PRAYAGRAJ, Dec. 6 -- A quiet shift in women's economic participation is taking shape in rural Uttar Pradesh, with self-help groups (SHGs) enabling many women to step beyond domestic boundaries and build independent livelihoods under the State Rural Livelihood Mission (SRLM).

In villages across Prayagraj, several women who earlier managed only household responsibilities are now running small enterprises. One of them is 42-year-old Sheila Devi.

For years, Shiela, a graduate and a resident of Tikri Kanjasa village in the trans-Yamuna region, lived behind a veil, confined largely to her home. Financial hardship forced her to discontinue her education, leaving her dream of pursuing a BEd degree unfulfilled. Her husband Anuj Yadav struggled w...