ended with the resolve
to have a successful and vigorous campaign. though by this time it
was highly uncertain in the minds of all whether the elections would,
after all, be held as scheduled.

Follow up (written Marcb, 1989). 1be z1IJa parlsbad elections were

fmal.ly formally posqxmed. Actually, from the end of December
onwards ~t political activists felt they were likely to be, but there
were assurances at least every other day from the state government
that elections would be held and, more importantly, organizing had
to go on the assumption that they might be. Finally, elections were
'postponed' with the simple technique of sending a telegram on the
night of January 25 asking district collectors not to send the orders
(that had to be sent the following day) that would get the machinery
roiling for elections to be held on February 26, 1989. A few days later
it became clear what the Shankarrao Chavan state government was
waiting for. there was a court decision, on a case brought by a
government-linked organization working among tribals, declaring
that lists of Scheduled Tribe (and thus all) voters would have to be
revised before elections could be held. This presented the govern-
ment with an excuse for indefinite postponement. The elections are
still indefinitely postponed-with vague promises that they will be
held by July, l~in spite of the recently proclaimed dedication of
the central government to the revitalization of the panchayatl raj
system. This postponement brought some sort of relief to activists
256 .A space wttbin tbe Struggle

who had been feeling that they had been ttying to organize something
too big and too quickly; but it cut off the process of fonning the
Samagra Mahila Aghadi and left the 'unknown' force of rural women
still largely unknown and unassessed-particularly in a situation
when all other women's organizations and political parties had either
not come to grips with the question of women's political power or
were eager to bury all mention of it.
It has been argued (for example, by Madhu Kishwar in an essay
entitled 'Nature of Women's Mobilisation in Rural India: An Ex-
ploratory Essay' published in Economic andPolitical Weekly, Decem-
ber 24-31, 1988) that the Shetkari Sanghatana women are much less
enthusiastic about the Samagra Mahila Aghadi programme than their
activity as She®lri Sanghatana members. In the experience of this
researcher, this is not true. Most of the activists are very loyal to
Shetkari Sanghatana and its leader, dependent on the main organiza-
tion and uncertain of their own strength if organizational backing is
not strong; but that is a different matter. One must also examine the
context and form within which women press their opinion. The same
Shetkari Sanghatana women activists who speak up bolilly to Shetkari
Sanghatana men, have a reputation in the organization as 'feminists',
and in fact act in feminist ways (making unconventional marriages
etc.) will, when confronting 'outside' (i.e. urban, middle-class etc.)
women researchers or activists, stress their identity as organizational
members and argue heatedly that 'the problems of rural women are
entirely different, they're purely economic, urban and rural women
have nothing in common!' (The situation is somewhat similar to the
refusal of black and working class women in the United States to
identify themselves as 'feminists' when asked direct questions, while
in terms of almost any 'objective' scale they score higher than white,
middle class women on the average). The women activists' en-
thusiasm for the SMA programme has been shown in various ways.
One was a decision made by a January 1989 Vidarbha regional shibir
(ofShetkari Sanghatana Mahila Aghadi, not SMA), the strongest centre
of women's actiVism, to gberao district offices if elections were not
held; this was taken in Sharadjoshi's absence and, as he put it 'against
my judgement.' At another time, this researcher happened to be
travelling on a train from Pune to Karad. The train was full of Shetkari
Sanghatana people coming from Wardha and Amraoti to a rally which
 1be Farmers· Mooemenl In Maharashtra 257

was to be held in Kolliapw on October 15, 1989. 1n the car where the
women activists had collected, one of the boys raised a debate: 'You
Samagra Mahila Aghadi women only want to go into politics and leave
men with all the work. What will happen to the home? Isn't that the
woman's responsibility?' A lively debate ensued a~ the women refuted
these points. Women are clearly fighting, in their own way, a kind of
struggle within the organization and within their own social environ-
ment on these issues; for boys have also been heard to grumble, 'You
shouldn't many Samagra Mahila Aghadi women; they have too much
in their heads.'
What has happened as a result of the stymied, stagnated zilla
parishad campaign? Along with other examples of women coming
forward in politics (there have been numerous local cases, as noted
above, of women coming into gram panchayats or exerting their
desire for a share of political power in various ways, but the SMA was
the first to project this on a mass, state-wide basis) the campaign has
certainly played a role in bringing the issue of women's political
participation on to the agenda of general politics. One of the few
conc~e recommendations of the recent National Perspective Plan
for Wbmen was to suggest 30 per cent reserved seats in panchayati
raj boqies for women (issued 1988).8 Some tinie later the Janata Dal
offered to give 25 per cent tickets for women (1988)9 and an AICC
session on November 1988 then both supported the 30 per cent
reservations proposal10 and recommended that Congress itself give
30 per cent tickets (Times oflndta, 1988). In fact, the NPP suggestion
of 30 per cent reservations placed most of the opposition women's
organizations in a quandary; few of the parties they are connected
with are ready to give 30 per cent tickets, and some of them are in
principle against reservations. But they could not oppose the sugges-
tion of reservations without seeming to be less progressive on
women's issues than the Ccingress (I)! Thus, all opposition party-con-
nected women's organizations and some independent ones, have
acceptedthe proposal of 30 per cent reservations. In contrast, Samagra
Mahila Aghadi sentiment (there has been no official resolution on the
issue) is overwhelmingly agalnstreservations: 'we don't want reser-
vations, we can win on our own strength, and anyway we are going
for 100 per cent.' But it has to be noted that the talk of 25-30 per cent
and the reality of at least a substalltial increase in women's political
258 A Space u·itbln tbe Struggle

