...Women Empowerment through Self Help Groups: Issues and Challenges RuchiraShukla*, Swati Sharma**, V.M. Thumar***, K.A. Patel**** Navsari Agricultural University Navsari Email: ruchira.shukla@nau.in Contact No.: 9725018793 Abstract: Women are critical to a growing rural economy, especially in developing countries such as India. The empowerment of women is most important for the development and growth of the country. Motivating women and bringing them into the mainstream of development is a major concern for the Government of India. Women empowerment is a process in which women challenge the existing norms and culture, to effectively promote their wellbeing. Empowerment of women means developing them as more aware individuals, who are politically...
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...2. Women Empowerment in Modern India Dr. Shruti Singh For centuries women were not treated equal to men in many ways. They were not allowed to own property, they did not have a Share in the property of their parents, they had no voting rights, and they had no freedom to choose their work or job and so on. Gender inequality has been part and parcel of an accepted male-dominated Indian society throughout history. Women were expected to be bound to the house, while men went out and worked. This division of labor was one of the major reasons why certain evils like 'Sati Pratha', ‘PardahSystem', 'Child Marriage', 'Dowry System', etc. took birth in our society. The traditional Indian mentality assumes that the place of women is mainly concentrated to the household activities like kitchen work and upbringing of the children. There is systematic discrimination against women economically, socially, politically and culturally more so, in India. These discriminations & disabilities are practiced at all levels day in & day out. Women Empowerment is the ability of women to exercise full control over their actions. This means control over material assets, intellectual resources and even over their ideologies. It involves, at the psychological level, women's ability to assert them which has, so far, been constricted by the 'gender roles' assigned to them especially in a culture like India which resists changes. This essay throws light upon the different challenges that are faced by Indian...
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...WOMEN EMPOWERMENT “Women empowered means mother India empowered”. - Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru WHAT IS WOMAN EMPOWERMENT? What does it really mean to empower women? Is it political empowerment? Economic empowerment? Social empowerment? In fact, these categories are not mutually exclusive but mutually reinforcing. Women’s political empowerment, usually envisioned as political participation in elections and government, is necessary to give women a voice in the policies that affect their lives. Women’s economic empowerment, which entails that women have the authority to make their own decisions regarding use of their resources, leads to prosperity for families and communities. Social empowerment, often achieved through public policy and education, liberates women from the mistreatment, exploitation, and oppression that inhibit women from reaching their full potential. HISTORY OF WOMAN EMPOWERMENT IN INDIA The status of women in India has been subject to many great changes over the past few millenium. In early vedic period women enjoyed equal status with men. Rigveda & Upanishads mention several names of women sages and seers notably Gargi & Maitrey. However later the status of women began to deteriorate approximately from 500 b.c., the situation worsened with invasion of Mughals and later on by European invaders. Reformatory movements by Guru nanak, RajaramMmohan Rai, others did give some relief. It is not that Britishers didn’t do any thing for improving the condition of women...
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...Gender Equality and Women Empowerment Alessandra Gonzalez Human Sexuality SOP2772 4/4/2016 Abstract Over the past couple of years gender equality and women empowerment awareness has caught the attention of many. Discrimination and violence towards women has slowly risen across different parts of the world. Throughout urban community’s women are married at an early age, are given the automatic task of being a housewife, and become pregnant fairly young. Throughout this whole process they must respect their husband or face the consequences of abuse. With nowhere to run these women have no choice but to stay in the hands of their abuser. Decision making is commonly known to be the cause of the domestic violence. New methods are being used as preventatives to these outcomes, while various movements are coming together to raise a higher awareness on women. Introduction The topic that I chose was gender equality and women empowerment. While going deeper into the different aspects of gender equality, specifically women, it slowly became jaw dropping. When asked to describe women empowerment people usually have the automatic response of “feminism” or a “feminist”. But what is the actual meaning of women empowerment? A topic such as domestic violence can slowly fall into the mix. Psychologically, women facing domestic violence can be traumatizing. In India, 40% of a representative sample of Indian women of reproductive age had experienced physical (35%), sexual (10%), or...
