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Chapter - IV

Educational and Occupational Mobility

This chapter focuses on educational and occupational mobility of Mali women. The

Chapter is divided into two parts. The first part deals with the education and

educational mobility of Mali women. This part is again divided into two sections.

The first section concentrates on the attitude towards education while the second

section concentrates on educational mobility of Mali women with reference to three

generations of the respondents. The second part deals with occupation and

occupational mobility among Mali women. This part is again divided into two

sections. The first section concentrates on attitude towards occupation and the

second section focuses on occupational mobility of Mali women with reference to

three generations of the respondents.

Part-I

I. Education and Educational Mobility among Mali Women

4.1 Introduction:

Education influences a man’s life in many ways. It plays an important role in

personality development, in breaking social boundaries, raising one’s standard of

life, in inculcating modern values in social, economic political and cultural fields.

Thus it leads to direct upward social mobility of an individual. S.C. Dubey (1976)

states that education enables the members of a society to perform gainful social

roles and promotes mobility on the thought level in the society. Bhai (1986) points

out that education improves one’s abilities, skills and performance. It determines

the aspirations, productivity and vertical and horizontal mobility. Jasprit Kaur Soni

says (2006) maintains that education helps in development of human personality,

social mobility, occupational change and rise of professional, political and social

awareness. It lays the foundation for better decision making and communication.

The history of women’s education in India is very old. Before 200 B.C., the position

of women was unsatisfactory. However, women were regarded as eligible for

studying the Vedic literature and performing sacrifices enjoined to it. Her

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importance was so much that a man cannot perform the Vedic sacrifices without

his wife by his side. The post ‘vedic’ period with the practice of child marriage,

seclusion and ‘purdah’ witnessed a deterioration of women’s position. Female

education received a setback from 200 B.C to 1200 A.D. due to deterioration in

religious status of women. A girl was married off soon after she attained puberty so

in such circumstances female education could hardly prosper. But the ladies of the

rich and aristocratic families received literary education, special effort was made to

train these girls in domestic arts and fine arts like music, dancing, painting, and

house decoration. During 1200 to 1800 A.D. (Muslim period) the percentage of

literacy among women went down very rapidly. It was believed that a girl taught to

read and write might become a widow after marriage. Altekar (1956) reported that

by the beginning of the 19th century, about 99% of the women population had

grown illiterate. The doors of education were closed for the common families. From

the beginning of 19th century during the freedom struggle importance to educate

women was realized by social reformers like Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Vidyasagar,

Maharshi Karve, Mahatma Jyotirao Phule and many others. The social reformers

stressed on the importance of female education to improve their status in society.

The movement of education of women in Western Maharashtra started in Pune.

Mahatma Phule was born in Pune in a Mali caste family and is said to be the

founding father of the Indian Renaissance. He started the first school for girls on 1st

January 1848 that too in Pune which was a Brahmanical fortress during those

days. There was great resistance over this and nobody was ready to teach in the

school so he trained his wife Savitribai Phule and she was the first woman teacher

of modern India. During the eighteenth century many customs like sati, child

marriage, ban on widow remarriage, polygamy, denial of property rights and

education to women were prevalent. Their activities were not confined to education

alone. They strived to liberate women from the evils of society by supporting

widow-remarriage, started an orphanage and maternity home for infants born out

of wedlock, preached against untouchability, sati, idol worship, superstitions and

casteism. They played a powerful role which helped to change the attitude towards

the women. In short, during the phase prior to independence, an awareness of the

need to remove social disabilities of women was created; the doors of education

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were opened for them. But education for women was to make them more capable

to fulfill their roles as mothers and wives but not to play any role in the socio-

economic and political development of the country. The absence of any economic

compulsion was one of the main reasons for the slow progress of women’s

education.

But in the post independent India with the changing pattern of socio economic and

political conditions of the country, the gradual realization that they have to be

economically independent and therefore they must acquire skills through education

has made them realize their self-importance. Education of women has expanded

but is still far from satisfactory. The Census Reports (1951-2001) show, that the

literacy rate for males is much higher than that of females. According to the

Census report (2001) the male literacy rate is 75.85% and that of females is

54.16%. The Report of the Committee on the Status of Women in India (1974)

gave the main reasons for the slow growth of female education as follows: 1)

Majority of the girls are required at home to do various domestic chores when their

mothers are engaged in earning a livelihood. 2) The prevalence of child labor has

been the greatest hindrance to the spread of education among the children of the

poor. Exclusion from education because of participation in labor is higher among

girls than boys. 3) Absence of facilities such as shortage of schools in general,

absence of separate schools for girls in many places, lack of adequate transport

arrangements, toilet facilities, shortage of women teachers etc. 4) Early marriage

was the greatest obstacle to progress of girl’s education in the past, it is much less

now as the average age at marriage has been rising, but the problem still

continues in certain communities and areas. Mohamed Khaiser Ahmed (2007)

points out that the girl child in India suffers from certain age old beliefs and

prejudices such as being perceived as being someone who is less useful to family

in the long run than her male siblings. As a result she is denied equal access to

education. Further he says that as an educationally disadvantaged group, the girls

constitute 48% of the child population which is visibly greater in rural areas and

among certain sections of the society. A study of Vinzar village in western

Maharashtra by N.N.Kundu (1993), shows that the Literacy percentage of Mali is

55.56%. A study of Balipatna village in Orissa by Sem Topno (1993) observed that

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literacy is nil among the Mali. A study of Nangal Soosawatan village in Rajasthan

by Bageshwar Singh (1993) shows that the village had 17 housesholds of Mali

comprising of 102 persons and were mainly engaged in cultivating and selling

vegetables. In respect of educational performance out of the total 102 persons 18

males were literate and among the females there was no literacy at all. So the

literacy percentage was 17.65%. Educational attainment was very poor.

4.1.1 Mali women’s attitude towards education:

Education is very important for all round development of an individual. Aruna Goel

(2004:290) “Education develops basic skills and abilities and fosters a value

system conducive to and in support of national development goals, both long-term

and immediate” Kapur (1973) points out that parents are not keen to send

daughters even to primary schools as with respect to sons. The girl child is

perceived as an economic burden, she is not given higher education as it would

mean increase in age, more dowry and difficulty in finding a suitable groom.

Another reason is due to the thinking that investment in girl’s education is

unrewarding as she goes into another family and parents cannot depend financially

on her in their old age and the money is saved for their dowries. According to

Education Statistics (1997) the enrolment ratio of girls is always less compared

to boys in primary as well as secondary level and also indicates gender disparity

even in drop-out rates. However the situation is improving but one can hear that a

boy is more pampered or girls are given inferior quality of education. Of late

education of women has gained momentum and more and more parents are

aspiring for higher education even for the daughters. Education endows women

with knowledge thereby enabling them to raise their status leading to their mobility.

So an enquiry about attitude towards education is necessary to understand the

status enjoyed by the respondents in their families. So in order to understand the

attitude towards education of Mali women the following FOUR indicators were

selected.

a) Preferred levels of women education.

b) Reasons for getting education

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c) Staying in hostel for studies

d) Status of an educated mother

a) Preferred levels of women education:

Education is an instrument, which inculcates new values and liberal ideas in the

society leading to development. Up to what levels the girls should be allowed to get

education has struck the minds of many.

V.V Prakash Rao and V.Nandini Rao (1982) stated that during the Vedic period

girls and boys were initiated into the Vedic studies by performing a rite of passage

called ‘upanayana’ ceremony. But the post Vedic period witnessed the

deterioration of women’s position. Seclusion and ‘purdah’ came to be widely

practiced. Women’s education again gained importance due to social reformers

like Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Maharshi Karve, Mahatma Jyotirao Phule and

Savitribai Phule etc. Later on the industrial revolution, the employment of women

outside the home, to escape the dowry problem, the high cost of living, and

inclination towards western life-styles have all contributed to women’s education. In

post independent India it was realized that education of women is necessary to

further the goals of equality. The majority of respondents in Pratima Kumari’s

(1988) study said that a girl should be allowed to get education up to the level she

or her guardian desired. Sanjay K. J. (1994), Swati Shirwadkar (1998) found that

majority of their respondent’s favored female education up to graduation level. Raj

Mohini Sethi (1976) also found in her study that majority of her educated female

respondents were of the view that females can be educated up to graduation or

post-graduation. In Times of India (1-05-08) article “Education a spoiler for these

girls” by Radheshyam Jadhav points that hundreds of women from among the

backward castes (BCs) and Other Backward Castes (OBCs) are unable to find a

suitable match within their community as education among the girls is on the rise

but on the other hand the education level of boys has not increased much. And

even if one manages to find a well educated boy they insist on more dowries. Their

reasoning is that they are marrying an educated girl which is against the general

trend in the community. R.P. Mohanty and D.N.Biswal (2007) study points that

43.30 percent of the caste Hindus were the sample consisted of six households of

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Mali held the opinion that if they provide higher education to their daughters they

face a lot of problems in finding suitable grooms for them.

In order to know as to what extent our respondent’s feel that women should be

educated a question was put, ‘How much do you feel women should be educated’?

The data shows that majority (79.4%) of the respondents preferred graduation as

the minimum education for women but at the same time said that if in between a

good proposal comes she should be married and then she can continue if she and

her marital family wishes so. While some (16%) of the respondents expressed that

women should take education till graduation or she can study at the most up to

post graduation but they also stressed that if a good proposal comes while

studying the girl should be married and then she can continue if her in-law’s or

husband wishes her to continue. A more significant aspect is that few (2.2%) of the

respondents wanted girls to take up education according to their aptitude and liking

i.e. they said if the girl has aptitude for army, navy, military, research, professional

education etc she should be given such education. While few (2.4%) of the

respondents wanted girls to have vocational education. They felt that today there

should be more job oriented courses so that one gets a job otherwise it is seen that

even after getting high education one doesn’t get jobs.

