Women Empowerment

“Judge a country by the place it gives its women.” - Mahatma Gandhi

Shanti Sahyog
Center for Women

Funded by Azim Premji Foundation – THE PHILANTHROPY – (since F/Y 2020-21) our Centre for Women, based in Community Centre, 2^nd Floor, DDA Flats, Kalkaji, New Delhi,

provides legal awareness/counselling/aid to victims of domestic violence/abuse, and their rehabilitation through vocational training in Computer Application, Beauty Culture and Cutting & Tailoring. The Centre is a catalyst for bringing about social, economic and legal empowerment of underprivileged women; encouraging micro-enterprises and entrepreneurship development through Self-Help Groups (SFG’s). Adult education and health are other areas of assistance.

From 1^st Sept 2010 to 31^st July 2016, Shanti Sahyog successfully ran a Gender Resource Centre (GRC) Stree Shakti Suvidha Kendra, funded by Mission Convergence, Delhi Govt. It saw an annual footfall of about 7,500 women. Since August 2016, our GRC has been renamed as Shanti Sahyog Center for Women. The following activities were conducted under GRC:

Shanti Sahyog also runs a Centre for Women in Tughlakabad Village, which offers vocational courses in Computer Application, Beauty Culture and Cutting & Tailoring. It also has a Counselling & Legal Aid segment, for victims of domestic violence/abuse, funded by Tibhovam Bhimji Zaveri, since F/Y 2019-20 under their flagship Poject PANKHI.

Our Centre conducted a Nursing Assistants Training Program in F/Y 2016-17, funded by the Australian Government. 120 underprivileged women were trained to be employed as Nursing Assistants in families and hospitals. Their 3 months training in theory by doctors from St Stephen’s Hospital, New Delhi, was followed by one month of hands-on experience in National Heart Institute, East of Kailash, New Delhi. The minimum educational qualification for selection was Std VIII, as reading skills are required to take temperature, blood pressure, read prescriptions etc. Minimum age required was16 years.

NAI ROSHNI

Nai Roshni is a project under Ministry of Minority Affairs for minority women. In this program underprivileged women from minority section have been taught about Legal Rights of Women, Hygiene, Marriage & Divorce Laws, Domestic Violence, Employability etc. NGO Working for Women Empowerment in Delhi

Shanti Sahyog has successfully conducted 5 batches for Nai Roshni program with 25 women in each batch, through which we trained 125 women of Minority from Kalkaji and Govindpuri slums. We have also arranged a crèche facility for the children of women trainees for an uninterrupted pace of training.

Access to Counseling and Legal Aid

Counseling & Legal Aid for women who are often victims of domestic violence / sexual harassment and abuse. Women and children are often at higher risk of violence and abuse in the densely packed slum settings. With low level of literacy rates, women often, are unaware of their legal rights and Government schemes that are in place to help them. Our legal counselor, offers women in the slum communities, aid and counseling, access to government social welfare schemes, and helps them find a voice for themselves and their children.

We recently conducted Nai Roshni program under the auspices of the Ministry of Minority Affairs, Govt. of India. The objective was to raise awareness of social issues and provide legal literacy especially about women rights. They were also taught how to write legal applications and seek legal aid. The primary obstacles to the realization of women’s human rights in India, are social and cultural in nature, deeply rooted in the traditions of its communities

SELF DEFENCE TRAINING

Self Defence training is given periodically to help women protect themselves. They are also counseled to send their children to school instead of having them work long hours for very little returns. They are taught life-skills as well.

Our mobilizers play a vital role in the successful implementation of our schemes for women. They go in the hot summer sun, in the rainy season and in the biting winter cold, visiting every home in our catchment areas – 17 slums in Kalkaji / Govindpuri area of South Delhi & Tughlakabad Village, conveying information about our schemes, collecting details of every family, encouraging them to come to our Center for Women, to avail the benefits offered by the Government to those living below the poverty line.