An hour from Darjeeling lies Siliguri, a busy gateway between Nepal, Bhutan, and India’s northeast. Constant movement brings opportunity, but it can also deepen vulnerability. Families drawn to the region in search of work often face poverty, isolation, exploitation, and heightened risks of trafficking.
For many, the surrounding tea estates provide one of the few available sources of income. Wages are low, working days are long, and families live in makeshift homes on the estates with limited access to healthcare, education, and support.
For young people, the future can appear narrow. Without career guidance, financial support, or exposure to further education and employment pathways, ambitions can remain difficult to pursue. Girls face pressure to leave school, marry early, or place family responsibilities before their own aspirations.
The barriers are rarely experienced in isolation. A woman seeking healthcare may also need information about her legal rights. A child who leaves school may require practical family support to return. A young person with the ability to pursue higher education may simply need someone to show them where to begin.
The Collective Voices program supports women and girls across Darjeeling’s tea estates to build confidence, understand their rights, access essential services, and participate in decisions that affect their communities.
Run by the Darjeeling Mary Ward Social Centre, the program brings people together through women’s groups, youth programs, legal clinics, health initiatives, career guidance, and community campaigns.
Participants learn how to navigate healthcare, education, legal assistance, government schemes, and employment opportunities. They are also supported in identifying local concerns, collectively raising them, and taking an active role in developing solutions.
The program does not speak for women and children. It helps strengthen the knowledge, relationships, and confidence that allow their own voices to be heard.
Career guidance helps students explore education, vocational training, scholarships, government schemes, and employment pathways beyond the opportunities they already know.
Interactive sessions, individual mentoring, and practical application support help young girls identify their strengths, set goals, and make informed decisions about what comes after school.
Training and community campaigns help participants understand legal rights, gender equality, protection from violence, and the services available when those rights are denied. Legal clinics provide a pathway for people to raise concerns and seek formal assistance.
Maternal health visits, eye camps, and awareness sessions connect women and families with preventive healthcare and essential services.
These initiatives respond to immediate needs while helping participants build the knowledge to make informed decisions about their health and wellbeing.
School-based awareness sessions help children understand their rights, recognise risks, and know where to seek support.
The program also works with families, schools, and local child protection committees to identify concerns earlier, strengthen referral pathways, and help children return to education.
Women and girls are encouraged to contribute to local discussions, campaigns, and decisions.
As participants grow in confidence, they become advocates within their own communities, sharing knowledge, raising concerns, and helping others connect with support.
As Jasmine* approached the end of school, she knew she wanted to continue her education but was uncertain about where that ambition could lead.
Like many girls growing up across Darjeeling’s tea estates, she had received little exposure to higher education, career pathways, or the practical steps needed to pursue them.
Through the Collective Voices Career Guidance Program, Jasmine took part in interactive sessions, group discussions, and individual mentoring. She explored different fields of study, received help with college applications and goal setting, and began thinking more clearly about the contribution she wanted to make.
She discovered an interest in governance, society, and public service and applied to study a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.
“Before attending the program, I was unsure about what to do next. The sessions opened my mind. Now I have a goal – I want to contribute to my community and make a difference.”
For Jasmine, finding her voice also meant finding a direction for her future.
*Name changed for privacy.
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