In the present study there are 22 respondents (5.8%) who are undergraduates and

couldn’t complete their graduation as they were married before completing their

studies. One respondent from Hadapsar whose daughter was doing F.Y. B.Com

was preparing for her daughter’s marriage and said that marriage is important for a

girl otherwise her age increases, and then it is difficult to get her married. One

more respondent from Wanavdi had fixed the daughter’s marriage who was

studying in S.Y. B.A and was going to get her daughter married before graduation.

There were 11 (2.8%) respondents who were married off just before their H.S.C

and under graduation exams and they never completed their H.S.C and

graduation. One respondent said that her in-laws promised her that they will allow

her to sit for her H.S.C exams but once married her mother-in-law threw away her

books and didn’t allow her to sit for the exams saying that what she will do of

education when she has to look after the housework and their small grocery shop.

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The respondents also felt that as the girl’s age increases her face and body

undergoes changes, there is no charm left in her, she looks old and later on

proposals stop coming. So it is better to get the girls married when a good proposal

comes. She can study later on also if her husband wishes. They said that their

‘samaj’ is male dominated and no one likes their women going out for jobs. So

what will she do with the education? After all she has to look after the house and

children. Four respondents said “Ours is basically an agricultural community. Many

own land and business. So the boys grow up thinking that it is they who have to

take care of family business so why go for higher education. Few boys go for

higher education and choice becomes limited and educated boys and their families

ask for more dowries. So even if the girl takes higher education she has to settle

for a less educated boy and cannot take up a job”. In the present study the

researcher attended two ‘vadu-var melavas’ (Bride & Bride groom gathering)

organized by ‘Masik jyoti Awaaz’ and saw that girls are more educated than boys.

Even among the married respondents 57(14.9%) cases were found were the wives

were more educated than the husbands but they were happy as the boys belonged

to wealthy families and were settled in their family businesses.

One respondent from Bhavani Peth said that she was very much interested to

study but after her 8th class she was forcibly not allowed to study and was made to

do housework. Another respondent from Sasanenagar sat for S.S.C externally

after 7th, she had even filled her D.Ed form but her parents were against it and she

was married off. A teacher and a doctor and a housewife who is S.S.C passed said

“Sky is the limit for getting educated and if the girl has aptitude and interest she

should take education up to the highest level in any field in which she is

interested”. One unmarried respondent who has done B.A.M.S said “Since last

three years my parents are searching for a suitable boy but have been

unsuccessful and my parents are reluctant to an inter caste marriage due to

society fear and feel that it will create problems for the younger sister”. One post

graduate unmarried self employed respondent nearing thirty five said “My fault is

that I am well educated and am unable to find a suitable boy from our community.

One proposal had come were the boy was also a postgraduate but they demanded

a huge dowry and I have decided not to marry a boy asking for dowry. My parents

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are against inter caste marriage and now my father is no more and I have decided

to remain unmarried and take care of my mother”. Another post graduate teacher

unmarried and twenty eight years old said that she is not getting a suitably

educated boy from their community and her parents are getting frustrated but she

is not ready to compromise on any front, she said that she will remain unmarried

but will not compromise.

The above analysis indicates that majority of the respondents feel that girls should

be educated up to graduation, some felt that at the most she can study up to

graduation but if a good proposal comes she should be married because as the

age increases the face changes and there is no charm left and it becomes difficult

to get the girl married and then the dowry problem is always there. It is also seen

that some of the respondents were married off before completing their graduation

and in some cases even S.S.C, H.S.C. According to the respondents their

community is male dominated and even after getting educated, girls are not

allowed to take up jobs, so when a good proposal comes while the girl is studying

she is married. The data also shows that some of the respondents were more

educated than their husbands but just because the boys were from well-to-do

families settled in family business the respondents were married to these boys. It is

also seen that highly educated girls didn’t get suitable educated boys in their

community as very few boys go for higher education and even if one finds such a

boy they demand large dowry. The families mostly are into own business so the

boys look after these businesses. In addition to this it is seen that parents are not

ready for inter caste marriages due to society fear so the girls have to settle for

less educated boys. One of the unmarried postgraduate respondent said that she

would prefer to remain unmarried instead of marrying a less educated boy; another

postgraduate unmarried respondent said that instead of giving a huge dowry she

has decided to remain unmarried and take care of her mother which can said to be

emerging trends. Few of the respondents felt that girls should be given education

according to their aptitude and interest and she can take maximum education and

few felt that girls should be given vocational education so that they get jobs that

are significant changes. In all, it can be concluded that the attitude towards

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education is still conservative among the Mali community and marriage is given

importance over education.

b) Reasons for getting education:

Education not only helps in individual development but also in the development of

society and nation. Education provides rational and scientific thinking, reasoning

skills and ability to solve problems and adjust to changing situations. In case of

women education helps them to move from the tradition to modernity, in changing

their attitudes and beliefs which in turn promotes upward social mobility. In India

since ancient times a women’s duty was to take care for her home and children, so

it was thought that to perform her duties as a homemaker it was not necessary to

have higher form of education. So the public’s attitude was against women’s

higher education. But now due to various factors such as modernization,

urbanization, awareness of self-fulfillment by women etc. this attitude is undergoing

a change in the present society. It is accepted now that women can also attain

education on an equal basis with men, to make themselves independent, to

develop their personality so that they can face any situation confidently and boldly

besides performing the traditional roles. A testimony in the women’s

committee’s report (1974) points that girls should not be given any education,

received a clear-cut rejection by 77.8% of the respondents, but a small minority

16.8% agreed with this view. In the case of higher education 65.5% responded that

a girl should not be allowed to go for higher education even if she is very

intelligent. The committee asked the common people the reason for providing

education to girls. It was found that one of the main reasons for getting higher

education by girls is economic. Swati Shirwadkar (1998) reports that majority of

the respondents of her sample felt that employment gave woman a distinct status,

could help in the family budget whereas very few felt that woman should work only

in case of gross economic necessity. Sanjay K. J.(1994) findings reveal that

almost majority of the respondents at all levels of modernity felt that the important

reason to get higher education was to seek employment and economic

independence while some said that they were getting higher education to lead a

smooth and sound domestic life, to face problems confidently, to cope with the

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modern demands of changing society, for personality development, few said it was

to seek good husband and also because of their personal and parent’s interest.

Kaur (1983) study reports that respondents were mostly of the opinion that girl’s

first and foremost duty is to look after their home. So they should be given proper

training for rearing up children to lead a happy married life.

So to explore the reasons behind getting education the respondents were asked

‘What exactly were the reasons for getting education?’ Majority (79.8%) of the

respondents said that they were given education to lead a smooth domestic life.

Some (15.3%) of the respondents said that their parents gave them education, to

be self supporting in times of need or in case of a misfortune and few (2.3%) of the

respondents said that in today’s changing times as there is no guarantee of

anything one should be financially independent so they were provided education

so that they can earn a little bit. Few (1.2%) of the respondents felt that they were

given education for knowledge and (1.3%) of the respondents were provided

education due to the parent’s interest and daughter’s wish. Since the respondents

gave multiple responses so the total doesn’t add up to 100%.

However majority (74.8%) of the respondents said that marriage was the first

priority for their parents and they were married early. Out of these some 25.5%

respondents were married between the age of 10 to 17 years and 32.7% between

18-20 years. And 16.6% were married in between or immediately after graduation.

An undergraduate married respondent from Bund-Garden Area said that a girl can

go for higher education but not with the aim of doing a job or making a career. If

her husband’s family is well-to-do she can make use of her skills in bringing up her

children as good citizens and human beings so her first priority should be her

house and family. Two married respondents one S.S.C failed and the other

secondary educated from Dhole Patil Road said that if the family is financially well-

off there is no need of doing a job even if highly educated. She can become a good

housewife.

One of them said that she is totally against women going out for jobs, as right from

her childhood when she and her siblings came from school they were alone at

home with no one to attend them as their mother was a working woman. One

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S.S.C passed housewife from Hadapsar said that one spends so much of time,

energy and money on education so one should not be confined to the kitchen.

Education can be used for social work such as educating the poor children; she

can do some business from home. But she was against women getting educated

only to make a career. She also stressed that by 18 a girl should be married and

then she can do anything. Three graduate young respondents married recently and

belonging to wealthy families from Koregaon Park said that a woman can help in

the family business and can use her education to bring up her children instead of

going out to make a career if the family is wealthy. Three primary educated

respondents one from Bhavani Peth and two from Hadapsar said that higher

education corrupts the girl’s mind; her expectations of her would be husband rise.

Also the amount of dowry increases with high expectations so it was safer to get

girls married as soon as a suitable match is available. They said that the right

place of woman is in the house. For them marriage of the girl was more important

thing than her education. Their argument is that education is useful for socializing

the behavior of children, makes them good daughters, sisters, wives and mothers.

An M.B.B.S doctor and a teacher said that girls should be educated to be self

dependent as that is the need of modern times. An unmarried respondent running

a beauty parlor said that there is no guarantee of anything nowadays so one

should be independent financially. A middle aged, primary educated widow who

does tailoring, a self employed young S.S.C passed and a middle aged

undergraduate clerk said “Vel changla nahi, kaunavarhi bharosa karu shakat nahi,

zaroori nahi ki mulini ucha shikshan ghyave, dahavi nanthar thi chote courses karu

shakte, vel aalaya var ti thoda far kamvu shakte. (Times are not good nowadays,

nobody can be trusted, anything can happen anytime so after S.S.C a girl should

be taught some small vocational courses so that if the need arises she can be

economically independent and it is not necessary that she has to go for higher

education).