representation in India has come about n()( because of a leading role

played-by the established women's organizations (whether they are
'autonomous feminist' or the well-known party-connected organiza-
tions) but due, in large measure, to the challenge laid down by
peasant women, acting both spontaneously and through a front such
as the Samagra Mahila Aghadi.
Recently, another such dramatic challenge has emerged in
Maharashtra. The Nanded session of the Shetkari Sanghatana (10-12
March, 1989) resolved to ask the Samagra Mahila Aghadi to consider
putting up women candidates for Lok Sabha elections; if the Shetkari
Sanghatana would support them. This came about apparently be-
cause for the Shetkari Sanghatana, while the Congress (I) and Shiv
Sena are named as clear enemies, the 'natural alliance' with the Janata
Dal-led opposition cannot be made because of the complete disil-
lusionment of Shetkari Sanghatana activists with the opposition and
because of general pressures from the peasant movement n()( to get
identified with any political force. There was in fact reportedly a good
deal of 'mass pressure' from the peasants to 'put up our own
candidates' on the grounds that in the past they had supported
opposition fronts and had been betrayed. But for Shetkari Sanghatana
to go directly into politi<.."S would be in contradiction with its non-
political stand (and directly providing grounds for building oppor-
tunism within the organization). The 'solution' was to ask women to
stand as candidates. Of course, there is a considerable difference
between the Lok Sabha and zilla parishads with regard to women's
participation: local elections can be fought collectively, as part of the
movement, and with mass participation from women of all rural
sections (poor, landless, rich, educated, uneducated) as candidates,
and with the hope of getting a majority control in at least some
cases-and thus becoming part of giving a new (and feminist) thrust
to panchayati raj itself. This is not true for the Lok Sabha. Nevertheless,
there is no reason why women candidates cannot be found who are
at least as good as the normal run of party-chosen male candidates
and who, standing on the progressive platform of SMA, would have
a wide popular appeal. Samagra Mahila Aghadi 'as such' has n()( yet
taken a stand on the Lok Sabha issue, but it seems that Shetkari
Sanghatana will put up such candidates for rural seats, while we may
wait and see if there Is any independent response by any section of
 7be Farmers' Movement tn Maharashtra 259

urban women lo take advantage of the opponunity lo stand as

candidales.
In fact, the fighl of women for a share in political power has
increased dramatically In lhe last few years all over lhe world. Ex-
amples include the Feminist Alliance in Peru, and lhe Women's
Alliance in Iceland; the fact thal nOl only did Benazir Bhutto win in
Pakislan bul that women candidales--some standing as inde-
pendents, some on party tickets, bul on platfonns thal stressed
women's issues won a larger share of the vOle than 'left' candidales
as a whole in the same elections. In India, nOl only do we find
innumerable village-level examples of women opting for political
power, but lhere is increasing talk among elile women (for instance
at the 1987 National Women's Studies Conference in Waltair) of the
need for a 'women's party.' Samagra Mallila Aghadi, for all its uncer-
tainties and ups and downs, has been a crucial part of this process
and will continue to remain so in the days ahead.

. APPENDIX I:
MANIFESTO OF TiiE SAMAGRA MAHILA AG HADI

The Samagra Mahila Aghadi is lhe unity of women transcending

differences of caste, religion, sect, language and province. The
November 10, 1987 women's conference al Chandwad gave the
slogan of fighting lo take control of ziUa parishads and panchayat
samitis in the forthcoming elections. The Shetkari Sanghatana and
many other organizations of peasants and loiters have given full
support to this decision.
For centuries the fruits of productive labour have been snalched
away on the basis of brule force and violence. The true losers in this
process have been women. Due lo the insecurity in society women
have been forced to bury themselves in the home. They have also
been forced lo mulely bear atrocities in the home.
In the 40 years since independence, exploitation has become even
more ferocious. In lhe city-based regime of the black sahibs, the
village goondas and city dadas run lheir empires.
26o A Spuce wtlbtn tbe 5'"'88/e

