3.3% of women in South Asia face non-partner sexual violence’
Just over 7% of women globally and 3% in South Asia have experienced sexual violence at the hands of a non-partner, a new global study finds.
Both globally and in South Asia alone, rape by an intimate partner or member of the household is far more common than that by a stranger, the researchers found. (Lancet )
Globally, one out of 14 women over the age of 15 reported having experienced non-partner sexual violence.
The global prevalence of intimate partner violence, that study found, was 30%.
Yet, media and public attention globally is typically focussed on non-partner sexual violence. This was likely the case “because the perpetrator is a stranger and [the] victim is less blamed and shamed if she reports it, while intimate partner violence is considered a private matter therefore not likely to be reported to services and in the media.
This was however changing.
One in four men across Asia admit to having committed rape’
Nearly one out of four men in a United Nations study of 10,000 men in Asia admitted to having committed a rape.
Marital rape was by far the most common type of rape, followed by the rape of an intimate partner.
Sexual entitlement — the “belief that men were entitled to sex regardless of consent” — was the top reason men gave for committing a rape, and half of the men who admitted to rape said they had committed their first rape as teenagers.
The authors of the report urged better understanding of men’s lives following the finding that childhood abuse and neglect of a man were strongly correlated with his likelihood of committing rape as an adult.
The study was conducted by Partners for Prevention, a regional joint programme of the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), UN Women and United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme in Asia and the Pacific.
In south Asia (Sri Lanka and Bangladesh), nearly all the reported partner violence occurred within marriage, and physical violence was more common than sexual violence.
Partner rape was far more prevalent than non-partner rape across regions, a finding that is also reflected in India’s official statistics that show that the majority of sexual assault in India is committed by persons known to the victim.
The study found that vast majority of men who committed rape — 72 to 97 per cent across countries — faced no legal repercussions. The report recommended ending impunity for men who rape and changing social social norms related to ‘the acceptability of violence and the subordination of women’.
Just over 7% of women globally and 3% in South Asia have experienced sexual violence at the hands of a non-partner, a new global study finds.
Both globally and in South Asia alone, rape by an intimate partner or member of the household is far more common than that by a stranger, the researchers found. (Lancet )
Globally, one out of 14 women over the age of 15 reported having experienced non-partner sexual violence.
The global prevalence of intimate partner violence, that study found, was 30%.
The global prevalence of intimate partner violence, that study found, was 30%.
Yet, media and public attention globally is typically focussed on non-partner sexual violence. This was likely the case “because the perpetrator is a stranger and [the] victim is less blamed and shamed if she reports it, while intimate partner violence is considered a private matter therefore not likely to be reported to services and in the media.
This was however changing.
This was however changing.
One in four men across Asia admit to having committed rape’
Nearly one out of four men in a United Nations study of 10,000 men in Asia admitted to having committed a rape.
Marital rape was by far the most common type of rape, followed by the rape of an intimate partner.
Marital rape was by far the most common type of rape, followed by the rape of an intimate partner.
Sexual entitlement — the “belief that men were entitled to sex regardless of consent” — was the top reason men gave for committing a rape, and half of the men who admitted to rape said they had committed their first rape as teenagers.
The authors of the report urged better understanding of men’s lives following the finding that childhood abuse and neglect of a man were strongly correlated with his likelihood of committing rape as an adult.
The authors of the report urged better understanding of men’s lives following the finding that childhood abuse and neglect of a man were strongly correlated with his likelihood of committing rape as an adult.
The study was conducted by Partners for Prevention, a regional joint programme of the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), UN Women and United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme in Asia and the Pacific.
In south Asia (Sri Lanka and Bangladesh), nearly all the reported partner violence occurred within marriage, and physical violence was more common than sexual violence.
Partner rape was far more prevalent than non-partner rape across regions, a finding that is also reflected in India’s official statistics that show that the majority of sexual assault in India is committed by persons known to the victim.
Partner rape was far more prevalent than non-partner rape across regions, a finding that is also reflected in India’s official statistics that show that the majority of sexual assault in India is committed by persons known to the victim.
The study found that vast majority of men who committed rape — 72 to 97 per cent across countries — faced no legal repercussions. The report recommended ending impunity for men who rape and changing social social norms related to ‘the acceptability of violence and the subordination of women’.
Inequalities can reverse progress in women’s status, warns U.N. report
Since the adoption of the Cairo Programme of Action at the United Nations International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in 1994, the status of women has improved worldwide, a new U.N. report says. But growing inequalities will undo the significant gains made in health and longevity, it warns.
