CHAPTER-1

INTRODUCTION:-

In the past few years ‘women's empowerment’ has gained growing

visibility as a development issue. Its advocates have, arguably, been more
successful than ever before in mobilizing development's main players to
pay attention and to commit resources to women. ‘Empowering women
and girls’ has not only soared to the top of the development agenda, it has
also caught the imagination of the philanthropic wing of big business, and
is energetically promoted by myriad organizations running the gamut of
affiliations and ideologies. Everyone, it seems, can find something in the
term that resonates with the world as they would like to make it. And yet,
many feminists and gender equality activists, including a number of
contributors to this collection, express a profound sense of unease about
this term, and the way it is put to use by some those who are most
enthusiastic in its promotion.

This Special Issue of Development picks up some of the contentions

and contestations that have accompanied the uptake of ‘women's
empowerment’ by the development industry. Contributors reflect on their
own personal and political engagement with the term and what it has come
to represent, on the ways development institutions have taken up and used
it, and its place in relation to wider development trends and goals. It is a
collaborative initiative of Development and Pathways of Women's
Empowerment, a five-year research and communications initiative funded
by Department for International Development (DFID) and the Norwegian
Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Pathways is a network of academics,
practitioners and activists based in Latin America, the Middle East, South
Asia, West Africa, the UK and the US. Thematic programmers on body, voice
and work convene cross-regional research and communications work that
seeks to understand better the pathways to greater justice and equality for
all. Pathways’ starting point is that empowerment is a journey not a
destination, and that better understanding of women's individual and
collective journeys can help inform activism and policy. Our work critically
assesses policy interventions and institutional mechanisms aimed at
enhancing women's empowerment, and looks beyond the well-trodden
development paths to discover what is happening in women's lives that is
bringing about positive change.

In this overview we highlight some of the themes suggested by

contributors to this lively and diverse collection, and invite further
dialogue.
CHAPTER-2
POSITION AND STATUS OF WOMEN POSITION

Since the early days of the Industrial Revolution women in Europe

and North America have made considerable progress towards equality
with men, although much remains still to be done. Of course, the
industrialization of Western countries at first had not improved the status
of women, but had degraded them even further by exploiting them and
their children in factories as cheap labor. In the preceding relatively
prosperous agrarian culture women had worked on an almost equal
footing with men and had been skilled in many occupations. Families were
still "producing units", and women received recognition for contributing
their substantial share. The factory system changed all that by breaking up
the traditional extended family with its large household and by giving
people specialized monotonous tasks behind perpetually moving machines.
Women and children were, however, paid much less for such work than
men, and thus their economic "value" declined. It took many decades of
struggle before unionization and legal reform ended the crassest form of
this discrimination.

At the same time, middle- and upper-class women were increasingly

confined to the home with little to do except to take care of their children.
Their husbands no longer worked inside the house, but were absent during
most of the day. These idle women often played the role of frail, sensitive
creatures who had "the vapours" and fainted in any "indelicate" situation.
On the other hand, many of them also became critical of their position in
society. They found time to devote themselves to various religious and
moral causes and even to become interested in abolition and the women's
rights movement. Eventually, both working-class and bourgeois women
insisted on change and contributed to the success of feminism. This success
still is not total, and, as we all know, even in the industrialized countries
women continue to fight for equal rights. Today, however, in addition to
economic issues, problems of sexual self-determination have come to the
foreground.

