ABSTRACT

This volume presents a comprehensive analysis of microfinance initiatives in India. Through substantive field research and case studies ranging across the country, it examines Indian microfinance within its distinct socio-economic realities — the role of women, financial inclusion, rural entrepreneurship, and innovation — its interactions with multiple institutions, the challenges, as well as future directions.

chapter 1|41 pages

Vignettes in Transformation

Indian Microfinance since the 1990s

chapter 2|27 pages

SHG Intermediation and Women’s Agency

A View fom Tamil Nadu

chapter 3|18 pages

The Transformational Potential of Microfinance

Two Case Studies

chapter 4|27 pages

Financial Inclusion of Microfinance Clients

A Village-level Study

chapter 6|11 pages

Matching Finance with Client Needs

Some Pointers from a Field Study

chapter 7|16 pages

Supporting Rural Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Beyond Microfinance

chapter 8|11 pages

Microfinance and Cooperatives

An Overview

chapter 9|11 pages

The Seen and the Unseen

Revisiting the Impact of SEWA Bank