Maternal mortality has come down by half; skilled birth attendance has increased by 15 per cent since 1990; more women have access to education, work and political participation; and fewer adolescent girls are having babies.”
The Cairo Programme of Action has significantly contributed to tangible progress. Population growth has slowed partly as a result of the new approach, which emphasises individual decision-making in population trends, the report says.
But it argues that to sustain these gains, governments must pass and enforce laws to protect the poorest and most marginalised, including violence-hit adolescent girls and women and rural populations.
Since the adoption of the Cairo Programme of Action at the United Nations International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in 1994, the status of women has improved worldwide, a new U.N. report says. But growing inequalities will undo the significant gains made in health and longevity, it warns.
Maternal mortality has come down by half; skilled birth attendance has increased by 15 per cent since 1990; more women have access to education, work and political participation; and fewer adolescent girls are having babies.”
The Cairo Programme of Action has significantly contributed to tangible progress. Population growth has slowed partly as a result of the new approach, which emphasises individual decision-making in population trends, the report says.
But it argues that to sustain these gains, governments must pass and enforce laws to protect the poorest and most marginalised, including violence-hit adolescent girls and women and rural populations.
But it argues that to sustain these gains, governments must pass and enforce laws to protect the poorest and most marginalised, including violence-hit adolescent girls and women and rural populations.
International Conference on Population and Development
The United Nations coordinated an International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo, Egypt from 5–13 September 1994. Its resulting Program of Action is the steering document for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
According to the official ICPD release, the conference delegates achieved consensus on the following four qualitative and quantitative goals:[1]
- Universal education:
- Reduction of infant and child mortality: Countries should strive to reduce infant and under-5 child mortality rates by one-third or to 50-70 deaths per 1000 by the year 2000. By 2015 all countries should aim to achieve a rate below 35 per 1,000 live births and under-five mortality rate below 45 per 1,000.
- Reduction of maternal mortality: A reduction by ½ the 1990 levels by 2000 and ½ of that by 2015. Disparities in maternal mortality within countries and between geographical regions, socio-economic and ethnic groups should be narrowed.
- Access to reproductive and sexual health services including family planning: Family-planning counseling, pre-natal care, safe delivery and post-natal care, prevention and appropriate treatment of infertility, prevention of abortion and the management of the consequences of abortion, treatment of reproductive tract infections, sexually transmitted diseases and other reproductive health conditions; and education, counseling, as appropriate, on human sexuality, reproductive health and responsible parenthood. Services regarding HIV/AIDS, breast cancer, infertility, and delivery should be made available. Active discouragement of female genital mutilation (FGM).
The United Nations coordinated an International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo, Egypt from 5–13 September 1994. Its resulting Program of Action is the steering document for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
According to the official ICPD release, the conference delegates achieved consensus on the following four qualitative and quantitative goals:[1]
- Universal education:
- Reduction of infant and child mortality: Countries should strive to reduce infant and under-5 child mortality rates by one-third or to 50-70 deaths per 1000 by the year 2000. By 2015 all countries should aim to achieve a rate below 35 per 1,000 live births and under-five mortality rate below 45 per 1,000.
- Reduction of maternal mortality: A reduction by ½ the 1990 levels by 2000 and ½ of that by 2015. Disparities in maternal mortality within countries and between geographical regions, socio-economic and ethnic groups should be narrowed.
- Access to reproductive and sexual health services including family planning: Family-planning counseling, pre-natal care, safe delivery and post-natal care, prevention and appropriate treatment of infertility, prevention of abortion and the management of the consequences of abortion, treatment of reproductive tract infections, sexually transmitted diseases and other reproductive health conditions; and education, counseling, as appropriate, on human sexuality, reproductive health and responsible parenthood. Services regarding HIV/AIDS, breast cancer, infertility, and delivery should be made available. Active discouragement of female genital mutilation (FGM).
BUILDING SAFE AND INCLUSIVE CITIES FOR WOMEN
THE UN DECLARATION on the Elimination of Violence Against Women defines the term “violence against women” as: “Any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.”
A SAFE CI TY FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS IS :
A city where women and girls can enjoy public spaces and public life without fear of being assaulted.
A city where violence is not exercised against women and girls in either the home or the street.
A city where women and girls are not discriminated against and where their economic, social, political, and cultural rights are guaranteed.
A city where women and girls participate in making decisions that affect the community in which they live.
