Dr. D. Mukhopadhyay
Overall socio-economic development of India is possible only when women are empowered to contribute substantially to the issues concerning growth and sustainability of Indian economy. Women empowerment is a process of creation of congenial environment for the fair sex where they can make decisions on their own for their personal cause as well for the cause of the society. The positions enjoyed by women during Vedic Age deteriorated later and more specifically women were made victims of social taboos including child marriage and dowry system that eclipsed the confidence of self governance and establishing distinctiveness of women identity in the society. But western civilization recognises women with high degree of dignity as they were placed on high pedestal in ancient times when women used not only to assume household responsibilities but also they were comfortable to attain high order to spiritual and intellectual standards in the society.
The Government of India adopted the national policy for empowerment of women on 20th March, 2001 with an aim to bring about advancement and development of women so that they could participate in all sphere of public activities and join various social and peoples forums for the cause of wellbeing of the society in general. From the Eighth Five Year Plan, emphasis was shifted from women’s development to women’s empowerment. But so far everything including passing of Women’s Reservation Bill 2010 is in pen and paper and true women’s empowerment is yet to take place in Indian society.
Indian women are facing problems with regard to gender inequality, low mobility, illiteracy, female infanticide, high family responsibility and so on though women are as talented as men . Economic progress of India is badly hindered because women are not allowed to contribute to the cause of nation building in significant way. Swami Vivekananda once said, “There is no chance for the welfare of the world unless the conditions of women is improved. It is not possible for a bird to fly on only one wing.” Roughly half of the population of the country consists of women. Though, of late, Government of India and State Governments adopted various schemes in favour of welfare of women in order to create space for woman development but the same is very insignificant. It is our responsibility to educate women and make them capable enough to establish themselves in the socio-economic map of the country. It is globally accepted phenomenon, it can make a nation progress rapidly if women are given equal opportunity and wider access to education. It also appears if the Government closes the labour force gender inequality and discrimination by half, the country economy can grow over $150 billion in next three to five years. In Indian society, a married women is expected to take care of her in-laws at par with her own parents and play a vital role of an ideal daughter-in-law and supporting wife and simultaneously working in firms for earning and supporting financially to the family. But she is hardly relieved of the domestic obligations of home making to certain extent even. Sometimes, a working woman faces many challenges in her work place also and faces difficulties to make balance between work and family life. It is a general perception that working women cannot give proper justice to both work and family simultaneously but today’s women are capable enough to play their roles efficiently both in family front and office and it is proved that women are never second to men in any count. It appears that more women work in rural India than in cities but conditions of working women in rural India is worse if not worst. India ranks 139th among 144 countries in the Economic Participation and Opportunities Index published in the Global Gender Report 2017. Women constitute almost 50% of world’s population and 48% of India’s population. As far as social status of women is concerned, they are never treated equal to men in all forums and platforms. One of the reasons is that Indian society is male dominated and there is quite a significant degree of gender discrimination. It is the need of the hour to empower women in the society by improving economic, social, political and legal strength of women. Besides, it is to ensure bestowing equal rights to women in order to make them confident and claim their rights. Through this process, women shall be able to have control over material and intellectual resources like knowledge, ideas and financial resources and equal participations in the decision making both at home front and place of work. The society should understand that women are not just childbearing instruments but equal partners of nation building and therefore, it must not discriminate women and stop any kind of violence against women. There is urgent need to enforce constitutional and legal provisions for safeguarding rights of women in the society.
Indeed, empowering woman on equal footing against man in Indian society is a herculean task but not a utopian scheme and to bring about any dynamic revolution in this regards is matter of time taking and time consuming. It is being recently noticed that Indian women are striving relentlessly to find their place in the society with the help of constitutional mandates and various schemes launched by the Central Government as well as State Governments and through their tireless efforts. It is also a point of satisfactory observation that the degree of involvement and participation of the fair sex in socio-economic and political activities is increasing everyday. To call a spade a spade, people from all walks of life need to change their perception about women. It is worth mentioning that a woman is manifestation of what our society can become if she is allowed to utilize her full potential for deriving overall wellbeing of the society. It may not sound exaggerated when it is stated that man and woman both are created by God as Adam and Eve and they are entitled to equally share rewards and responsibilities in their families in particular and social, economic and political responsibilities in the society in general. In order to bring about overall socio-economic advancement and progress in India, women empowerment is the need of the hour. India is to increase and improve social, economic, political and legal strengths of women in order to ensure establishment of gender equality and make them confident to establish their claims and distinct identity in male-dominated Indian society.
Women are required to come forward to empower themselves by being strong from heart and mind. They should gallantly face social and family difficulties which limit their empowerment and progress. Presence of poor performance on the issues concerning women empowerment in India is seen because of perpetuity of persistent existence of gender inequality. It has been observed that sex ratio in many parts of the country is persistently dropping and currently 850 females per 1000 males are in place.
According to the Global Human Development Report, 2013, India ranked 132nd among 148 countries all over the world in terms of gender inequality. It may be asserted that both gender equality and women empowerment constitute the pivotal force to bring about transformational revolution for achieving desired socio-economic progress of India. It is not possible to have accelerating socio-economic development unless women empowerment takes place in revolutionary mode in the society. Under the given circumstances, we need to deeply ponder and discuss how our cultural, traditional and social rules affect women empowerment so that the same can be changed.
(The author is Professor of Management, School of Business and Dean-Faculty of Management, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University, Katra, Jammu & Kashmir.)
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