The above analysis points out that almost all of the respondents in the Mali

community, want their girls to be educated to be self supporting in times of need or

in case of a misfortune and to lead a sound domestic life. Few of the respondents

got education to get knowledge and few got educated due to their own interest and

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parent’s interest. While for majority of the parents marriage was important and so

the respondents were married early. Almost all the Mali women are not interested

in using their education for making career and it is seen that no one is highly

educated and career oriented. They also felt that higher education raises the

expectation of the girls about their would be husbands, are not ready to

compromise and also there is demand for more dowry so their first priority is

getting the girls married and later on it was the husband’s and in-law’s wish if they

want to study further. They also held the opinion that if the family is wealthy, one

can use the education to help in the family business, to socialize heir children or

can do social work. According to them education will enable the women to earn a

living in times of need and so she can do some short courses after her S.S.C. Thus

according to the respondents higher education is not necessary to do so. Thus we

see that the sacred character of marriage, early marriage, dowry system, their

perception of future roles as wives and mothers came in the way of higher

education. Only few of the respondents felt that girls should be educated to be

financially independent, which is a positive change. In all it can be concluded that

the respondents of this study do not aspire for higher education.

c) Staying in hostel for studies:

It is seen that if a girl is interested in higher education and the college is far away

from home she is not sent as it would mean keeping her in the hostel. Female

students staying in hostels away from the parents, is looked down upon by the

parents, relatives and caste people. The girl had to forego her ambitions and

aspirations. The biological susceptibility of girls and their marriage scenario

possibly led to girls being viewed as weak and defenseless, which obviously led to

such restrictions. But in recent time’s things are changing and one can see the

number of girls staying in hostels for education or a job is increasing.

Here in the present study almost all (88.3%) of the respondents do not consider

the living of females in hostels desirable. Their argument is that it is not safe in

today’s atmosphere to keep the girls in hostels. As there is no one to supervise

them there are chances of them being spoilt, like having boy-friends, going to

movies and so on. They also felt that today’s atmosphere is not good and it is

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dangerous to send girls alone to far off places. While few (2.3%) of the

respondents said that they are ready to send their daughters to hostels if she gets

an opportunity as it is for her growth and success. Moreover she will learn to look

after herself and become smart and independent. They also said that one has to

change according to the changing times. Here they also stressed that the girls

have to be mentally and physically strong if they want to stay independently. Few

(9.4%) of the respondents reported that they cannot decide on this matter alone

and it depends on the husband and elders wish.

Three married respondents, one undergraduate, the other secondary educated

and a doctor said “We have to keep pace with the changing situations. There is a

risk in keeping the girls in hostels were there are chances of them falling in bad

company or bad habits, but if the girl is getting a seat of her choice she should be

sent to hostel by training her to defend herself, by making her strong enough to

face situations, by inculcating values and morals so that she will not go wrong”

Two unmarried respondents said that the girls should be given training in judo,

karate right from childhood so that they can face any situation later on. One

unmarried postgraduate respondent working as a clerk in a hospital said “I was

selected for the police force and was supposed to go for Nasik for training but my

parents didn’t allow me to go saying that I can go anywhere after marriage and not

now. Till now I feel I missed a good opportunity”. While twelve of the respondents

in a group interview said that a girl can go anywhere after marriage if her husband

and in-law’s want her to go and not before marriage. Thirteen respondents in a

group interview who favored that girls should be sent to hostels also said that even

if they feel like sending their daughters to hostels if she gets a chance, it depends

on what the husband and elders decide for her as we alone cannot take decision in

this matter.

The above data shows that almost all of the respondents were not ready to send

their daughters to hostels as they felt that there is no one to control them and they

may fall in bad company and also said that the girl can go anywhere after marriage

if her husband and his family wishes so, this shows that traditional attitude and

restrictions’ regarding girls is still there. The data also shows that even if one gets

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an opportunity for job or studies even within the state the parents didn’t send the

respondents. This is one of the problems which come in the way of female higher

education. While few of the respondents, were ready to send the daughters to

hostels as they felt that that will be for her growth and success. They said that

even though there is a risk one has to change with times and so they felt that girls

should be trained in self defense and should be made mentally strong by

inculcating the right values right from young age so that they can face any situation

which is a progressive change. Few of the respondents said that they cannot take

decision on this matter alone even if they feel that their daughters should go to

hostels if they get a good opportunity and it all depended on the elders and

husband’s decision.

d) Status of an educated mother:

In the past family units were only the agents of socialization. They fulfilled many of

the educational functions of the school. Here the socializing role of the woman as a

mother is very important. Today due to the various socio-cultural changes taking

place, the stiff competition in the outside world to be successful, the woman being

herself educated wants to prepare the children in such a way so that they will be

successful in life. Education helps in developing positive attitudes and values;

hence an educated mother can put these values and attitudes in the child, can

guide the children in academics and so on. So naturally an educated mother is

thought to be a better mother so that she trains the child well in all aspects. Sanjay

K. J. (1994) states that majority of the respondents at all levels of modernity think

that an educated women is definitely superior to an uneducated woman however

some of the respondents at all levels of modernity feel that both educated and

uneducated women have equal status.

In this context the respondents were asked whether they think an educated mother

is a better mother. Majority (60.6%) of the respondents replied that an educated

mother is a better mother. They said that if a woman is educated she can educate

the whole family and she has more capability and skill in influencing her children.

And some (39.4%) of the respondents felt that if the mother is educated it helps

only in the education of the children, but for all round development of the child a

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well cultured mother is important. They also said that education is not the criteria

for judging a mother and whether she is good or not.

A doctor and a teacher said “If the mother is educated, she can educate and guide

her children but to judge a mother on the basis of educations is wrong as even

highly educated mothers do not perform their duties of a mother well. So to be a

good mother one has to be cultured with good morals and ethics to instill good

values in children and this can be done by an uneducated mother also”. Six of the

respondents in a group interview two of them housewives, three self employed and

a undergraduate unmarried respondent said “It is good if the mother is educated in

today’s changing socio-cultural environment as it helps in all round development of

the child, helping him in his studies, in raising his aspirations, encouraging him in

his chosen field, and so on”.

The data reveals that majority of the respondents feel that an educated mother is a

better mother in today’s changing socio-cultural environment as she can help the

child in his studies, guide him when needed and encourage him in the field in

which he is interested, in his all round development that is significant change and

some of the respondents feel that a cultured mother is more important than an

educated mother for the all round development of the child as they felt that some

educated mothers do not perform their duties well and they felt that to be a good

mother one should be a good human being herself so that she will instill the same

values and morals in her child and that education is not the criteria to judge a

mother. Though they say that educated mother is a good mother, in actual practice

they don’t give much value to the girl’s education.

4.1.2 Educational Mobility:

In this part, educational mobility among three generations of Mali women has been

examined: the respondent’s mother’s education, respondent’s education &

respondent’s children’s education. The educational level of the first ascending

generation, ego’s generation and the first descending generation are compared.

Other than this, the no. of children getting education in foreign countries and

outside Pune has also been verified.

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Table 4.1

Educational Mobility of Mali women with reference to three generations:

Education Mother Respondent Daughter

Illiterate 94 5 ----

(24.6%) (1.3%)

Primary 90 26 66

(23.5%) (6.8%) (17.3%)

Secondary 104 64 44

(27.2%) (16.7%) (11.5%)

S.S.C 56 71 22

(14.6%) (18.7%) (5.7%)

H.S.C/Diploma 18 54 20

(4.7%) (14.1%) (5.2%)

Undergraduate 5 22 21

(1.3%) (5.8%) (5.5%)

Graduate 15 99 41

(3.9%) (25.9%) (10.7%)

Post Graduate ----- 29 13

(7.6%) (3.4%)

Professional ----- 12 6

(3.1%) (1.8%)

Studying ------ ------ 149

(39%)

Total 382 382 382

100% 100% 100%

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The table shows that one-fourth of the respondents mothers are illiterate, while

only (1.3%) of the respondents are illiterate and in the first descending generation

there are no illiterates. This shows that the literacy rate is increasing gradually

among the Mali women.

The data also reveals that the level of education is increasing slowly in the ego’s

generation and about slightly more than half (56.5%) of the respondents have

gained education above S.S.C level, while in the first ascending generation only

few (9.9%) of the respondents achieved education above the 10th grade, while in

the first descending generation majority of (65.4%) the respondents have been

educated above the S.S.C level. It is also seen that in the first ascending

generation, there is not a single postgraduate and not a single case who has taken

professional education. In the ego’s generation there are few (7.6%) postgraduates

and few (3.1%) respondents who have taken professional education while in the

first descending generation; some of them are studying.

From the above data it is clear that the respondents show that mobility with regard

to education is slow. In the first ascending generation, maximum percentages of

respondents were illiterate and few are educated up to S.S.C level. While in the

second generation, maximum percentages of respondents are S.SC and

graduates and few are educated up to post-graduation. And in the first descending

generation some respondents are graduates and some of them are studying.

Few cases of educational mobility studied in the research areas are given below:

1) Mrs. A, residing in Kasba Peth has one son and daughter. She is a matriculate.

Her mother was an illiterate but both her children are graduates. Her son is

Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com) and the daughter is a Bachelor of Arts (B.A) and

is a housewife. It shows the educational mobility of the women in this family from

illiterate to graduation, within three generations.

2) Mrs. B, residing in Wanavdi area is educated up to 10th grade. Her mother was

an illiterate. She has three daughters. One daughter is B.A. and a housewife, the

other daughter is B.Com running a parlor and the youngest daughter is doing her

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B.Ed. It also shows educational mobility from illiterate to post graduation, among

three generations of this family.

3) Mrs. C, residing in Hadapsar area is educated up to the 10th grade. Her mother

was an illiterate. She has two daughters. One daughter is a graduate (B.Com) also

a housewife. The other daughter is a Diploma engineer, married and is a

housewife.

4) Mrs. D from Pune Station area is secondary educated and her mother was

primary educated. Her daughter is Bachelor of Engineering (B.E), is of 51 yrs,

unmarried and has her own printing press.