A city where the state guarantees the human rights of all people without excluding women and girls.
A city where the state and local government take actions to provide attention, prevention, and punishment for violence against women and girls.
A city where the state and local government guarantee women‘s and girls’ access to justice.
THE UN DECLARATION on the Elimination of Violence Against Women defines the term “violence against women” as: “Any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.”
A SAFE CI TY FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS IS :
A city where women and girls can enjoy public spaces and public life without fear of being assaulted.
A city where violence is not exercised against women and girls in either the home or the street.
A city where women and girls are not discriminated against and where their economic, social, political, and cultural rights are guaranteed.
A city where women and girls participate in making decisions that affect the community in which they live.
A city where the state guarantees the human rights of all people without excluding women and girls.
A city where the state and local government take actions to provide attention, prevention, and punishment for violence against women and girls.
A city where the state and local government guarantee women‘s and girls’ access to justice.
The statistics of gender bias
This starts with the mass murder of female foetuses. In its 2012 report on “Gender Equality and Development,” the World Bank estimated that over the last two decades, around 2.5 lakh girls were killed in India each year because of their sex.
When infant and child mortality are driven by biology, fewer girls die than boys, but the third National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3) found that the postneonatal mortality rate for Indian girls is 21/1000, compared with 15 for boys. For the age group 1-4 years, “the child mortality rate for girls, at 23/1000, is 61 per cent higher than for boys, at 14.” The World Bank report estimated that, as a result, India lost another 2.5 lakh girls in 2008.
Sections 312 to 317 of the Indian Penal Code list the punishments for causing miscarriage, injuring unborn children, preventing a child from being born or causing it to die after birth, and abandoning a child under 12 years.
Entrenched bias
Millions of girls who are allowed to live are fed and educated less than their brothers. The United Nation’s Human Development Report 2013 estimates that 42.5 per cent of our children suffer from malnutrition (as against 3.8 per cent in China). There is also great irony in this because NFHS-3 established that when mothers were undernourished, 54 per cent of their children were stunted and 25 per cent wasted. The more educated they were, the lower the chance of their children being either stunted or wasted.
By starving millions of girls so that their brothers can eat marginally better, and by taking them out of school, we have condemned each new generation – boys and girls – to a fresh cycle of malnutrition.
The treatment of little girls moulds the psyche of their brothers, who internalise the view that their needs — as males — have preference over those of their sisters. What we have come to thereby is the socialisation of violence against women.
In 2007, the Ministry of Women and Child Development published a “National Study on Child Abuse,” which reported that 53 per cent of the children interviewed had suffered one or more forms of sexual abuse. It would be dangerous to extrapolate from this limited study that over half our children suffer sexual abuse, but it is clearly far more widespread than we admit. What should be of the gravest concern was that in most cases the children reported that the attack was by someone they knew, often a close relative.
Data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) confirms that this pattern continues as the girl becomes a woman. Since the NCRB can only collate cases registered, its data represent just the tip of the crime iceberg. But it reports that in 2012 there were 24,923 cases of rape registered. In 98 per cent of the cases, the victims knew the offenders. This is a logical outcome of a nurturing process in which boys grow up believing, from what they see in their families, that women exist only to satisfy the needs of men.
Women, particularly poor women, are most insecure in childbirth when they fulfil the role society has set for them. According to the Millennium Development Goals, maternal mortality in India which was 301 per lakh of live births in 2001 should be down to 75 by 2015. This will not happen. We are perhaps down to a maternal mortality rate of 200 now. At 27 million live births in India each year, at least 54,000 women die in the process.
Open defecation is also an open invitation to rape. Complaints to the NHRC show how many women are abducted or raped when they go out into the fields at night.
In many States, teenage village girls either refuse to go to school or are taken out by their parents because the building has no toilet and their right to education suffers.
It is sad but to be expected that women have also been indoctrinated to believe that their security depends on good behaviour, as mandated by men. NHFS-3 found that 40 per cent of married women have been subjected to spousal violence. But it also found that 54 per cent of the women it surveyed agreed that wife-beating was acceptable if the wife went out without telling her husband, argued with him, refused sex, neglected the children, did not cook properly, was suspected of being unfaithful or showed disrespect toward her in-laws.
Obvious acts of violence
And then there are the more obvious acts of criminal violence against women. There is the enormous problem of trafficking; the special insecurities of women in conflict zones. Adivasi and Dalit women are branded as witches. There are the continuing tragedies of forced marriages, of girls being killed for marrying boys of their choice or for not bringing in enough dowry, the needless hysterectomies under the Rashtriya Swasth Bima Yojana.
