In the outskirts of Bangalore, Channasandra's Milk cooperative society offers women a chance to earn their own income and therefore, empowerment. These mainly illiterate women run a cooperative society. The women have cows in their backyards which they graze and milk themselves. These women live typical Indian rural lives, but their cows have helped them gain independence and empowerment. The Channasandra Milk Cooperative Society is one among the 1,930 women's societies functioning in the state and it has helped foster this women empowerment. Before, the women had to rely on their husbands but now they have independence with the new self-earned incomes. The money made from the milk has helped improve village lifestyles and women can now afford to send their children private schools. This society has helped women feel empowered and unafraid to be active members of the villages.
1. Why is women empowerment such an important factor when trying to fix other issues such as poverty, education, etc.?
2. What are the benefits of women who are able to make their own income and not being reliant on their husbands especially in poverty stricken areas like India's villages?
This seems to be a very significant development in the lives of women across the country. When considering other issues such as poverty and education women are often the most direct route to increasing the standard of living. As Elizabeth Bumiller wrote in her book, when women make money, they generally spend it on the household. When men make money, the trend is for the money to be mostly spent on other activities. Furthermore, many studies have shown that the easiest way to increase literacy levels is to encourage the parents to allow their children to go to school. Once one member of the family understands the importance of education, the chances are that education will continue to be an important value in the family for the next generations as well. The benefit of a woman being able to be self sufficient is that it not only helps the household survive and often takes a family of poverty, but also gives women the option of taking charge of their own lives and not relying on a husband or family member. In some cases, having work allows a woman to escape an abusive marriage since she is now self sufficient. As seen in the southern state of Kerala, granting a woman independence is equivalent to increasing literacy rates and decreasing poverty. There is currently a 100% literacy rate in Kerala, which is attributed not only to the Communist government there but also to the emphasis placed on women as a matrilineal society.
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