Indian Women’s Development Based On U.S Programs Of Scientific Housewifery
Kim Berry in her article critically examines the reasons that led the Indian government to adopt women’s development based on U.S programs of scientific housewifery when the lifestyle of both the US and Indian rural women was dramatically different. The Home science programs were simply a reinforcement of a woman’s traditional role as a housewife. She discusses how The US model of agricultural development was class specific, racialized and gender biased, became the norm for all farming women in the U.S. and the premise of foreign aid and western ideology shaped the creation of institutions for women in independent India. With the main objective being the transformation of the U.S and Indian agricultural to a capitalist mode.
The community development program was started in 1952 by Nehru to promote economic improvement in basic rural villages, with the aim of teaching self-reliance to the Indian people. Nehru chose to model the CDP on the policies of the US agricultural extension service. This program was created to transform American farmers from sustenance farming to capital intensive progressive farming. The program was initially aimed at men, but later realization that educating women would result in increase in material desires thus will encourage progressive farming practices, with subsequent expansion of markets for newer commodities. These programs slotted all women as homemakers rather that farmers or farmworkers.
Post-Independence the US offered financial aid for agricultural development in India, with the aim of serving US interests. These programs entailed eradicating illiteracy, health education, removing superstitions, improved sanitation. In spite of an altered agenda, these were similarities between these institutions for women development in India and the United states. Framing programs with directed solely at men, while a woman was delegated to the role of a homemaker. This program ignores the reality of joint families in India, they followed the capitalist ideology of slotting women as consumers and home managers in a nuclear household.
The question often asked is why did the Indian officials not object to a development program which positioned all rural women as housewife. Mazumdar reasoned that in high caste elite Indian homes, a women’s non-worker status relegated her to a higher position in society. Inden explains that the orientalist scholars were divided in two camps the positivists, those who condemned evil Indian traditions like Sati and child marriage, the romantics gloried the ancient Indian traditions of the high status enjoyed by women. Indian nationalists agreed to an amalgamation of both the positivists and romantics ideology, where the men associate with the western world while the women would uphold traditional values at home. In Hinduism Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth and prosperity.
Chakrabarty Who” has for long been upheld in puranic Hinduism as the model Hindu wife”. Indian housewives were to be educated to imbibe the qualities of goddess Lakshmi, as the ideal Hindu wife. Now the housewife had the task of preserving India’s “tradition”. Gandhi to praised women for their non-violent nature. The Gandhian vision of a women was that of a home maker, who “instead of striving towards General Electric or Tata products, she participated in 'shramdan' (gift of labor) and 'ambar charkha' (mass spinning)”.The increased role of women in the workplace has changed in the last decade and will continue to change.
With education and changing times women are now equal partners who contribute to the family income. Women have traditionally been the ‘home managers,’ hence are still expected to juggle work and family obligations, unlike men who are entitled to focus on their jobs and careers. This at times is overwhelming and hinders women from achieving their goals or reaching their full potential professionally. Household responsibility should be shared by both men and women. In India determining the sex of a unborn child is a punishable offence, as in many societies women are considered a financial burden.
