Women Empowerment

The structure of the society and the day to day activities of people living in it are more and more getting concentrated and depended on the significance of the beautiful term – Empowerment. Empowerment becomes so significant in this modern nuclear age because of the creeping dissatisfaction into the family and professional lives of people. In order to keep pace with the fast world and changing times, people sometimes let go of their value system. As a result they feel frustrated, destabilized and drained of their enthusiasm and happiness. The empowerment of women has a direct effect on the society. A society or a country will prosper when the women are empowered. The status of women in India has been subject to many great changes over the past few millennia. From equal status with men in ancient times through the low points of the medieval period, to the promotion of equal rights by many reformers, the history of women in India has been eventful. The principle of gender equality is enshrined in the Indian Constitution in its Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Fundamental Duties and Directive Principles. The Constitution not only grants equality to women, but also empowers the State to adopt measures of positive discrimination in favor of women. Within the framework of a democratic polity, our laws, development policies, Plans and programs have aimed at women’s advancement in different spheres. From the Fifth Five Year Plan (1974-78) onwards has been a marked shift in the approach to women’s issues from welfare to development. In recent years, the empowerment of women has been recognized as the central issue in determining the status of women. The National Commission for Women was set up by an Act of Parliament in 1990 to safeguard the rights and legal entitlements of women. The 73rd and 74th Amendments (1993) to the Constitution of India have provided for reservation of seats in the local bodies of Panchayats and Municipalities for women, laying a strong foundation for their participation in decision making at the local levels. However, there still exists a wide gap between the goals enunciated in the Constitution, legislation, policies, plans, programs , and related mechanisms on the one hand and the situational reality of the status of women in India, on the other. The women’s movement and a wide-spread network of non-Government Organizations which have strong grass-roots presence and deep insight into women’s concerns have contributed in inspiring initiatives for the empowerment of women. Though education is gradually rising, the female literacy rate in India is lower than the male literacy rate. Compared to boys, far fewer girls are enrolled in the schools, and many of them drop out. According to the National Sample Survey Data of 1997, only the states of Kerala and Mizoram have approached universal female literacy rates. According to majority of the scholars, the major factor behind the improved social and economic status of women in Kerala is literacy. In rural India, agriculture and allied industrial sectors employ as much as 89.5% of the total female labour. In overall farm production, women's average contribution is estimated at 55% to 66% of the total labour. n most Indian families, women do not own any property in their own names, and do not get a share of parental property. Due to weak enforcement of laws protecting them, women continue to have little access to land and property. In fact, some of the laws discriminate against women, when it comes to land and property rights. In 1986, the Supreme Court of India ruled that Shah Banu, an old divorced Muslim woman was eligible for maintenance money. However, the decision was vociferously opposed by fundamentalist Muslim leaders, who alleged that the court was interfering in their personal law. The Union Government subsequently passed the Muslim Women's (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act. Similarly, the Christian women have struggled over years for equal rights of divorce and succession. In 1994, all the churches, jointly with women's organizations, drew up a draft law called the Christian Marriage and Matrimonial Causes Bill. But the government amended the relevant laws only recently. Police records show high incidence of crimes against women in India. The National Crime Records Bureau reported in 1998 that the growth rate of crimes against women would be higher than the population growth rate by 2010. Earlier, many cases were not registered with the police due to the social stigma attached to rape and molestation cases. Official statistics show that there has been a dramatic increase in the number of reported crimes against women. Half of the total number of crimes against women reported in 1990 related to molestation and harassment at the workplace. Eve teasing is a euphemism used for sexual harassment or molestation of women by men. Many activists blame the rising incidents of sexual harassment against women on the influence of "Western culture". In 1987, The Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act was passed to prohibit indecent representation of women through advertisements or in publications, writings, paintings, figures or in any other manner. In 1997, in a landmark judgment, the Supreme Court of India took a strong stand against sexual harassment of women in the workplace. The Court also laid down detailed guidelines for prevention and redressal of grievances. The National Commission for Women subsequently elaborated these guidelines into a Code of Conduct for employers. In 1961, the Government of India passed the Dowry Prohibition Act, making the dowry demands in wedding arrangements illegal. In 1985, the Dowry Prohibition (maintenance of lists of presents to the bride and bridegroom) rules were framed. A 1997 report claimed that at least 5,000 women die each year because of dowry deaths, and at least a dozen die each day in 'kitchen fires' thought to be intentional. Child marriage has been traditionally prevalent in India and continues to this day. Although child marriage was outlawed in 1860, it is still a common practice. According to UNICEF’s “State of the World’s Children 2009” report, 47% of India's women aged 20–24 were married before the legal age of 18, with 56% in rural areas. The report also showed that 40% of the world's child marriages occur in India. Of the 1.3 billion people who live in absolute poverty around the globe, 70 percent are women. Women work two-thirds of the world’s working hours, according to the United Nations. At the same time women earn only 10 percent of the world’s income. Women own less than 1 percent of the world’s property. Women make up two-thirds of the estimated 876 million adults worldwide who cannot read or write. Girls make up 60 percent of the 77 million children not attending primary school. Violence against women is on the rise according to statistics. The modern woman face a myriad of problems starting from gender disparities, sexual exploitation, lack of proper education, denial of rights etc. These problems are weakening the self esteem and dignity of women and the very roots of society are being affected. The incidents of domestic violence are higher among the lower Socio-Economic Classes (SEC’s The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 came into force on October 26, 2006.) The solution lies in empowering women from the root level. Demanding recognition, shouting protests and such methods to call for the attention of society are not going to yield results. Women will have to recognize their role as provider and sustainer of powers, their original powerful form of the ‘Amba’ or Shakti or Devi. Rather than waiting for some savior or messiah to come and protect them, woman will have to bring out her dormant powers and adopt the attitude of a donor.