Introduction: Gender-based violence (GBV) presents a serious threat to women’s well-being in India. While many interventions have addressed individual-level reporting and non-governmental organizational support to resolve GBV issues, few have assessed the impact of governmental level institutional support. Launched by the Indian government, Gender Resource Centers (GRCs) in rural India are critical in providing resources and support services, including GBV resolution. Our study examines GBV resolution through government collectives in Madhya Pradesh, India.

Methods: We conducted 26 focus group discussions with women in GRCs and 14 in-depth interviews with key GRC leaders in Madhya Pradesh, India. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, translated and analyzed using thematic analysis. After iteratively developing a codebook, six coders double-coded interviews in Dedoose with ongoing discussion with the study lead to ensure reliability.

Results: Findings illustrate that GRCs provided institutional support for women in addressing GBV, by providing access to key Community Resource Persons (Samta Sakhis) who aided in community level mitigation. Despite GRC presence, participants noted utilizing existing mechanisms of support to resolve GBV, such as village councils (Panchayat), police, and maternal families. However, women explained that resolution through GRCs provided more efficient and timely conflict resolution. Moreover, while women were vocal on discussing issues related to social services, some women felt less comfortable discussing issues related to GBV due to entrenched social norms and stigma.

Conclusion: Our study offers Initial evidence that a structured approach of a governmental organization can be an effective tool in promoting GBV reporting and resolution.