5) Mrs. E from Koregaon Park is an undergraduate, her mother was an illiterate.

Her daughter is a post-graduate but as the in-laws and husband don’t like her to

work she works from home as an interior decorator and takes orders for decorating

halls for marriages and parties.

6) Mrs. F from Bhavani Peth is educated up to S.S.C level. Her mother was

primary educated. Her daughter is an Ayurvedic Doctor (B.A.M.S) and at present

doing her internship.

7) Mrs. F from Hadapsar area is a doctor (M.B.B.S). Her mother was educated up

to 12th standard with Diploma in Education (D.Ed). Her daughter at present is in

12th standard and has plans to do engineering.

8) Mrs. G from Bund garden area is an undergraduate, her mother was secondary

educated, and her daughter is doing her law graduation (L.L.B.). Mrs. G said that

they were educating their daughter just out of interest and it will be her in-laws and

husband to decide whether she should practice or not.

9) Mrs. H from Pune station area is a post graduate and was working as a clerk in

a firm before marriage but left it due to husband’s opposition (husband is S.S.C)

and she takes tuitions at home, her mother was primary educated and she herself

has a daughter who is doing second year B.Cs. Mrs. H said that they are already

looking for proposals and may get her married as she may not be allowed to do a

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job like her. She said that their community is male dominated and men do not like

their women going out to work.

10) Mrs. I from Kasba Peth is a post graduate (M.Com), her mother was secondary

educated, has a small daughter studying in fourth class. She has big plans for her

daughter but is afraid whether she will be supported or not. Her own family

members are against women doing jobs so she being so educated helps her

husband (husband is S.Y.B.Com) in his business. They have a printing press.

It indicates that the level of education is slowly increasing among the Mali women.

Although educational mobility is seen among the Mali women, majority of them

don’t use their education to make a career or to get employed. They said that they

give education to their daughters and get them married, then it would be her

husband’s and in-law’s wish whether or not to take up a job. According to them a

woman’s priority should be her house and children. If there is need and if the

husband wishes then she can take up a job otherwise she can help in the family

business, or do something from the house like a small business so that she will

have satisfaction that she is doing something and earn a bit as it is discussed in

detail in the previous indicators such as aim of education and reasons for getting

education. One more thing which can be seen from the data is that majority of the

respondents have done B.A, B.Com and a negligible number B.Sc which indicates

that the parents educate their daughters just to keep the daughter’s occupied till

marriage as commerce and arts students have less hours of college while science

takes full time of the students and also the attitude that one has to look after the

house after marriage.

Children getting educated in foreign countries or out of city:

In the past much importance was not given to education as the children had to

follow the family occupations. But now due to industrialization, urbanization

awareness of the use of education, people have high aspirations for their children

and they even send their children to other states and foreign countries for studies.

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Aspiration for higher education becomes more evident when the respondents were

asked “Are your children staying in another city or in foreign country for

education?”

The data reveals that nobody was pursuing education in foreign countries and

even out of city as it is discussed in detail in the previous indicator in attitude

towards staying in hostels.

Only one respondent who is married in Pune in the wealthy family residing in

Koregoan Park is continuing her second year of M.B.A in Bombay at her parent’s

house. She comes to Pune on weekends. As a good proposal came she was

married while doing her first year M.B.A and just to complete her degree she was

doing her second year. She has no plans to take up a job after her M.B.A as her

husband’s family is too rich and they think that if the daughter-in-law works it will

harm their status in the community. She said “I may help my husband in his family

business but that is also doubtful as we have four petrol pumps and construction

business and maybe I won’t be allowed in it. I am thinking of starting a boutique

after I complete my studies”.

The above analysis reveals that the Mali women do not aspire for high education

and what ever level of education they take it is to prepare them for traditional roles

and to enable them to earn a living only in case of misfortune and emergency. Also

the wealthy families feel that if their daughters or daughter-in-laws work it will harm

their status. It is also seen that none of the respondents got or were getting

educated in foreign countries or out of the city. Only one newly married respondent

from a wealthy family was pursuing her second year M.B.A by staying at her

parent’s house in Bombay and coming to Pune on weekends to her in-laws house.

She was completing her post graduation not to do a job as her in laws are very

wealthy and well known and they think that if the daughter in law works out it will

harm their status.

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PART - II

Occupation and Occupational Mobility among Mali Women

4.2 Introduction:

The working woman is a growing phenomenon in Indian society. For centuries

women have been denied opportunities of growth in the name of religion and

socio-cultural practices. At the personal level she was a victim of illiteracy,

discrimination, marriage, through dowry, no individuality or identity of her own. At

the social-cultural level she was denied freedom even in the house, unequal and

inferior status. At the economic level she was a dependent, absence of career and

no mobility, heavy domestic work load, and no recognition of their economic

contribution.

According to our traditional system man was the bread earner and head of the

family while the woman was confined to housework and raising children. Now in

the present societies the traditional attitudes are slowly changing though the

change is different from society to society but after the industrial revolution the

social situation has changed throughout the world. The women have drawn out

from the kitchen to the world outside home to study and work shoulder to shoulder

with men. Kapur (1970:3), “One of the major consequences of the varied

processes of change operating in the country has been the emancipation of

women from their tradition bound ethos. Further she says “Many factors and forces

have contributed to this growth of the newly emerging middle class working women

in India. The socio-economic emancipation of Indian women has itself been a

product of and an instrument in the changes in their lives. Women have become

aware that by working she can increase the family’s welfare but also can attain an

independent status and social standing. Neera Desai (1957:253) writes “Now

woman in no longer looked upon as a child bearing machine and helot in the

home. She has acquired a new status and a new social status”

Women’s economic empowerment is important for raising her status leading to her

mobility in society. The thought that a women’s proper place is in the home has

prohibited women to seek employment outside in traditional days. The isolation of

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women from work has been an important sign of the husband’s status and

success. Sometimes increase in income of the household is followed by withdrawal

of women from employment. However the restrictions against women in search of

employment outside home tended to decline with increased experience to

education, mass media etc., and economic pressures caused due to urbanization,

awareness about self dependency and so on.

In recent years women of all social classes have entered the work force.

R.P.Mohanty and D.N.Biswal (2007:130) states that while more than 77 percent

of men constitute the main work force, there are more than 90 percent of women in

the marginal sector and thus their participation in the economic sector is significant

and therefore their economic contribution cannot be ignored and kept aside.

4.2.1 Mali women’s attitude towards employment:

Jasprit Kaur Soni (2006) in her study on women empowerment quotes Pandit

Jawaharlal Nehru “Freedom depends on the economic conditions even more than

political. If a woman is not economically free and self-earning, she will have to

depend on her husband or someone else and dependents are never free.”

Women’s occupation is viewed as an indicator of women’s economic contribution

and socio-economic development. The traditional attitude towards women and

their role hampers their mobility in the employment field. The work participation of

women is strongly influenced by socio-biological factors. The pregnancy, lactation

and caring of infants affects the duration and efficiency of work. Also the reason for

differential impact of development on women has been the control of men over

productive resources and inaccessibility of women to credit facilities. The dual role

of the women of looking after the family and contributing to the income of the family

has resulted into many contradictory situations and new demands in marital

adjustment and family life. The employment which provides a new position to the

women affects her position in the family and demands modification in her personal

and social life. So the women’s position in the work situation and her as well as her

family’s attitude towards work is an important area to be explored. The aim of this

section is to bring out whether the employment is leading to mobility of Mali

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women. So in order to understand the Mali women’s and their family’s attitude

towards occupation the following FIVE indicators were selected.

a) Attitude towards women’s employment

b) Preference of type of occupation for women

c) Reasons for working

d) Control over earnings

e) Husband and in-laws attitude towards women’s employment

a) Attitude towards women’s employment:

Employment of women is considered as an index of modernization. Until recently,

not many educated women were employed in India except those who had been

forced by economic necessity to take up jobs. Today woman have come to realize,

that work gives them a personal status and an independent social standing in

society. Women from the lower strata have always worked for wages but those

from the upper classes were mostly confined to their homes. They have now

started coming out and entering vocations that were largely the field of men. In

Kaur’s (1983) study majority held the opinion that women should accept

employment only if their family circumstances press them to do so, in other words

women’s foremost duty was towards their family. Swati Shirwadkar (1998),

reports that the mother’s employment the education level moulds the attitude of the

younger generation particularly the female members, in regard to education as well

as employment. According to M. Pushpa Latha and B.Sudhakar (2007:439)

women are subjected to discrimination at the work place such as male domination

especially in terms of decisions, women not being appreciated for their work, are

made to do the work of others and have to suffer from sexual advances.

In the present study the respondents were asked about their attitude towards

women’s employment. Out of the total sample almost all (84.8%) of the

respondents did not favor women’s employment and said that there were

disadvantages of a job. Whereas some (15.2%) of the respondents favored

women’s employment and said that there are advantages of a job. These

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respondents were asked the reasons for their negative attitudes towards women’s

employment. The reasons given were:

1) Employed women cannot pay full attention to the household duties being

overburdened by working outside.

2) They said that once married they are burdened with dual duties. For them the

family responsibility came first and then their individual development.

3) They also felt that working women have to face male advances in the office.

On the other hand the respondents who favored women’s employment said that if

a woman earns she has economic independence, she becomes confident to face

problems, and she is not suppressed. She doesn’t have to depend for small

necessities on anyone.