Within society as between states, security depends on power. The weakest are the most insecure. Women in India are insecure and remain at risk because in this patriarchal society they are children of a lesser god. For women to be secure, the country must change — there should be more women in Parliament and in positions of political and executive authority. Every election brings with it hope of renewal, but India will not be transformed, it cannot be secure, developed or respected if the democracy in which it takes pride does not bring about urgent and fundamental change in the lives of its women.
This starts with the mass murder of female foetuses. In its 2012 report on “Gender Equality and Development,” the World Bank estimated that over the last two decades, around 2.5 lakh girls were killed in India each year because of their sex.
When infant and child mortality are driven by biology, fewer girls die than boys, but the third National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3) found that the postneonatal mortality rate for Indian girls is 21/1000, compared with 15 for boys. For the age group 1-4 years, “the child mortality rate for girls, at 23/1000, is 61 per cent higher than for boys, at 14.” The World Bank report estimated that, as a result, India lost another 2.5 lakh girls in 2008.
Sections 312 to 317 of the Indian Penal Code list the punishments for causing miscarriage, injuring unborn children, preventing a child from being born or causing it to die after birth, and abandoning a child under 12 years.
Entrenched bias
Millions of girls who are allowed to live are fed and educated less than their brothers. The United Nation’s Human Development Report 2013 estimates that 42.5 per cent of our children suffer from malnutrition (as against 3.8 per cent in China). There is also great irony in this because NFHS-3 established that when mothers were undernourished, 54 per cent of their children were stunted and 25 per cent wasted. The more educated they were, the lower the chance of their children being either stunted or wasted.
By starving millions of girls so that their brothers can eat marginally better, and by taking them out of school, we have condemned each new generation – boys and girls – to a fresh cycle of malnutrition.
By starving millions of girls so that their brothers can eat marginally better, and by taking them out of school, we have condemned each new generation – boys and girls – to a fresh cycle of malnutrition.
The treatment of little girls moulds the psyche of their brothers, who internalise the view that their needs — as males — have preference over those of their sisters. What we have come to thereby is the socialisation of violence against women.
In 2007, the Ministry of Women and Child Development published a “National Study on Child Abuse,” which reported that 53 per cent of the children interviewed had suffered one or more forms of sexual abuse. It would be dangerous to extrapolate from this limited study that over half our children suffer sexual abuse, but it is clearly far more widespread than we admit. What should be of the gravest concern was that in most cases the children reported that the attack was by someone they knew, often a close relative.
Data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) confirms that this pattern continues as the girl becomes a woman. Since the NCRB can only collate cases registered, its data represent just the tip of the crime iceberg. But it reports that in 2012 there were 24,923 cases of rape registered. In 98 per cent of the cases, the victims knew the offenders. This is a logical outcome of a nurturing process in which boys grow up believing, from what they see in their families, that women exist only to satisfy the needs of men.
Women, particularly poor women, are most insecure in childbirth when they fulfil the role society has set for them. According to the Millennium Development Goals, maternal mortality in India which was 301 per lakh of live births in 2001 should be down to 75 by 2015. This will not happen. We are perhaps down to a maternal mortality rate of 200 now. At 27 million live births in India each year, at least 54,000 women die in the process.
Open defecation is also an open invitation to rape. Complaints to the NHRC show how many women are abducted or raped when they go out into the fields at night.
In many States, teenage village girls either refuse to go to school or are taken out by their parents because the building has no toilet and their right to education suffers.
Open defecation is also an open invitation to rape. Complaints to the NHRC show how many women are abducted or raped when they go out into the fields at night.
In many States, teenage village girls either refuse to go to school or are taken out by their parents because the building has no toilet and their right to education suffers.
It is sad but to be expected that women have also been indoctrinated to believe that their security depends on good behaviour, as mandated by men. NHFS-3 found that 40 per cent of married women have been subjected to spousal violence. But it also found that 54 per cent of the women it surveyed agreed that wife-beating was acceptable if the wife went out without telling her husband, argued with him, refused sex, neglected the children, did not cook properly, was suspected of being unfaithful or showed disrespect toward her in-laws.
Obvious acts of violence
And then there are the more obvious acts of criminal violence against women. There is the enormous problem of trafficking; the special insecurities of women in conflict zones. Adivasi and Dalit women are branded as witches. There are the continuing tragedies of forced marriages, of girls being killed for marrying boys of their choice or for not bringing in enough dowry, the needless hysterectomies under the Rashtriya Swasth Bima Yojana.
