The Work Behind the Numbers.
Inequality has many forms. It shows up in a student who can’t find the scholarship form, in a woman who has never seen a doctor, in a reformer’s books that go out of print. HDIRI’s projects address these failures where they actually happen: in settlements, classrooms, libraries and living rooms across Maharashtra.
Ongoing Projects
1 Education Urja | Scholarship Navigation Network
Thousands of scholarships go unclaimed every year because students from underserved communities don’t know they exist, or lack the documentation to apply. Education Urja places trained mentors directly inside settlements, schools and colleges across Mumbai, Pune and Ratnagiri. These mentors identify eligible students, gather their documents, complete digital applications on their behalf, and stay with them through the entire process, including helping families understand why a bank account matters.
Impact so far
- 800+ students reached (July 2025 – January 2026)
- 250+ scholarship applications filed
- 40 students secured scholarships worth ₹25,000/year for degree programmes
Whats next
We are expanding to three additional districts in Maharashtra and building a mentor training pipeline to ensure every high-need settlement has a dedicated scholarship navigator by 2027.
2 Women’s Livelihood Unit | Devrukh, Ratnagiri
In communities where women’s mobility is restricted and informal employment is the norm, sustainable income begins with skill. Our textile livelihood unit in Devrukh provides hands-on training in stitching, weaving and textile production alongside guaranteed monthly income. The unit currently employs 30+ women.
What’s next
We are working to replicate this model in two more districts and build direct market linkages so women can sell their work independently, not just through the unit.
3 Single Muslim Women | Research and Outreach
Single Muslim women are among the most structurally invisible populations in India. Over the past month alone, our team has spoken with over 300 women across three districts to understand the compound pressures they face: economic exclusion, lack of legal awareness, family stigma and near-total absence from welfare frameworks. This project is building the evidence base to make them visible to policymakers and civil society alike.
What’s next
Large-scale data collection, analysis and publication of a state-level report.
4 Youth Digital Skilling
Settlement youth (many of them semi-educated graduates) lack the skills that today’s job market demands. English communication, digital literacy, resume writing, online platforms: these are not luxuries; they are prerequisites.
HDIRI’s skilling program offers a free two-month digital marketing course to young men and women in targeted settlements, producing trained digital marketing managers and content specialists ready for employment.
What’s next
Establishing permanent skilling center in settlements with trained facilitators and industry partnerships for placement.
5 Social Worker Interview and Documentation Project
Across Maharashtra, countless activists, welfare workers and micro-organizers have spent their lives addressing issues of education, health, water, domestic violence and women’s rights in Muslim communities. Their work remains almost entirely undocumented. This project collects original interviews from 20 such activists across Pune, Mumbai and nearby districts, converts them into edited articles and compiles them into a publishable volume that becomes a permanent knowledge resource.
What’s next
Editing and publication pending. Funding sought for interviewer travel, honoraria, article adaptation and book printing.
Previous and Completed Work
1 Research Fellowships (2019, 2022)
- Anil Sinha (2019): Forgotten Patriots: Documenting political movements among Muslims who opposed Partition. Completed.
- Sarfaraz Ahmed (2022): Sufi Ideology in Maharashtra: Sociological and biographical study of Sufi traditions across the state. Completed.
2 Community Health Camps (2023)
Jointly with MASUM, conducted health screenings across Mangalwar Peth and Hadapsar settlements. 100+ women were tested for cervical cancer, diabetes, anaemia and calcium levels, with critical cases referred to Sassoon Hospital, Pune.
3 Statewide Essay Competitions (2018–2019)
Two competitions reaching 1,500+ students across Maharashtra on topics including National Integration, the Uniform Civil Code and the portrayal of women in Hamid Dalwai’s fiction.
4 CAA-NRC Women’s Survey (2020)
Systematic fieldwork documenting the voices and demands of Muslim women protesters across Pune’s Kondhwa, Mangalwar Peth and Mominpura areas, in collaboration with Savitribai Phule Vidyapeeth and Abeeda Inamdar Senior College.
5 COVID-19 Economic Survey and Relief (2021)
Survey of 75 women in Mangalwar Peth and Mujawar Basti covering economic viability and employment options, combined with distribution of ration kits during the pandemic.
6 Literary Translations and Publications
Translations of 12 selected stories from Hamid Dalwai’s collections Laat and Jamila Javad into English, Tamil, Bengali and Malayalam. Tamil translation by noted writer Volga, and the Bengali Translation by Sheema Mookherjee has been published. We’re still seeking publishers for the English language variants. Penguin Vintage republished Muslim Politics in India in 2023.