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A development process that shrinks and poisons the pie available to poor people, and then leaves women scrambling for a larger relative share, is not in women’s interests. Equality for women is impossible within the existing economic, political, and cultural processes that reserve resources, power and control for small sections of people. But neither is development possible without greater equality for and participation by women.”

- From ‘Development, Crisis, and Alternative Visions: Third World Women’s Perspectives.’ G.Sen & C. Grown. Dawn. 19

About Action India

Founded in 1976, Action India, a voluntary organization based in Delhi, believes in the power of people to change society through education, awareness, and collective action. Our activism was ignited thirty years ago when 700,000 poor people were forcibly relocated from India’s capital city of New Delhi in order to remove the city’s slums.

Action India began by focusing on primary needs in these “resettlement colonies”—education and health care, food, ration cards, and basic services.

After observing the strength of women in the building of their new communities, our facilitators then brought together collectives of women to develop indigenous leadership.

Today these grassroots women’s collectives include our Sabla Sanghs (empowered women’s groups); Mahila Panchayats (grassroots women’s courts for dispute resolution); Chhoti and Nanhi Sabla’s (empowered young girls’ group and empowered adolescent girls’ group); and our emerging women’s task force, the Nari Shakti Vahini.

Action India’s programs have created alternative means of self–help, self-confidence, and helped women gain greater control over their lives. Our work has now evolved to include:

  • Women’s Health and Reproductive Rights: Trainings for women, adolescents, and young girls to promote women-centered health, looking at a woman as a whole person beyond her reproductive functions and strengthening her personal identity and autonomy.
  • Violence against Women: A national-level advocacy campaign against domestic violence that resulted in the recent landmark passage of the Protection of Women against Domestic Violence Act in India.
  • Oxfam’s We Can campaign: Action India is a lead NGO in this campaign to mobilize 30,000 “changemakers” against gender-based violence.
  • Save the Girl Child: Campaigns at the grassroots level to combat India’s declining child sex ratio.
  • Women’s Economic Activity for Empowerment: Women’s economic initiatives through savings and micro-credit programmes,
  • Education for Equality and Civic Participation: An enrollment program for children over the age of eight who have never attended school. We also run a scholarship program that provides girls who have dropped out of school with the opportunity to continue their education and enter the mainstream.
More about us:

5/27A Jangpura B New Delhi 110 014, India
Phone: +91 (011) 2437 7470 Phone/Fax: +91 (011) 2437 4785 Email: actionindia1976@gmail.com

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