FOREWORD
One hundred and eighteen elected women leaders have been profiled in the second volume of
“Women Leaders in Village Panchayats Vol. II”
As we document these profiles and share them with you we continue to be amazed by the
path breaking strides being taken by elected women representatives across the country. These
profiles reiterate our faith and knowledge that women leaders are ensuring that children attend
school, that their villages are equipped with adequate health facilities and that all sections of the
population are aware of and can access government schemes. In short these profiles chronicle the
dramatic transformation taking effect in villages governed by these dynamic women. Yet, this
transformation is silent, as it goes largely unrecorded.
This compendium is an attempt to ensure that the trials and tribulations of elected women
leaders are acknowledged, and their voices are heard. The need to do so is an urgent one, for
it may change the destiny of India’s villages. Without the documentation of its processes and
realities, future generations will never know how the women of rural India stood up and fought,
through the institution of democracy, for their rights and for those of their children. These rights
include the right to govern, but the right to be heard, the right to information, the right to vote
for an able candidate and the right to become a good leader. Above all, they include the right to
holistic, all-inclusive development goals. Women leaders ensure development for all, not just for
the empowered and influential. Their worldview is true to the letter of democracy.
I am positive that you will join me in appreciating the work, dedication, and courage shown by
the elected women representatives we have profiled here. These one hundred and eighteen voices
are but a sample of the kind of work being done in the villages of India.
Rita Sarin
Country Director
THE HUNGER PROJECT