Women Empowerment

Women Empowerment in India

You can tell the condition of a nation by looking at the status of its women
Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru
Why we talk about women empowerment only and not men empowerment? Why women need
empowerment and not men? Women make almost 50% of the total population of the world. Then
why this substantial section of the society needs empowerment? They are not in minority so as to
require special treatment. Biologically speaking also, it is a proven fact that female race is superior to
male. Then the question arises that why we are debating the topic Women Empowerment.

Why we Need women Empowerment?

Need for empowerment arose due to centuries of domination and discrimination done by men over
women; women are the suppressed lot. They are the target of varied types of violence and
discriminatory practices done by men all over the world. India is no different.
India is a complex country. We have, through centuries, developed various types of customs,
traditions and practices. These customs and traditions, good as well as bad, have become a part of
our societys collective consciousness. We worship female goddesses; we also give great
importance to our mothers, daughters, sisters, wives and other female relatives or friends. But at the
same time, Indians are also famous for treating their women badly both inside and outside their
homes.
Indian society consists of people belonging to almost all kinds of religious beliefs. In every religion
women are given a special place and every religion teaches us to treat women with respect and
dignity. But somehow the society has so developed that various types of ill practices, both physical
and mental, against women have become a norm since ages. For instance, sati pratha, practice of
dowry, parda pratha, female infanticide, wife burning, sexual violence, sexual harassment at work
place, domestic violence and other varied kinds of discriminatory practices; all such acts consists of
physical as well as mental element.
The reasons for such behaviour against women are many but the most important one are the male
superiority complex and patriarchal system of society. Though to eliminate these ill practices and
discrimination against women various constitutional and legal rights are there but in reality there are
 a lot to be done. Several self-help groups and NGOs are working in this direction; also women
themselves are breaking the societal barriers and achieving great heights in all dimensions: political,
social and economic. But society as a whole has still not accepted women as being equal to men
and crimes or abuses against women are still on the rise. For that to change, the societys age-old
deep-rooted mind set needs to be changed through social conditioning and sensitization
programmes.
Therefore, the concept of women empowerment not only focuses on giving women strength and
skills to rise above from their miserable situation but at the same time it also stresses on the need to
educate men regarding women issues and inculcating a sense of respect and duty towards women
as equals. In the present write-up we will try to describe and understand the concept of Women
Empowerment in India in all its dimensions.

What is Women Empowerment

Women empowerment in simple words can be understood as giving power to women to decide for
their own lives or inculcating such abilities in them so that they could be able to find their rightful
place in the society.
According to the United Nations, womens empowerment mainly has five components:
Generating womens sense of self-worth;
Womens right to have and to determine their choices;
Womens right to have access to equal opportunities and all kinds of resources;
Womens right to have the power to regulate and control their own lives, within and outside the
home; and
Womens ability to contribute in creating a more just social and economic order.
Thus, women empowerment is nothing but recognition of womens basic human rights and creating
an environment where they are treated as equals to men.

Women Empowerment in India

Historical Background:
From ancient to modern period, womens condition-socially, politically and economically- has not
remained same and it kept changing with times. In ancient India, women were having equal status
with men; in early Vedic period they were very educated and there are references of women sages
such as Maitrayi in our ancient texts. But with the coming of famous treatise of Manu i.e. Manusmriti,
the status of women was relegated to a subordinate position to men.
All kinds of discriminatory practices started to take from such as child marriage, devadashi pratha,
nagar vadhu system, sati pratha etc. Womens socio-political rights were curtailed and they were
made fully dependent upon the male members of family. Their right to education, right to work and
right to decide for themselves were taken away.
During medieval period the condition of women got worsened with the advent of Muslim rulers in
India; as also during the British period. But the British rule also brought western ideas into the
country.
A few enlightened Indians such as Raja Ram Mohun Roy influenced by the modern concept of
freedom, liberty, equality and justice started to question the prevailing discriminatory practices
against women. Through his unrelenting efforts, the British were forced to abolish the ill-practice of
Sati. Similarly several other social reformers such as Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Swami
Vivekananda, Acharya Vinoba Bhave etc. worked for the upliftment of women in India. For instance,
the Widow Remarriage Act of 1856 was the result of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagars movement for
improving the conditions of widows.
Indian National Congress supported the first womens delegation which met the Secretary of State to
demand womens political rights in 1917. The Child Marriage Restraint Act in 1929 was passed due
to the efforts of Mahhommad Ali Jinna, Mahatma Gandhi called upon the young men to marry the
child widows and urged people to boycott child marriages.
During freedom movement, almost all the leaders of the struggle were of the view that women
should be given equal status in the free India and all types of discriminatory practices must stop. And
for that to happen, it was thought fit to include such provisions in the Constitution of India which
would help eliminate age-old exploitative customs and traditions and also such provisions which
would help in empowering women socially, economically and politically.

Constitution of India and Women Empowerment

Indias Constitution makers and our founding fathers were very determined to provide equal rights to
both women and men. The Constitution of India is one of the finest equality documents in the world.
It provides provisions to secure equality in general and gender equality in particular. Various articles
in the Constitution safeguard womens rights by putting them at par with men socially, politically and
economically.
 The Preamble, the Fundamental Rights, DPSPs and other constitutional provisions provide several
general and special safeguards to secure womens human rights.
Preamble:
The Preamble to the Constitution of India assures justice, social, economic and political; equality of
status and opportunity and dignity to the individual. Thus it treats both men and women equal.
Fundamental Rights:
The policy of women empowerment is well entrenched in the Fundamental Rights enshrined in our
Constitution. For instance:
Article 14 ensures to women the right to equality.
Article 15(1) specifically prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex.
Article 15(3) empowers the State to take affirmative actions in favour of women.
Article 16 provides for equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to employment or
appointment to any office.
These rights being fundamental rights are justiciable in court and the Government is obliged to follow
the same.
Directive Principles of State Policy:
Directive principles of State Policy also contains important provisions regarding women
empowerment and it is the duty of the government to apply these principles while making laws or
formulating any policy. Though these are not justiciable in the Court but these are essential for
governance nonetheless. Some of them are:
Article 39 (a) provides that the State to direct its policy towards securing for men and women equally
the right to an adequate means of livelihood.
Article 39 (d) mandates equal pay for equal work for both men and women.
Article 42 provides that the State to make provision for securing just and humane conditions of work
and for maternity relief.
Fundamental Duties:
Fundamental duties are enshrined in Part IV-A of the Constitution and are positive duties for the
people of India to follow. It also contains a duty related to womens rights:
Article 51 (A) (e) expects from the citizen of the country to promote harmony and the spirit of
common brotherhood amongst all the people of India and to renounce practices derogatory to the
dignity of women.
Other Constitutional Provisions:
Through 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment of 1993, a very important political right has been
 given to women which is a landmark in the direction of women empowerment in India. With this
amendment women were given 33.33 percent reservation in seats at different levels of elections in
local governance i.e. at Panchayat, Block and Municipality elections.
Thus it can be seen that these Constitutional provisions are very empowering for women and the
State is duty bound to apply these principles in taking policy decisions as well as in enacting laws.

Specific Laws for Women Empowerment in India

Here is the list of some specific laws which were enacted by the Parliament in order to fulfil
Constitutional obligation of women empowerment:
The Equal Remuneration Act, 1976.
The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961.
The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956.
The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.
The Medical termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971.
The Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act, 1987.
The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006.
The Pre-Conception & Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act,
1994.
The Sexual Harassment of Women at Work Place (Prevention, Protection and) Act, 2013.
Above mentioned and several other laws are there which not only provide specific legal rights to
women but also gives them a sense of security and empowerment.

International Commitments of India as to Women

Empowerment
India is a part to various International conventions and treaties which are committed to secure equal
rights of women.
One of the most important among them is the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), ratified by India in 1993.
Other important International instruments for women empowerment are: The Mexico Plan of Action
(1975), the Nairobi Forward Looking Strategies (1985), the Beijing Declaration as well as the
Platform for Action (1995) and the Outcome Document adopted by the UNGA Session on Gender
Equality and Development & Peace for the 21st century, titled Further actions and initiatives to
 implement the Beijing Declaration and the Platform for Action. All these have been whole-heartedly
endorsed by India for appropriate follow up.
These various national and International commitments, laws and policies notwithstanding womens
situation on the ground have still not improved satisfactorily. Varied problems related to women are
still subsisting; female infanticide is growing, dowry is still prevalent, domestic violence against
women is practised; sexual harassment at workplace and other heinous sex crimes against women
are on the rise.
Though, economic and social condition of women has improved in a significant way but the change
is especially visible only in metro cities or in urban areas; the situation is not much improved in semi-
urban areas and villages. This disparity is due to lack of education and job opportunities and
negative mind set of the society which does not approve girls education even in 21st century.