Co-operative societies, factories, zilla parishads and panchayat

sarnitis have become the preserve centres of village goondas. So that
women may live without fear, the very first programme of the
Samagra Mahila Aghadi is to capture the fortress of the goondas, that
is, the institutions of panchayati raj.
Through taking in hand panchayati raj women's participation in
public life will increase. 1be !Utus of mothers and sisters will rise.
Mainly, the direction of development will be seen from a woman's
perspective. Priority will be given to such programmes as women's
health, nutrition, drinking water facilities and cleanliness. Today we
see only the ferocious dance of conuption and selfishness. These will
be checked and real programmes of development taken up. If
obstacles are brought against this, pressure will also be exerted upon
the State.
The Samagra Mahila Aghadi will accomplish the important task of
tearing up the roots of the rule of village goondas and creating an
atmosphere free from fear in the villages.
The Samagra Mahila Aghadi will give priority to the following
programmes of development:

(1) The schemes that have been undertaken for irrigation, tanks
and dams have mainly been geared towards providing water for
the fields and factories, for the financial profit of the contractors
of big projects, and for political games. No one has given thought
to the women who have to walk miles every day with pots ·o n
their heads only to get drinking water. Samagra Mahila Aghadi
will take this programme in hand.

(2) Health projects are proclaimed, and in these the convenience

of the multinational drug companies is seen to, the question of
promolion for government servants is considered important.
Crores of women even today still have to use the open fields as
toilets. Mothers and babies are not taken care o f. With attention
to the needs for rural health, a programme of useful medical
facilities will be undertaken.

(3) Fuel ;.nd energy schemes have been taken up for the benefit
of industrialists and foreign and national technology. No con-
sideration has been given to the woman who wanders on thorny
 7be Farmers' Movement tn Maharashtra 261

paths gathering twigs and sticks for her evening cooking. The Samagra
Mahila Aghadi. will take up various programmes in order 10 provide
sufficient fuel for every health in the village.

( 4) Under the name of employment schemes women have been

given the work of digging ditches and breaking stones. The
Samagra Mahila Aghadi dedicates itself lo seeing that no woman
will ever again be forced, like Akkabai Rajpul of Dhule, 10 go
on breaking stones up 10 the last minute of her delivery pains.

(5) The Samagn Mahila Aghadi has taken up the programme of

taking control of the pancha}'21i raj institutions throughout
Maharashtra. Only if these inslitulions are released from their
economic slavery 10 the State can this programme actually be
achieved. For this purpose schemes 10 increase the economic
strength of these institutions will also be taken in hand.

APPENDIX II:
RESOL1JTION ON TIIE POIInCAL SITUATION
(Adopted Cbandwad, Nastlrl Dtstrlct, Maharashtra on 9-10 Novem-
ber 198'7)

This women's conference notes that;

all the political and parochial forces are dragging the nation 10
rapid ruination and the first Indian Republic is on the point of
collapse;

the worst victims of the present system include not only those
earning their livelihood on agriculture, but women from all
sectors of the country;

nothing in sight promises a political alternative that will establish

a decentralized democratic wucture;
the whole countryside has come under the sway of goonda
leaders thriving on political power and economic institutions;
262 A Space u>itbtn tbe Struggle

the resulting insecurity has been, in particular, harmful to

women.

Tilis women's conference therefore resolves that:

Resolution No. 3.3.1.

With a view to breaking the impasse all women in Maharashtra
should unite to secure power up to the district level, and with
this end in view, all women's organizations should come
together and present a unified list of women candidates in the
forthcoming elections and request the Shetkari Sangh.atana to
support this initiative on the part of the women in the forthcom-
ing zilla parish.ad and panch.ayat samiti elections.

APPENDIX Ill:
SHETKARI SANGHATANA MMDI.A AGHADI AND S~GRA
MMDI.A AGHADI

There is obviously a great deal of overlap between the Shetkari

Sanghatana Mahila Aghadi (the 'women's front' of Shetkari San-
ghatana) and the Samagra Mahila Aghadi (the broad platform formed
originally to fight zilla parishad elections). The SSMA is after all the
biggest component of the SMA, which means its women activists
themselves belong to both organizations and function (at different
times) as members of both. But there is still a formal and some actual
difference, and the SSMA deserves some study in Its own right. Some
points can be made here:
(1) Structure : The Shetkari Sanghatana itself, (an organization
formed in 1979-80), has only gradually developed a formal structure
(it still apparently has no constitution) which includes pramukbs
(generally referred to as 'representatives' in English, though there is
no formal election procedure) at the regional, district, taluka and
market village (a cluster of villages centering around a main market
town or village) levels. The district and regional pramukhs together
with Mahila Aghadi pramukhs and an elected president and vice-
 7be Farmers' Mooemenl In Mabamsbtra 263

