 The Kudumushri program was started 25 years ago in the Indian state of Kerala by the left Democratic front government. It was part of the government state poverty eradication mission and had the objective of women's social and financial emancipation. The Kudumushri program was set in the context of Kerala government's People's Plan campaign. It's aimed to decentralize power and promote bottom-up planning. It meant giving political control to the masses, enabling them to take decisions on the development and projects they want in their areas. So before the decentralization also there was a discussion regarding women's status in Kerala society. We always say that paradox that though we have very good educational condition, though we have a better health condition, but that crimes against women, the male-shavenist attitude inside and outside family, and the work condition of women are not good. We can't compare these things to a developed society. So at that time there was this discussion that how to use this opportunity of decentralization to make women's life better. So in the decision making process women are not there. Though we had education, though we had good health condition, we are not there in the decision making process. So this was a golden opportunity for Kerala women to intervene in this whole development process. At that discussion in the beginning of the discussion, our first task was how to make women participate in the Gram Sabha because in the Gram Sabha the whole discussion on development happens, what are the issues, what are the solutions, what are the chances to create new things. So the first Gram Sabha, it happens 1996, November 1st. In that Gram Sabha there was a huge campaign for making people participate in the Gram Sabha, but the participation of women were less than 5 percent. It was really depressing because after all these huge campaigns women were not interested in participating in the Gram Sabha because they were not used to attend the development activities. The second Gram Sabha, the government took more effort and we could make women participate more in Gram Sabha, it increased as 10 percent, 11 percent, 15 percent, now you can see after these 24 years you can see in almost Gram Sabha women are majority, more than 90 percent because they are active in every world. There are two-three kinds of activities, one is the economic activities because women, they need work and in Kerala it is not that much work we find, after this MGNR ages women, lot of women are involved in MGNR ages work, but before that these economic activities women were very few, the work participation of women in Kerala also less and they couldn't but they wanted to make, to form micro enterprises, small group, but in what product and how to market it and that was a huge problem. In the beginning they were comfortable working in the household, making something and market in the, use the local market only, so they started working on soap making or pickle or that kind of thing which they are very familiar with. So in the first two-three years that was the main area, soap and pickle making and ready-made and some animal husbandry, mainly chicken farms and that like, but now we can see in every district there are training groups, different training groups run by women only who are experts in different area, so these training groups started giving training to the micro enterprise group. Now you can see more than 30,000 micro enterprises that small groups are working in Kerala under Kudupasri, but we can see that when they started cultivating vegetables in the agriculture sector, actually that became a very good success, story there are many stories, more than 50,000 hectares of land now is cultivated by Kudupasri joint liability group, JLG, joint liability groups, they get bank loan from the commercial banks and in a less interest rate and actually government also supporting them that subsidies through the agriculture department and they are getting training from agriculture department, different agencies and the training group of Kudupasri also helping them. And Kudupasri started Kerala chicken, it is a very good cooperative kind of institution and last year their profit was 100 crore, so it is a success model for Kudupasri. Actually when Kudupasri started they were reluctant to, the families were reluctant to send their women attend meeting outside their homes, women go outside for work, but the family they do not want to send their women for attending other activities, social activities or political activities. So after the 10 years, when this 2000 election also we can see that time one-third reservation was there in the local level, then 2010 50% reservation in the local self-government happened and when the election happened 53% women came into power. At that time I did a study and it was very interesting that in the local government 58% of representatives were women, that means in many general seats women contested and they won't, they won't and by the time that presence of women it was, before that it was a rare thing, but after that decently planning and Kudupasri people started inviting women into discussion and another development activities, so the government also started including Kudupasri in everywhere for a huge campaign or if government wants to take something into the local level they will select Kudupasri as the agency. So Kudupasri started working not