Government Policies and Schemes for Women Empowerment

Whatever improvement and empowerment women have received is especially due to their own
efforts and struggle, though governmental schemes are also there to help them in their endeavour.
In the year 2001, the Government of India launched a National Policy for Empowerment of
Women. The specific objectives of the policy are as follows:
Creation of an environment through positive economic and social policies for full development of
women to enable them to realize their full potential.
Creation of an environment for enjoyments of all human rights and fundamental freedom by women
on equal basis with men in all political, economic, social, cultural and civil spheres.
Providing equal access to participation and decision making of women in social political and
economic life of the nation.
Providing equal access to women to health care, quality education at all levels, career and
vocational guidance, employment, equal remuneration, occupational health and safety, social
security and public life etc.
Strengthening legal systems aimed at elimination of all forms of discrimination against women.
Changing societal attitudes and community practices by active participation and involvement of both
men and women.
Mainstreaming a gender perspective in the development process.
Elimination of discrimination and all forms of violence against women and the girl child.
Building and strengthening partnerships with civil society, particularly womens organizations.
The Ministry of Women and Child Development is the nodal agency for all matters pertaining to
welfare, development and empowerment of women. It has evolved schemes and programmes for
their benefit. These schemes are spread across a very wide spectrum such as womens need for
shelter, security, safety, legal aid, justice, information, maternal health, food, nutrition etc., as well as
their need for economic sustenance through skill development, education and access to credit and
marketing.
Various schemes of the Ministry are like Swashakti, Swayamsidha, STEP and Swawlamban enable
economic empowerment. Working Women Hostels and Creches provide support services. Swadhar
and Short Stay Homes provide protection and rehabilitation to women in difficult circumstances. The
Ministry also supports autonomous bodies like National Commission, Central Social Welfare Board
and Rashtriya Mahila Kosh which work for the welfare and development of women. Economic
sustenance of women through skill development, education and access to credit and marketing is
also one of the areas where the Ministry has special focus.
Conclusion and Suggestions:
In conclusion, it can be said that women in India, through their own unrelenting efforts and with the
help of Constitutional and other legal provisions and also with the aid of Governments various
welfare schemes, are trying to find their own place under the sun. And it is a heartening sign that
their participation in employment- government as well as private, in socio-political activities of the
nation and also their presence at the highest decision making bodies is improving day by day.
However, we are still far behind in achieving the equality and justice which the Preamble of our
Constitution talks about. The real problem lies in the patriarchal and male-dominated system of our
society which considers women as subordinate to men and creates different types of methods to
subjugate them.
The need of us is to educate and sensitize male members of the society regarding women issues
and try to inculcate a feeling of togetherness and equality among them so that they would stop their
discriminatory practices towards the fairer sex.
For this to happen apart from Government, the efforts are needed from various NGOs and from
enlightened citizens of the country. And first of all efforts should begin from our homes where we
must empower female members of our family by providing them equal opportunities of education,
health, nutrition and decision making without any discrimination.
Because India can become a powerful nation only if it truly empowers its women.
Women empowerment: With Special Reference to Constitutional Provisions ( Save as .pdf )

Published : January 15, 2016 | Author : aniketsml

Category : Woman Issues | Total Views : 4750 | Rating : Print |

aniketsml
B.A.L.L.B L.L.M Himachal
Pradesh University
View articles | Contact author

In spite of women contribution in all spheres of life and they enjoy a unique position in every society
of the world, but they suffer in silence and belong to a class which is in a disadvantaged position on
several barriers and impediments. India, being a country of paradoxes, is no exception. Here too
personification of Shakti, once given a dignified status, are in need of empowerment. Womens empo
legal, social, political and economic requires to be enhanced. However, empowerment and equality a
the gender sensitivity of society towards their problems. The intensification of women's issues
movement all over the world is reflected in the form of various Conventions passed by the United N
India polity more or less has a always tried to cope with the contemporary need based developmen
the specified purposes. It may be in the field of Human Rights, Politics, Civil Rights, Constitutional Rig
Transfer. Constitution is not to be construed as a mere law, but as the machinery by which laws
The Constitution is a living and organic thing which, of all instruments has the greatest claim to be
broadly and

Women empowerment is empowering the women to take their own decisions for their personal
Empowering women is to make them independent in all aspects from mind, thought, rights, decisi
leaving all the social and family limitations. It is to bring equality in the society for both male and f
areas. Women empowerment is very necessary to make the bright future of the family, society a

The most famous saying said by the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru is To awaken the people, it is the wome
be awakened. Once she is on the move, the family moves, the village moves, the nation moves.
empower the women, first it needs to kill all the demons killing womens rights and values in the soc
dowry system, illiteracy, sexual harassment, inequality, female infanticide and domestic violence aga
rape, prostitution, illegal trafficking and other issues. Gender discrimination in the nation brings cul
economic and educational differences which push country back. The most effective remedy to kill su
making women empowered by ensuring the Right to Equality mentioned in the Constituti

According to the provisions of the Constitution of India, it is a legal point to grant equality to women in
in all spheres just like male. The Department of Women and Child Development functions well in this
proper development of the women and child in India. Women are given a top place in India from the a
however they were not given empowerment to participate in all areas. They need to be strong, awa
every moment for their growth and development. Empowering women is the main motto of the d
department because an empowered mother with child makes the bright future of a

India is a very famous country known for its cultural heritage, traditions, civilisation, religion and g
features from the ancient time. On the other hand, it is also popular as a male chauvinistic nation.
given first priority in India however on the other hand they were badly treated in the family and societ
limited only for the household chores or understand the responsibility of home and family members
kept totally unaware of their rights and own development. People of India used to say this country
Mata however never realised the true meaning of it. Bharat-Mata means a mother of every Indian wh
to save and care

Meaning:
Empowerment can be viewed as means of creating a social environment in which one can mak
and make choices either individually or collectively for social transformation. It strengthens the in
by way of acquiring knowledge, power and experience (Hashemi Schuler and Riley, 1996). Empo
the process of enabling or authorizing individual to think, take action and control work in an auton
It is the process by which one can gain control over ones destiny and the circumstances of
Empowerment includes control over resources (physical, human, intellectual and financial) and ov
(beliefs, values and attitudes). It is not merely a feel of greater extrinsic control, but also gro
capacity, greater self-confidence and an internal transformation of ones consciousness that ena
overcome external barriers to accessing resources or changing traditional ideology (Pinto, 2001
empowerment is very essential for the development of society. Empowerment means individuals a
power to think and act freely, exercises choice and full fill their potential as full and equal members o
per the United National Development Fund for women (UNIFEM), the term womens empowerm

Acquiring knowledge and understanding of gender relations and the ways in which these relati
changed.

Developing a sense of self-worth, a belief in ones ability to secure desired changes and the right to c
life.

Gaining the ability to generate choices exercise bargaining

Developing the ability to organize and influence the direction of social change, to create a more jus
economic order, nationally and int

Thus, empowerment means a psychological sense of personal control or influence and a concern with
influence, political power and legal rights. It is a multi-level construct referring to individuals, organ
community. It is an international, ongoing process cantered in the local community, involving mut
critical reflection, caring and group participation, through which people lacking an equal share of value
gain greater access to the control over these

Historical B
India is a famous country proving the common proverb like unity is diversity, where people of ma
beliefs are in the Indian society. Women have been given a special place in every religion which is work
curtain covering the eyes of people and help in the continuation of many ill practices (including p
mental) against women as a norm since ages. In the ancient Indian society, there was a custom of
nagar vadhu system, dowry system, sexual violence, domestic violence, female infanticide, parda
burning, sexual harassment at work place, child marriage, child labour, devadashi pratha, etc. inc
discriminatory practices. All such type of ill practices is because of male superiority complex and
system of the

Socio-political rights (right to work, right to education, right to decide for themselves, etc.) for the w
completely restricted by the male members of family. Some of the ill practices against women
eliminated by the open minded and great Indian people who raise their voices for the discriminato
against women. Through the continuous efforts of the Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Britishers were forced to e
ill practice of Sati paratha. Later, other famous social reformers of the India (Ishwar Chandra Vidyasag
Vinoba Bhave, Swami Vivekananda, etc.) also had raised their voices and worked hard for the upliftme
in Indian

European scholars observed in the 18th century that Hindu women are "naturally chaste" and "mo
than other women.[26] During the British Raj, many reformers such as Ram Mohan Roy, Ishw
Vidyasagar and Jyotirao Phule fought for the betterment of women. Peary Charan Sarkar, a forme
Hindu College, Calcutta and a member of "Young Bengal", set up the first free school for girls in Indi
Barasat, a suburb of Calcutta (later the school was named Kalikrishna Girls' High School). In 19
women's delegation met the Secretary of State to demand women's political rights, supported by
National Congress. The All India Women's Education Conference was held in Pune in 1927, it beca
organisation in the movement for social change. In 1929, the Child Marriage Restraint Act was passed
fourteen as the minimum age of marriage for a girl.] Though Mahatma Gandhi himself married at
thirteen, he later urged people to boycott child marriages and called upon young men to marry c