It must be remembered, of course, that the relatively liberated and

affluent women of Europe and North America are only a small minority of
women in the world today. Women in many non-Western countries, and
especially in the so-called Third World generally live in a state of subjection
and misery. Most of their energy is consumed by a hard and unrelenting
struggle for sheer survival. Thus, for them, any talk about "sexual
liberation" in the Western sense sounds, at best, irrelevant and, at worst,
frivolous. Their concerns are more elementary and more pressing. This
became disturbingly obvious, for example, when, in 1975, the United
Nations sponsored an "International Women's Conference" in Mexico City.
This conference demonstrated a serious communication gap between
women from industrial and agrarian societies. It also revealed a stark
global picture: More than a billion women (i.e., the majority of the world's
female population) live in poor, rural areas. Most of them are illiterate,
malnourished, exhausted, or even ill, and are forced to work long hours for
little reward. Naturally, men share many of these hardships, but women
still bear the greatest burden. In nearly all "underdeveloped" countries
boys are favored over girls from the moment of birth, since parents
consider sons as a guarantee for their economic security in old age. Girls,
on the other hand, marry into some other family. Thus, even under
conditions of abject poverty, boys are better fed, clothed, and educated
than girls. In emergencies and in case of natural disasters, female needs
also take second place. Furthermore, in many poor countries women have
few rights and are early given away in marriage with hardly a voice in the
matter. Backbreaking work and constant pregnancies then keep them weak
and dependent. Attempts by governments and international agencies to
raise the general standard of living in poor communities may well have the
opposite effect on women by increasing their workload. Under such
depressing circumstances, "women's liberation" has a special meaning and,
indeed, poses a challenge to the women's movement in the rich and
powerful West. Some of the poor countries have, in the meantime, made
great strides toward economic progress and, in some cases, such as in the
People's Republic of China, a considerable degree of sexual equality has
been achieved. It is also interesting to note that in recent times some
"developing" nations, such as India, Sri Lanka, and Israel have chosen
women as heads of state, an example that still waits to be emulated in
Europe and America. On the whole, one might say that the emancipation of
women is no longer a "Western" issue, and that its global implications are
increasingly being recognized. There also seems little doubt that the
demand for sexual equality will persist until it has fully been granted
everywhere.
CHAPTER-3
NATIONAL POLICY ON WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

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 women’s
advancement in different spheres. From the Fifth Five Year Plan (1974-78)
onwards has been a marked shift in the approach to women’s issues from
welfare to development. In recent years, the empowerment of women has
been recognized as the central issue in determining the status of women.
The National Commission for Women was set up by an Act of Parliament in
1990 to safeguard the rights and legal entitlements of women. The 73rd
and 74th Amendments (1993) to the Constitution of India have provided
for reservation of seats in the local bodies of Panchayats and Municipalities
for women, laying a strong foundation for their participation in decision
making at the local levels.
1 . 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.
2. 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 21 st 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.
3. The Policy also takes note of the commitments of the Ninth Five Year
Plan and the other Sect oral Policies relating to empowerment of Women.
4. The women’s movement and a wide-spread network of non-Government
Organizations which have strong grass-roots presence and deep insight
into women’s concerns have contributed in inspiring initiatives for the
empowerment of women.
5. 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"
6. 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.
7. The underlying causes of gender inequality are related to social and
economic structure, which is based on informal and formal norms, and
practices.
8. Consequently, the access of women particularly those belonging to
weaker sections
NATIONAL POLICY FOR THE EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN

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. 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 thisPolicy 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.
(ix) Building and strengthening partnerships with civil society, particularly
women’s organizations.
 Policy Prescriptions
 Judicial Legal Systems
Legal-judicial system will be made more responsive and gender sensitive to
women’s 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. 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.
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:-
Women’s 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. Women–friendly
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
Policies, programmes and systems will be established to ensure
mainstreaming of women’s 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. Women’s issues and concerns as a result will specially be
addressed and reflected in all concerned laws, sect oral policies, plans and
programmes of action.
Economic Empowerment of women Poverty Eradication:-
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
In order to enhance women’s access to credit for consumption and
production, the establishment of new, and strengthening of existing micro-
credit mechanisms and microfinance 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
Women’s 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.

Globalization
Globalization has presented new challenges for the realization of the goal of
women’s 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
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
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.
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
The provision of support services for women, like child care facilities,
including crèches 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
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
in secondary and higher education would be a focus area. Sect oral 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
A holistic approach to women’s 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.
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.
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.
Women’s 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
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, focused 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.
Intra-household discrimination in nutritional matters vis-à -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. Women’s participation will also be ensured
in the planning, superintendence and delivery of the system.

Drinking Water and Sanitation

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. Women’s participation will be ensured in the planning, delivery and
maintenance of such services.

Housing and Shelter

Women’s 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
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,
women’s participation will be ensured in the conservation of the
environment and control of environmental degradation. The vast majority
of rural women still depends 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
nonconventional energy resources. Women will be involved in spreading
the use of solar energy, biogas, smokeless chelas 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

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 women’s needs as well as to reduce their drudgery
will be given a special focus too.

