Geographical Coverage

Cluster 1

Jaipur City Slums: Understanding and Responding to Urban Vulnerabilities

As part of its commitment to addressing the challenges faced by urban poor communities, Development Initiatives Society (DIS) conducted a comprehensive survey to identify and understand the conditions of slum settlements in Jaipur City. The study mapped 20 slums, many of which are the result of rapid urbanization and unregulated migration from rural and tribal areas.

Urban slums often emerge as informal settlements with limited access to basic services, insecure housing, and poor sanitation. The complexity of these environments disproportionately affects children and women, making them especially vulnerable to exploitation, neglect, and rights violations.

To effectively address these challenges, DIS carried out a Rapid Assessment focusing on key issues such as:

• Access to education and health services
• Child protection risks (including child labour, early marriage, and trafficking)
• Women’s safety, livelihoods, and mobility
• Access to government schemes and entitlements
• Sanitation, water, and housing conditions

Based on this assessment, DIS has adopted a two-pronged approach:

• Intensive, long-term engagement in 4 slums, where we run integrated programs focusing on education, child protection, women’s empowerment, and community mobilization.
• Event-based and issue-specific interventions in 10 additional slums, such as health camps, awareness campaigns, relief distribution, and educational support drives.

Our urban work is rooted in community participation and aims to strengthen local capacities, connect people to entitlements, and advocate for inclusive urban policies that recognize and respond to the needs of slum dwellers.

 

Cluster 2:

Sanger Cluster:Empowering Women Through Skill Development

The Sanganer Cluster comprises five rural villages located approximately 20–25 km from Jaipur: Baksawala, Kalawala, Sri Raam Ki Naangal, Vatika, and Bilwa. These villages are predominantly inhabited by low-income households, including a significant number of migrant families who have settled in the area in search of livelihood opportunities.

Communities in this cluster face challenges such as limited access to stable employment, skills training, and sustainable income sources—particularly for women.

To address these challenges, Development Initiatives Society (DIS) is actively working in the Sanganer Cluster with a focused mission to:

• Promote skill development among women
• Enhance household income through sustainable livelihoods
• Build confidence and leadership among women entrepreneurs

Training programs are designed to equip women with skills in areas such as home-based production, handicrafts, apparel making, and other locally viable trades. Alongside technical skills, DIS also supports women with entrepreneurship training, market exposure, and linkages to

financial services.

This initiative is part of DIS’s broader effort to reduce economic vulnerability, promote gender equity, and ensure that women play an active role in the economic and social development of their communities.

 

Cluster 3.

Jobner Cluster: Advancing Girls’ Education and Empowerment Through Sports

The Jobner Cluster, located approximately 50 km from Jaipur city, includes the villages of Sri Ram Pura, Rampur, and Panchkudiya. These rural settlements face multiple developmental challenges, particularly related to water scarcity, economic instability, and social inequality.

Due to limited livelihood opportunities, most working-age individuals—especially men—migrate to nearby towns like Jobner, Renwal, and Jaipur for daily-wage work. This migration places a disproportionate burden of household responsibilities on women and young girls, who are often expected to manage both domestic chores and caregiving roles.

The region is also marked by low levels of girls’ education and restricted social mobility, stemming from deep-rooted social taboos and traditional gender norms. Girls are often pulled out of school at a young age, face early marriage pressures, and are rarely encouraged to pursue activities beyond the home.

To address these pressing issues, Development Initiatives Society (DIS) is planning strategic interventions focused on:

• Promoting girls’ access to education
• Raising awareness within families and communities about the value of educating girls
• Introducing sports-based development programs to build confidence, leadership, and teamwork among adolescent girls
• Engaging parents and community leaders to challenge harmful beliefs and support girls’ aspirations

Through these efforts, DIS aims to create safe and enabling environments for girls to thrive—both academically and socially—and to support the development of confident, healthy, and empowered young women who can lead change in their communities.