Women played an important part in India's independence struggle. Some famous freedom fighters inc
Cama, Dr. Annie Besant, Pritilata Waddedar, Vijayalakshmi Pandit, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, Aruna Asaf
Kriplani andKasturba Gandhi. Other notable names include Muthulakshmi Reddy and Durgabai Des
Rani of Jhansi Regiment of Subhas Chandra Bose's Indian National Army consisted entirely of wome
Captain Lakshmi Sahgal. Sarojini Naidu, a poet and freedom fighter, was the first Indian woman
President of the Indian National Congress and the first woman to become the governor of a sta

Constitutional
Preamble
The Preamble contains the essence of the Constitution and reflects the ideals and aims of the
Preamble starts by saying that we, the people of India, give to ourselves the Constitution. Th
the Constitution is thus traced to the people, i.e. men and women of India, irrespective of caste,
religion or sex. The makers of the Constitution were not satisfied with mere territorial unity and int
unity is to be lasting, it should be based on social, economic and political justice. Such justice should
all. The Preamble contains the goal of equality of status and opportunity to all citizens. This particu
been incorporated to give equal rights to women and men in terms of status as well as

Even though the fact that women participated equally in the freedom struggle and, under the Con
law, have equal political rights as men, enabling them to take part effectively in the administration of
has had little effect as they are negligibly represented in politics. There were only seven women mem
Constituent Assembly and the number later decreased further. Their representation in the Lok Sabha
the expected numbers. This has led to the demand for reservation of 33% seats for women in the Lok
Vidhan Sabhas. Political empowerment of women has been brought by the 73rd and 74th Amendmen
reserve seats for women in Gram Panchayats and Municipal bodies. Illiteracy, lack of political awarene
violence and economic dependence are a few reasons which restrain women from taking part in
processes of the

At hand there has been series of legislation conferring equal rights for women and men. These legis
been guided by the provisions of the fundamental rights and Directive Principles of State Policy. Here a
a total lack of awareness regarding economic rights amongst women. Laws to improve their conditio
relating to wages, maternity benefits, equal remuneration and property/succession have been enacte
the necessary protection in these

For providing social justice to women, the most important step has been codification of some of the p
in our country which pose the biggest challenge in this context. In the area of criminal justice,
neutrality of law worked to the disadvantage of a woman accused because in some of the cases i
heavy burden on the prosecutor, for e.g. in cases of rape and dowry. Certain areas like domestic v
sexual harassment of women at the workplace were untouched, unthought of. These examples
insensitivity were tackled by the judiciary and incorporated into binding decisional laws to provide soc
void

Although a Uniform Civil Code is still a dream in spite of various directions of the Court, the enactme
legislations like the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prevention of Misuse) Act and the Medical Te
Pregnancy Act prevent the violation of justice and humanity right from the womb. In spite of these law
implementation, gender insensitivity and lack of legal literacy prevent the dream of the Constitution
becoming a reality. They prevent the fulfillment of the objective of securing to each individual dignity,
of sex, community or place of

Part III of the Constitution consisting of Articles 12-35 is the heart of the Constitution. Human Rights w
entitlement of every man, woman and child because they are human beings have been made en
constitutional or fundamental rights in India. The framers of the Constitution were conscious of
treatment and discrimination meted out to the fairer sex from time immemorial and therefore inclu
general as well as specific provisions for the upliftment of the status o

Justice Bhagwati in Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (AIR 1978 SC 597

These fundamental rights represent the basic values cherished by the people

country since the Vedic times and they are calculated to protect the dignity of the individual and creat
in which every human being can develop his personality to the fullest

Article 14 guarantees that the State shall not deny equality before the law and equal protection

Article: 14 Equality before

The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the law
territory of

Article 15 prohibits discrimination against any citizen on the ground of sex: and Article 15 (3) empowe
to make positive discrimination in favour of women and

Article: 15 Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, cast, sex, or plac

(1) The state shall not discrimination against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, cast, sex
birth or any of

(3) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any special provision for women a

Accordingly Article 15(1) prohibits gender discrimination and Article 15(3) lifts that rigour and permits
positively discriminate in favour of women to make special provisions to ameliorate their social co
provide political, economic and social justice. The State in the field of Criminal Law, Service Law, Labo
has resorted to Article 15(3) and the Courts, too, have upheld the validity of these protective di
provisions on the basis of constitutional

Article: 16 Equality of opportunity in matters of public e

(1) There shall be equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to employment or appoint
office under the

(2) No citizens shall, on grounds only of religion, race, cast, sex, descent, place of birth, residence or a
be ineligible for, or discriminated against in respect of, any employment or office under
The Constitution, therefore, provides equal opportunities for women implicitly as they are applicable to
irrespective of sex. However, the Courts realize that these Articles reflect only de jure equality to w
have not been able to accelerate de facto equality to the extent the Constituti

There is still a considerable gap between constitutional rights and their application in the day-to-day l
women. At the same time it is true that women are working in jobs which were hitherto exclusivel
domains. But there are still instances which exhibit lack of confidence their capability and effici
remains a long and lingering suspicion regarding their capacities to meet the challenges of the j

In case of C.B. Muthumma v. Union of India (1979) 4 SCC 260)44, a writ petition was filed by Ms M
senior member of the Indian Foreign Service, complaining that she had been denied promotion to Gra
and unconstitutionally. She pointed out that several rules of the civil service were discriminatory aga
At the very threshold she was advised by the Chairman of the UPSC against joining the Foreign Ser
time of joining she was required to give an undertaking that if she married she would resign from se
Rule 18 of the Indian Foreign Service (Recruitment, Cadre, Seniority and Promotion) Rules, 1961, it w
that no married woman shall be entitled as of right to be appointed to the service. Under Rule 8(2) o
Foreign Service (Conduct and Discipline) Rules, 1961, a woman member of the service was require
permission of the Government in writing before her marriage was solemnised. At any time after the m
could be required to resign if the Government was confirmed that her family and domestic commit
likely to come in the way of the due and efficient discharge of her duties as a member of the service. O
occasions the petitioner had to face the consequences of being a woman and thus suffered discrimina
the Constitution specifically under Article 15 prohibits discrimination on grounds of religion, race, c
place of birth and Article 4 provides the principle of equality bef

The Supreme Court through V.R. Krishna Iyer and P.N. Singhal, JJ. H
"This writ petition by Ms Muthamma, a senior member of the Indian Foreign Service, bespeaks a
makes one wonder whether Articles 14 and 16 belong to myth or reality. The credibility of the C
mandates shall not be shaken by governmental action or inaction but it is the effect of the griev
Muthamma that sex prejudice against Indian womanhood pervades the service rules even a third o
after Freedom. There is some basis for the charge of bias in the rules and this makes the ominous ind
the executive to bring about the banishment of discrimination in the heritage of service rules. If high
hopes of equal justice under the rules, the legal lot of the little Indian, already priced out of the expen
market, is best left to

Commenting further on the discriminatory rules the Cour

"Discrimination against woman, in traumatic transparency, is found in this rule. If a woman member
the permission of government before she marries. The same risk is run by government if a male memb
a marriage. If the family and domestic commitments of a woman member of the service is likely to
way of efficient discharge of duties, a similar situation may arise in thecase of a male member. In th
nuclear families, intercontinental marriages and unconventional behaviour, one fails to understand the
against the gentler of the

Expressing its opinion on Rule 18 of the Indian Foreign Service (Recruitment, Cadre, Seniority and
Rules, 1961, the Court

"At the first blush this rule is defiance of Article 16. If a married man has a right, a married woman,
being equal, stands on no worse footing. This misogynous posture is a hangover of the masculin
manacling the weaker sex forgetting how our struggle for national freedom was also a battle again
thralldom. Freedom is indivisible, so is justice. That our founding faith enshrined in Articles 14 and 16
been tragically ignored vis-a-vis half of India's humanity, viz. our women, is a sad reflection on t
between Constitution in the book and Law in action. And if the executive as the surrogate of Parliam
rules in the teeth of Part III, especially when high political office, even diplomatic assignment has be
women,

Striking down the rules as violating the principle of quality, it w

"We do not mean to universalize or dogmatise that men and women are equal in all occupations and a
and do not excludethe need to pragmatise where the requirements of particular employment, the se
sex or the handicaps of either sex may compel selectivity. But save where the differentiation is demo
rule of equality must

In case of Air India v. Nargesh Meerza ((1981) 4 SCC 335)4'5, Nargesh Meerza filed a writ petition,
the air-hostesses of the Air-India International Corporation had approached the Supreme Court ag
discriminatory service conditions in the Regulations' of Air-India. The Regulations provided that an
could not get married before completing four-years of service. Usually an air-hostess was recruited a
19 years and the four-year bar against marriage meant that an air-hostess could not get married until
the age of 23 years. If she married earlier, she had to resign and if after 23 years she got married
continue as a married woman but had to resign on becoming pregnant. If an air hostess survived
filters, she 'continued to serve until she reached the age of 35 years. It was alleged on behalf of the a
that those provisions were discriminatory on the ground of sex, as similar provisions did not ap
employees doing similar