Women in Difficult Circumstances

In recognition of the diversity of women’s 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
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

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 feticide, 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
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

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.
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.
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
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.
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, Women’s Organizations, 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.
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
Women’s Studies Centers and other research and academic institutions
through suitable information networking systems.
 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 women’s 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
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:
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;
 Adequate resource allocation to develop and promote the policy
outlined earlier based on above by concerned Departments.
 Developing synergy between personnel of Health, Rural
Development, Education and Women & Child Development
Department at field level and other village level functionaries’
 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.
 The strategy of Women’s 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.
Efforts will be made to channelize private sector investments too, to
support programmes and projects for advancement of women Legislation
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.
Effective implementation of legislation would be promoted by
involving civil society and community. Appropriate changes in legislation
will be undertaken, if necessary.
In addition, following other specific measures will be taken to
implement the legislation effectively.

Gender Sensitization:-
 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:
 Promoting societal awareness to gender issues and women’s human
rights.
 Review of curriculum and educational materials to include gender
education and human rights issues
 Removal of all references derogatory to the dignity of women from
all public documents and legal instruments.
 Use of different forms of mass media to communicate social messages
relating to women’s equality and empowerment.

Panchayati Raj Institutions

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 women’s 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

The involvement of voluntary organizations, associations,
federations, trade unions, nongovernmental organizations, women’s
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
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 multilateral
partnerships.
 CHAPTER-4

STEPS FURTHER FOR WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

 United Nations: Top officials from India and Pakistan discussed here
the need for improved cooperation on bilateral and multilateral levels on
issues of women's rights and empowerment. 
Neela Gangadharan, Secretary in India's Ministry of Women and Child
Development, and Pakistan's Goodwill Ambassador for Women
Empowerment Fiza Batool Gilani met on the sidelines of the 56th Session of
the Commission on the Status of Women yesterday. 
The two sides discussed issues relating to the rights of women in
both countries as well as relevant social sector reforms needed to improve
their conditions, a statement from the Pakistani mission to the UN said. 
Gangadharan spoke about the various efforts made by the Indian
government for the betterment of the socio-economic conditions of women
and children. She also welcomed the idea of enhanced bilateral and
regional cooperation on women empowerment. 

The statement said Gilani highlighted the numerous steps taken by

her government for the political, economic and social empowerment of
women in the past few years. She underlined the need for
better cooperation between the two sides on issues pertaining to women
empowerment, by enhancing interaction at the bilateral as well as at the
level of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). 

Educate a man and you educate an individual; educate a woman and

you educate a family.

Women will have to empower themselves from below in order to compel

the government to empower them from above .Further, there is a need for
a change of values and behaviour in the society, a need for positive socio-
cultural and economic empowerment and above all the will power and
strong determination of women to join politics. Education can play a vital
role in bringing about the desirable behavioural changes among the women
and make them well equipped in terms of knowledge, competence and
capacity to deal with different political problems. It may be concluded that
women have shifted traditional assumptions about their roles and
capabilities. There has been a marked change, and it has been for the
better. Many of its benefits however have yet to touch the majority and all
of us continue to experience various forms of gender discrimination. If laws
designed to address the concerns of women are to have a dramatic and
positive impact on women’s lives, they must be sensitive to the social,
economic and political disempowerment of women throughout the world.

The most important measure of their successshould be the extent to

which they enable woman to interpret, apply and enforce laws of their own

making, incorporating their own voices, values and concerns. Dr. Dasarathi
Bhuyan is a Lecturer in Political Science, at Bellaguntha Science College in
the District of Ganjam
 CHAPTER-5

