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Mumbai, Women's Feature Service: Mann Deshi Mahila Sahakari Bank (Mann Desh Women's Cooperative Bank) was the first poor women's bank in India to get a licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in 1997. Started by the self-help groups (SHGs) spread over Mann Taluka, Satara district, off Western Maharashtra, the bank today boasts of a capital of Rs 4.2 million (1US$=Rs 44) and four computerised branches. No mean achievement, considering that most of the account holders live in the state's drought-prone areas.

The bank idea was initiated by the Mann Samajik Vikas Sanstha (MSVS), an NGO working with poor, illiterate rural women in the drought-affected areas of Satara. In most villages, severe drought conditions and non-availability of employment opportunities forced men to migrate to the cities. Thus the entire burden of the home and hearth fell on the women.

Women's major concern was the lack of income-generating assets. In the agrarian, entirely rain-dependent economy of the district, most men and women work as daily wage labourers in agricultural fields. During a drought, no farming takes place, and the workers are left with no employment avenues. On paper, the government has a system for water-sharing but, in practice, politically powerful persons in the district ensure that this water is diverted for their use.

Besides this, access to funds was severely restricted, as the mainstream banks did not consider low income-earning women as potential customers. In times of crisis, most women were forced to borrow from the village moneylenders, who charged high interest rates. Many women and children were vulnerable to the vicious cycle of hunger and death.

MSVS first encouraged the women to collect Rs 5 or 10 on a weekly basis. The amount would then be lent to one woman to purchase of an asset (usually cattle). This purchase helped the women to earn a steady income and save some money for emergencies.

Today, there are about 300 SHGs, benefiting almost 6,000-7,000 families. The SHG has spawned several small entrepreneurs comprising street vendors, weavers, sheep/goat rearers and dairy product sellers.

Chetna Gala Sinha, 44, who led the bank initiative, and who was part of the Jayaprakash Narain movement in the 1970s, says, "I realised a movement was necessary to bring a change in policy decisions at the macro level. To improve lives in villages, what was required was activity at the grassroots level. The aim was to understand the problems faced by the villages and find solutions tapping the collective strength of the women."

What made it possible? Perseverance and determination to break conventional barriers in a simplistic but effective way, says Sinha. Sinha recounts the determination of the women in convincing RBI officials to grant them a licence to start banking operations. "We understood the RBI's dilemma in giving a licence to a group of illiterate women who would use a thumb impression instead of a signature. But we took a team of women to meet the officials to convince them of our problems. And they could also gauge the potential of the women." The licence to run the operations in Satara, Sangli and Sholapur was granted in 1997.

Sinha proudly says, "Our NPAs (non-performing assets) are only 2.81 per cent and for a bank working on a no-profit philosophy, we had a healthy profit of Rs 148,000 in 2004-05. The bank reaches out to over 24,790 families, who are its saving members."

The bank's savings schemes have been designed to take advantage of the weekly wage payment of the earners. Daily loans are available for buying vegetables or fruits. The credit-in-kind scheme is also on offer, where instead of giving a loan to buy a product, the product is bought by the bank and then lent out to the account holder.

The credit scheme was started after women complained that the loan money they took home to buy a product was used up by the men in the house for drinking. The bank also has a bicycle scheme for girl students who travel a good distance to attend school and cannot afford public transport. Maya Kalele, 12, from Prayanti village says, "I have passed my seventh grade and will have to travel to another village for the eighth grade. My parents were going to withdraw me from school because there is no bus facility to that village. However, the bicycle that we bought with a loan from the Mahila Bank has helped me continue my schooling."

The bank has recently launched the gold loan scheme, offering women loans to buy gold ornaments or giving loans against gold ornaments. Sinha says, "Gold is an ornament for the rich, but for the poor it is a fall-back asset."

A major problem faced by most women has been the harassment they face at home from husbands who want their passbooks in order to keep control over the money. However, the women have found a way out: they use smart cards instead of passbooks. (Smart cards are designed in the manner of credit cards, except that the purpose is to help the holder gain access to account information.)

The voices of the many women who are members of the bank are evidence of its success. Take Nakus Doltade, wage labourer and Director of the SHG federation, who says, "Grants and subsidies did not improve my life, but a reliable bank like the Mahila Bank did." Or Vandana Sazgane, a woman from the shepherd community, who is a shareholder and client of the bank: "I rear sheep and goat, and my husband and I are away for the four months during the rearing season. During this time, my mother-in-law looks after our children. A cell phone loan has helped me be in touch with the kids and family."

The result of these initiatives has been that apart from the increased confidence, women today operate their saving accounts and possess assets - they are joint owners of property and possess animals in their name.

In 2004, the bank convinced the Revenue Department of Maharashtra to include women's name on stamp papers for joint registration of immovable property. This means that the husband cannot sell the property without the wife's consent, nor can he claim the entire property as his own in case of a divorce.

Although run entirely by women, the bank has evolved a way to encourage male participation. Sinha says, "Men who invest in their daughter's education or who go for joint registration of property, are given awards. There is a government scheme called Savitri Bai Puraskar, which is given to villages where all women are co-owners of property. The prize money is a sizeable Rs 40,000-50,000. This instills a sense of pride in the men and motivates them to apply for co-registration."

Women's Feature Service