Program
Basanti
Basanti
Work area : Pithoragarh district, Uttarakhand
Maati started as a small group of women who came together in the Munisyari region to protest against rampant alcoholism and linked cases of violence against women. In 1994, within a month there were two cases in which husbands burnt their wives to death. It was considered normal or acceptable due to it being a ‘family matter’.
However, sparked by such rising incidents, Basanti and a few others got together, held meetings in several villages and mobilised women, writing postcards to people’s representatives in villages all around. 1000 women came forward for a meeting in Munsiyari where they put forth a memorandum to the SDM asking for the sale of alcohol to be stopped. This protest became a seed from which the sangathan grew into a space for women to meet, talk, express themselves, and share their joys and sorrows.
Maati grew to include more people and far-away villages, working together to build traditional skills of women in knitting and weaving, seed conservation; linking tourism, conservation and livelihoods through homestay and Guide/porter programs. It motivated women to actively participate in the functioning of the Van Panchayats (forest council) and guide the forest department to involve the communities. The collective strength and resolve of women here built tireless resistance against the destruction of local livelihoods, ecology, and social cohesion.
The Home Stay enterprise started by the Sarmoli-Jainiti Van Panchayat with members of Maati was envisioned as a non-extractive livelihood option It was awarded the ‘Best Tourism Village’ in 2023 by the Ministry of Tourism, recognising the long-standing efforts of the communities. Maati plays an active role in the relief and rehabilitation efforts in all cases of disasters in the fragile Himalayan region. Basanti is also an active member of the Uttarakhand Mahila Manch and works with like-minded feminist organisations and women’s collectives.