WOMEN OF 21ST CENTURY:-

 Women are an integral part of human society. But for a woman, there
couldn’t have been any man. She is the mother of mankind. Despite holding
such an important and unquestionable position, role of women has been
defined by men over millennia. Our Vedas tell us that women held an
important place in ancient culture. No ritual was ever complete without the
presence of a woman by her man’s side. All our gods are worshipped
alongside their heavenly consorts. There is no dichotomy there. No one
questions this. The staunchest of male chauvinist reverentially bows his
head to Goddess Lakshmi, or Durga. It is not considered a sign of weakness
to bow to female deities. Women at home and society in general, are a
different cup of tea. They are treated as second class citizens. How did this
‘battle of sexes’ begin? How did the men win the winning hand? I think that
economics had a role to play in the scheme of things. When man took on the
role of a bread earner, and woman took the natural role of a nurturer, these
roles suited their intended role by the Creator. Man was physically strong,
while the woman was inherently strong. Over a period of time the man
started believing that his role was superior to that of the woman as without
him there would be no food at the table. Woman’s role was taken as for
granted. The physically feeble woman was led to believe this lie for
centuries. Someone as respected as Socrates said that the only reason he
put up with his wife, Xanthippe, was that she bore him sons. He said it was
like putting up with the noise of geese because they produce eggs and
chicks. What an analogy from the most revered philosopher of all ages!
Closer home Manu said in 200 B.C.: "by a young girl, by a young woman, or
even by an aged one, nothing must be done independently, even in her
ownhouse"."In childhood a female must be subject to her father, in youth to
her husband, when her lord is dead to her sons; a woman must never be
independent."
It is only when things went way beyond the level of tolerance that the
women raised their voices. The first such voice was heard loud and clear in
the early 19 century, when the term ‘women suffragists’ became a
household word in the west. We were a British colony at that time, but
women across Europe and United States rose as an entity demanding
suffrage, or the right to vote. It is to the credit of these courageous women
that today women’s right to vote is a ‘given’ in most of the free world,
though there are still some countries, mainly in the Middle East that still
deny women their universal right to vote.
The suffragists had two points of views. One view was that women’s
natural place was at home and the voting rights will enable them to help
formulate laws that affect life at home. The other view was that men and
women should be equal in every way and there was no such thing as a
‘natural’ role for a woman. The ‘suffrage’ movement can be seen as the first
wave of the ‘feminist’ movement that caught widespread imagination in
1960s
1980s. This second wave dealt with the inequalities of laws, as well as
perceived cultural inequalities. Although the term ‘feminist’ was coined in
1880, its usage as a movement gained ground in 1960s onwards. Feminists’
were those men and women who wrote, spoke and acted on behalf of
women and their rights to social, economical, and political equality.
Famous writer Rebecca West defined feminism the best with her now
famous comments, “I myself have never been able to find out precisely what
feminism is: I only k now that people call me a feminist whenever I express
sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat, or a prostitute.”
Unfortunately this wave got more publicity and notoriety for now
infamous, and according to some ‘fictitious’ bra burning episodes, and got
identified with that. In this phase, women tried to equate themselves with
men by proving that they were as good as men, if not better.
Women’s Rights Movement gained mass support in the latter half of the
twentieth century when the essential problems like discrimination,
inequality and limited opportunities continued to confront women in all
spheres of life. The phrase ‘Women’s Liberation’ appeared in print media in