president fonn the executive (AlaryaAramO which seems to have had

meetings three to four times a year. Presidents are changed, by
tradition, every two years, and this al.so tends to be true of other levels
of prarnukhs. There is a high-level 'advisory committee' made up of
pasl presidents plus SharadJ<»hi, who aside from this (and somewhat
like Gandhi in relation to Congress) has no official position in the
Shetkari Sanghatana. Major decisions are voted on in the executive
and ratified in the open 'sessions' of the Shetkari Sanghatana-of
which the Chandwad Women's Session was one.
There are periodic training shibirs for activists (a long series of
these was held in the May-August 1987 period) in which the 'thought
of Shetkari Sanghatana' is presented and issues ranging from religious
fundamentalism, women's liberation, peasants and literature etc ., are
al.so discussed. For nearly two years a weekly 24-page newspaper,
Gyanba, linked with the Sanghatana, was published; this has now
fallen victim to internal organizational struggles but an organ, Sbetkarl
Sangbatana, has temporarily replaced it.
The structure of the SSMA, the women's front, parallels that of the
Shetkari Sanghatana except that it is much 'weaker'-that is, positions
are filled only down to dislrict levels in some ca.ses and, in the stronger
dislricts, to taluka levels. These women pramukhs (we may as well
call them 'activists') were chosen following the Chandwad session
apparently in a process of co-option by male activists·who sought out
what they considered to be competent women. The activists come
from a range of backgrounds; most are apparently from rich peasant
households (though they have been known to admit after a period of
time that they have never had any authority over the land of their
husbands or fathers); but the dislrict praml1khs (of which there were
several in 1988) included at least one Jandlesc; rural person (the
low-caste woman who made the unconventional marriage referred
to earlier) and one dalit woman who is a slum dweller in a dislrict
tOWJl-Q sort of living proof of 'Bharat' including the slum dwellers
of the cities. These leading activists normally have husbands who are
members or at least sympathizers of the Shetkari Sanghatana-but
no one has a husband who is a major activist (a dislrict or regional
prarnukh). This situation appears to contrast with that of the party-
linked women's organizations such as the Democratic Women's
Federation, and the National Federation of Indian Women, whose top
264 A Space wUbtn tbe Struggle

women leaders are generally wives or sisters of top male party

leaders. In a sense, the SSMA lacks this 'top' level-upper caste,
mainly brahmin urban women coming out of a highly politicized
tradition of participation in national and left movements. lbey repre-
sent rural or small town elite (and not always so elite) women entering
into organizational and political life at a very different time and under
different circumstances.
(2) Acttvists and masses : There is no formal 'membership' in
Shetkari Sanghatana (participation/sympathy is shown by wearing
the badge) and thus of course no formal membership in the SSMA.
The SSMA women activists--many of whom have only recently
come into organizational and political life--are much less ex-
perienced, have much less mass contact and are still, for social
reasons, .(responsibilites of housework and patriarchal fears of
women wandering alone) less able to travel around than male ac-
tivists--have a very problematic relationship with the masses of
women in Shetkari Sanghatana. They have only begun to build
networks of their own and get known (individually or collectively) at
a mass level as leaders. Sharad Joshi can, at any time, go over their
heads to appeal to the masses of women; this is also in a sense true
with the male activists but male activists have--in comparison to
women-their own resources and personal networks and sources of
power.
(3) For a long ~. Shetkari Sanghatana women activists func-
tioned mainly as Samagra Mahila Aghadi. This was because the
<;handwad session was followed by a period of struggle of Shetkari
Sanghatana, and when women's programmes/issues were taken up
it was from the time of the June 1987 shibir through about May 1988,
asSamagra Mahila Aghadi and with some participation of the non-in-
volved, mainly in Shetkari Sanghatana agitations. With zilla parishad
elections postponed, the functioning of SSMA was revived, with a
three day shibir of SSMA activists held in February 1989 at Ambethan.
(There have also been local and regional shibirs in which identifica-
tion as SSMA or as Samagra Mahila Aghadi has been fairly, am-
biguous). At the Ambethan shibir the women took the decision that
rather than trying to take up women's issues 'as women' (women
specific issues) they would concentrate on increasing the mass and
independent participation of women in Shetkari Sanghatana
 The Farmers' Movement tn Maharashtra 265

