Objectives
• To network with other women’s organizations to raise women’s consciousness of their own worth and potential and to bring about change within the unjust gender structures of society;
• To facilitate programmes on women’s development in member colleges, encouraging equal partnership with men in their search for a just and humane society;
• To undertake research on women’s concerns;
• To offer programmes of Women’s Studies;
• To impart to women of the local communities, skill of production, community development, health education etc. in order to develop a model of women’s empowerment activities that are replicable in an educational set-up;
• To disseminate information on women’s issues through publication of journals, research reports, pamphlets, posters etc

Activities at the national level
VIKASINI has facilitated the formation of 135 Women’s Cells/Women’s Development Centres in colleges with the following objectives:
• Disseminating information on women’s concerns
• Sensitizing students about gender inequalities
• Effecting attitudinal changes towards gender stereotyping and inequality by involving men in a healthy dialogue
• Empowering women students to realize their full potential through personality development programmes, leadership training programmes etc.
• Empowering women of the local communities through activities like adult literacy, skill training programmes, income generating activities, formation of Mahila Mandals, self-help programmes, women’s rights education etc.
• Undertaking research on women’s concerns
• Replacing the hierarchical pattern of relationship by a new pattern where both men and women are treated equal in society
The activities of these Women’s Cells include:
• Women’s Studies
• Women’s Rights
• Action research on women’s concerns
• Legal Rights of Women
• Advocacy of Women’s Concerns
• Research and Publications
• Prevention of Violence against Women
• Declining Sex-ratio and Female Foeticide
• Counselling Skills
• Sexual Harassment at Workplace
• Trafficking in women and girls
• Gender and HIV/AIDS
• Seminars/Workshops/Conferences on Women’s Concerns/issues
• Self-employment Programmes/Training Programmes for Income Generation
• Outreach/Extension programmes
• Leadership Training Programmes

VIKASINI continues to strive to be a national resource centre on women’s studies and development and a source of inspiration for women in the colleges to work for their less fortunate sisters.

VIKASINI has successfully conducted a two-year correspondence course leading to a Diploma in ‘Women’s Development Studies’. This course had the following curricula: History of Women’s Movement, Women and Education, Women and Law, Research Methodology, Women – Language, Literature & Media, Women and Health, Women and Violence, Women and Religions & Women and Politics.

Women’s Resource Centre
VIKASINI has library and Documentation Wing, which makes available to its users, reports, newspaper clippings, various types of data and other information materials. It has a growing collection of books and journals on women.

VIKASINI – Journal of Women’s Empowerment
A quarterly journal is regularly published by VIKASINI which reaches NGOs, women activities, women’s colleges and other civic society units. It contains articles, research studies, case studies, latest news from women’s world and reports on women’s empowerment activities.

ADVOCACY
VIKASINI undertakes advocacy in collaboration with other NGOs and agencies for influencing public opinion and legislation on issues such as women’s political participation, declining sex-ratio, foeticide, trafficking of women and children, sexual harassment, rights of girl child, domestic violence etc.

Activities at the local level
VIKASINI also works for the empowerment of women from the slums, villages and resettlement colonies of West Delhi through local level programmes carried out at its Centre in Janakpuri. The local level programmes include:

SABALA SHIKSHA (Education for Empowerment):
This six-month non-formal education programme seeks to equip illiterate women and school drop-out girl children with skills of reading, writing and counting and to teach and demonstrate to them income-generating capacities along with personality development.

KARMINI SKILL TRAINING PROGRAMME:
The term Karmini means “working woman”. This programme was initiated in 1988 and since then it has been contributing towards the economic empowerment of women. This six-month programme aims at imparting vocational and production skills to women and girls between the ages of 16 to 35 years who belong to the deprived section of society. Apart from imparting income generation skills, the Karmini programme also caters to wholesome personality development of the students. Regular health check-ups, yoga, self-defense classes, legal literacy, music and art classes etc. form a part of the curriculum.

TRAINING IN BEAUTY CULTURE:
Six-months advanced training in beauty culture is also imparted to the school drop-outs and illiterate women coming to the Centre in order to enable them to secure gainful employment or start a small-scale business of their own, thereby empowering them economically.

FAMILY COUNSELLING CENTRE:
The Pavitra Parivar Counselling Centre was established in 1987 with the aim of rendering family counselling towards issues which involve domestic strife and marital discord. The Centre endeavours to help both women and young girls who are oppressed due to distress situations within the family structure. These situations are handled with the help and guidance of trained social psychologists and workers who keep in mind the fact that within the Indian social infrastructure family relationships are of great importance. Family values are promoted but at the same time the dignity of women within the family is preserved. Once a case is registered at the Centre, case files are maintained for each case and entries are made on the basis of each session and visits to the centre. Home visits are made regularly by the social worker, to understand the problem in its true perspective. The cases which need outside help are referred to various agencies according to the help required by the counsellee.

MAHILA PANCHAYATS:
In collaboration with the Delhi Commission for Women, VIKASINI facilitated the setting up of Mahila Panchayats in the urban slums and resettlement colonies of West Delhi. The ‘Mahila Panchayat’ is a redressal forum for disputes in the community and serves as a vigil group on violence against women and children especially girl children. Its functioning is similar to that of panchayats in rural areas. A group of women who are the leaders of the community and are respected by the community, constitute the Mahila Panchayat which acts as a fact-finding team, a pressure group and offers solutions to the problems which are honoured by the community. The Mahila Panchayat is also a powerful women’s forum putting pressure on the family and community to resolve marital and other disputes.
The Mahila Panchayats formed by VIKASINI intervened in several cases of dowry harassment, violence against women, alcoholism, property disputes, marital maladjustment etc. and amicably resolved them. Cases where social pressure failed to bring any redress to the victim, are referred to the police.

CURRENT Plans
• VIKASINI has a full-fledged Centre for Women’s Studies offering Degree and Diploma courses
• Programmes related to HIV/AIDS awareness and preventive skills
• Micro-credit programmes for disadvantaged women
• Job-oriented courses for housewives, college students and other educated women
• Gender training programmes for professional groups
• Awareness, relief and rehabilitation programmes for child labourers

Networking
VIKASINI networks with schools, colleges, universities, international, national, regional and local women’s organizations and facilitates periodic meetings, conferences, training courses etc.