In rural mountain societies, if women are to become empowered, they need to be freed from routine drudgery that takes away a good part of their day. In the hills, the dependence of most households on firewood, for cooking and heating is well appreciated.
The primary objective of the project in Kullu was to reduce the daily drudgery of poor mountain women. As a result, women and girls are spending less time and energy on gathering firewood, cooking, washing blackened utensils and heating water in inefficient ways. The time saved by women is productively used in learning skills that help generate additional income for themselves and to get together in groups to save money, begin small individual or group enterprises and more importantly, to either talk about and participate in community social development work, or simply for leisure.