In the informal discussion it was seen that few (1.8%) of the unemployed

respondents inwardly have an aspiration to work, but they have to suffer from

many obstacles such as opposition from family in taking up employment, due to

less education, early marriage and so on. In a group interview sixteen of the

respondents, out of which eight of them were housewives, four of them were self

employed, two of them helping in their husband’s shops, a nurse and a teacher

said “Pratyak Baini Dhon Paise Kamvayla Pahije, Mag Aapleya Chote Mothe Garje

Sati Kona Var Avlambun Rahanyachi Avshakta Nahi Ti Shikl Nasel Khiva Shikshan

Kami Aasel Teri Pratyakath Kahe Kala Aaste, Mag ti Ghari Rahun Don Paise

Kamvu Shakte. (Every woman should earn a little bit so that she doesn’t have to

depend on anyone for her small necessities, even if she is illiterate or less

educated, every woman has some inborn skill or talent in her which she can use to

earn a bit even by staying at home).

Thus the above analysis indicates that almost all of the respondents were against

women’s employment and said that due to working outside the woman is burdened

by dual duties and the family and children are neglected, have to bear male

advances at the work place, but few were ready to do some part-time jobs or a job

with flexible timings so that the family is not neglected and they will have their own

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money which they can spend on their small necessities without having to ask from

their husbands or family members. While some of the respondents who favored

women’s employment felt that the working status gives economic independence,

makes the woman confident to face any situation and develops the personality and

that is promising change. One thing which comes out of the data is that few of the

respondents feel that no matter what a woman does but every women should earn

a little bit. It can be said that there is slight awareness among the respondents

about economic independence but the Mali women are still bound by traditional

hold of family and thus woman’s perception of employment is not free from the

context of family. Since the Mali caste comprises traditional land-owners, the

hostile attitude towards women employment still remains.

b) Preference of type of occupation for women:

Today as the standard of living is rising day by day one pay is inadequate to meet

the family demands. People’s expectations have increased, everyone wants to

enjoy the luxuries of life and maintain a certain standard of living. The things such

as a telephone, fridge, car etc. which were considered to be luxurious few decades

back have become necessities today. So one needs extra income and hence a

woman takes up a job. Now under the changing conditions taking up a job is based

more on the principle of achievement rather than economic need. Y.B.Abbasayalu

(1978:79-80) writes “Occupation may be defined as the relatively continuous

patterns of activities that provide an individual or livelihood and define his/her

general social status. Leela Vishwanath (1993), points that many sociologists

have used occupation as a major indicator of social mobility of a caste. They had

pointed out that the occupational desire of the mother determined the occupational

desire of the daughter. This was found true in the present study as it is seen that

among the three generations, grandmothers, mothers and daughters are

concentrated in the clerical, teaching jobs, are self-employed or are helping in the

family set-ups.

There are a number of jobs and it is seen that some jobs are not suitable for

women. A number of studies have been done to know the jobs which women

prefer. Dipali. G.Danda and D.K.Samanta (1993) report on their study on Barbadi

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village in eastern Maharashtra that a significant proportion of women belonging to

the Mali work as agricultural and non-agricultural labourers. Bageshwar Singh

(1993) study of Nangal Soosawatan village in Rajasthan observed that Mali

women were more involved in agricultural work than men. Men usually go

elsewhere to seek jobs for supplementing family income from land. Most of the

Mali’s belonged to the middle economic class and were small farmers, and no one

belonged to the category of big farmers. Hate (1969), Boserup (1970), Kaur

(1983), Rhoda Lois Blumberg and Leela Dwaraki (1980), Pratima Kumari

(1988) all these studies found that majority of the women preferred teaching

profession, as it has advantages like limited hours of work, good social status and

allows women to carry their familial duties without strain. According to the Report

of the Committee on the status of women in India (1974), the opening of

medical education to women was an early goal of Indian reform, deemed essential

if women’s health were to be improved. This field has been an accepted and

respected profession for women for a considerable period. It also states that

women doctors have, until recent times, tended to concentrate in the field of

obstetrics and gynecology and although they are now entering other specialties,

their clients continue to be mainly women and children. The Times of India (8-9-

08) reports that an analysis of social ownership patterns of business

establishments as presented by Economic Census for 2005 shows that majority of

the businesses are owned by mostly OBCs with a slim contribution coming from

SCs and STs. And these establishments are without any hired workers; these are

run by members of the household. They are possibly mainly efforts at self-

employment. Such employment often happens in distress situations when there

are no other avenues of employment. In states were there has been political

empowerment of the reserved categories especially OBCs and SCs, they seem to

own much larger proportions of the hired worker establishments than in others. In

Maharashtra and Rajasthan the proportion of OBC-owned establishments with

hired workers grew from 18% to over a third of total OBC-owned establishments,

indicating that their businesses are becoming bigger.

But according to Mira Seth (2001) the status of women as indicated in all sectors

of employment shows that women are concentrated in low paid jobs and are low in

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the hierarchies of status, she further points out that women have adversarial ratios

to men in all developed and developing countries in political employment, India is

lagging behind developed countries in professional and technical employment for

women and behind South America, East Asia and Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand in

all types of employment.

In the present study an attempt has been made to know the job preferred by the

respondents. The finding reveals that majority (76.4%) of the respondents felt that

if a woman wants to work she should work from home so that the family and

children are not neglected and said that she can help in the family business also as

it has flexible timings and there is no compulsion of work as such. Some (11.2%)

preferred teaching jobs as they felt it has status, respect, less hours of work, long

vacations and felt that one can pay attention to family and children. While few of

the (4.7%) respondents said that women can take up part time jobs due to which

the family is not neglected. And few (4.4%) of the respondents preferred bank

service and clerical jobs as according to them these jobs had regular timings and

were not strenuous. As clerical jobs meant interacting with male colleagues few of

them preferred these jobs. Very few number (1.2%) of respondents thought that

girls should join any job which was suitable to their educational qualifications and

that can be army, navy, police any field in which she has aptitude and interest. Few

of the (1.3%) respondents felt that if a girl is clever she should become a doctor or

can go for nursing to serve the people as it is the highest kind social service to

man kind and is respectable while (.8%) of the respondents felt that in a country

where there is so much unemployment, men have greater right to job. So women

should concentrate on their homes and use their education in managing the home.

Just running after career and competing with men is of no use as it will lead to

problems in family. She should try to do a little bit of something other than

housework so that she can earn a little bit and will have mental satisfaction.

In the present investigation the researcher found that most of respondents working

as well as non-working did not have any high ambitious or much interest for a

career. Career for them meant a job or some work which can be done without

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neglecting the family. They said education is not meant only to make a career. It

can be used in many ways to lead a creative, productive and fruitful life such as:

1) If one is educated, she can use her education to be a good housewife. She can

educate her children, guide her children.

2) If the woman is educated and if the family circumstances do not allow her to

take up employment she can take tuitions, she can use his skills or hobbies to earn

something.

3) If the woman’s family is wealthy then she can help her husband in his business,

can do social service by teaching the poor children.

4) She can take up some part time job or something which can be done from

home. This way she will have economic independence as well as a sense of

fulfillment.

5) If education is there it helps the woman to earn in case of misfortune or

emergency. Even if the woman is uneducated she can use her skills which every

woman has, to earn. She should not sit idle. She should have economic

independence.

Three respondents in their late fifties, one of them illiterate but a vegetable seller,

the other a graduate and teacher by profession, a graduate corporator, a young

self employed matriculate housewife and a self employed unmarried respondent

said “Pratyak bai madhe ek kala asthe jasa changla sivan, embroidery karne,

changla swayapak karne, mulana sambhalne, chitra kadne. Thi hya kalache upyog

karun ghari rahun don paise kamvu shakte. Pun pratyak baine don paise kamavne

garjecha aahe, swathacha chote mothe garajan sathi thila kaunapude hath

pasraychi garaj nahi, garath thila maan as the, thi hussar hote”. (Every women has

some skills in her like she can do good stitching, good embroidery, can cook

delicious food items, can take good care of the children, can do good drawing,

painting and so on. She should use her skills to earn a little bit by staying at home

but it is important that every woman should earn and have economic

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independence so that for every small necessity she doesn’t have to ask somebody,

she has respect and status in the family, she becomes confident and clever).

From the above analysis it is seen that majority of the respondents preferred to

work from home or help in the family business as they didn’t want to disturb their

routine family life and children, next teaching is the most preferred job as it has

prestige, less hours of work, long vacations and is not laborious and felt that one

can pay full attention to the family. While few felt part-time jobs should be done by

women so that the family is not ignored, few preferred bank or clerical jobs as

these jobs meant greater possibility of interacting with men in offices but felt that

these jobs are not difficult and have regular timings, very few felt that the girls

should take up jobs according to their qualifications, aptitude and interest and it

can be a job in the army, navy, police anything which interests her, few felt that a

girl should go for nursing or become a doctor as it is the highest kind of selfless

service to mankind and are respectable jobs which is a progressive change. A

negligible number of them felt that men have greater right to jobs in a country with

so much unemployment so women should focus on their homes and can do

something from home for some money and mental satisfaction.

Also the respondents felt that education is not only for making a high end career, it

can be used fruitfully like one can teach one’s children, can be a good housewife, if

the family is wealthy and the husband is against working one can do social service

by teaching poor children, can help in the family business or can take up a part

time job or can do some household business. They also said that every woman

has some talent in her which she can use and earn a little bit from home also so

that she doesn’t have to depend for her small necessities on someone. But one

thing which comes out from the analysis is, few of the respondents felt that no

matter what a woman does, she can be a teacher, a clerk, self-employed or a

worker but it is important that every woman should have a little bit of economic

independence so that she has her own money to spend on her small necessities

when needed. When one is self-reliant she has respect in family, she doesn’t have

to ask for her small necessities, and she becomes confident and clever. It proves

that though the process of change is slow, the attitudes of these few women are

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certainly changing. It can be said that she is passing though the transitional period.