Within society as between states, security depends on power. The weakest are the most insecure. Women in India are insecure and remain at risk because in this patriarchal society they are children of a lesser god. For women to be secure, the country must change — there should be more women in Parliament and in positions of political and executive authority. Every election brings with it hope of renewal, but India will not be transformed, it cannot be secure, developed or respected if the democracy in which it takes pride does not bring about urgent and fundamental change in the lives of its women.
Of epidemic proportions
The Council of Europe Convention to prevent and combat violence against women and domestic violence.
The new treaty seeks to address the psychological effects of violence among adults in the family on children, protection for male victims where relevant, provision for a monitoring mechanism and prosecution of perpetrators. States outside its purview should ratify the Treaty.
report puts the per capita economic burden of domestic violence in the range of €9.2 to €555 annually, which includes cost related to health, criminal justice and social services.
The convention aims at prevention of violence, victim protection and "to end with the impunity of perpetrators.
The structure of the instrument is based on the “four Ps”: Prevention, Protection and support of victims, Prosecution of offenders and Integrated Policies. Each area foresees a series of specific measures.[10] The Convention also establishes obligations in relation to the collection of data and supporting research in the field of violence against women (Art. 11).
At the Preamble, European Convention on Human Rights, European Social Charter and Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings as well asinternational human rights treaties by United Nations and Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court are recalled. In Article 2, this Convention indicates that the provisions shall apply in time of peace and also in situations of armed conflicts in violence against women and domestic violence. Article 3 provides defines key terms:
- "violence against women" is violence of human rights and a form of discrimination against women and shall mean all acts of gender-based violation that result in, or are likely to result in physical, sexual, psychological, or economic harm or suffering to women including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life,
- "domestic violence": all acts of physical, sexual, psychological or economic violence that occur with the family or domestic unit or between former or current spouses or partners, whether or not the perpetrator shares or has shared the same residence with the victim.
- "gender": means the socially constructed roles, behaviours, activities and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for women and men.
- "gender-based violence against women": means violence that is directed against a woman because she is a woman or that affects women disproportionately.
Article 4 prohibits several types of discrimination stating: The implementation of the provisions of this Convention by the Parties, in particular measure to protect the rights of victims, shall be secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex, gender, race, colour, language political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, state of health, disability, marital states, migrant or refugee status, or other status.
OTHER CONVENTIONS:
Shock and Awe No Solution to Rape
Social norms and policing culture must change
Boys will be boys, said Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, in the course of the election campaign, opposing the death penalty for rapists.
Katra, a village some 180 km away from Lucknow, the capital of the state ruled by Mulayam Singh’s party. They raped and strangled two girls aged 14 and 15, and in a brazen display of arrogant impunity, strung their bodies out on tree.
Certain elements of India’s traditional culture that privilege men over women and deem women mere objects of male pleasure, devoid of agency, need to be explicitly critiqued, rejected and eliminated from contemporary culture. So also their echoes in ‘modern’ consumerist culture.
And this cannot be reduced to some feminist agenda. It must be recognised as a core challenge of India’s democratic renewal, to be taken on by the political leadership, the judiciary, the media and, in particular, by the film and advertising industries.
Alongside, we need empowerment of the politically weak as also police reform to deliver swift, sure punishment to perpetrators of such depravity as was found dangling from a tree in Katra Thursday morning.
The Council of Europe Convention to prevent and combat violence against women and domestic violence.
The new treaty seeks to address the psychological effects of violence among adults in the family on children, protection for male victims where relevant, provision for a monitoring mechanism and prosecution of perpetrators. States outside its purview should ratify the Treaty.
report puts the per capita economic burden of domestic violence in the range of €9.2 to €555 annually, which includes cost related to health, criminal justice and social services.
The convention aims at prevention of violence, victim protection and "to end with the impunity of perpetrators.
The new treaty seeks to address the psychological effects of violence among adults in the family on children, protection for male victims where relevant, provision for a monitoring mechanism and prosecution of perpetrators. States outside its purview should ratify the Treaty.
report puts the per capita economic burden of domestic violence in the range of €9.2 to €555 annually, which includes cost related to health, criminal justice and social services.
The convention aims at prevention of violence, victim protection and "to end with the impunity of perpetrators.
