Pre-poll promises, post-poll precarity
The article profiles Manisha Jadhav, a farm widow in Maharashtra, to illustrate the systemic struggles and social precarity faced by women in rural India. Her story highlights the intersection of economic hardship, gender-based discrimination, and the lack of institutional support for widows.
Why it matters
It sheds light on the human cost of agrarian crises and the social challenges faced by vulnerable populations in rural regions.
In Kherda village of Maharashtra’s Dharashiv district in the Marathwada region, Manisha Jadhav limps into a low-ceiling meeting hall that can barely accommodate 20 people. She favours the leg she injured while working in her soya bean field a few days earlier.
Her eyes drift towards the banyan tree near the entrance. Its trunk is wrapped in layers of white threads tied by married women during the Vat Savitri (Vat Pournima) festival, seeking blessings for an enduring marriage across seven lifetimes. Before joining the other women waiting on the veranda, Manisha walks to the tree and gently runs her fingers over one of the threads.
“ Baghat hote ajun dhage rahilet ki nahi. Sann sampun pandhra-vis divas zalet (I was just checking whether the thread is still intact. It has been nearly 15-20 days since the festival),” she says with a faint smile.
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