The Supreme Court upheld the first requirement that an air-hostess should not marry before the compl
years of service. The court held that: "It was a sound and salutary provision. Apart from improving t
the employee it helps a great deal in the promotion and boosting up of our family planning programme
this argument given by the Court came in for criticism that as the requirements of age and family pl
warranted by the population policy of the State and once the State had fixed the age of marriage, i.
the reasoning advanced for upholding the rule was a camouflage for the real concern. The Supreme
down the Air-India Regulations relating to retirement and the pregnancy bar on the services of Air-h
unconstitutional on the ground that the conditions laid down therein were entirely unreasonable and a
impugned Regulation 46 provided that an air hostess would retire from the service of the corpo
attaining the age of 35 years or on marriage, if it took place within 4 years of service, or on first
whichever occurred earlier. Under Regulation 7, the Managing Director was vested with absolute d
extend the age of retirement prescribed at 45 years. Both these regulations were struck down
of Article 14, which prohibits unreasonableness and arbitrariness. In Sarita Samvedi v. Union of India (1
380)46, the Supreme Court held invalid a provision of the Railway Board Circular dated 27th Dece
which restricted the eligibility of a married daughter of a retiring official for out-of-turn allotment of
situations where such a retiring official had no son or where the daughter was the only person
maintain the parents and the sons were not in a position to do so. This was held to be discrimina
ground of sex. Reservations of seats for women in local bodies or in educational institutions have been
Supreme Court in Govt. of A.P. v. P.B. Vijayakumar, (1995 (4) SCC 520)4'7 held that reservation to t
30% made in the State Services by the Andhra Pradesh Government for women candidates was valid.
Bench of the Supreme Court emphatically declared that the power conferred upon the State by Ar
wide enough to cover the entire range of State activity including employment under the State.
conferred by Article 15(3) is not whittled down in any manner b

In Madhu Kishwar v. State of Bihar{ (1996) 5 SCC 145}4'8, the Supreme Court dealt with the va
Chotanagpur Tenancy Act, 1908 of Bihar which denied the right of succession to Scheduled Tribe
violative of the right to livelihood. The majority judgment however upheld the validity of legislation on
of custom of inheritance/succession of Scheduled Tribes. Dissenting with the majority, Justice K. Ram
that the law made a gender-based discrimination and that it violated Articles 15, 16 and 21 of the Co
his dissenting judgment he said: "Legislative and executive actions must be conformable to and for eff
the fundamental rights guaranteed in Part III, Directive Principles enshrined in Part IV and the
the Constitution which constitute the conscience of the Constitution. Covenants of the United Nations
and urgency to .eliminate gender-based obstacles and discrimination. Legislative action should be dev
to constitute economic empowerment of women in socio-economic restructure for establishing egali
order."

Gender equality becomes elusive in the absence of right to live wit

Article 21 Protection of life and personal

"No person shall be deprive of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure establis

Denial of right of succession to women of Scheduled Tribes amounts to deprivation of their right
under article 21; Madhu kishwar v. state of bihar, ((1196) 5 S

In Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan (AIR 1997 SC 3011)4'9, the Supreme Court, in the absence of legis
field of sexual harassment of working women at their place of work, formulated guidelines for their pro
Court

"Gender equality includes protection from sexual harassment and right to work with dignity which is a
recognised basic human

The common minimum requirement of this right has received global acceptance. In the absence of d
occupying the field, to formulate effective measures to check the evil of sexual harassment of workin
all workplaces, the contents of international conventions and norms are significant for the
interpretation of the guarantee of gender equality, right to work with human dignity in articles 14, 1
and 21 of the Constitution and the safeguards against sexual harassment implicit therein and for the
of guidelines to achieve this

Article 23 prohibits trafficking in human beings and forced labour; Article 23 of the Constitution
prohibits traffic in human beings. Trafficking in human beings has been prevalent in India for a long
form of prostitution and selling and purchasing of human

23. Prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced

(1) Traffic in human beings and begar and other similar forms of forced labour are prohibite
contravention of this provision shall be an offence punishable in accordance

(2) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from imposing compulsory service for public purp
imposing such service the

shall not make any discrimination on grounds only of religion, race, caste or class or an

In Gaurav Jain v. Union of India (1997 (8) SCC 114)410, the condition of prostitutes in general and
their children in particular was highlighted. The Court issued directions for a multi-pronged approach
the children of prostitutes with other children instead of making separate provisions for them. The Sup
issued directions for the prevention of induction of women in various forms of prostitution. It said
should be viewed more as victims of adverse socio-economic circumstances than offenders in

Directive Principles of State

However Directive Principles of State Policy are not enforceable in any court of law they are esse
governance of the country and provide for the welfare of the people, including women. These pr
contained in Part IV of the Constitution. Fundamental Rights furnish to individual rights while th
Principles of State Policy supply to social
Article: 39 certain principles of policy to be followed by th

The State shall, in particular, direct its policy towards sec

(a) That the citizen, men and women equally, have the right to an adequate means of

(d) That there is equal pay for equal work for both men and

(e) that the health and strength of workers, men and women, and the tender age of children are not
that citizens are not forced by economic necessity to enter avocations unsuited to their age

Article 39(a) directs the State to direct its policy towards securing that citizens, men and women, equa
right to an adequate means of

Article 39(d) directs the State to secure equal pay for equal work for both men and women. T
furtherance of this directive passed the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 to give effect to th

Article 39(e) specifically directs the State not to abuse the health and strength of workers, men a

Article: 42 Provision for just and humane conditions of work and maternit

The State shall make provision for securing just and humane conditions of work and for mate

Article 42 of the Constitution incorporates a very important provision for the benefit of women. It direc
to make provisions for securing just and humane conditions of work and for mate

The State has implemented this directive by incorporating health provisions in the Factories Act, Mate
Act, Beedi and Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act, etc.
Uniform Civil Code
Article 44 Uniform civil code for the citizens.

The State shall Endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territo

Article 44 directs the State to secure for citizens a Uniform Civil Code applicable throughout the territ
Its particular goal is towards the achievement of gender justice. Even though the State has not ye
efforts to introduce

Uniform Civil Code in India, the judiciary has recognised the necessity of uniformity in the application
relating to marriage, succession, adoption, divorce, maintenance, etc. but as it is only a directive
enforced in a court of

However, one of the most dynamic members of the Assembly, Shri K.M. Munshi , expressed his opinion
personal law of inheritance, succession, etc. is considered as a part of religion, the equality of wome
be

Fundamental
Parts IV-A which consist of only one Article 51-A was added to the constitution

42nd Amendment, 1976. This Article for the first time specifies a code
Fundamental duties for

Article 51-A (e) is related to women. It states

"It shall be the duty of every citizen of India to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherho
all the people of India transcending religion, linguistic, regional or sectional diversities; to renoun
derogatory to the dignity of

Article: 243 D Reservation of seats. (73rd Amendment - w.e.f.

(1) Seats shall be reserved

(a) The Scheduled Castes;
(b) The Scheduled

In every Panchayat and the number of seats so reserved shall bear, as nearly as may be, the same p
the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in that Panchayat as the population of th
Castes in that Panchayat area or of the Scheduled Tribes in that Panchayat area bears to the total p
that area and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a

(2) Not less than one-third of the total number of seats reserved under clause (1) shall be reserved
belonging to the Scheduled Castes or,

The case may be, the Scheduled

(3) Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the Sched
and the Scheduled Tribes) of the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in every Pancha
reserved for women and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a

(4) The offices of the Chairpersons in the Panchayats at the village or any other level shall be rese
Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and women in such manner as the Legislature of a State m
provide: Provided that the number of offices of Chairpersons reserved for the Scheduled Castes and th
Tribes in the Panchayats at each level in any State shall bear, as nearly as may be, the same propo
total number of such offices in the Panchayats at each level as the population of the Scheduled Castes
or of the Scheduled Tribes in the State bears to the total population of

Provided further that not less than one-third of the total number of offices of Chairpersons in the Pa
each level shall be reserved for

Provided also that the number of offices reserved under this clauses shall be allotted by rotation
Panchayats at each

(1) The reservation of seats under clauses (1) and (2) and the reservation of offices of Chairpersons
the reservation for women) under clause (4) shall cease to have effect on the expiration of the period
article

(2) Nothing in this Part shall prevent the Legislature of a State from making any provision for reserva
in any Panchayat or offices of Chairpersons in the Panchayats at any level in favour of backward class

Article: 243 T Reservation of seats. (74th Amendment - w.e.f.

