Resistance: Women demand better prison conditions

Sukalo spent 45 days in jail sleeping on the bathroom floor but, she says, that was not the worst pain she endured in prison.

A member of the Gond tribe, largely found in central India, she had to eat food infested with insects, drink contaminated water and share space with other women she did not know.

Sukalo had to suffer the trauma daily for one and a half months because she was against an irrigation project in Sonbhadra district of Uttar Pradesh.

The Kanhar irrigation project was conceived more than 30 years ago, and was taken up in 2014. It, however, soon landed in trouble. In April 2015, there were violent protests by villagers who feared displacement and contamination of their source of water.

"We were targeted because we spoke against powerful people. I knew I was in jail because of this movement (against the project)," said Sukalo, now 51.

Recalling her days in prison, she said, "The food was infested with insects. Our drinking water was dirty; I survived by eating an apple every day."
Prominent lawyer Vrinda Grover said there is a need for a movement to improve jail conditions and focus should be given to political prisoners. "Special attention needs to be given to those women who are targeted because of their human rights activism."