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...as gender discrimination is meant only for women, because females are the only victims of gender discrimination. Females are nearly 50 percent of the total population but their representation in public life is very low. Recognizing women’s right and believing their ability are essential for women’s empowerment and development. This study deals with gender discrimination in India, its various forms and its causes. Importance of women in development, legislation for women and solution for gender discrimination are also discussed in this paper. Key Words: gender discrimination, women’s development, legislation for women, education, employment, economic independence, empowerment, decision making and self confidence. GENDER DISCRIMINATION AND WOMEN’S DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA Introduction Gender is a common term where as gender discrimination is meant only for women, because females are the only victims of gender discrimination. Gender discrimination is not biologically determined but it is determined by socially and the discrimination can be changed by the proper and perpetuate efforts. Denial of equality, rights and opportunity and suppresment in any form on the basis of gender is gender discrimination. Half of the world’s population is females. They are doing two-third of work of the total work in the world but received only one-tenth of the world’s total income. Nearly two-third of the women is illiterates and they have possessed only...
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...Women Empowerment: Since the older times, women have been treated as second rate citizens of all across the globe. The situation is almost the same everywhere-irrespective of the developed country or the developing country-caste, community, colour or creed a position which is comparable in many ways, with that of racial minorities. Women have been relegated to secondary position despite the fact that they numerically constitute about half the world population today. This situation has caused immense loss to their self-dignity as human beings and also their independent entities, associated with men, apart from other matter, in context with intellectual and professional capability. In the very beginning of civilization, women enjoyed a respectable position in society-at par with men. They actively participated in social, religious affairs as well as in warfare. The social, religious ceremonies were considered incomplete unless women participated in them. However, it was their physical constitution which acted as hurdles on the way to doing their various different difficult tasks. Gradually, they became dependent on men for food, protection for their other necessities. It was due to the strong built-up of men they risked their lives in course of hunting and food collection. It is really ironical that superiority is not accorded to the fair sex who are responsible for carrying forward lives on this planet but to men who have muscle power with the help of which they can subjugate...
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...WOMEN EMPOWERMENT Since the older times, women have been treated as second rate citizens of all across the globe. The situation is almost the same everywhere-irrespective of the developed country or the developing country-caste, community, colour or creed a position which is comparable in many ways, with that of racial minorities. Women have been relegated to secondary position despite the fact that they numerically constitute about half the world population today. This situation has caused immense loss to their self-dignity as human beings and also their independent entities, associated with men, apart from other matter, in context with intellectual and professional capability. In the very beginning of civilization, women enjoyed a respectable position in society-at par with men. They actively participated in social, religious affairs as well as in warfare. The social, religious ceremonies were considered incomplete unless women participated in them. However, it was their physical constitution which acted as hurdles on the way to doing their various different difficult tasks. Gradually, they became dependent on men for food, protection for their other necessities. It was due to the strong built-up of men they risked their lives in course of hunting and food collection. It is really ironical that superiority is not accorded to the fair sex who are responsible for carrying forward lives on this planet but to men who have muscle power with the help of which they can subjugate...
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...LITERACY AND WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT Literacy among women opens up many opportunities for them for their empowerment. Literate women can express constructively their talents.Literacy among women leads to better hygiene, improved nutrition-practices and greater effectiveness in caring for family health. It leads to improved maternal competence and lowering of the rate of infant mortality, fetter health status of women makes them more productive workers both, at home and outside leading the way to their equality and empowerment. Female education leads to late marriage an making the size of family small. Educated women can acquire knowledge about contraception. It helps them making a gap in rearing and bearing child. Education helps women to participate in works that are outside home. Infant mortality rate is lower among the children of educated women. Their surviving children are healthier and better educated. Education of women emancipates them in wasteful child-bearing and helps them to take part in market activities. Educated women can make a better use of time. "Education helps them to reduce time which they spend in household and non-market activities. Education among women moves them from non-monetized sector to monetized sector. It allows them to participate directly in household economy. This enhances their status in decision making within the family. It is a major step towards their equality and empowerment. Illiterate women and women with minimal education concentrate mostly...