243T. Reservation of
(1) Seats shall be reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in every Municipa
number of seats so reserved shall bear, as nearly as may be, the same proportion to the total numbe
be filled by direct election in that Municipality as the population of the Scheduled Castes in the munic
of the Scheduled Tribes in the Municipal area bears to the total population of that area and such se
allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a

(2) Not less than one-third of the total number of seats reserved under clause (1) shall be reserved
belonging to the Scheduled Castes or, as the case may be, the Schedul

(3) Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the Sched
and the Scheduled Tribes) of the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in every Municipa
reserved for women and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a

(4) The offices of Chairpersons in the Municipalities shall be reserved for the Scheduled Castes, th
Tribes and women in such manner as the Legislature of a State may, by law

(5) The reservation of seats under clauses (1) and (2) and the reservation of offices of Chairpersons
the reservation for women) under clause (4) shall cease to have effect on the expiration of the period
article

(6) Nothing in this Part shall prevent the Legislature of a State from making any provision for reserva
in any Municipality or offices of Chairpersons in the Municipalities in favour of backward class

Article: 243 G. Powers, authority and responsibilities of Panchayats Read with Eleventh

243G. Powers, authority and responsibilities of Panchayats -Subject to the provisions of this Cons
Legislature of a State may, by law, endow the Panchayats with such powers and authority as may be n
enable them to function as institutions of self-government and such law may contain provisions for th
of powers and responsibilities upon Panchayats at the appropriate level, subject to such conditions
specified therein, with respect

(a) The preparation of plans for economic development and socia

(b) The implementation of schemes for economic development and social justice as may be entrus
including those in relation to the matters listed in the Eleventh

Recent dev
The Government of India has declared 2001 as Womens Empowerment year. The national policy of em
of women has set certain clear-cut goals and objectives. The policy aims at upliftment, develo
empowerment in socio-economic and politicocultural aspects, by creating in them awareness on vario
relation to their empowerment. The following are the specific objectives of National Policies particul
folk on Empowerment of women in India. i. Creating an environment through positive economic and so
for full development of women to enable them to realize their full potential. ii. The de-jure a
enjoyments of all human rights and fundamental freedom by women on equal basis with men in
economic, social, cultural and civil spheres. iii. Equal access to participation and decision making o
social political and economic life of the nation. iv. Equal access to women to health care, quality edu
levels, career and vocational guidance, employment, equal remuneration, occupational health and s
security and public life etc., v. strengthening legal systems aimed at elimination of all forms of di
against women. 300 vi. Changing societal attitudes and community practices by active partic
involvement of both men and women. vii. Ministering a gender perspective in the development p
Elimination of discrimination and all forms of violence against women and the girl child. ix. B
strengthening partnerships with civil society, particularly womens organizations. The Nationa
empowerment of women envisaged introduction of a gender perspective in the budgeting pro
operational strategy. A few laws and legislations are enforced strictly for effective and proper implem
this policy.
Beti padao beti bacho yojana
Women and children constitute around 70 % of Indias people and are the critical foundation
development at present and in the future. More inclusive growth must begin with children and wome
an intergenerational cycle of inequity and multiple deprivations faced by women and girls, as related
social exclusion, gender discrimination and undernutrition. This intergenerational cycle of multiple dep
violence faced by girls and women is reflected in the adverse and steeply declining child sex ratio
under 6 years of age which reached an all-time low of 918 girls for every 1000 boy

These commitments are embodied in the Constitution and in several enabling legislations, policies (
National Policy for the Empowerment of Women 2001, National Policy for Children 2013 and the Natio
Policy 1993), Five Year and Annual Plans and programmes. Despite this there are several challenges
and key issues which need to be addressed urgently. These include ensuring Womens Safety, Pro
Empowerment, improving the Child Sex Ratio, ensuring Child Protection and preventing and reducing M
Child Undernutrition and controlling anaemia across the life cycle.
Womens Safety, Protection and Empowerment
Despite some recent positive momentum, the pace of progress in realizing womens safety, pro
empowerment has not been adequate. This is reflected in the National Crime Records Bureau
highlighted that 3,09,546 incidents of crime against women (both under Indian Penal Code and othe
reported during the year 2013, as against the 2,44,270 cases reported during 2012, showing an increa
(despite the fact that not all crimes against women are reported). The policy commitment to ensuring
security and dignity of women NAVDISHA- National Thematic Workshop on Best Practices for Wome
Development 20-21 January 2015 Panipat, Haryana Organised by Ministry of Women and Child D
Government of India and Government of

Ministry of Women and Child Development and girls in public and private spaces was reaffirmed
through the Twelfth Plan provisions, the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013 and the Sexual Ha
Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Ac

Ensuring womens social, economic and political empowerment, fulfilment of their rights, prom
participation and leadership requires comprehensive gender-responsive measures at different leve
through legal, policy and institutional frameworks. The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act has g
dimension to the process of womens empowerment, with women panchayat members emerging in m
as change leaders. Now progressively, many states are earmarking 50% reservation for women in pa
institutions. A major thrust for economic empowerment has been through the formation of thrift and
self-help groups (SHGs) formed by women with states such as Andhra Pradesh demonstrating effec
making this a mass movement. Increased support for women SHGs in the National Rural Livelihood Mi
MGNREGA with women having a share of 115.54 (53%) crore person days in 2013-14 have be
developments. Successful linkages between SHGs and Micro-Finance institutions such as RMK, NABARD
besides private microfinance institutions have helped in generating additional income, jobs and in cr
enterprises for

Nutrition
Adolescent girls, negatively impacting upon womens nutrition. highlighted that 43 per cent of curre
women in the age-group 20-24 years were married before attaining the age of 18 years. Adolescent g
before the attainment of the age of 18 years, often go through early and frequent p

NFHS 3 (2005-06) highlighted that nearly

second young child in India was undernourished (42.5 % of children under 5 years were u

seven out of ten children were anemic; every third woman in India was undernourished (35.6 % wi
Mass

every second woman (15-49 years) was anemic (55.3%). Reinforcing legislative, policy, plan and
commitments that address the multidimensional nature of the nutrition challenges, nutrition focus
sectoral

Based on these policy directions, a new National Nutrition Mission is being formulated. This is
innovative initiatives that have been taken up in several

The strategies also address the criticality of ensuring the prevention and management of diseas
universal access to health care in the National Health Mission and ensuring hygiene, sanitation an
access to safe drinking water through Swachh Bharat, in convergence with ICDS and with greater
ownership, for improved nutrition

Improving the Child Sex Ratio: Beti Bachao Beti

Breaking an intergenerational cycle of multiple deprivations faced by girls and women is critical for m
and sustainable

This cycle is epitomized by the adverse sex ratio in young children in the 0-6 years age group, den
child her right to be born and her right to life. It is also evident in other forms of gender base
 The Census 2011 data was a call for urgent action, because this highlighted that the girl child is
being excluded not only from economic development and growth but from life itself. If not revers
the steeply declining Child Sex Ratio will alter demography; erode gender justice, social cohesion
development. The findings highlighted the need to urgently address the unabated decline in the CSR (0
India, which has fallen from 927 in 2001 to an all-time low of 918 females per 1000 males in 2011. It
that this problem is becoming more widespread with this decline being seen in 18 states and 3 UTs. T
levels of the CSR still continue to be very low, even in some of the states where improvement is se
Census 2001 and Census 2011. To highlight best practices for key themes related to Women, Child Rig
Child

Nutrition from different States, Union Territories and

To enable interstate sharing and learning from these models through thematic presentations,dia
poster sessions and cluster/interest group

To evolve a strategy framework that synthesizes learning from these models for adaptation/rep
enables innovation and new

To encourage mentoring support between states and continued learning, through the formation of s
groups, field based learning hubs and thematic e-

To develop a shared commitment for addressing key themes especially as related

Care and Protection of the Girl Child Beti Bachao Beti

GOVERNMENT EN
The National Commission for Women has in the last few years introduced several new bills in the parliament
time towards eradication of many social evils. Some of the significant enactments are mentioned here.

The Hindu Widow Re-Marriage Act of 1856 :

In the traditions at Hindu society there was a ban on widow remarriage it was one of the most important evil
women in the traditional Hindu society suffered a lot. This act allowed widow to remarry and section 5 of this Ac
to enjoy all the rights, which a married woman did.
The Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929 :

The practice of child marriage was another social evil from which women in traditional Hindu society suffered
marriage for girls was 9 or 10 and after passing this act the minimum marriageable age of women was fixed to 1
this age was increased up to 18 years.

The Hindu Womens Right to Property Act of 1937 :

In the traditional society women had no property rights. In the eyes of law she was a minor or ward. This act
widow of a deceased person as a surviving personality with the same right as his in the joint property. Thus, thr
women in the Hindu society received the property right to a limited extent.

The Hindu Marriage Act of 1955 :

This Act has recognized the equal rights of men and women in the matters of marriage and divorce. Under the
this Act either the man or woman can present a petition in a court of law for divorce, wife has got equal rig
husband.

The Hindu Succession Act of 1956 :

This Act recognized an equal right for women in the matter of inheritance of property. She can inherit the pr
father along with her brothers. She can also sell or mortgage the inherited property or use it for herself. For
absolute ownership was conferred to a woman through this Act.