1966. Late sixties also marked a period in human history when more and
more women joined institutes of higher education. From then on, women
have not looked back.
Today at the dawn of the 21 century the women across the world are
placed at a position of advantage. They are literally on the move. They are
paying heed to their inner voice. They are no longer interested in hollow
jargon and jingoism. They are finding their individual and collective voice.
They are aligned with their conscience, moving ahead with purposeful
strides. 21 century is the century for change. The Planet Earth is ready for
‘The Shift of the Ages’. In this New Age, love and compassion will rule the
roost, and the woman with her natural attributes of compassion will sow
the seeds of global transformation. These changes have already begun, and
soon they will gain an unprecedented momentum. The time is ripe for
women of all races, castes, class, and nationalities to come together to be
the harbinger of this change. Mother Earth is crying for attention, soon like
the mythological ‘Shakti’ it will show its true might and annihilate all the
evil forces along the way. Only women can be empathetic to the ‘Mother’s
plight in her hour of need. When I say ‘women’, I mean the ‘feminine’ in
men and women alike. Indian scriptures have always spoken about
‘Ardhnareeshwar’, the Masculine- Feminine deity. The time has come to
invoke that Masculine-feminine balance in all of us. Events on Earth
demand the emergence of the feminine essence of Love all around. In the
21 century women do not need to look at the historical injustices done to
her. It’s time to put all that behind her and look forward to her empowered
role in this ‘Aquarian age’. Women today need not look anywhere for a
perfect role model. They need to look within and listen to their intuition, to
take the right action at the right time. All they need right now is to set the
right intention, and all their intentions will bear fruits sooner than later.
Such is the power of the New Age. You may well be asking, how can we
change the traditions that have been entrenched in our systems through
ages? All I can say is that no matter how entrenched the traditions appear,
if they do not resonate with your present reality, they are no longer true for
you. This entire Universe is ever-changing, why do you and I need to be
stuck in age old systems that no longer serve any purpose? The entire
creation is constantly in motion; even our so called traditions are loosening
their stranglehold. Try them, give them a push, they will give way.
Have you seen a grown up elephant tied to a tiny stake with an ordinary
rope? Have you ever wondered why doesn’t the mighty beast just give a
powerful tug and break free? The problem is that since childhood the
elephant has been conditioned to believe that he is not capable of breaking
free. As a baby, when he was tied to the stake for the first time he did try to
break free but could not succeed, eventually he gave up trying, thinking
that he can’t; and now when he has grown up to be the most powerful of
animals on this Planet, he ‘believes’ that he can’t do it. Beliefs are ‘that’
powerful. Women need to break free of their limiting beliefs. Do you want
to know how you, as a person, can make a difference? In this cosmic dance,
we are all partners. When one of us moves a step, it helps rotate the
Universe by one degree. When each one of us makes a small, insignificant
move, it has the power to move the mountains. Now do you believe in your
power? Someone has to become the first to move in your community, your
neighborhood, your country. By taking one step, one turn you will affect the
lives of women you don’t even know. Who are you waiting for? Get ready to
write the history. Will you? Some of you must be experiencing doubts. ‘I do
not have so much courage’. You do not need to be Rani Laxmi Bai to bring
about this change. All you need to do is find your voice. All you need to do is
spread unconditional love and compassion. Just take that first step in
whichever way you can. Use the power of tears, use the power of anger, and
use the power of words. But USE it. Let me assure you that the 21 century is
the century of the ‘feminine’. If you don’t believe me now, you soon will......
CHAPTER-6
 EQUALITIES AND DIFFRENCE