The structure of the instrument is based on the “four Ps”: Prevention, Protection and support of victims, Prosecution of offenders and Integrated Policies. Each area foresees a series of specific measures.[10] The Convention also establishes obligations in relation to the collection of data and supporting research in the field of violence against women (Art. 11).
At the Preamble, European Convention on Human Rights, European Social Charter and Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings as well asinternational human rights treaties by United Nations and Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court are recalled. In Article 2, this Convention indicates that the provisions shall apply in time of peace and also in situations of armed conflicts in violence against women and domestic violence. Article 3 provides defines key terms:
- "violence against women" is violence of human rights and a form of discrimination against women and shall mean all acts of gender-based violation that result in, or are likely to result in physical, sexual, psychological, or economic harm or suffering to women including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life,
- "domestic violence": all acts of physical, sexual, psychological or economic violence that occur with the family or domestic unit or between former or current spouses or partners, whether or not the perpetrator shares or has shared the same residence with the victim.
- "gender": means the socially constructed roles, behaviours, activities and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for women and men.
- "gender-based violence against women": means violence that is directed against a woman because she is a woman or that affects women disproportionately.
Article 4 prohibits several types of discrimination stating: The implementation of the provisions of this Convention by the Parties, in particular measure to protect the rights of victims, shall be secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex, gender, race, colour, language political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, state of health, disability, marital states, migrant or refugee status, or other status.
OTHER CONVENTIONS:
Shock and Awe No Solution to Rape
Social norms and policing culture must change
Boys will be boys, said Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, in the course of the election campaign, opposing the death penalty for rapists.
Katra, a village some 180 km away from Lucknow, the capital of the state ruled by Mulayam Singh’s party. They raped and strangled two girls aged 14 and 15, and in a brazen display of arrogant impunity, strung their bodies out on tree.
Certain elements of India’s traditional culture that privilege men over women and deem women mere objects of male pleasure, devoid of agency, need to be explicitly critiqued, rejected and eliminated from contemporary culture. So also their echoes in ‘modern’ consumerist culture.
And this cannot be reduced to some feminist agenda. It must be recognised as a core challenge of India’s democratic renewal, to be taken on by the political leadership, the judiciary, the media and, in particular, by the film and advertising industries.
Alongside, we need empowerment of the politically weak as also police reform to deliver swift, sure punishment to perpetrators of such depravity as was found dangling from a tree in Katra Thursday morning.
Katra, a village some 180 km away from Lucknow, the capital of the state ruled by Mulayam Singh’s party. They raped and strangled two girls aged 14 and 15, and in a brazen display of arrogant impunity, strung their bodies out on tree.
Certain elements of India’s traditional culture that privilege men over women and deem women mere objects of male pleasure, devoid of agency, need to be explicitly critiqued, rejected and eliminated from contemporary culture. So also their echoes in ‘modern’ consumerist culture.
And this cannot be reduced to some feminist agenda. It must be recognised as a core challenge of India’s democratic renewal, to be taken on by the political leadership, the judiciary, the media and, in particular, by the film and advertising industries.
Alongside, we need empowerment of the politically weak as also police reform to deliver swift, sure punishment to perpetrators of such depravity as was found dangling from a tree in Katra Thursday morning.
U.S., U.N. wade into rape row
The United States and the United Nations have been sharp in their condemnation of the rape and hanging of two girls in Badaun district of Uttar Pradesh. While the U.S. State Department said it was “horrified” by the crimes, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon criticised the statements of Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh in an oblique reference, saying: “We say no to the dismissive, destructive attitude of ‘boys will be boys.’”
The United States and the United Nations have been sharp in their condemnation of the rape and hanging of two girls in Badaun district of Uttar Pradesh. While the U.S. State Department said it was “horrified” by the crimes, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon criticised the statements of Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh in an oblique reference, saying: “We say no to the dismissive, destructive attitude of ‘boys will be boys.’”
Beginning a new conversation on women
Expanding the discourse
In “The Subjection of Women” (1869), John Stuart Mill compared marriage laws to slavery of women and argued, “there remain no legal slaves, save the mistress of every house.” Sadly, nearly 150 years later, this still rings true for Indian women.
The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005, which took effect in 2006, includes the prohibition of marital rape and the provision of protection and maintenance orders against husbands and partners who are emotionally, physically or economically abusive.
However, a policy approach centred on female agency must also be developed to tackle crimes against women and, in order to do so, the intersection of crimes with intra-household and extra-household bargaining power must be understood.