The suppression of Immoral Traffic in Women and Girls Act of 1956-57 :

This Act aims to deal with the problem of prostitution and to promote the welfare of fallen women. Main obje
Act are to reduce the scope of prostitution and to reform prostitution under this Act. Every state is expec
protective home and to appoint women police and women social workers. In protective homes these fallen w
given training in tailoring, toy and basket making and other crafts so that they may earn for their maintenance in

The Dowry Prohibition Act 1961:

The main objective of this Act is to abolish giving and taking dowry at the time of marriage. The term dow
valuable property or thing, which is determined by the parties to a marriage for a marriage. The practice o
produced very bad effects. Dowry system, dowry cases have not been reduced. Still this Act makes some effo
social change. The above mentioned are the important legislations, which brought an upward trend in the status
India
Suggestions:
As we all know that India is a male dominated country where males are dominated in every area and females are
responsible for only family care and live in the home including other many restrictions. Almost 50% of the popul
is covered by the female only so the full development of the country depends on the half population means wom
not empowered and still restricted by many social taboos. In such condition, we cannot say that our country
developed in the future without empowering its half population means women. If we want to make our country
country, first of all it is very necessary to empower women by the efforts of men, government, laws and

The need of women empowerment arose because of the gender discrimination and male domination in the In
since ancient time. Women are being suppressed by their family members and society for many re
have been targeted for many types of violence and discriminatory practices by the male members i
and society in India and other countries as well. Wrong and old practices for the women in the society f
time have taken the form of well-developed customs and traditions. There is a tradition of worshi
female goddesses in India including giving honour to the women forms in the society like mother, siste
wife and other female relatives or friends. But, it does not mean that only respecting or honouring
fulfil the need of development in the country. It needs the empowerment of the rest half population of
in every walk of

Gender inequality is the main social issue in India in which women are getting back in the male
country. Women empowerment needs to take a high speed in this country to equalize the value of bo
Uplifting of women in all means should be the utmost priority of the nation. Inequalities between men
in the society generate lots of problems which become a big obstruction in the way to success of nat
birth rights of the women to get equal value to the men in the society. To really bring empowerment, e
needs to be aware about their rights from their own end. They need to take positive steps and invo
activities instead of only involving in the household chores and family responsibilities. They should kn
the happenings in their surroundings and

Women empowerment has the power to change many things in the society and country. They are m
than men to deal with certain problems in the society. They can better understand the disadvant
overpopulation for their family and country. They are fully able to handle the economic conditions o
and country through proper family planning. Women are capable enough to handle any impulsive
comparison to the men whether in the family or

Through women empowerment, it can be possible to change the male dominated country into
dominated country of rich economy. Empowering women may easily help to grow each and every me
family without any extra effort. A woman is considered to be responsible for everything in the family
better solve all the problems from her own end. Empowerment of the women would automa
empowerment of

Women empowerment is the better treatment of any big or small problems related to human being,
environment. In few last years, the advantages of the women empowerment are coming out in front o
are being more conscious about their health, education, career, job and responsibilities towards fam
and country. They are taking part in the every area and showing their great interest in each field. Finall
years of hard struggle they are getting their rights to go ahead on the r

Conclusion:
The most critical component of womens empowerment is found to be education. It leads to improve
growth, low fertility rate, health and sanitation and an awareness of factors that disempowered w
participation rate and political participation also grows in womens education. The expansion of
economy and industrialization and globalization brought increased inequalities, resulting in loss of
erosion of natural resources and with it decreased womens access to water, fuel, fodder and traditio
resources. It also brought new forms of exploitation-displacement, tourism, sex trade and retrenchmen
a few. Women are being pushed into less productive sectors. Increased pressure on rural resources
migration to urban areas in search of livelihood. People from backward regions, tribal communities, dis
castes and the displaced communities were being pushed against the wall. Women in such countries
the brunt and this phenomenon was labelled feminisation of poverty.

