“It is impossible to think about the welfare of the world unless the condition of women is improved.

It
is impossible for a bird to fly on only one wing.” — Swami Vivekananda

Women are not born, but made. What better than India to exemplify this statement by Simone de
Beauvoir
When our country got its independence, the participation of women nationalists was widely
acknowledged. When the Indian Constitution was formulated, it granted equal rights to women,
considering them legal citizens of the country and as an equal to men in terms of freedom and
opportunity. The sex ratio of women at this time was slightly better than what it is today, standing
at 945 females per 1000 males. Yet the condition of women screamed a different reality.
While on one hand, India has seen an increased percentage of literacy among women, and women
are now entering professional fields, the practices of female infanticide, poor health conditions
and lack of education still persisting still continue. Even the patriarchal ideology of the home being
a woman’s ‘real domain’
sex ratio of women at this time was slightly better than what it is today, standing at 945 females
per 1000 mal
national female literacy rate was an alarmingly low 8.6%. The Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) for
girls was 24.8% at primary level and 4.6% at the upper primary level (in the 11-14 years age
group). There existed insoluble social and cultural barriers to education of women and access to
organised schooling.

Manu, the great law-giver, said long ago, 'where women are honoured there reside
the gods'. According to ancient Hindu scriptures no religious rite can be performed
with perfection by a man without the participation of his wife. Wife's participation is
essential to any religious rite. Married men along with their wives are allowed to
perform sacred rites on the occasion of various important festivals. Wives are thus
befittingly called 'Ardhangani' (betterhalf). They are given not only important but
equal position with men.
later period the position of women went on deteriorating due to Muslim influence.
During the Muslim period of history they were deprived of their rights of equality with
men. They were compelled to keep themselves within the four walls of their houses
with a long veil on their faces.
Raja Ram Mohan Roy's movement against women's subjugation to men and British influence on
Indian culture and civilization the position of women had once again undergone a change

leadership of Mahatma Gandhi that they re-asserted their equality with men. In
response to the call of Gandhi they discarded their veil and came out of the four walls
of their houses to fight the battle of freedom shoulder to shoulder with their brothers.
The result is that the Indian Constitution today has given to women the equal status
with men. There is no discrimination between men and women.
Though a number of constitutional amendments were made for women’s social, economic and
political benefits, yet they were never effective to bring a radical change in the situation
The Indian woman has to make her way through all the socialised prejudices against her, and the
men yet have to allow and accept the women to be equal participants in the country’s way forward.
india's population has more than doubled since 1961. Although India has been a leader in
developing health and population policies, there have been major implementation problems due
to poverty, gender discrimination, and illiteracy.
1. In 1947, India gained independence from Great Britain. Its poverty rate at the time of
British departure was at 70 percent.
2. India is the country with the highest population living below the poverty line. Today, the
poverty rate in India is 21.1 percent, which is an improvement from the 31.1 percent in
2009. India’s estimated population in 2016 was 1.3 billion.
3. An underdeveloped infrastructure and medical sector hinders equal access to medical care.
People living in developed urban areas have a higher chance of receiving medical attention
and are at lower risk of becoming ill compared to people living in rural areas. Less than 20
percent of the rural population of India have access the clean water. Unsanitary water
conditions increase the spread of both viral and bacterial infections
4. According to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), a strong supporter of development in
Asia, India’s economy grew by 7.1 percent in 2016. The Asian Development Bank began
assisting the Indian government with infrastructure and economic development in 1986.
5. The following four facts highlight the 2016 successes from the joint projects undertaken
by the ADB and India beginning in 2010. With the help of the Asian Development
Bank, 344 million homes have either gained access or improved access to clean water
thank to increased investment in irrigation, water treatment, and sanitation. In
addition, 744,000 homes are no longer at risk due to flooding.
6. To boost economic growth, India and the ADB have constructed or improved 26,909km
of roads though out the country, of which 20,064km are in rural areas, increasing the rural
populations access to the economy and healthcare.
7. Thanks to funding from the ADP, the Indian government has been able to build 606,174
units of affordable housing since 2010.
8. To connect these new houses and improve older structures, 24,183km of power lines were
hung or laid, while decreasing India’s carbon footprint by 992,573 tons of CO2.
9. Independent of the ADB, the Indian government is considering testing a universal basic
income program. Each person would receive 7620 Indian Rupees ($113) from the
government to spend, however they choose. A similar program is being tested by Finland.
The aim is to fight poverty in India by relieving pressure on the poor. The cash
handout would help to alleviate the pressure of any unforeseen expense. However,
opponents fear that their banking systems would not be able to handle the sudden increase
in cash flow and that food prices may drastically increase.
 10. To combat black market corruption and increase tax compliance, the Indian government
decided in 2016 to phase out the 500 Rupee and 1000 Rupee notes. All notes were to be
deposited within the deadline, and remaining notes would not be considered legal tender.
Poverty in India is slowly but surely being diminished. Careful planning by the government will
continue to benefit those stricken by poverty. Proof of this can be seen in the success of the
government’s use of invested funds from the ADB. With a growing economy and responsible
government, poverty in India will surely continue to decrease.
– Nick DeMarco
Although India has been a leader in developing health and population policies, there
have been major implementation problems due to poverty, gender discrimination, and
illiteracy. Yet, three-quarters of the food produced annually in India is because of
women
. The literacy level of women can affect reproductive behavior, use of contraceptives,
health and upbringing of children, proper hygienic practises, access to jobs and the
overall status of women in the society. Early marriage and childbirth was a major
determinant of women's health and was also responsible for the prevailing
socioeconomic underdevelopment in India. The overall maternal mortality for India is
572.3 per 100,000 births, ranging from 14.9% in Bihar to 1.3% in Kerala. Anemia is
an indirect factor in 64.4% of the maternal deaths
S1ocioeconomic factors are responsible for maternal deaths to a large extent - money
in 18.3%, transport in 13.7%
when the mother dies it doubles the chances of death of her surviving sons and
quadruples that of her daughters. Among the avoidable factors in maternal deaths,
lack of antenatal care is the most important. Women, if educated and aware, can
improve the health of their children by simple measures like good hygiene, exercise and
dietary habits
Women professionals and empowerment of women at all levels are required for
improvement of the health and nutrition structure in India
startling facts about women health in India that can give you a clear idea of how
women in India are deprived of their basic rights, needs, and their health scenario.
India tops the list of countries that are said to have highest mortality rates during
delivery and even the highest number of non-school going girls
‘When you educate a boy, you educate an individual. When you educate a girl, you educate a
family’. It is like empowering women through education thus helping them empower themselves
and in an indirect sense even the whole family.