programmes. (See Sbetkarl Sangbatalt, February 1989). Some the

factors behind this decision seem to be: a response of loyalty to a felt
organizational crisis within Shetkari Sanghatana and the expressed
desire of women activists to increase their power as women, collec-
tively and individually, within the Sanghatana itself. At a Malkapur
executive meeting on January 15-16 1989, women activists had raised
questions such as why women could not be regular 'district
pramukhs' (implying the secondary station of the women's front); and
several had volunteered to be part of a team of Shetkari Sanghatana
activists who would tour full-time for a year on Sanghatana work.
nus shibir decision might be taken to indicate a 'step backward'
from a feminist point of view in 'giving up' on organizing on 'women's
issues.' Yet it can be noted that the same shibir drew up a list of ways
in which women are specially oppressed (see Shetkari Sanghatana,
op.cit.) and a somewhat earlier Vidarbha regional shibir-held in the
strongest area of the SSMA-had decided to press the Sarnagra Mahila
Aghadi issue by gheraoing district offices if elections continued to be
postponed. It is also interesting that the Nanded Shetkari Sanghatana
session in March 1989 included a programme for the SSMA to attack
alcoholism and gambling in the villages; Sharad Joshi had earlier
rejected anti-alcohol women's campaigns on strategic grounds and
he has admitted that the Nanded decision was 'inconsistent' with the
earlier stand.
( 4) Many of the SSMA women activists also work in ways outside
of formal SSMA or SMA functioning. Some have been involved in
taluka level mabila mandals of other manches (organizations) and
have done this consciously as a way of associating the 'more conser-
vative, middle class' women with women's issues. Many have at
different times become involved with other local activists in leading
spontaneous anti-atrocity demonstrations; and have participated in
various ways in programmes of other women's organizations. Par-
ticipation of a few activists in the Nari Mukti Sangarsh Sammelan
(organised in Patna, Bihar February 5-8, 1988) was done 'officially'
after an extended discussion in a shibir of women activists; in other
cases women have simply attended programmes or have been taken
as representing the SSMA or SMA without any such formal proce-
dures. Formal decision-making processes in fact are still very trun- ·
cat ed.
266 A space wttbln tbe St"'IJ8le

Most o f the above observations regarding dependence o n ma.le

activi5ts, the problematic relation of women activists w ith the masses
of women in Shetkari Sanghat.ana, the weakness of structure and
forma l decision-making procedures are in fact true of all mass
women's fronts. Compar.1.tively, the Samagrn. Mahila Agh..adi is muc h
more unstrua:ured a nd lacking in formal structure than the SSMA, but
this is al least panly due 10 the incomple1eness of the process of its
formalion and the failure/ slowness of other women's organizations
and non-Shetkari Sangha t.ana women aciivists in associa ting with it.

NOTES

Sec. for insuiocc. Agrawal (1985): Kalp;igam (1986); O mvedt

0989); Me ncher and Snadamoni (1982); Nayya r 0 987);
S..radamoni 0987). In my own study in 1980. 1 found in onevilbge
a total of239 women workers where the 1971 census had counted
only39,andinasceondviUage"'44worlccnwhcrconlynlncWetC
reported ln the rensus (Omvedt. 1981). ll was tlOl that women's
WQJk was 'invisible' in any li1enl .sense or that it was done out of
sight of census 1a ke15; in fad going 1othe.sevillagesforsurveywork
after 10:3().11 am wa.~ usdeM sir>ee the vast majority of women
were in che fldds, not their homes. Yo.."! their work was socially
invisible: the censu s simply did not count the.se women as
·workers.' Recognit ionoftho...,,.,de.:p-seated fallaciciof the~
should also lead us lo be extremely w::uy about generall.aldom
about women·s dee/ming work participation (suppoaedlr • a
resuh of·green revolution"10..-chnology) in agriculture..__..
pe!1dt:ritt. Some types of work may be: declirm& ~
example care of mik:h c-~nle. other types of~
ganized secto( work ) may be increasing.
See Omvedt 0981) and personal obselVlltkln;
S..radamoni,(1982);Suacbmoni(l987}, !Jhatl
An analysis of sutist ic-..il data rela1ing to W Ill
in agric:ukure sl~ independence--dealin
trends in inequal ity--l.s given in Gail On
'1be ChallenlK' ofttw f~rrrn'f'~ Mov
less agriculrunl lahou=s; as they are 90 often and sloppily
descrlbtd),onlylhecemus.showsadeargrowthfrom 16perttl'll
of all workers in 1951 lO 26 per ttnt in 1971 (and !hen a sligh1
decline IO 25 per ttl'll in 1981). But ttmus Slatlstial, as we have
already.sttn,arelngeneralhighlyquestioriable. lnparticular,
calrubting the percentage of agriculruflll labourers by (male and
female) total agricullut:i1l labourers plus rullivaiors Is bound lO give
an inflated figure for the agrirultural labour peittnUge bca.use of
lhe tremendous uriderestimatiorl of WQfTICn cullivatOf!I. If we uke
male agriculluflll bbourers divided by male agricuhuflll labourers
plus rultivaton we get a more rcaliMic figure---and it is riotewonhy
!hat this figi.ire is 31 per ttnl for 1981 , quite dose lO 1he Rural
Labour Enquiry figure of 30 per ttnt for agriculruflll labourer
hou.iiehoMbinl977-78.
Ududing lhe Agrirulrural Labour Enquiry figure for 1950-51
(which c alculated the perce nt a ge of agricuhuflll Jabour
howdiokb :IOCO!ding 10 1he til'l'W mer00er$ 5pend in their own
fieldsa.sagai1U1worttingfor01hen, ratherlhan accordingtolhe
inromedcrived from lhe various50llrcnasallsubsequcntsurveys
calcula1e it) , the Agricultural Labour-Ruflll Labour Enquiries
show a very mild growth in the percenuge of agrlrulruflll laboureT"
househoki<;(a.sa perttntlgeofall niflll households), from 245
perttntinl 956-57; 2 1 . 8percentin l ~5;25.9percentln
1974-~: 29.9perccm in 19n-78. Even the 1977-78dau are.slightly
qUf'Sl:ionable .since they seem to go with a puuling rise, according
10the5Urvey,of1he1oul numberof nind households (from 80.I

