From Paper to Platform: A MERN Stack-Based Digital System for Managing Bachat Gats

Bachat Gats, also known as self-help savings groups, play a significant role in promoting financial inclusion and economic empowerment in rural India, particularly among women. These community-based groups enable members to collectively save money, provide small loans to one another, and support local financial stability. However, many Bachat Gats continue to rely on traditional handwritten registers to record contributions, loans, repayments, and meeting details. Such manual record-keeping methods often lead to issues such as data loss, calculation errors, lack of transparency, and difficulty in tracking financial transactions over time. This paper presents eBachat Gat, a web-based digital platform developed using the MERN stack, consisting of MongoDB, Express.js, React.js, and Node.js. The proposed system aims to modernize the management of Bachat Gat activities by providing a centralized platform for financial tracking, role-based access control, document management, and automated reporting. The platform also integrates secure authentication mechanisms, cloud-based document storage, and online payment processing to ensure data integrity and operational efficiency. By replacing paper-based systems with a scalable digital solution, the eBachat Gat platform improves transparency, simplifies record management, and enhances accessibility for users with limited technical experience. The system demonstrates how modern web technologies can effectively support community-driven financial systems and contribute to rural digital transformation.