Communities
Women
In rural South India, women are the backbone of family and community life, rising early to care for their families and oftenworking long hours in agriculture and daily-wage work.
Yet gender inequality runs deep. Women earn less than men, have fewer chances to study or own property, and have little say in decisions at home or in the village.
Some girls still leave school early, and some women face violence at home. Their contribution is too often not valued, and that is where our partners’ work begins.
Through women’s self-help groups, women save together, take loans for small businesses and support one another. These groups have grown into federations led by the women themselves. One federation, Then Sudar Pengal Iyakkam, alone has more than 4,000 members and earns its own income from enterprises such as mattresses, pillows, catering and nutritious food mixes.
Women’s groups also look out for each other’s safety and wellbeing. Trained volunteers help families resolve problems, link women to support services, and encourage girls to stay in school and marry only as adults.
The Arunthathiyar community is one of the populations that VST’s
partners have worked with most closely. For generations,
Arunthathiyar families faced discrimination and had few chances for
education or secure work, and most depended on farm work and
daily wages.
Our partners began by forming women’s self-help groups and
children’s clubs in Arunthathiyar villages. Today there are more than
70 Arunthathiyar women’s groups, and Arunthathiyar women have
been brought onto the board of Then Sudar Pengal Iyakkam, a strong
women’s federation of more than 4,000 members in Theni district.
They now share in leading the whole federation.
The greatest change has been in education. More than 2,000
Arunthathiyar children are supported each year to attend school
regularly. In 2025–26, 97% of girls and 93% of boys passed their 10th
standard exams, and many young people are now going on to college,
nursing and technical courses.
Arunthathiyars
Indigenous People
For generations, the Paliyar and Muthuvan peoples lived in the hills of the Western Ghats, with a deep knowledge of the forest. Over the last fifty years their surroundings have changed greatly, and many families have struggled with low, seasonal wages, children leaving school early, and difficulty reaching government services.
Our partner ARUDECS works alongside tribal families in 20 villages. Village Development Committees, led by local volunteers, help families obtain identity documents, pensions, housing and health check-ups through government schemes. In 2026, 137 new houses were sanctioned for tribal families, and solar lights have been installed in several hill villages.
Tribal farmers have planted over 14,000 cardamom, coffee and pepper saplings, and more than 93% are thriving. Women are now setting up a wild honey processing unit. Children’s clubs and career guidance are opening new paths: one young Paliyar woman is now studying law at Government Law College, Theni.