While ‘empowerment’ often focusses on employment, it is worrying that the number of women in the workforce seems to have lowered and stagnated. According to data from the National Sample Survey Organisation, female labour force participation fell from above 40 per cent in the early-to-mid 1990s to 22.5 per cent in 2011-12. It is even more worrying that studies seem to indicate a link between women’s employment and domestic violence. NFHS-3 reports that there is a much higher prevalence of violence against women who were employed at any time in the past 12 months (39-40 per cent) than women who were not employed (29 per cent), contradicting the widely held assumption that women who contribute income are at a reduced risk of physical violence.
On the link between marital violence and property ownership, B. Agarwal and P. Panda find through a study in Kerala (World Development, 2005) that women owning immovable property are found to face a significantly lower risk of marital violence than propertyless women. This points us to another significant correlation — of worth with wealth, and not worth with quantity/amount of work. Control and ownership of land often defines (and is defined by) wider access to economic, social and political power.
Safety of women is development
The ‘male backlash’ theory suggests that a woman’s independence signifies a challenge to a culturally prescribed norm and hence results in physical aggression.
However, it seems to be partly consistent with results in India, leading us to the understanding that employment alone does not guarantee external agency.
Gender ideology, as crystallised in social perspectives, norms and practices, affects women’s bargaining power, not just in the domestic space but in the market, community and the state as well. This does not, of course, imply that employment is not imperative — instead, it indicates that gender equality is a far more complex aspiration and requires the intervention of community organisations, policy-oriented efforts by the state, as well as non-governmental programmes. Indeed, the ‘10-point agenda’ in its current form would be significantly hampered if the government were not to take a strong look at injustices against women — investment, tourism and India’s global standing would suffer.
Expanding the discourse
In “The Subjection of Women” (1869), John Stuart Mill compared marriage laws to slavery of women and argued, “there remain no legal slaves, save the mistress of every house.” Sadly, nearly 150 years later, this still rings true for Indian women.
The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005, which took effect in 2006, includes the prohibition of marital rape and the provision of protection and maintenance orders against husbands and partners who are emotionally, physically or economically abusive.
However, a policy approach centred on female agency must also be developed to tackle crimes against women and, in order to do so, the intersection of crimes with intra-household and extra-household bargaining power must be understood.
The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005, which took effect in 2006, includes the prohibition of marital rape and the provision of protection and maintenance orders against husbands and partners who are emotionally, physically or economically abusive.
However, a policy approach centred on female agency must also be developed to tackle crimes against women and, in order to do so, the intersection of crimes with intra-household and extra-household bargaining power must be understood.
While ‘empowerment’ often focusses on employment, it is worrying that the number of women in the workforce seems to have lowered and stagnated. According to data from the National Sample Survey Organisation, female labour force participation fell from above 40 per cent in the early-to-mid 1990s to 22.5 per cent in 2011-12. It is even more worrying that studies seem to indicate a link between women’s employment and domestic violence. NFHS-3 reports that there is a much higher prevalence of violence against women who were employed at any time in the past 12 months (39-40 per cent) than women who were not employed (29 per cent), contradicting the widely held assumption that women who contribute income are at a reduced risk of physical violence.
On the link between marital violence and property ownership, B. Agarwal and P. Panda find through a study in Kerala (World Development, 2005) that women owning immovable property are found to face a significantly lower risk of marital violence than propertyless women. This points us to another significant correlation — of worth with wealth, and not worth with quantity/amount of work. Control and ownership of land often defines (and is defined by) wider access to economic, social and political power.
Safety of women is development
The ‘male backlash’ theory suggests that a woman’s independence signifies a challenge to a culturally prescribed norm and hence results in physical aggression.
However, it seems to be partly consistent with results in India, leading us to the understanding that employment alone does not guarantee external agency.
Gender ideology, as crystallised in social perspectives, norms and practices, affects women’s bargaining power, not just in the domestic space but in the market, community and the state as well. This does not, of course, imply that employment is not imperative — instead, it indicates that gender equality is a far more complex aspiration and requires the intervention of community organisations, policy-oriented efforts by the state, as well as non-governmental programmes. Indeed, the ‘10-point agenda’ in its current form would be significantly hampered if the government were not to take a strong look at injustices against women — investment, tourism and India’s global standing would suffer.
However, it seems to be partly consistent with results in India, leading us to the understanding that employment alone does not guarantee external agency.