...........
million in 1974-75 1095.7 million m 1977-78, which is dearly

lallWl respea,Ran111 5.:i.u'$ thcsis of•irnrnisenttion ' r.11herlhan

-tsllllniu tion ' seems 10 most adequately capture 1he
trmdl aMOClitcd with the development of ca piialbm in

men \Vorket$ in the Unorganiz.cd and Self-

lleport prcp;ired for lhe National Labour ln-
llber 1967), Table 2.
, Land and Rice Production: Women's invol-
' lfamomlcaml l'oHHcaJWooW"yAprll l961,
268 A space wUbln tbe Shu/Jsle

March-June 1981} when meetings between Tikal1 and Joshi look

place, and !he ISCC was reconstituled as~ Kisan Coordinating
C:Ommittee. Bui a uniled rally on October 2, 1989 was broken up
by Tikail; !his led 10 a splil in the KCC, with mosi of the state units
remaining with joshl's Shedcari SanghalaJla In !he KCC, bu! Tikail
reialnlng his WCS!em U.P. BKU base and some sections of sup-
porters in Olher Sla!Cs. (See 'Tikail vs. Joshi: Beyond October 2.'
Frontier, November 11, 1981}). But importanl differences in char-
aeler and perspective be!ween Tlkait and Joshi and between the
BKU and Shedcari Sanghatana, still remain, reflecting in part the
social-hislorical differences beiween north-weSI India and south
India (especially Maharashtra). Shelkari Sanghalana boys who
wen1 10 Meeru1 In January 1988 for a BKU rally commenled on
these differences: 'You can '! say anylhing there withoul taking !he
name of Rama or Krishna in every sentence; bul we can talk about
exploitation in scientific 1erms.' The differenatS are obvious (com-
pare !he Arya Samaj tradition with the Saiyashodhak movemenl
and Ambedkar movemenl In Maharashtra; Kanshi Ram with
Prakash Ambedkar as dall1 leaders) and importanl for women. This
Is noi 10 say tha1 the Maharashlrian 'peasanl cuhure' is nOI also
patriarchal, bul !he tradilional work participation of women and
the democratic anti-cas1e spiril coming ou1 oflhe Phule-Ambedkar
tradition make ii significantly less so than !he stronghold (especial-
ly in the north) of the Rama-Sita tradition and Hindu conservatism
For more on the 'new peasanl movements' (11 should be DOied
lha! the lenninological distinction belween 1he supposedly com-
mercial-orienled 'farmer' and the subsislence-o~ed 'peasan1'
cannOI be made in any Indian vernacular), see Gail Omved!. 'The
"New Peasant Movemenl" in India.' BulleUn of Q:mcerned Asian
Scholars 20, 2, April-June 1988; Semtnar 352, 'Symposium of
Farmers' Power' December 1988 including articles by Arvind Das,
Ghanshyam Shah, Gail Omved! and D .N. Dhanagare; Dipankar,
Gupta, 'Country-Town Nexus and Agrarian Mobll iza1ion:
Bharatiya Kisan Union as an Instance,' F.conomic and Poltltcal
Wedrly, December 17, 1988.
8. The National Perspective Plan with a suggestion of 30 per cenl
reserved seats was announced al a press conference on March 7,
1988; cf. Maharashtra Herald, March 8, 1988; see also Kumud
Sharma, 'Providing 'Compensa1ory justice': Drafl Nalional
Perspective Plan for Women,' F.c<momtc and Poltltcal W~y. July
16, 1988; and Pamela Philipose, 'Crumbs for !he Other Half,'
Sunday ObserverJuly 12, 1988.
 Tbe Farmers' Movemenl mMabamsbtm 2(:/)

9. The Janata Party, for some time, had talked of 25 per cent places
for women and at the founding of Janara Dal !his was the figure
taken; see 'Now,Janara Dal' and 'Towards and Alternative: Inter-
view w.it V.P. Singh' in Prondineoaober 29-November 11, 1988.