1
1
Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, All India Institute of Medical
Sciences, New Delhi, India ncbi
hysterectomies have become the norm
drought-affected Beed district of Maharashtra’s Marathwada region, she struggles to talk about the
painful topic.
the majority of these women are cane cutters and migrate to the sugar belt of western Maharashtra
during the cane cutting season; with the drought intensifying, the number of migrants multiplies.
Lakhs of men and women from the region migrate to work as cane cutters between October and
March. Contractors draw up contracts with the husband and wife counted as one unit. Cane cutting is
a rigorous process and if the husband or wife takes a break for a day, the couple has to pay a fine
of ₹500 per day to the contractor for every break.

Menstrual periods hinder work and attract fines. The answer, in Beed, is to go in for a hysterectomy
so the women no longer have them.

“After a hysterectomy, there is no chance of menstrual periods. So, there is no question of taking
a break during cane cutting. We cannot afford to lose even a rupee,” says SatyaBhama

We have a target to complete in a limited timeframe and hence we don’t want women who would
have periods during cane cutting,” said Dada Patil

a serious impact on the health of the women as they develop a hormonal

imbalance, mental health issues, gain weight etc. We observed that
even young girls at the age of 25 have undergone this surgery.
Poverty, exploitation, hysterectomies—this isn’t unique to Draupadi. It’s shared by
women across Beed who harvest sugarcane

The vicious cycle hit headlines in June, when health minister Eknath Shinde told
the Maharashtra Legislative Council that in the last three years, 4,542 women in
Beed who harvest sugarcane underwent surgeries to remove their uterus.

State legislative council deputy chairperson Neelam Gorhe, who chaired a meeting on the issue

and is also a member of the newly-formed committee, has directed the labour department, sugar

commissioner and health department to ensure that cane-cutter women are provided basic
sanitation and health facilities.
Every year, tens of thousands of poor families from Beed, Osmanabad, Sangli and Solapur districts

migrate to more affluent western districts of the state — known as “the sugar belt” — to work for

six months as “cutters” in sugarcane fields. Many of these women end up with hysterectomies
since they cannot take breaks from cane-cutting during menstruation.

The NCW has described the condition of the women in Maharashtra as “pathetic and miserable”
and asked the state government to prevent such “atrocities” in future.

The labour department must gather information on availability of toilets in sugar factory premises
and provide mobile toilets wherever required,” said Gorhe.

t the health department, labour department and the sugar commissioner must ensure health check-

ups for cane-cutters before the start of cane crushing season. She added that men and women cane-
cutters must be paid equally and mobile hospitals must be deployed near sugar factor

contractors or sugar factories should hold three health check ups for cane-cutters – at the start of
the season, during the middle of the season and after the end of the season.

a couple takes up the contract for Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh during a season which lasts for six
months and the ratio of workers is 50:50 for men and women.