The Idea of JMS
JAGRUTHA MAHILA SANGHATANE (JMS) began as an idea of building a community led movement by Dalit Women in the year 1999. JMS was initiated as a small social experiment in and around an insignificant village called Pothnal in Manvi Taluka of Raichur district in 1999. A small group of youth comprising those involved in Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), National Alliance of People's Movements (NAPM) and others with exposure to several socio-political processes along with a few youth from the Dalit community initiated the processes of mobilising and organising Dalit Madiga women.
Caste based violence, atrocities on Madiga Dalit women by other castes, domestic violence, and the oppressive economic and social control by the powerful landlords — this is what signalled JMS' journey for justice and dignity. The journey of JMS is a story of a social experiment aimed at catalysing the birth of a grassroots Dalit women's voice to resist and counter the hegemonies of caste, class and patriarchy.
About JMS — Key Sections
Referring to social movements and liberation of the oppressed masses, Late Baba Amte used to often say: 'Sangharsh without nav-nirman is impotent, nirman without sangharsh is sterile'. Drawing inspiration from this, the two-pronged strategy guided this process — 'sangharsh' (struggle) for rights and 'navnirman' (reconstruction, re-creation) for dignity.
The principles of social emancipation and liberation, propounded by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar guided the whole process — organise/collectivise, educate/conscientise and agitate/struggle. A firm belief and commitment to the human right to life, liberty, dignity and equality has shaped the programmatic action of JMS through its campaigns for political, economic, social and cultural rights of Dalit women.
Through a process of social mobilisation and collectivisation, interrogation of the structures of oppression, Madiga women battled an uphill struggle for justice, equality and dignity. The Dalit Madiga women have come a long way — from not having the space and the power to sit even for an hour at the sangha meetings in villages to entering the thresholds of gram panchayats, district offices and to be able to demand their entitlements.
Governance structure of JMS is in concentric circles:
- Membership and basic units: The village sanghas and labour groups are the building blocks of JMS, and are the basic units. It is headed by a president and a vice-president.
- Karyakarthara Samiti (Coordination Committee): Each sangha with consensus nominates two experienced women with leadership qualities to be representatives. This is the coordination committee or general body of JMS that meets every two months.
- Sanchalana Samiti (Conveners' Committee): Women who volunteered to give full time to the sanghatane in 2005 were nominated with consensus by the karyakartha samiti as the first conveners. This samiti has now five senior women members.
- Associates and supporters [staff]: Periodically, professional staff and those with skills work with JMS on specific campaigns or projects.
- JMS Mentors: JMS is supported by mentors for its technical work who also guide JMS in strategising.
Sanchalana Samiti (JMS Convener Committee)
- Smt. Chinnamma — President
- Smt. Lakshmi — Vice President
- Smt. Sunandamma — Member
- Susheelamma — Member
- Devaputhra — Local community member, associated with JMS since 2000
- Kariappa — Local farmer, community leader in JMS, associated since 2005
The district of Raichur, with its feudal history of being part of Nizam state, provided a perfect context for the embodiment of caste-class-patriarchal mix resulting in violence on Dalit women and violation of their dignity within and outside homes.
Raichur, the drought prone area of the Deccan plateau, was also home to the most marginalised communities in Karnataka, viz. Dalit Madigas. A deadly combination of an entrenched caste system including extreme forms of untouchability and patriarchal values, combined with the practice of slave-labour with pittance of payments was socially enforced in Raichur with an iron hand.
Emerging from these experiences of extreme caste-based oppression, Raichur became the cradle of Dalit liberation movement in early 1980s which was spearheaded by Prof. B. Krishnappa and was called the Dalit Sangharash Samiti (DSS).
JMS women called for the first ever historic 'Pothnal Bundh' and 'rasta roko', protesting against the assault and nude-parade of Yeramma, a Dalit Madiga woman, in Vanenur village of neighbouring Bellary district in September 2001. This historic solidarity and massive public show of strength firmly established the identity of JMS and its future course.
JMS led agricultural workers' struggles to make it a labour movement of all subaltern communities during the prolonged years of drought (2001-2004) which included a historic ban on the paddy harvesting machines in 2004-05.
JMS was the first social organisation in Karnataka which translated the first orders of the Supreme Court of India on the Right to Food PIL into Kannada language and campaigned in 100 villages of Raichur district in 2005.
Raichur district topped India in mid-90's in the number of child labourers. Along with JMS' efforts to make schools accessible to Dalit children, Chilipili Child Labourers' Special School began in the year 2000 in collaboration with the Central Labour Ministry.
Overall, this initiative educated over 1000 Dalit boys and girls in equal number, most of whom were doing 'pledged labour' in the houses of upper castes and landlords. Most of them enrolled in 5th or 6th standard in mainstream schools. Renuka, one such girl from Tadakal village, brought laurels by scoring 78% in 10th Standard.
- Citigroup National Award — Community venture of neem fertiliser (2006)
- Community Leadership Award — Karnataka State Government
- Community Leadership Award — National Commission for Women (2013)
- Dr. E. Premdas Pinto — Human Rights Advocate, public health expert and co-initiator of JMS (1999-2006), continues to mentor JMS in perspective building and strategising
- Dr. M. Bhagyalakshmi — Offers administrative, programmatic and organisational support to JMS
- Ms. Sathyasree Goswami — Gender and Women's Health expert and psychotherapist, mentors youth and gender related work
- Ms. Shruthi D. — Manages communication, social media, documentation and mentors staff
- Dr. Akhila Vasan — Mentors health rights campaign and campaign on violence against women
The journey of liberation is long and the struggle is yet to be decisive. With great humility, JMS hopes that the sparks of this small social experiment will continue to inspire many more to keep the gaze steady on the horizons of new dreams. JMS continues to struggle to keep its heads high and feet firm, even while stumbling through the maze and mess that surrounds the lives of Dalit Women even today!