It may also be stated that family duties comes first and the range of occupational

choice of these women is limited and traditionalism still rules the Mali women.

c) Reasons for working:

Why a woman works is an important question before us. There are several factors

which lead an individual to work. Today as the standard of living is rising, prices

are rising, and one salary is not enough so to contribute to the family income the

woman works. Sometimes women are ambitious and in order to gain recognition,

they work. Some housewives just to get away from the monotony of housework

seek escape by taking up employment. Some women wish to utilize their

education, talent and skills which inspire them to seek employment, some work for

economic independence and to have their own identity. Ross (1967:201) writes

Women interviewees gave the following reasons for favoring careers, like they

needed interests outside the home which would make them more alive and

interesting and prevent their having to sit idly at home, also their work would

benefit society as there is a great need for trained people in India, they enjoyed

professions as nursing and teaching; and they would help with the family’s

finances. The Ministry of Labour, Government of India (1964: 58-59) pointed

out that there are four factors which compel women to take up employment like a)

inadequate income of the main earner which forces the women to take up work to

supplement the income b) death of the bread-winner c) mishaps, such as

incapacity of the bread-winner d) a women’s desire for economic independence or

to secure a higher standard of living or the desire of the women to give expression

to their own talents and skills. Ranade and Ramchandra (1964) studies in Delhi

and Bombay also showed that a large number of women worked for economic

reasons. Kapur (1974:13) on the basis of survey of 300 urban women concluded

that “educated married women of urban India are impelled to get into employment

nit only by economic insufficiency, but also by various other socio-psychological

motivations”. Sanjay Ketan Jena (1994) found that majority of the respondents

have taken up jobs to have economic independence and all others took up jobs to

provide financial support to the family.

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In this context the question put to the respondents was ‘What is the main reason

for your working’? In the present sample it is seen that more than half (52.6%) of

the respondents are housewives. Out of the 15.7% employed respondents, some

(11.8%) have taken up jobs to contribute to the family income, few (1.3%) have

taken jobs to have economic independence, few (1.4%) are doing jobs to make

use of their education. And few of (1.2%) of the respondents have taken up jobs as

it was the wish of their husbands/ in-laws/parents.

Some (18.1%) of the respondents were self employed in very small scale business

like tailoring, running beauty parlors,, nursery, mess, taking tuitions, making

pickles, ‘masalas’, ‘papads’ other than housework and few (8.1%) of the

respondents were helping in their family business like dairy, stationary shops,

general stores, electric appliances shop, STD booths, Xerox shop etc in their time.

The respondents who were self employed and were helping in the family business

said that because of this they could keep a balance between the role of a

housewife and an employee. They said that instead of going out to work and

disturbing one’s life by going against the wish of family members, it is better to help

in their own family business where there is no compulsion of work and flexible

timings are there. Rest of (5.5%), the respondents are either studying or are

unmarried and are not doing jobs.

Five self employed respondents said “We are not so educated and moreover our

families are against women going out for work so it is better to do something from

home so that there is peace in the house as well as one can pay attention to the

children”. Another married respondent said that she was working as a clerk before

marriage but as her husband was against working she left the job and now she

takes tuitions for primary classes. Three postgraduate respondents helping their

husband’s in their business said “In our family women are not allowed to work.

Before marriage we had big career plans for ourselves but when we finished our

post graduation our parents were not getting a boy suitable to our qualification in

our community so we had to compromise and were married to undergraduate boys

who had their own family business, one has a printing press and the other has an

electrical appliances shop”. Another married self employed respondent said that

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she had done her D.Ed and wanted to go into teaching profession but as the family

and husband are against her working she takes tuition classes for primary

students. An unmarried respondent said “I have completed my B.Com and I was

getting an accountant’s job in a coaching class but was not allowed by my big joint

family, every one was against me. According to them they will get me married and

then it would my husband’s wish if I can take up a job or not”. Another graduate

respondent was getting a teachers job but was not allowed by her family as getting

her married was their first priority. A married nurse and married clerk said that as

their husband’s income is not enough to make both ends they have to work and

they are not satisfied with their jobs as the salary is very less.

The above analysis shows that more than half (52.6%) of the respondents are

housewives, out of (15.7%) respondents who are actually in outside jobs, some of

them took up jobs to contribute to the family income, few had taken up jobs to have

economic independence, few to make use of their education and few were in jobs

due to the wish of their husband’s/ in-law’s/parents. While some (18.1%) were self

employed in small scale business like tailoring, beauty parlor, mess, tuitions,

making ‘masalas’ etc and few (8.1%) of the respondents were helping their families

and husband’s in their business like dairy, stationary shops STD booths, Xerox

shops and so on in their free time, and felt that they can give ample time to the

family and children as they have their own flexible timings and there is no

compulsion of work. In addition the data also shows that few of them were in jobs

before marriage but were now self employed or helping in the family business as

their husbands and in-laws were against their working. Few were postgraduates

and had career plans but due to family opposition they gave up their dreams and

got married to undergraduate boys and are helping in their family shops. Two

unmarried respondents were getting jobs but the family didn’t allow them as they

wanted them to get married first and then think about working according to their

husbands wish. In a nutshell, the data clearly indicates that the Mali community is

highly traditional and do not favor women working outside the house.

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d) Control over earnings:

In Indian context any income or property of the women was under the control of the

husband due to its patriarchal nature of family. It is generally assumed that

economic independence makes women more independent. M.S. Gore (1968)

points out that the lower caste woman participates actively in the economic sphere

but however have their suffering in spite of economic independence due to

patriarchal constraints within the family. Even today in some families the income of

the working women is controlled by her husband and other family members

Financial empowerment also requires control over the use of one’s earnings.

Recently a change is occurring and women are asserting their right in controlling

their earnings. Shashi Jain (1988) in his study on middle class women found that

the earnings of majority of the women are controlled by the head of the family.

Swati Shirwadkar’s (1998) sample which consisted of Brahmins, Saraswats,

Marathas, other occupational castes, S.C/S.T and Non-Maharashtrians found that

the respondents belonging to the upper castes had greater authority over one’s

own salary, among S.C/S.T only one respondent had control over her earnings

while among Marathas out of 25 only 5 (20%) had control over their salary.

According to her this may be due to the politico-economic domination of middle

castes which does not easily give way to change. The Times of India, dated 14-

11-2007, reports that according to The National Family Health Survey-III (2007),

one in six working women didn’t have any say on how they could spend their

earnings, the survey makes another important finding- in states were at least three

out of four employed women earned in cash such as Kerala (91%), Tamil Nadu

(90%), Goa (83%), Assam (85%), and West Bengal (83%), the women didn’t have

their own will on how to spend the money. In the survey only 24% who earned said

they decided on their own what to do with their earnings while 57% said the

husband had a major say and in 15% the husband single-handedly made the

decision. Even among the oldest age group, the most highly educated category

and women belonging to the wealthiest section, only 28-31% of women said they

decided on themselves on how their earnings are to be spent. The findings also

varied greatly by religion. The husband is more likely to be the main decision

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maker in the case of Buddhist and Hindu women. A poll conducted for Times of

India (8-3-2009). by market research agency Synovate India in eight cities – Delhi,

Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune and Jaipur has shown

that majority of the women do not decide on how the money is to be spent. The

findings are particularly sobering because those surveyed were in the 20-40 age

groups and from the highest socio-economic categories. R.P.Mohanty and

D.N.Biswal (2007) point that in almost all cases the respondents are to hand over

their earnings to their husbands or keep that with themselves with their permission

otherwise they are beaten, scolded or threatened to get divorced. M.Pushpa Lata

and Sudhakar Rao (2007), that 27.50 percent of the respondents said that their

entire salary is taken away by their husbands.

Hence it becomes essential whether a woman’s work has really given her

economic independence or it is still a matter of family choice so in the present

study to see whether the respondents had control over their earnings they were

asked’ How do you utilize your earnings? The question was put to the (15.7%)

respondents working outside, to the self employed (18.1%) respondents and to the

(8.1%) of the respondents helping in the family business. It is seen that out of the

(15.7%) employed respondents, some (11.8%) of the respondents contributed their

salary to the family, few (2.3%) spent some amount for themselves and saved

some amount for future plans, few (1.6%) of them handed their entire earnings to

the husband/in-law’s. Out of the (18.1%) self employed respondents some (12%)

of them contributed to the family income, few (2.4%) of the respondents saved it

for future plans, few (2.5%) of them handed their entire earnings to the husband/in-

law’s and few (1.2%) of the respondents spent some part of their earnings for their

own requirements which shows that though few women are asserting their rights in

controlling some part of their earnings. The respondents who were helping the

families in their small scale businesses had no independent income or a fixed

amount as a salary, but had the freedom to spend on small household necessities

when needed. The money matters were handled by the male members only; the

respondents just helped them by looking after the shops in their free time.

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Four of the respondents, two self employed doing tailoring, two clerks said that

their husband’s income is not enough to run the house so they contribute their full

income to the family. One self employed respondent taking tuitions said that she

had to hand over all the money to her mother-in-law as she knew the number of

students and the amount which they pay. Three respondents a nurse, two clerks

said that although they were earning they didn’t have right on single paisa of their

earnings, they handed their earnings to their in-laws and husbands and had to ask

them even for their own small necessities. Three of the respondents, a doctor, a

teacher and a self employed running a nursery said that their husbands never

asked them about their salary so they spent some part of their earnings as they

wished and saved some part.

The data shows that out of the employed respondents, some of the respondents

contributed their salary to the family, few spent some amount for themselves and

saved some amount for future plans, few handed their entire earnings to the

husband/in-law’s. While out of the self employed respondents some of them

contributed to the family income, few saved it for future plans, few handed their

entire earnings to the husband/in-law’s and few spent some part of their earnings

for their own requirements which shows that though few women are asserting their

rights in controlling some part of their earnings. But at the same time it is seen that

few of the respondents still have to hand over their earnings to their husbands and

in-law’s and have to ask from them even for their small necessities which shows

that male dominance still prevails in the Mali society and women have no say on

their own earnings. While the respondents who helped in their family businesses

had no fixed amount as salary but had the freedom to spend on small household

necessities when needed.

e) Husband and in-laws attitude towards women’s employment:

The phenomenon of working, women occupying salaried jobs has had

repercussions in many ways. Their husbands, their-in-laws react in diverse ways to

their being employed. In many cases it was feared that if the wife earns, then other

people may think that the husband is not able to support her. It was assumed that

paid employment will give her opportunities to the unfaithful and other will talk

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about her thus harming the family status and prestige in the community woman

working side by side with men in offices as clerks was considered disrespectful.

