Orissa High Court stays 2 provisions in new guidelines for women SHG groups
A bench of justice Sashikanta Mishra issued notice to the state government and posted the case for the next hearing on May 15
BHUBANESWAR: The Orissa High Court on Monday stayed till the next hearing two provisions of the new guidelines for Mission Shakti that were notified by the Mohan Charan Majhi government in January this year.
The two provisions notified by the Mission Shakti department prevent office bearer from holding two consecutive terms and restrict “close relatives” and family members of an executive committee member of any community institution level, such as Cluster Level Forums (CLFs), Gram Panchayat Level Federations (GPLFs), Block Level Federations (BLFs), and District Level Federations (DLFs).
A bench of justice Sashikanta Mishra, which was hearing a petition filed by Bishnupriya Mohapatra against the guidelines, stayed the operation of the two provisions. The high court also issued notice to the state government and will next take up the case on May 15.
The two provisions were part of the guidelines issued by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in January this year to restructure Mission Shakti, a flagship programme of the previous Naveen Patnaik government that have played a key role in the BJD’s electoral success in the past.
The state government sought to dismantle the grassroots leadership of the self-help groups (SHGs) network and initiate a targeted campaign to connect every household with income-generating initiatives. According to the government, the objective was to streamline operations and bring in transparency in the programme.
In the guidelines issued in January, the department said the comprehensive restructuring process would lead to 1.24 million new office-bearers at the SHG level and 1.15 million executive committee members at the CLF level assuming leadership positions. Overall, more than 3.5 million women members across various institutional levels will get the opportunity to hold leadership roles in SHGs and their federations, it said.
People familiar with the matter said the restructuring process was part of the ruling BJP to bolster the party’s political and electoral prospects by installing leaders sympathetic to its ideology and weakening the BJD’s grassroots influence. This could help the BJP build a new, loyal voter base among women, a critical demographic in Odisha’s electoral politics.
Mission Shakti, launched by the previous BJD government, is a women’s empowerment initiative with over 7 million women members across Odisha, primarily through self-help groups that play a critical role in the electoral success of BJD over the last 24 years. The women voters who backed BJD over several elections were essentially members of women self help groups who were benefitted by the economic empowerment model of easy loan linkages from commercial banks.
To counter the BJD’s support base among SHGs, the BJP introduced the Subhadra Yojana, a ₹10,000 a year cash incentive scheme for women in 2024 assembly polls which divided the women voters. After winning the polls it has announced programmes for “lakhpati didis” (women earning ₹1 lakh annually) to further diminish the BJD support.
