Assistant Professor, Department of Lifelong Learning & Extension, University of North Bengal, Siliguri, West Bengal, India
The Self Help Groups (SHGs) in these days have been playing significant role to empower women both in social and economical aspects. This study has addressed the role of SHGs in empowering rural women of Palpara of Matigara Block in Darjeeling District. The information has been collected from 100 SHG members to satisfy the objectives of this study. To estimate and compare the levels of empowerment, mean scores were used with respect to various indicators, by means of five rating scale of the answers to the queries, retrieved from the respondents. The study has revealed that the SHGs have played greater role in improving the personal empowerment as well as economic empowerment.