Later on jobs such as teaching and that of a doctor were approved by society as

these professions were associated with social service. It was only after

independence that women stepped out to serve in the offices. Husband and in-

laws are generally biased and doubtful for a working woman. Neera Desai (1957)

observed that the traditional attitude regarding the role of a woman in society as

that of housewife and mother still exists largely than an employed worker. In this

connection M.S. Gore (1968:159) points out, “It is uncommon for a woman in the

traditional Hindu family to accept employment outside the home. The customary

objections to the idea are taken into account very widely and involve consideration

of family status, concepts of appropriateness of certain roles for woman because of

innate qualities and disabilities attributed to them, fear of neglect of home and

children and the fear of being unconventional”.

However, recently a change has developed in the traditional attitude towards

women’s employment. A feeling has developed that an employed woman helps the

family in discharging their financial responsibilities.

Regarding the attitude of family members towards their employment the

respondents of the present study were put the question “What is the attitude of

your husband and in laws towards your working? This question was put to the

working (15.7%) respondents who were actually employed outside. The analysis

reveals that some of the respondent’s in-laws and husbands were satisfied with

their being in work and few of the respondents told that their families were not

satisfied and disliked their employment. The reasons for disapproval were; 2(.5%)

the family was well off whereas; 3(.8%) the family felt that the respondent was not

devoting her time for the family and that she has become disrespectful towards

them. Thus it can be concluded that the traditional outlook that a woman should

not work outside is still prevalent and hovering on the mentality of the husbands

and their in-law’s in our respondent’s case.

The question was not put to self employed (18.1%) and those (8.1%) helping in the

family businesses, as such type of jobs are not time consuming, there is no

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compulsion of work, are not strenuous and with flexible timings one can balance

the job and household duties very well.

Seven self employed respondents said that they work from their homes and so

they have their own timings, there is no compulsion of work and moreover the

family duties are not neglected and they earn a little bit which is enough for their

small necessities and can save or spend this money as they want. Another self

employed respondent who runs a parlor said “I am a graduate, but instead of

taking up a job of eight hours and taking orders from someone I think what I am

doing is best, I have my own timings, children are cared for and I earn quite well”.

Two respondents helping their families in their business of electrical appliances

shop and stationary shop said that the shops are close to their houses and they sit

in the shops in the afternoons or when their husbands go out for some work and

they are at home when the children are back from school. A clerk said “I couldn’t

devote enough time for the family and children. I was always under stress and felt

guilty so I took voluntary retirement, I get pension and I feel that even the children

have improved in their studies. For a woman to work full time a strong support

system is needed”. A teacher and a doctor said “Today girls are seen in all fields

and every woman should be economically independent and then only her position

will improve. A working woman is under a lot of stress and so unless and until her

husband and in-laws are not supportive she cannot do justice to both her

responsibilities of work and family, so family support and encouragement is very

essential if a woman wants to work”. A respondent who is an L.I.C agent said that

sometimes for her work she has to go out in the evenings, which is not liked by her

mother-in-law as her child is six yrs old and feels that she is neglecting the child

and family duties. Another respondent working as a receptionist cum clerk in a

relatives firm said that her husband is suspicious about her when she is late and

he starts fighting for no reason. Two graduate respondents belonging to an affluent

family, one runs a nursery for kids in the premises of her house and the other

working as a teacher said that as their families are wealthy and have a high status

in the community their husbands and in-laws feel that their work is below their

status.

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The above analysis shows that some of the families are satisfied with the

respondents working status, but it is seen that some of them are self employed,

few are helping their husbands in their family business and only some are in actual

service working outside, so it can be said that due to such working pattern of the

respondents were there was no compulsion of work, it had flexible timings, family

duties were not neglected and these are the reasons that the family members were

satisfied with the respondents working status. Some of the respondents

themselves felt that instead of working outside it is good to be self employed or

help in the family business so that one can pay full attention to the family. One felt

guilty for not giving attention to the children and also felt that the children were not

doing well in studies and she left the job. Few felt that the husband and the in-laws

have to be supportive if a woman wants to work. Few of the respondents families

were not satisfied with the working of the respondents (those who were in actual

service) as the families were wealthy, they felt that the family was being ignored by

the respondent and also that the family’s status was being harmed due to the

respondent’s working. Thus it can be concluded that the traditional outlook that a

woman should not work outside is still prevalent and hovering on the mentality of

the husbands and their in-law’s in our respondent’s case and also the respondents

themselves do not have high aspirations for a career. For them family and children

come first in priority and then their own development.

4.2.2 Occupational Mobility:

Occupational mobility acts not only as an indicator of social change but also as a

transmitting agent of new attitudes and behaviour. In this section, the occupational

mobility of the Mali women has been analyzed. Occupational mobility of three

generations is compared with one another. The three generations are divided in

different levels of occupation; jobless, housewives, farmer/worker, self employed,

clerk, teacher, doctor, nurse, Corporator and other (those who are helping their

husbands in their family business). Whether the Mali women have succeeded in

achieving their aim or not has also been examined.

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Table. No. 4.2. Occupational Mobility of Mali women with reference to three generations

Occupation Mother Respondent Daughter

Farmer 27

(7%)

Jobless _____ 16 35 (4.2%) (9.2%)

Housewife 291 201 143

(76.1%) (52.6%) (37.5%)

Self-Employed 22 69 17

(5.8%) (18.1%) (4.5%)

Teacher 3 26 12

(0.8%) (6.9%) (3.1%)

Clerk 17 23 14

(4.5%) (6%) (3.7%)

Doctor _____ 5 1

(1.3%) (0.2%)

Nurse _____ 4 1

(1%) (0.2%)

Officer _____ _____ 1

(0.2%)

Other 22 31 9

(5.8%) (8.1%) (2.4%)

Corporator _____ 2 _____

(0.5%)

Student ______ 5 149

(1.3%) (39%)

Total 382 382 382

(100%) (100%) (100%)

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The table shows that in the first ascending generation few of the respondents are

farmers while in the second and in the first descending generation there are no

farmers. In the first ascending generation no one is a doctor, nurse or an officer,

while in the second generation there are five doctors, four nurses and two

‘corporators’ while in the first descending generation a negligible number i.e. one is

a doctor, one a nurse and one an officer. Data shows that there is a slight increase

in the number of respondents from the first ascending generation to the second

generation in self employment and the one’s helping in the family business,

teaching and clerical jobs, It is seen that occupational mobility is very slow and

most of them who are working are concentrated in self-employment or are helping

the families in their family’s small scale business, teaching and clerical jobs.

Few cases which show that women’s employment outside the house is not

accepted in the Mali community

1) Mrs. A from Koregoan Park is an undergraduate and a housewife, and her

daughter is doing her law graduation (L.L.B.). Mrs. A said that they were educating

their daughter just out of interest, not to take up a job and it will be her in-laws and

husband to decide whether she should practice or not.

2) Mrs. B from Pune station area is a post graduate and was working as a clerk in

a firm before marriage but left it due to husband’s opposition (husband is S.S.C)

and she takes tuitions at home.

3) Mrs. C from Kasba Peth is a post graduate (M.Com), family members are

against women doing jobs so she being so educated helps her husband (husband

is S.Y.B.Com) in his business. They have a printing press. She said that they were

not getting an equally educated boy for marriage so she had to say yes for this

proposal though they had told her before marriage only that she will not be allowed

to go for a job.

4) Mrs.D an undergraduate from Hadapsar said that a girl can take higher

education but what is the use of her education if she is not allowed to work. In our

community however educated a girl may be she is made to sit at home after

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marriage, so I feel why girls should take higher education if she has to do only

housework.

5) Mrs. E a graduate from Hadapsar said “I used to work in a coaching class as a

part-time accountant in the evenings. I hardly worked for three months, my mother

forced me to leave the job and said that people were keeping names as I work out

and she was afraid that marriage proposals will not come; now I am at home doing

nothing and waiting to get married.

6) Mrs. F from Bhavani Peth said “Mali samaj is fully male dominated and they

don’t like their women to go out and do jobs”.

7) Mrs. G a graduate from Pune Station area said “I don’t like women going out for

jobs if the family is well off. My mother was a teacher and when we came back

from school she never used to be at home which I never liked, so only if there is

need a woman should work otherwise she can be a good home maker”.

8) Mrs. H from Bhavani Peth who has done Diploma in computers said” My

husband feels that a woman’s duty is to look after the in-laws and the house and

should not take up a job”.

Cases of vertical occupational mobility studied in the research areas are given

below:

1) Mrs. A, residing in Koregoan Park is an undergraduate and helps her husband

in his business. She looks after their electrical appliances shop. Her mother was an

illiterate and used to work in their fields. Her daughter is a post graduate in history

and is a teacher. It shows the vertical occupational mobility of the women in this

family within three generations from traditional occupation to a teacher.

2) Mrs. B, residing in Bhavani Peth area is educated up to 10th grade and does

tailoring. Her mother was an illiterate and was a vegetable seller. She has three

daughters. One daughter is B.A. and a housewife, the other daughter is B.Com

running a parlor and the youngest daughter has done her B.Ed and is a teacher. It

also shows vertical occupational mobility from vegetable seller to self employed to

teaching among three generations of this family

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3) Mrs. C, residing in Hadapsar area is educated up to the 10th grade and is a

primary teacher. Her mother was primary educated and was self employed and

used to run a mess. She has two daughters. One daughter is a graduate (B.A) and

a teacher. The other daughter is also a graduate (B.Com), married and is a clerk.

