MAHILA PANCHAYAT

Women in our society face multitude of problems and crimes. It has been the endeavor of the EFRAH to provide support, create awareness and empower women in various aspects of their lives and, at various levels. While no single programme can address the critical situations that women face almost on daily basis, the programmes that are innovative in nature and women-centric in contents have the potential of delivering rich outputs and lasting impact. The Mahila Panchayat is supported by the Delhi Commission for Women Govt. of NCT of Delhi from 2008. It is an initiative taken by the organisation for the legal empowerment of women and for the redressal of grievances at the community level. The programme is impleneneted in collaboration with thewomen groups that are actively engaged in the development activities at grassroots-levels.
In a Mahila Panchayat a groups of community women, identified by NGOs, form a group in their area, take up local disputes, counsel the parties, take up the cases with concerned authorities and assist in reducing violence in their locality. The programme can be successful in assisting solving cases involving women in distress and making them aware of their rights as citizens of this country.
The Mahila Panchayat Programme being run by the organisation for Women assumes great relevance as a support mechanism for women in distress. But no ways can should it be visualized as an alternate justice mechanism. The Mahila Panchayat will also receive cases from DCW and 181 for enquiry and /or redressal.