10. The AJCC(l) meeting was on November 5, 1988; see '8-Point Cong.
plan ro banish poverty,' 7Jmes ofJndta, 6 November 1988.

REFERENCES

1. Bina Agrawal, 'Work Parlicipa!lon of Rural Women in Third World:

Some Dara and Conceptual Biases' F.conomtc and PolUlcal Weft{y,
December 21-28, 1985.
2. ]. Bhati and O.V. Singh 'Women's Conttibution to Agricultural
Economy in Hill Regions of Northwest l.ndill,' F.conomtc and
PolutcaJ WeriiyApril 25, 1987.
3. Dipankar Gupca, 'Counrry-Town Nexus and Agrarian Mobilization
Bharatiya Kmn Union as an lnslance,' Economic and PolutcaJ
W~December 17, 1988.
4. U. Kapalgam, 'Gender in Economics: The Indian Experience'
F.conomlc and Pol11tcal WetAily0aobcc 25, 1986.
5. Madhu Kishwar, 'Nature of Women's Mobilization in Rural l.ndill:
An Exploratory Essay,' F.conomlc and PolUlcal Weelrly December
24-31, 1988.
6. Joan Mencher, and K. Sardarnoni, .'Muddy Feet, Dirty Hands : Rice
Production and Female Agricultural Labour' Economic and Poltl1-
cal W~March 15, 1982.
7. Rohini Nayyar, 'Female Participation Rates in Rural India'
F.conomk and PolutcaJ Weriiy December 19, 1987.
8. Gail Omved!, Flfects ofAgrlcubuml Development on the StaJus of
Women, Geneva: !LO monograph, 1981.
-The New Peasant Movement in India,' Bullettn of Concerned
Arian Scbolan, :!n, 2, April-June, 1988 (a).
- 'New Movements,' Seminar 352: 'Symposium on Farmers'
Power', December 1988 (b).
-'Women Woriters in the Unorganl7.ed and Self-Employed Sec-
tors,' AKlff40, August, 1989.
270 A Space wttbtn the St"'81Jle

9. K. !)aradamoni, 'Labour, Land and Rlce Produaion: Women's In-

volvement in Three States,' Economic and PolU1cal Wee.fiiy April
25, 1987.
 Notes on Contributors

K.AJITI-lA has been prominent in the Naxalite movement in Kerala

and was imprisoned for several years after the Telicherry and Pulpally
ac.tions she describes., She now lives in Calicut, Kerala :ind is active
in voicing women's issues in Kerala.

U.VINDHYA teaches Psychology at Andhra University, Vishakhapat-

nam. She has a deep and ongoing involvement with the civil liberties
movement in Andhra Pradesh.

NANDITA GANDHI lives and works in Bombay. She is a member of

the Forum Against the Oppression of Women, and of the All
Maharashtra Coordination - Stree Adhikar Sampark Samiti. She has
been actively involved in campaigns and issues of the women's
movement and has wrinen and published widely on this.

GOVIND KELKAR has a long involvement with women's issues in

theory and practice. She is a social scientist and lives in Delhi. Her
current work is on women and land in Bihar.

CHETNA GALA was active in the Bihar movement, and is now

working with people's initiatives in Satara district in Maharashtra. She.
has also been very involved with the women's wing of the Shetkari
Sangathana, a peasant's party.

VIMLA BAHUGUNA lives and works at the Parvatiya Nav Jiwan

Mandal Ashram at Silyara in Dehradoon district. She has a long
involvement with Chlpko and the Himalayas and has been one of the
moving forces behind the movement.

MAOHU PATIIAK is the daughter of Sunderlal and Vimla Bahuguna

and shared her parents' involvement with the struggle. She now lives
in Dehradoon.
272 A Space wltbtn the S'"'81Jle

NIRMALA SATHE has been associated with the Shramik Sangathana

and the Shramik Stree Mukti Dal for many years. She has also been a
member of the Bombay based Forum Against the Oppression of
Women. She continues her involvement with women's organizations
from Pune, where she now lives.

NAUNI NAYAK lives and works in Kerala. She has been actively
involved with the struggles of the fishworkers in Kerala and has
written and published articles and booklets on this.

CHHAYA DATAR currently works at the Tata Institute of Social

Sciences in Bombay. A well known writer in Marathi, she is associated
with Maitreni, a women's support group, and with the Stree Adhikar
Sampark Samiti.

GEETiiA works full time in the Tamil Nadu Construction Workers'

Union. She is also a founder member of Pennurimai Iyakkarn, an
activist group of women in Madras and other cities in Tamil Nadu.

IUNA SEN is a researcher and activist based at Raipur, Madhya

Pradesh. Between 1982 and 1987 she worked with the women of the
Mahila Mukti Morcha and was associated with the organization at
Dalli-Rajhara.