NATIONAL POLICY FOR THE EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN (2001) Introduction 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 favour of women. Within the framework of a democratic
polity, our laws, development policies, Plans and programmes have aimed at
womens advancement in different spheres. From the Fifth Five Year Plan (1974-78)
onwards has been a marked shift in the approach to womens 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. 1.3 India has also ratified various international
conventions and human rights instruments committing to secure equal rights of
women. Key among them is the ratification of the Convention on Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 1993. 1.4 The Mexico Plan of
Action (1975), the Nairobi Forward Looking Strategies (1985), the Beijing
Declaration as well as the Platform for Action (1995) and the Outcome Document
adopted by the UNGA Session on Gender Equality and Development & Peace for the
21st century, titled "Further actions and initiatives to implement the Beijing
Declaration and the Platform for Action" have been unreservedly endorsed by India
for appropriate follow up. 1.5 The Policy also takes note of the commitments of the
Ninth Five Year Plan and the other Sectoral Policies relating to empowerment of
Women. 1.6 The womens movement and a wide-spread network of non-
Government Organisations which have strong grass-roots presence and deep insight
into womens concerns have contributed in inspiring initiatives for the
empowerment of women. 1.7 However, there still exists a wide gap between the
goals enunciated in the Constitution, legislation, policies, plans, programmes, and
related mechanisms on the one hand and the situational reality of the status of
women in India, on the other. This has been analyzed extensively in the Report of
the Committee on the Status of Women in India, "Towards Equality", 1974 and
highlighted in the National Perspective Plan for Women, 1988-2000, the
Shramshakti Report, 1988 and the Platform for Action, Five Years After- An
assessment" 1.8 Gender disparity manifests itself in various forms, the most
obvious being the trend of continuously declining female ratio in the population in
the last few decades. Social stereotyping and violence at the domestic and societal
levels are some of the other manifestations. Discrimination against girl children,
adolescent girls and women persists in parts of the country. 1.9 The underlying
causes of gender inequality are related to social and economic structure, which is
based on informal and formal norms, and practices. 1.10 Consequently, the access
of women particularly those belonging to weaker sections including Scheduled
Castes/Scheduled Tribes/ Other backward Classes and minorities, majority of whom
are in the rural areas and in the informal, unorganized sector to education, health
and productive resources, among others, is inadequate. Therefore, they remain
largely marginalized, poor and socially excluded. Goal and Objectives 1.11 The goal
of this Policy is to bring about the advancement, development and empowerment of
women. The Policy will be widely disseminated so as to encourage active
participation of all stakeholders for achieving its goals. Specifically, the objectives of
this Policy include (i) Creating an environment through positive economic and social
policies for full development of women to enable them to realize their full potential
(ii) The de-jure and de-facto enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental
freedom by women on equal basis with men in all spheres political, economic,
social, cultural and civil (iii) Equal access to participation and decision making of
women in social, political and economic life of the nation (iv) Equal access to
women to health care, quality education at all levels, career and vocational
guidance, employment, equal remuneration, occupational health and safety, social
security and public office etc. (v) Strengthening legal systems aimed at elimination
of all forms of discrimination against women (vi) Changing societal attitudes and
community practices by active participation and involvement of both men and
women. (vii) Mainstreaming a gender perspective in the development process. (viii)
Elimination of discrimination and all forms of violence against women and the girl
child; and (ix) Building and strengthening partnerships with civil society, particularly
womens organizations. Policy Prescriptions Judicial Legal Systems Legal-judicial
system will be made more responsive and gender sensitive to womens needs,
especially in cases of domestic violence and personal assault. New laws will be
enacted and existing laws reviewed to ensure that justice is quick and the
punishment meted out to the culprits is commensurate with the severity of the
offence. 2.2 At the initiative of and with the full participation of all stakeholders
including community and religious leaders, the Policy would aim to encourage
changes in personal laws such as those related to marriage, divorce, maintenance
and guardianship so as to eliminate discrimination against women. 2.3 The
evolution of property rights in a patriarchal system has contributed to the
subordinate status of women. The Policy would aim to encourage changes in laws
relating to ownership of property and inheritance by evolving consensus in order to
make them gender just. Decision Making 3.1 Womens equality in power sharing
and active participation in decision making, including decision making in political
process at all levels will be ensured for the achievement of the goals of
empowerment. All measures will be taken to guarantee women equal access to and
full participation in decision making bodies at every level, including the legislative,
executive, judicial, corporate, statutory bodies, as also the advisory Commissions,
Committees, Boards, Trusts etc. Affirmative action such as reservations/quotas,
including in higher legislative bodies, will be considered whenever necessary on a
time bound basis. Womenfriendly personnel policies will also be drawn up to
encourage women to participate effectively in the developmental process.
Mainstreaming a Gender Perspective in the Development Process 4.1 Policies,
programmes and systems will be established to ensure mainstreaming of womens
perspectives in all developmental processes, as catalysts, participants and
recipients. Wherever there are gaps in policies and programmes, women specific
interventions would be undertaken to bridge these. Coordinating and monitoring
mechanisms will also be devised to assess from time to time the progress of such
mainstreaming mechanisms. Womens issues and concerns as a result will specially
be addressed and reflected in all concerned laws, sectoral policies, plans and
programmes of action. Economic Empowerment of women Poverty Eradication 5.1
Since women comprise the majority of the population below the poverty line and
are very often in situations of extreme poverty, given the harsh realities of intra-
household and social discrimination, macro economic policies and poverty
eradication programmes will specifically address the needs and problems of such
women. There will be improved implementation of programmes which are already
women oriented with special targets for women. Steps will be taken for mobilization
of poor women and convergence of services, by offering them a range of economic
and social options, along with necessary support measures to enhance their
capabilities Micro Credit 5.2 In order to enhance womens access to credit for
consumption and production, the establishment of new, and strengthening of
existing micro-credit mechanisms and micro-finance institution will be undertaken
so that the outreach of credit is enhanced. Other supportive measures would be
taken to ensure adequate flow of credit through extant financial institutions and
banks, so that all women below poverty line have easy access to credit. Women and
Economy 5.3 Womens perspectives will be included in designing and implementing
macro-economic and social policies by institutionalizing their participation in such
processes. Their contribution to socio-economic development as producers and
workers will be recognized in the formal and informal sectors (including home based
workers) and appropriate policies relating to employment and to her working
conditions will be drawn up. Such measures could include: Reinterpretation and
redefinition of conventional concepts of work wherever necessary e.g. in the Census
records, to reflect womens contribution as producers and workers. Preparation of
satellite and national accounts. Development of appropriate methodologies for
undertaking (i) and (ii) above. Globalization Globalization has presented new
challenges for the realization of the goal of womens equality, the gender impact of
which has not been systematically evaluated fully. However, from the micro-level
studies that were commissioned by the Department of Women & Child
Development, it is evident that there is a need for re-framing policies for access to
employment and quality of employment. Benefits of the growing global economy
have been unevenly distributed leading to wider economic disparities, the
feminization of poverty, increased gender inequality through often deteriorating
working conditions and unsafe working environment especially in the informal
economy and rural areas. Strategies will be designed to enhance the capacity of
women and empower them to meet the negative social and economic impacts,
which may flow from the globalization process. Women and Agriculture 5.5 In view
of the critical role of women in the agriculture and allied sectors, as producers,
concentrated efforts will be made to ensure that benefits of training, extension and
various programmes will reach them in proportion to their numbers. The
programmes for training women in soil conservation, social forestry, dairy
development and other occupations allied to agriculture like horticulture, livestock
including small animal husbandry, poultry, fisheries etc. will be expanded to benefit
women workers in the agriculture sector. Women and Industry 5.6 The important
role played by women in electronics, information technology and food processing
and agro industry and textiles has been crucial to the development of these sectors.
They would be given comprehensive support in terms of labour legislation, social
security and other support services to participate in various industrial sectors. 5.7
Women at present cannot work in night shift in factories even if they wish to.
Suitable measures will be taken to enable women to work on the night shift in
factories. This will be accompanied with support services for security, transportation
etc. Support Services 5.8 The provision of support services for women, like child
care facilities, including crches at work places and educational institutions, homes
for the aged and the disabled will be expanded and improved to create an enabling
environment and to ensure their full cooperation in social, political and economic
life. Women-friendly personnel policies will also be drawn up to encourage women
to participate effectively in the developmental process. Social Empowerment of
Women Education 6.1 Equal access to education for women and girls will be
ensured. Special measures will be taken to eliminate discrimination, universalize
education, eradicate illiteracy, create a gender-sensitive educational system,
increase enrolment and retention rates of girls and improve the quality of education
to facilitate life-long learning as well as development of
occupation/vocation/technical skills by women. Reducing the gender gap
insecondary and higher education would be a focus area. Sectoral time targets in
existing policies will be achieved, with a special focus on girls and women,
particularly those belonging to weaker sections including the Scheduled
Castes/Scheduled Tribes/Other Backward Classes/Minorities. Gender sensitive
curricula would be developed at all levels of educational system in order to address
sex stereotyping as one of the causes of gender discrimination. Health 6.2 A holistic
approach to womens health which includes both nutrition and health services will
be adopted and special attention will be given to the needs of women and the girl at
all stages of the life cycle. The reduction of infant mortality and maternal mortality,
which are sensitive indicators of human development, is a priority concern. This
policy reiterates the national demographic goals for Infant Mortality Rate (IMR),
Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) set out in the National Population Policy 2000.
Women should have access to comprehensive, affordable and quality health care.
Measures will be adopted that take into account the reproductive rights of women to
enable them to exercise informed choices, their vulnerability to sexual and health
problems together with endemic, infectious and communicable diseases such as
malaria, TB, and water borne diseases as well as hypertension and cardio-
pulmonary diseases. The social, developmental and health consequences of
HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases will be tackled from a gender
perspective. 6.3 To effectively meet problems of infant and maternal mortality, and
early marriage the availability of good and accurate data at micro level on deaths,
birth and marriages is required. Strict implementation of registration of births and
deaths would be ensured and registration of marriages would be made compulsory.
6.4 In accordance with the commitment of the National Population Policy (2000) to
population stabilization, this Policy recognizes the critical need of men and women
to have access to safe, effective and affordable methods of family planning of their
choice and the need to suitably address the issues of early marriages and spacing
of children. Interventions such as spread of education, compulsory registration of
marriage and special programmes like BSY should impact on delaying the age of
marriage so that by 2010 child marriages are eliminated. 6.5 Womens traditional
knowledge about health care and nutrition will be recognized through proper
documentation and its use will be encouraged. The use of Indian and alternative
systems of medicine will be enhanced within the framework of overall health
infrastructure available for women. Nutrition 6.6 In view of the high risk of
malnutrition and disease that women face at all the three critical stages viz.,
infancy and childhood, adolescent and reproductive phase, focussed attention
would be paid to meeting the nutritional needs of women at all stages of the life
cycle. This is also important in view of the critical link between the health of
adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women with the health of infant and young
children. Special efforts will be made to tackle the problem of macro and micro
nutrient deficiencies especially amongst pregnant and lactating women as it leads
to various diseases and disabilities. 6.7 Intra-household discrimination in nutritional
matters vis--vis girls and women will be sought to be ended through appropriate
strategies. Widespread use of nutrition education would be made to address the
issues of intra-household imbalances in nutrition and the special needs of pregnant
and lactating women. Womens participation will also be ensured in the planning,
superintendence and delivery of the system. Drinking Water and Sanitation 6.8