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...representation can be simply delineated: Women represent half of the population of a country and therefore have the right to half of the Seats, since decisions made in parliament have a direct impact on their lives. - Women have different social and biological experiences which should be represented in Institution of governance. - Women and men have partly conflicting interests. - Women in positions of power can inspire more women to place themselves in influential and decision-making roles. Providing reservations to a particular section of community in government jobs and other institutions is generally the highlight of any political party’s agenda these days. Now there have been discussions about providing reservations to women in government jobs and democratic institutions like legislative assemblies and Parliament also. Sometimes one feels that basically the reservation issue is nothing but a populist policy of a government, but still it is necessary to discuss the rationale behind such a policy. Can reservations for women be an effective measure and do the women really require such special treatment? These are the points which need to be addressed. It is nothing but a truism to say that the present status of women in the Indian society vis-à-vis the status of men is far from satisfactory. For centuries, Indian society like most of the other societies has been a male-dominated one. Perhaps the degradation of the status of women started in the later Vedic period, because...
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...RETHINKING POLICY ON CHILD SEx RATIOS Mary E John ......................................................................................5 NCW: TWENTY YEARS OF EMPOWERING WOMEN Mamta Sharma ..................................................................................9 STREE SHAKTI Rashmi Singh ..................................................................................13 NORTH EAST DIARY ...............................................................18 EMPOWERING WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE Amrit Patel ......................................................................................19 EMPOWERED WOMEN, EMPOWERED NATION Shahin Razi .....................................................................................24 WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT ACROSS INDIAN STATES Arundhati Chattopadhyay ...............................................................29 J&K wINDOw ..........................................................................56 AMENDING ARCHAIC LAWS TO EMPOWER WOMEN Moushumi Das Gupta .....................................................................52 WOMEN AND PANCHAYATI RAJ Nupur Tiwari ...................................................................................36 DO YOu KNOw? SOME FACTS ABOUT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT, 2005 ..................................................................41 WOMEN SELF HELP GROUPS Kahnu Charan Dhir .........................................................................42 BEST PRACTICES PEARL IN THE SAND – TARA DEVI Dilip Bidawat...
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...In India, today, women appear to rule the roost. India as a nation is revered in a feminine form i.e. ‘the Bharat Mata’, the first citizen of our country presently is a woman, many important government posts are occupied by women and educated women are pouring into the professional workforce with profound implications for national and multinational corporations. However, ironically, these are accompanied by news about dowry killings, female infanticide, domestic violence against women, sexual harassment, rape, illegal trafficking and prostitution and myriad others of the same ilk. Gender discrimination prevails in almost all areas, be it social, cultural, economic or educational. An effective remedy for these evils needs to be sought in order to ensure the Right to Equality guaranteed by the Constitution of India, to the fairer sex. Gender equality facilitates the empowerment of women. Since education begins at home, the upliftment of women would be accompanied by the development of the family, the society and in turn, would lead towards a holistic development of the nation.Among these problems the foremost that needs to be addressed is the atrocity committed against females at birth and during childhood. Female infanticide i.e. killing of the female child is still a common practice in many of the rural areas. Further female foeticide is common in some parts of India, despite the passage of ‘Prenatal Diagnostic techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act in 1994. In case they...
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...through socialization processes; they are not fixed but are changeable. Gender systems are institutionalized through education systems, political and economic systems, legislation, and culture and traditions. In utilizing a gender approach the focus is not on individual women and men but on the system which determines gender roles / responsibilities, access to and control over resources, and decision-making potentials. It is also important to emphasize that the concept of gender is not interchangeable with women. Gender refers to both women and men, and the relations between them. Promotion of gender equality should concern and engage men as well as women. In recent years there has been a much stronger direct focus on men in research on gender perspectives. There are three main approaches taken in the increased focus on men. Firstly, the need to identify men as allies for gender equality and involve them more actively in this work. Secondly, the recognition that gender equality is not possible unless men change their attitudes and behaviour in many areas, for example in relation to reproductive rights and health. And thirdly, that gender systems in place in many contexts are negative for men as well as for women – creating unrealistic demands on men and requiring men to behave in narrowly defined ways. A considerable amount of interesting research is being...