This is an example of vertical occupational mobility within three generations of this

family.

4) Mrs. D from Bhavani Peth is educated up to S.S.C level and looks after their

stationary shop. Her mother was primary educated and was a farmer. Her

daughter is an Ayurvedic Doctor (B.A.M.S) and at present doing her internship.

This is an example of vertical mobility from traditional job to self employed to a

doctor.

5) Mrs. E from Hadapsar area is a doctor (M.B.B.S). Her mother was educated up

to 12th standard with Diploma in Education (D.Ed) and was a teacher. Her daughter

at present is in 12th standard and has plans to do engineering. This also is an

example of vertical mobility.

6) Mrs. G from Bund garden area is B.Ed and is a teacher, her mother was an

illiterate and a housewife, her daughter is an M.B.A and works as an officer in a

private firm. This is an example of high vertical occupational mobility within three

generations.

From the above data it is clear that that there is intergenerational horizontal

occupational mobility as the number of respondents engaged in self employment,

those helping in family business, teaching and clerical jobs, show an increase from

the first ascending to the second generation. While in the first descending

generation also only one respondent is an officer, rest are self employed or are

helping in the family business, are into teaching and clerical jobs. In all only six

cases of vertical mobility are seen and some respondents in the first descending

generation are young and still studying, maybe they will get into other jobs

otherwise in the present situation it can be seen that the Mali women have not

achieved much vertical mobility on the occupational scale. Even if educated they

don’t use their education to make a career or to get employed. They get married

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then it is the husband’s and in-laws wish whether or not to take up a job. A

woman’s priority is her house and children. On the whole it is seen that the

respondents are not so ambitious for a career and tradition still prevails with regard

to women’s employment and a woman working outside is not easily accepted

among the Mali community as discussed in detail in the indicators such as aim of

education and reasons for getting education.

4.3 Conclusion:

In the present study it is seen that the aspiration for education among Mali women

of Pune is not high. Majority of the respondents in the Mali community want their

girls to be educated up to graduation, some want them to take education at the

most up to post graduation. They do not have high educational aspirations and are

not career oriented. Marriage is given importance but even in marriage it is seen

that the boy’s education is not considered important, they wanted the boy to be

well settled and earning. In the present study the researcher found 57 (14.9%),

cases were the wives are more educated than their husbands, but are happy as

their husbands are well settled in family businesses. They felt that if a good

proposal comes in between her studies she should be married because as the age

increases it is difficult to get the girl married due to dowry problem, also as there

are few highly educated boys in the community the choice becomes limited and

highly educated boys ask for more dowry. Majority felt that the main reason to get

educated was to be self supporting in times of need, to lead a sound domestic life.

They said later on it was the husband’s and in-law’s wish if they want to study

further.

Moreover almost all of the respondents were not ready to send their daughters to

hostels for studies as they felt they might fall in bad friendship and also due to

today’s unsafe atmosphere. And few said that they alone cannot take any decision

in this matter it all depended on the husband and in-laws. On the whole we see

that the sacred character of marriage, early marriage, dowry system, their

perception of future roles as wives and mothers, the traditional attitude and

restrictions’ regarding girls came in the way of higher education.

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Majority of them felt that an educated mother is a better mother as she can guide

and help her children academically and some of the respondents felt that a

cultured mother is more important than an educated mother for the all round

development of the child and that education is not the criteria to judge a mother.

Though they say that an educated mother is a better mother in actual practice they

don’t place much value for girl’s education.

Data on educational mobility indicates that the level of education is slowly

increasing among the Mali women but majority of them don’t use their education to

get employed. They are married first, and the husband’s and in-laws decide

whether or not to take up a job or continue the studies. According to them a

woman’s priority should be her house and children and if there is need and the

husband wishes then only she can take up a job or she can help in the family

business, or do something from the house and earn a bit. They also said that

education can be useful in case of a adversity to earn a living so some felt that

after S.S.C one can do short courses and higher education is not necessary. One

more thing which can be seen from the data is that majority of the respondents

have done B.A, B.Com which doesn’t take much of their time and a negligible

number B.Sc. In addition the data also shows that nobody is pursuing education

out of the state or in foreign countries.

It can be concluded that women have low aspirations regarding education and

what ever level of education they take it is to perform traditional roles and to enable

them to earn a living in case of misfortune and emergency. Overall it is seen that

getting a girl married is of top priority.

In occupation and occupational mobility among Mali Women it is seen that almost

all of the respondents were not in favor of women’s employment and said that due

to working outside the woman cannot do justice to the household duties, felt that a

woman should work from home or do something from home or help in the family

business if she wants to work without neglecting her family duties, next teaching is

the most preferred job as it has prestige, less hours of work, long vacations and

one can pay full attention to the family. Few felt part-time jobs should be done so

that the family is not ignored, few preferred bank or clerical jobs as these jobs

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meant interacting with men in offices but felt that these jobs are not difficult and

have regular timings. Few felt that a girl should become a doctor or do nursing as it

is kind of social service and are respectable jobs. A negligible number of them felt

that men have greater right to jobs in a country with so much unemployment so

women should focus on their homes and can do something from home for some

money and mental satisfaction.

Also the respondents felt that education is not only for making a high end career, it

can be used fruitfully like one can teach one’s children, can be a good housewife,

one can do social service by teaching poor children, can help in the family

business or can take up a part time job or can do some household business. They

also said that every woman has some talent in her which she can use and earn a

little bit from home also so that she doesn’t have to depend for her small

necessities on someone. But one thing which comes out from the analysis is, few

of the respondents felt that no matter what a woman does, she can be a teacher,

self-employed or a worker but it is important that every woman should have

economic independence. For them economic independence means earning little

bit of money so that they can spend it on their small necessities without having to

ask from somebody when needed. When one is self-reliant she has respect in

family, she doesn’t have to ask for her small necessities, and she becomes

confident and clever. It proves that though the process of change is slow, the

attitudes of these few women are certainly changing. It can be said that she is

passing though the transitional period. It may also be stated that family duties

comes first and the range of occupational choice of these women is limited and

traditionalism still rules the Mali women.

The data shows that more than half of the respondents were housewives, some of

the respondents took up jobs to contribute to the family income, some were self

employed in small scale business like tailoring, beauty parlor, mess, tuitions,

making ‘masalas’ etc and few of the respondents were helping their families and

husband’s in their business like dairy, stationary shops STD booths, Xerox shops

and so on in their free time as they felt that they can pay attention to the family and

children as they have their own flexible timings and there is no compulsion of work.

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In addition the data also shows that few of them were in jobs before marriage, few

were postgraduates and had to give up career plans, got married to undergraduate

boys and are now helping in their family shops or are self employed. Two

unmarried respondents were getting jobs but the family didn’t allow them as they

wanted them to get married first and then think about working according to their

husbands wish. In a nutshell, the data clearly reveals that the Mali community is

highly traditional and do not favor women working outside the house.

The data on utilization of earnings shows that out of the respondents actually

employed outside and out of the self employed respondents, some of the

respondents contributed their salary to the family, few of them spent some amount

on themselves and saved for future plans. But it is also seen that some of the

respondents still have to hand over their entire earnings to their husbands and in-

law’s and have to ask from them even for their small necessities which shows that

male dominance still prevails in the Mali society and women have no say on their

own earnings. The respondents helping in the family’s small scale businesses had

no independent income but had the liberty to spend on small household

necessities when needed.

Regarding the attitude of husband and in-laws towards their employment it is seen

that some are satisfied with the respondents working status, but it is seen that

from working respondents, some (18.1%) of them are self employed, few (8.1%)

are helping their husbands in their family business and only some (15.7%) are in

actual service working outside, so it can be said that due to no compulsion of work,

flexible timings, not neglecting the family duties are the reasons that the family

members were satisfied with the respondents working status. Some of the

respondents themselves felt that instead of working outside it is good to be self

employed or help in the family business so that one can pay full attention to the

family. Few of the respondents families were not satisfied with the working of the

respondents (those who were actually working outside) as the families were

wealthy, they felt that the family was being ignored by the respondent and also that

the family’s status was being harmed due to the respondent’s working. One

respondent felt guilty for not giving attention to the children and also felt that the

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children were not doing well in studies and she left the job. Few felt that the

husband and the in-laws have to be supportive if a woman wants to work.

Data on occupational mobility shows that the women in the present study

displayed a low participation ratio in economic activities. There is intergenerational

horizontal occupational mobility as the number of respondents engaged in self

employment, those helping in family business, teaching and clerical jobs, show an

increase from the first ascending to the second generation. While in the first

descending generation also only one respondent is an officer rest are self

employed or are helping in the family business, are into teaching and clerical jobs,

Some respondents in the first descending generation are young and still studying,

maybe they will get into other jobs otherwise in the present situation it can be seen

that the Mali women have not achieved much vertical mobility on the occupational

scale. Even if educated they don’t use their education to make a career or to get

employed. They get married then it is the husband’s and in-laws wish whether or

not to take up a job. Thus it can be concluded that the traditional outlook that a

woman should not work outside is still prevalent and hovering on the mentality of

the husbands and their in-law’s in our respondent’s case and also the respondents

themselves do not have high aspirations for a career. For them family and children

come first in priority and then their own development. Woman’s perception of

employment is not free from the context of family. Since the Mali caste comprises

traditional land-owners, the hostile attitude towards women employment still

remains.

Thus, it is seen that the Mali women neither have high educational aspirations nor

they have high occupational ambitions, but few of them have a slight awareness

about the need of economic independence. Their main aim is to get the girl

married as soon as she gets a good proposal rather than giving her education and

making her independent.