S. Vathsala

Women Empowerment Through Self Help Groups in Rural Areas: a Study on Women Empowerment Through Self Help Groups in Rural Areas in and Around Chennai S. Vathsala

A life of dignity is the right of every citizen and poverty is an obstruction to a dignified life. Of the 1.3 billion people who live in absolute poverty around the globe, about 55% are women. For these women, poverty doesn?t just mean scarcity and want, rather, rights denied, opportunities curtailed and voices silenced. Women, who represent half of the human resource are often not recognized and regarded so, due to their inferior positioning in the society. Empowerment? is a continuous process by which powerless people become conscious of their situation, organize collectively to improve it and access opportunities, as an outcome of which they take control over their own lives, set their own agenda, gain skills, solve problems and develop self-reliance. Personal empowerment can lead to changes in existing institutions and norms, however, without the collective empowerment the personal empowerment and choices are limited, as Sen explains. The nature of empowerment can be diverse, depending upon the parameters that define the lack of power within the institutional framework in operation. In India, Micro finance intervention have brought tremendous change in the life of women.