IDENTITY, EQUALITY AND DIFFERENCE

Identity is not a product; it is a process, an ongoing process of
negotiation between nature (our genetic disposition) and nurture
(socialisation processes that are never ending).
Socialisation processes, which are attempts to temper our inherent
differences, condition us to sets of norms and values that lead to the
development of shared identities. (Uniforms are the most easily recognised
indicators of shared identity.)
The severest form of socialisation is induction into an army where an
individual must give up her/his individual identity for a group identity.
S/he wears a uniform, marches in step, obeys and lives a regimented life.
S/he must not think for her/himself. S/he becomes a virtual robot. It is a
form of dehumanisation necessary to make it possible to kill.
Ordinary socialisation is meant to have the opposite effect: the humanising
of the individual. That means learning behaviours that encourage co-
operation and communication and suppressing behaviours that inhibit
interaction. The individual goes through various processes of socialisation
in institutions: the family, school etc. that equip her/him with common
norms, values, skills, i.e. uniform beliefs and behaviours that reduce
individuality and produce shared identities.
The accumulation of common norms and values is a continuous
process. Each new group or institution that we join demands conformity to
its ethos that makes us more alike and steers us towards the adoption of a
group identity. And the individual becomes the aggregation of many
identities as s/he goes through socialisation processes, e.g. African-
Zuluteacher-IFP member-mother-wife. The formation of identity, therefore,
is an unending process and never devolves into a finite product.
 Though socialisation processes attempt to reduce individuality in
order to produce the uniformity that will lead to compatibility, individual
responses to socialisation and processes are not identical because of
inherent differences that determine what individuals take from these
processes.Inherent differences stem from the original being, the
unprocessed self, the raw material that society works on. These natural
impulses determine the ways in which we respond to socialisation
processes. The natural being does not submit passively to social
conditioning. We call children who don’t conform ‘naughty’. The resistance
to social norms arises from perceptions of violations of our true natures. It
allows us to retain something of our uniqueness and protects us from total
conformity.
This interaction between natural impulses and social conditioning
produces the identity: natural impulses help us retain our individuality
while social conditioning enables us to form associations. Are differences
only the result of instinct or are they also socially produced? As we belong
to many different groups, we go through many forms of socialisation and
accumulate many different sets of norms and values. Each individual,
therefore, combines a diversity of perspectives which is unique to
her/himself. So we all different from one another, not only as a result of
natural predispositions, but also because of socialization processes. Our
uniqueness, which gives us our identity, is both natural and manufactured.
I do not believe that the natural and the social are separable. They work
together to produce the individual. Identity, therefore, is made up of
similarities to and differences from other people. Individuals are fusions of
conformities and non-conformities. Shared Identity and Equality
The shared identity always indicates relationship to others. Shared
identities are based on generalizations or abstractions derived from a
group; they often lead to stereotyping. Shared identities have a practical
value in providing a quick estimate of identity, necessary in formal and
official interactions. The shared identity is clearly designated in ID books,
driver’s licenses, passports, etc. The shared identity is the basis for equal
rights. And our demand for equality is a generalised demand: the
recognition of our membership in a group.
The most important shared identity is that of citizen; it is based on
basic fixed characteristics: name, date of birth, place of origin, ID number.
Citizenship, the political identity, is impersonal and simply recognises one
as a member of a particular nation.
To be recognised as a citizen is essential to democracy. Citizenship
guarantees equality in terms of human rights and justice and commits us to
the acceptance of the rule of law. Equality does not refer to status and
resources. It refers only to equality of opportunity, i.e. no discrimination on
the basis of race, colour, creed, gender, sexual orientation, disability.
As citizens we are the all same in terms of human rights and recourse to the
law.
Considerations of race and ethnicity are irrelevant to citizenship and
should be so in a multi-cultural democratic society. Under apartheid, which
was not democratic, race was made a component of citizenship and only
white people could be citizens. Consequently, many who could pass for
white did so.
CHAPTER-7

CONCLUSION
 So, from the project we concluded that women empowerment in
india is a must and special laws should be made to protect them and their
rights. Govt has been taking new initiatives and steps day on day to protect
them and their rights but still then we have to go a long way in empowering
their rights as because till date women molestation exists in India and all
over the world. So, its high time to wake up and help the whole world to be
a better place to live in.

Some qualities to be acquired by women to become truly empowered

are awareness about risk prevailing at home, in work place, in traveling
and staying outside home. They should have political, legal, economic and
health awareness. They should have knowledge about support groups and
positive attitudes towards life. They should get goals for future and strive
to achieve them with courage. The best gift parents today can give to their
daughters is education. If women choose to be ignorant then all the efforts
taken by the Government and women activists will go in vain. Even in
twenty-fifth century, they will remain backward and will be paying a heavy
price for their dependence, So, it is a wake-up call for women to awake
from their deep slumber and understand the true meaning of their
empowerment. In the end I would like to conclude with the following
words, "Women as the motherhood of the nation should be strong, aware
and alert".

REFERENCE
 Afshar, H. (Ed. 1991) Women, Development and Survival in the
Third World. New York: Longman.
 Anand, A. (WFS/Women's Feature Service) (Ed. 1992) The Power
to Change; women in Third World Redefine Their
Environment. New Jersey: Zed Books Ltd.
 Azad, N. (1986) Empowering Women Workers: The WWF
Experiment in Indian Cities. Mylapur, India: WWF.
 Gutierrez, G. (1994) Mothers of East Los Angeles strike back, in
Bullard, Robert D. (Ed. 1994) Unequal Protection, Environmental
Justice and Communities of Color. San Francisco: Sierra Club
Books.
 Mizan, A. N. (1994) In quest of empowerment: the Grameen
Bank's impact on women's power and status. Dhaka: University
Press. 

BIBLIOGRAPHY
BRIDGE (development - gender)
Institute of Development Studies
University of Sussex
Brighton BN1 9RE, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 1273 606261
Fax: +44 (0) 1273 621202/691647
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.google.com
http://www.ids.ac.uk/bridge
Pathways of Women’s Empowerment
Research Programme Consortium
Website: pathways-of-empowerment.org