Special attention will be given to the needs of women in the provision of safe
drinking water, sewage disposal, toilet facilities and sanitation within accessible
reach of households, especially in rural areas and urban slums. Womens
participation will be ensured in the planning, delivery and maintenance of such
services. Housing and Shelter 6.9 Womens perspectives will be included in housing
policies, planning of housing colonies and provision of shelter both in rural and
urban areas. Special attention will be given for providing adequate and safe housing
and accommodation for women including single women, heads of households,
working women, students, apprentices and trainees. Environment 6.10 Women will
be involved and their perspectives reflected in the policies and programmes for
environment, conservation and restoration. Considering the impact of
environmental factors on their livelihoods, womens participation will be ensured in
the conservation of the environment and control of environmental degradation. The
vast majority of rural women still depend on the locally available non-commercial
sources of energy such as animal dung, crop waste and fuel wood. In order to
ensure the efficient use of these energy resources in an environmental friendly
manner, the Policy will aim at promoting the programmes of non-conventional
energy resources. Women will be involved in spreading the use of solar energy,
biogas, smokeless chulahs and other rural application so as to have a visible impact
of these measures in influencing eco system and in changing the life styles of rural
women. Science and Technology 6.11 Programmes will be strengthened to bring
about a greater involvement of women in science and technology. These will include
measures to motivate girls to take up science and technology for higher education
and also ensure that development projects with scientific and technical inputs
involve women fully. Efforts to develop a scientific temper and awareness will also
be stepped up. Special measures would be taken for their training in areas where
they have special skills like communication and information technology. Efforts to
develop appropriate technologies suited to womens needs as well as to reduce
their drudgery will be given a special focus too. Women in Difficult Circumstances
6.12 In recognition of the diversity of womens situations and in acknowledgement
of the needs of specially disadvantaged groups, measures and programmes will be
undertaken to provide them with special assistance. These groups include women in
extreme poverty, destitute women, women in conflict situations, women affected by
natural calamities, women in less developed regions, the disabled widows, elderly
women, single women in difficult circumstances, women heading households, those
displaced from employment, migrants, women who are victims of marital violence,
deserted women and prostitutes etc. Violence against women 7.1 All forms of
violence against women, physical and mental, whether at domestic or societal
levels, including those arising from customs, traditions or accepted practices shall
be dealt with effectively with a view to eliminate its incidence. Institutions and
mechanisms/schemes for assistance will be created and strengthened for
prevention of such violence , including sexual harassment at work place and
customs like dowry; for the rehabilitation of the victims of violence and for taking
effective action against the perpetrators of such violence. A special emphasis will
also be laid on programmes and measures to deal with trafficking in women and
girls. Rights of the Girl Child 8.1 All forms of discrimination against the girl child and
violation of her rights shall be eliminated by undertaking strong measures both
preventive and punitive within and outside the family. These would relate
specifically to strict enforcement of laws against prenatal sex selection and the
practices of female foeticide, female infanticide, child marriage, child abuse and
child prostitution etc. Removal of discrimination in the treatment of the girl child
within the family and outside and projection of a positive image of the girl child will
be actively fostered. There will be special emphasis on the needs of the girl child
and earmarking of substantial investments in the areas relating to food and
nutrition, health and education, and in vocational education. In implementing
programmes for eliminating child labour, there will be a special focus on girl
children. Mass Media 9.1 Media will be used to portray images consistent with
human dignity of girls and women. The Policy will specifically strive to remove
demeaning, degrading and negative conventional stereotypical images of women
and violence against women. Private sector partners and media networks will be
involved at all levels to ensure equal access for women particularly in the area of
information and communication technologies. The media would be encouraged to
develop codes of conduct, professional guidelines and other self regulatory
mechanisms to remove gender stereotypes and promote balanced portrayals of
women and men. Operational Strategies Action Plans 10.1 All Central and State
Ministries will draw up time bound Action Plans for translating the Policy into a set of
concrete actions, through a participatory process of consultation with Centre/State
Departments of Women and Child Development and National /State Commissions
for Women. The Plans will specifically including the following: - i) Measurable goals
to be achieved by 2010. ii) Identification and commitment of resources. iii)
Responsibilities for implementation of action points. iv) Structures and mechanisms
to ensure efficient monitoring, review and gender impact assessment of action
points and policies. v) Introduction of a gender perspective in the budgeting
process. 10.2 In order to support better planning and programme formulation and
adequate allocation of resources, Gender Development Indices (GDI) will be
developed by networking with specialized agencies. These could be analyzed and
studied in depth. Gender auditing and development of evaluation mechanisms will
also be undertaken along side. 10.3 Collection of gender disaggregated data by all
primary data collecting agencies of the Central and State Governments as well as
Research and Academic Institutions in the Public and Private Sectors will be
undertaken. Data and information gaps in vital areas reflecting the status of women
will be sought to be filled in by these immediately. All Ministries/Corporations/Banks
and financial institutions etc will be advised to collect, collate, disseminate and
maintain/publish data related to programmes and benefits on a gender
disaggregated basis. This will help in meaningful planning and evaluation of
policies. Institutional Mechanisms 11.1 Institutional mechanisms, to promote the
advancement of women, which exist at the Central and State levels, will be
strengthened. These will be through interventions as may be appropriate and will
relate to, among others, provision of adequate resources, training and advocacy
skills to effectively influence macro-policies, legislation, programmes etc. to achieve
the empowerment of women. 11.2 National and State Councils will be formed to
oversee the operationalisation of the Policy on a regular basis. The National Council
will be headed by the Prime Minister and the State Councils by the Chief Ministers
and be broad in composition having representatives from the concerned
Departments/Ministries, National and State Commissions for Women, Social Welfare
Boards, representatives of Non-Government Organizations, Womens Organisations,
Corporate Sector, Trade Unions, financing institutions, academics, experts and social
activists etc. These bodies will review the progress made in implementing the Policy
twice a year. The National Development Council will also be informed of the
progress of the programme undertaken under the policy from time to time for
advice and comments. 11.3 National and State Resource Centres on women will be
established with mandates for collection and dissemination of information,
undertaking research work, conducting surveys, implementing training and
awareness generation programmes, etc. These Centers will link up with Womens
Studies Centres and other research and academic institutions through suitable
information networking systems. 11.4 While institutions at the district level will be
strengthened, at the grass-roots, women will be helped by Government through its
programmes to organize and strengthen into Self-Help Groups (SHGs) at the
Anganwadi/Village/Town level. The womens groups will be helped to institutionalize
themselves into registered societies and to federate at the Panchyat/Municipal level.
These societies will bring about synergistic implementation of all the social and
economic development programmes by drawing resources made available through
Government and Non-Government channels, including banks and financial
institutions and by establishing a close Interface with the Panchayats/
Municipalities. Resource Management 12.1 Availability of adequate financial, human
and market resources to implement the Policy will be managed by concerned
Departments, financial credit institutions and banks, private sector, civil society and
other connected institutions. This process will include: (a) Assessment of benefits
flowing to women and resource allocation to the programmes relating to them
through an exercise of gender budgeting. Appropriate changes in policies will be
made to optimize benefits to women under these schemes; (b) Adequate resource
allocation to develop and promote the policy outlined earlier based on (a) above by
concerned Departments. (c) Developing synergy between personnel of Health, Rural
Development, Education and Women & Child Development Department at field level
and other village level functionaries (d) Meeting credit needs by banks and financial
credit institutions through suitable policy initiatives and development of new
institutions in coordination with the Department of Women & Child Development.
12.2 The strategy of Womens Component Plan adopted in the Ninth Plan of
ensuring that not less than 30% of benefits/funds flow to women from all Ministries
and Departments will be implemented effectively so that the needs and interests of
women and girls are addressed by all concerned sectors. The Department of Women
and Child Development being the nodal Ministry will monitor and review the
progress of the implementation of the Component Plan from time to time, in terms
of both quality and quantity in collaboration with the Planning Commission. 12.3
Efforts will be made to channelize private sector investments too, to support
programmes and projects for advancement of women Legislation 13.1 The existing
legislative structure will be reviewed and additional legislative measures taken by
identified departments to implement the Policy. This will also involve a review of all
existing laws including personal, customary and tribal laws, subordinate legislation,
related rules as well as executive and administrative regulations to eliminate all
gender discriminatory references. The process will be planned over a time period
2000-2003. The specific measures required would be evolved through a consultation
process involving civil society, National Commission for Women and Department of
Women and Child Development. In appropriate cases the consultation process
would be widened to include other stakeholders too. 13.2 Effective implementation
of legislation would be promoted by involving civil society and community.
Appropriate changes in legislation will be undertaken, if necessary. 13.3 In addition,
following other specific measures will be taken to implement the legislation
effectively. (a) Strict enforcement of all relevant legal provisions and speedy
redressal of grievances will be ensured, with a special focus on violence and gender
related atrocities. (b) Measures to prevent and punish sexual harassment at the
place of work, protection for women workers in the organized/ unorganized sector
and strict enforcement of relevant laws such as Equal Remuneration Act and
Minimum Wages Act will be undertaken, (c) Crimes against women, their incidence,
prevention, investigation, detection and prosecution will be regularly reviewed at all
Crime Review fora and Conferences at the Central, State and District levels.
Recognised, local, voluntary organizations will be authorized to lodge Complaints
and facilitate registration, investigations and legal proceedings related to violence
and atrocities against girls and women. (d) Womens Cells in Police Stations,
Encourage Women Police Stations Family Courts, Mahila Courts, Counselling
Centers, Legal Aid Centers and Nyaya Panchayats will be strengthened and
expanded to eliminate violence and atrocities against women. (e) Widespread
dissemination of information on all aspects of legal rights, human rights and other
entitlements of women, through specially designed legal literacy programmes and
rights information programmes will be done. Gender Sensitization 14.1 Training of
personnel of executive, legislative and judicial wings of the State, with a special
focus on policy and programme framers, implementation and development
agencies, law enforcement machinery and the judiciary, as well as non-
governmental organizations will be undertaken. Other measures will include: (a)
Promoting societal awareness to gender issues and womens human rights. (b)
Review of curriculum and educational materials to include gender education and
human rights issues (c) Removal of all references derogatory to the dignity of
women from all public documents and legal instruments. (d) Use of different forms
of mass media to communicate social messages relating to womens equality and
empowerment. Panchayati Raj Institutions 15.1 The 73rd and 74th Amendments
(1993) to the Indian Constitution have served as a breakthrough towards ensuring
equal access and increased participation in political power structure for women. The
PRIs will play a central role in the process of enhancing womens participation in
public life. The PRIs and the local self Governments will be actively involved in the
implementation and execution of the National Policy for Women at the grassroots
level. Partnership with the voluntary sector organizations 16.1 The involvement of
voluntary organizations, associations, federations, trade unions, non-governmental
organizations, womens organizations, as well as institutions dealing with education,
training and research will be ensured in the formulation, implementation,
monitoring and review of all policies and programmes affecting women. Towards
this end, they will be provided with appropriate support related to resources and
capacity building and facilitated to participate actively in the process of the
empowerment of women. International Cooperation 17.1 The Policy will aim at
implementation of international obligations/commitments in all sectors on
empowerment of women such as the Convention on All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women (CEDAW), Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), International
Conference on Population and Development (ICPD+5) and other such instruments.
International, regional and sub-regional cooperation towards the empowerment of
women will continue to be encouraged through sharing of experiences, exchange of
ideas and technology, networking with institutions and organizations and through
bilateral and multi-lateral partnerships.