just for poverty alleviation program, but it's a development program, so actually that made some change in the attitude of society towards Kudupasri. Kudupasri was not just a poor women's group, but they involved in every activity even in that dengue happened or chicken gunia happened. Kudupasri were the women were, they were the leaders in the local level leading the campaign, so into 2050, 2010 this 50% reservation happened, almost 30-40% of electoral representatives were coming from Kudupasri, they were CDS chairperson or ADS chairperson like that and when this 2015 election happened, at that time also 58% of electoral representatives in the Trump Panchayat, Lok Vidhlaich level were women and the participation of Kudupasri women who were developed as local level leaders through Kudupasri increased and almost 70% of women who elected in the local election were women who were active in Kudupasri, so So, Kudumbashri has become an innovative part of local self-government. It was not the parallel thing, it was very linked to the local self-government activity. There are many social welfare schemes of the department, the Kerala government, run through Kudumbashri. The Kudumbashri will identify the beneficiary, the Kudumbashri will distribute that subsidy or any benefits they get from that government. So, Kudumbashri women become very important persons in the local level. And why I tell this all the history? Because when this flood happened, it was very natural that government take Kudumbashri very seriously and Kudumbashri women were very active in the rehabilitation or relief camps and rehabilitation process and cleaning process. Everywhere Kudumbashri women were there and distributing food during the flood and after that also women were very active. And then Covid came, during Covid this government started this Janagiya hotel, popular people's hotel. Because during Covid many people lost work, especially in the lower income group lost their jobs. It was very difficult to get some money or loans from banks or outside that the government started giving food for minimum price, 20 rupees. You will get a decent food for lunch, breakfast and dinner also. Normally in other hotels that lunch will cost minimum 100 rupees. But in Kudumbashri you will get 20 rupees. And the government will give rise and other things in subsidized rates to Kudumbashri. That was the arrangement. So when Covid, the peak of that Covid actually this people's hotels started. Actually it was a very, it was also a matter of relief that we get food from these hotels by 20 rupees. If we want any special fish or anything we had to pay more, 10 rupees or 5 rupees. So the volunteers started collecting food from these hotels and they will distribute to the whomever need that. Because in many houses they were during the lockdown, they couldn't go out or the cracking food or buying something. So at that time that people's hotel actually got very popular. People's hotel, actually it is a very novel idea and now more than 1000 hotels are running now also, very successfully. We can see the working people, the agriculture workers, MG and RIGs workers, they depend on these hotels and in the cities also. Even Trivandrum, this very, actually during the lunch time you can't get a packet because there will be long queue. So it's very popular. 24 years we can see more and more women active in the political parties. They are participating in election. Now no political parties in Kerala can think election or any campaign without women. It was not like that before. They need only one woman, like the kind of honourary, this ornamental position. But now it's not like that. That participation increased and the leadership also. In all our political parties, committees as electoral representatives and MLAs and in many other positions we can see more and more women who have the experience of working with Kuru Basri or working with local level. It was not like the family tradition or anything like that. But women who have the real experience of working with local level activities with Kuru Basri, they get a good position, good recognition in the political structure and the government structure and even in other organizations also. And we can see some very good leaders in Idoa and in many other organizations. We can see very good leaders who were homemakers before Kuru Basri but they developed as real local level leaders through Kuru Basri. And many political parties always give priority to these women who have very good relationship with contact with the local people. Because actually Kuru Basri itself has a politics in Kerala. It really challenges the exploitation of the MFIs and all other small private banks, exploitation of private banks. So there is a politics of Kuru Basri. It is an alternative way of doing things and it is not like the World Bank sponsored SHGC, it is different. So I think Kuru Basri and the left government and left movement really work together. It is not separated but in Kuru Basri there are many women who have different politics. They are Congress, BJP and many of them don't have any politics. But this politicization of things, it happens in Kuru Basri. Now they discuss about the issues that happened to them, what are the challenges and what is the reason of the problems they face. And I think that is more important. Now Kuru Basri themselves, they are strong enough to resist these kind of challenges.