The main objective of the WDP is to educate and empower women by providing training and support, and initiating IGPs to give women economic independence. When we started the WDP in 1992 we had 11 Self Help Groups (SHGs) whose main activities were credit and saving schemes and Income Generation Programmes (IGPs). There are now 139 women's SHGs. With a total of nearly two thousand members in the credit and savings scheme they've saved almost Rs 900,000. This money is used to give low cost loans to members for general consumption purposes, such as hospital costs and school fees, and to start their own businesses. To maximise the success rate of these enterprises we provide training in new skills and guidance and advice on income generation schemes.

Perumayee lives in Nariyoothu with her husband and two daughters. Both her and her husband used to do agricultural coolie work, they would earn about Rs 900 per month. She took a loan out from her SHG of Rs4000 to start a vegetable business, selling onions in particular. Her husband also works on the business and they now sell around 150kg - 200kg of onions per day. Their average monthly income is now Rs3000, per day they spend Rs50 on living costs and save Rs50. She has had no problem keeping up repayments and her vegetable business capital is now worth Rs5000, she has also bought a goat worth Rs2000. There are many success stories like this one in the IGP.

Peer educator training sessions on key issues such as female infanticide, sexual harassment, Dalith rights, gender awareness and violence towards women provide awareness and bring these issues out into the open. So that the groups can campaign for their Rights we hold training sessions in issue raising strategies, law, communication, organising awareness programmes (street theatre, processions etc), Panchayat Raj (local council), Grama Sabah (four times a year the Panchayat have to meet with the people and discuss future plans and problems - this is called Grama Sabah) and linkages with government officials and local police. Special, intensive training is given to members we have identified as potential leaders with the hope of getting them elected onto the Panchayat. When the re-elections are approaching, we screen our existing candidates to ensure they have not become corrupt.

Since we started training women in these matters we have seen a drop in untouchability practices, with people from BC castes as well as SC and SK castes speaking out against existing discriminations and campaigning for equal rights for Daliths. There has been a reduction in female infanticide, with fourteen babies saved; three went for adoption and the others stayed with their families. Women are speaking out more in public - at Grama Sabah, in village meetings and in the Panchayat. Women are demanding action be taken by the police against acts of violence and sexual violence. These changes have arisen because of knowledge, awareness and the support offered by the SHGs, Clusters and the Federation to demand their Rights.

Successful efforts of SHGs providing advocacy and attaining rights on behalf of members includes a case in Vaikkalparai where SK people were being verbally abused by BC people

when they went to collect water from the village tank. The SHG petitioned the Panchayat to provide a separate tank in the SK area. The Panchayat president declared that the existing tank was a common tank, that anyone could use it and anyone causing trouble would have action taken against them. The verbal abuse stopped after that. Numerous pipeline connections haven now been laid in many streets and there is an acceptance of one another's equal rights to take water.

Each SHG select three members to represent their group in one of eight Clusters and three members from each Cluster are chosen to make up the Vaigai Women's Federation. The Federation handles most of the administration for the SHGs and if problems cannot be solved by the SHGs or Clusters they are taken to the Federation. To ensure the sustainability of SHGs, clusters and the Federation, training is given in accounting, management skills, cluster/SHG administration, annual review and planning, loan appraisal, problem solving and strengthening weak groups/clusters.

We have also started a small programme of forty male Peer Educators (PEs) who we gave training in gender awareness. We have noted numerous changes in their attitudes including increased respect and support for women and women's groups, increased involvement of wives in household finances and decision making, reduction in gambling and alcohol consumption, participation in housework and reduction of sexual partners and domestic violence. They in turn are noticing these changes in the men they have contact with. There has also been a demand for men's SHGs which we have started in a few villages. The main aim of these men's SHGs is to provide training and awareness as we aren't running the IGP for these groups.