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...Women Empowerment – A Reflection in the ------------------------------------------------- Poems of “Mumbai Mirror” Eunice De Souza Mrs.A MATHINI1, R.EZHILARASI2* 1 Assistant Professor, Dept. of English, SCSVMV University, Enathur, Kancheepuram (India). ------------------------------------------------- 2 Research Scholar, Dept. of English, SCSVMV University, Enathur, Kancheepuram (India). INTRODUCTION: Women’s Empowerment is a global issue in determining the status of women. The position and status of women all over the world has risen incredibly in the 20th century. It may be because of the awareness among women. We know that it has been very low in 18th & 19th centuries in India and other Countries. Women were treated like “objects”. In the name of marriage they can be bought and sold. Their dependence on men folk was total. But now women started to learn the possible ways to be independent in the society. Their monetary independence led them to the way to empowerment. Robert Blood (1965) observes, “Employment emancipates women from domination by their Husbands and secondarily, raises their Daughters from inferiority to their Brothers” (Blood and Wolfe, 1965). According to Dr. Nafi’s Sadik, the former Executive Director of UNFPA “Women are the heart of development”. Women are the agent to bring about better lives for billions of people in the developing countries as well as developed countries to bring sustainable development. The main...
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...Political Empowerment of Women: Comparative Study of South Asian Countries Amna Mahmood A South Asia is a home of variety of cultures, languages and religions. Here we can find a number of variations in customs, value systems and ways of life. But one thing is common among all the cultures and regions of South Asia that is gender discrimination. Women traditionally are considered subordinated to the male and this remained a prominent feature both in the rural and the urban areas. In urban areas a little improvement is due to enhanced level of education and economic independence in women. There is very less distinction of educated and uneducated as that of religion in this regard. The situation is improved with regard to political empowerment especially with the allocation of 33% seats in local government in South Asia but in most of the cases this change is not satisfactory. The real empowerment would be achieved only if it would be accompanied by the social and economic empowerment. For that purpose, society has to be changed at large. Such change cannot be materialized only through any coercive legislation or strong state action in the blink of an eye. But the fact remains there that in societies where all the changes start from top to bottom these measures along with a strong political will can stimulate a change to improve the situation gradually. This paper discusses the measures taken by different governments in South Asia to achieve the goal of political empowerment and participation...
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... ON PROJECT SHAKTI - _STRATEGIC ADVANTAGES OF CSR SUBMITTED BY; NAME;-Pravita Mehta ROLL;-Ao1 SECTION;-RT1002 REGISTRATION NUMBER;-11008575 COURSE;-MBA(3501) CONTENTS 1.INTRODUCTION 2.PROJECT SHAKTI-ORGANIZATION NAME UNLEVEL PROBLEM AND SOLUTION 3.BENEFITS 4.HUL-PROJECT SHAKTI PRESENTATION TRANSCRIPT 5.SUPPORT SHAKTI. 6.MARKET LINKAGE FOR RURAL PRODUCTS 7.INDUSTRY ROLE IN BUILDING MARKET LINKAGES 8.SCOPE AND OPPORTUNITIES 9.LITERATRURE REVIEW 10.CONCLUSION 11.REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY Introduction Rural products of India are unique, innovative and have good utility and values. Large number of these rural products (like handicraft items, food products, embroidery, clothes & other products) sustains a significant segment of the population in the rural areas. Several attributes of rural products can be identified, for which, it has a demand in the market. Out of the lots, ‘ethnic origin’ and ‘indigenous design & appearance’ are two traits of rural products, attracting a premium in the market. But, contrary to this, the non-uniformity of rural products (from one another) and lack of its quality control measures has been creating a negative demand. Besides, the small sized and dispersed production units of these rural products hinder realization of the...
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