SHEELA BARTiiAKUR is a founder member of Lekhika Sangh, an

. association of women writers, and teaches in Darrang College, Tez-
pur.

SABITA GOSWAMI is a journalist based in Guwahati who covers the

north east for the BBC. She has been closely involved in the Assam
agitation.

GAIL OMVEDT is based ;u Kasegaon, in the Sangli district of

Maharashtra. She writes on social and political issues, and is as-
sociated with the work of the Samagra Mahila Aghadi.
 Notes on Readings

This is not an attempt at a full scale bibliography, but a selected list

which may be of some use to those who would like to read more
about the movements described in our case studies. Very little work
has been done on some of the movements described in the book.
11lis may help to explain why the readings listed here are not very
extensive.

1. The Wynad struggle:

The list of English books following Vindhya's article provide
background material for this. In addition, Ajitha's own autobiography
Ormakkurippugal in Malayalam is a ~ood source for material.

2. Srikakulam struggle: See list at the end of article

3. Anti price rise movement: See list at the end of article

4. Bodhgaya struggle: See list at the end of article

5. Chipko:
Chtpko: INTACHEnvironmental Serles no5by Vandana Shiva and
Jayanto Bandopadhyay.
-Shobhitajain 'Women and People's Ecological Movement: A case
study of women's role in the Chipko movement in Uttar Pradesh';
Economtc and Po/tttca/ Weekly October 13, 1984,
-Kumud Sharma 'Women in struggle : A case study of the Chipko ·
movement', Samya SbakliVol 1no2.

6. Dhulia:
-Annual Reports of the Shramik Shanghatan, 197Bn9~80/81
-Suha.S Paranjape etal
Report of the .project 'Self reliance of the people in SS'.
-Nirmala Sathe 'About Stree.M uktt andShramtk Sangbatna 'paper
present at a Lohavala shivir.
274 A Space wttbtn tbe StnliJg/e

-Sujata and Mira 'Case study on Of80ntsing of Landless Tribal

Women tn Maharashtra, paper for the Asian and Pacific Develop-
ment Centre, Kuala Lumpur.

7. Kerala fishworkers:
-John Kurien and T R lbankappan Achari 'Fisheries development
policies and the fishermen's struggle in Kerala', Social Action Vol 38
Jan - March 1988.
-'Programme for Community Organization', Trivandrum. Annual
Report 1987.
-'Programme for Community Organizatiop', Trivandrum, RJpples
and Repurr::usstons, 1984.

8. Nipani:
- Chhaya Datar Waging change: Women Tobacco WorA!e1s in
Mpant Organise Kali for women, Delhi 1989. •

9. Tamil Nadu Construction workers:

To the best of our knowledge, there is no documentation on this.

10. Chhattisgarh:
On Dalli Rajhara, newspaper articles and reports since 19n are
the best source material. A compilation on these 'Patra Patrikaon me
CMSS' was published by the Chhattisgarh Mines Shramik Sangh in
1987.
On Rajnandgaon, there are several books and articles, mostly in
Hindi. Of these the following are important:
-Hari Thakur 7bakur Pyare/a/ Singh (Hindi) Ashish Press Raipur,
1969.
-Ganesh Khare Kranttdoot (Hindi) Shanti Prakashan Allhabad,
1984.
-Nandulal Chotia ]arbu Gond - Shramtk Ando/an ka pahla
Shaheed(Hindi) Amrit Sandesh Praveshank, Raipur, 1984.
In addition the following books give a good background of the
region:
-Prabhudayal Mishra. 7be Polttica/ Htst-Ory of C.hhattisgarb Nag-
pur,1979.
 Notes on Readtngs 275

-Government of Madhya Pradesh Durg dtstrlct Gazetteer Bhopal

1975.

11. AMam:
Newspaper repons and articles during the movement years gave
extensive coverage to this movement. In addition, the following can
also be referred to:
-Assam, the drive against aliens', Economtc and Poltttcal Weekly,
September 29, 1979.
-Sanjib Kumar Baruah 'Assam; cudgel of chauvinism or tangled
nationality question?' Economtc and Poltttcal Weekly March 15, 1980.
-Amalendu Guha 'Little nationalism turned chauvinism: AMam's
antiforelgner upsurge 1979-80,' Economtc and Poltttca/ Weekly Spe-
cial number, October 1980.
-Saswati Ghosh. 'Women in the Assam movement', Amrlta Bazar
Patrlka)une 3 1984, Calcutta.
-Manorama Bhattacharya, lfbomor asttlya rokhar andolanoto
Narlr Bhumtka (Assamese)
-Udayon Mishra 'North East Regional Parties: high hopes and hard
realities.'

12. Farmers' movement in Maharashtra:

The author's own writings, including the present one, are the best
source material.