Gender ideology, as crystallised in social perspectives, norms and practices, affects women’s bargaining power, not just in the domestic space but in the market, community and the state as well. This does not, of course, imply that employment is not imperative — instead, it indicates that gender equality is a far more complex aspiration and requires the intervention of community organisations, policy-oriented efforts by the state, as well as non-governmental programmes. Indeed, the ‘10-point agenda’ in its current form would be significantly hampered if the government were not to take a strong look at injustices against women — investment, tourism and India’s global standing would suffer.
Global pat for Bengal’s girl child scheme
Kanyashree Prakalpa, a West Bengal government scheme that provides scholarship to girls from economically-backward backgrounds, has been given international recognition by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) and UNICEF. State representatives have been invited to the Girl Summit 2014 in London and to talk about the scheme to a global audience.
The conditional cash transfer scheme for school girls was inaugurated by the Trinamool Congress government on October 1, 2013, with the express purpose of ensuring the education of girls and thereby preventing forced child marriage.
-Under the scheme, the government provides an annual scholarship of Rs. 500 to girls between 12 and 18 years (class eight to class 12) to continue with their studies, provided they are unmarried.
- A one-time grant of Rs.25,000 is also provided to the girl, once she reaches the age of 18, to pursue higher studies.
- UNICEF has provided technical assistance to the scheme and is aiding the State in its evaluation and monitoring processes.
-UNICEF representatives also pointed out that apart from increasing enrolment in schools and preventing child marriages, the scheme would address the issue of trafficking of young girls.
-In an attempt to mark the scheme and increase awareness, the State had announced August 14 as Kanyashree Divas.
Welfare Schemes for Women- Brief Details
The Government of India is administering the following schemes for welfare of women including the single mothers;
(i) Swadhar and Short Stay Homes to provide accommodation to women in difficult circumstances.
(ii) Working Women Hostels for which funds are given for construction of Hostel for ensuring safe accommodation for working women away from their place of residence.
(iii) Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women (STEP) to ensure sustainable employment and income generation for marginalized and asset-less rural and urban poor women across the country.
(iv) Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (RMK) extends micro-finance services to bring about the socio-economicupliftment of poor women.
(v) National Mission for Empowerment of Women (NMEW) has been set up with the aim to strengthen the overall processes that promote all-round Development of Women.
(vi) Rajiv Gandhi National Creche Scheme for Children of Working Mothers (including single mother) provides day care facilities for running a crèche of 25 children in the age group 0-6 years from families having monthly income of less than Rs.12, 000.
Apart from these, the following other schemes are also being implemented:-
(i) Indira Gandhi National Widow Pension Scheme under which pension is provided to a widow in the age group of 40-64 years and living below poverty line.
(ii) Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme under which pension is provided to persons above sixty five years of age belonging to BPL including women.
(iii) MGNREGA, under which willing persons including women are entitled to 100 days guaranteed employment during a year;
(iv) Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment is also administering an Integrated Programme for Older Persons which is being implemented since 1992 with the objective of improving the quality of life of senior citizens including women by providing basic amenities like shelter, food, medical care etc.
National Resource Centre for Women The Government of India has set up a National Resource Centre for Women (NRCW) under National Mission for Empowerment of Women (NMEW). The NRCW comprises of gender experts from various thematic domains like health and nutrition, gender budgeting and gender mainstreaming, gender rights and gender based violence, economic empowerment and poverty alleviation, communication and advocacy etc. It works at the national level as an engine for achieving convergence and as an integral part of the Mission Directorate. The State Resource Centres for Women (SRCW) have been set up in 30 States and UTs. The NRCW and SRCWs carry out studies and research projects in various areas and is responsible for carrying out impact assessment studies of policies, schemes and programmes of the Government. Further, the NRCW is responsible for devising suitable media strategy to highlight the programmes and schemes of the Government as well as public service campaigns to focus on retrograde practices which afflict the society.
The NRCW operates from Delhi while 30 states and UTs have also set up SRCWs in Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Daman and Diu, Tripura, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Tamil Nadu, Sikkim and Maharashtra. Since these resource centres work at the policy level and as facilitating agencies, the benefits to women are indirect. The campaigns and awareness raising programmes of SRCW benefit a large cross section of women throughout the country.
The NRCW and SRCWs work on critical issues relating to women. Since most of these issues are multi sectoral in nature, these Centres work with the objective of achieving inter sectoral convergence for holistic empowerment of women and facilitate the process of coordinating all the women’s welfare and socio economic development programmes across Ministries and line Departments. These bodies also work towards raising awareness about various schemes and programmes related to women and important Acts and other legal information which have a direct impact on women.
While there is a national level Centre, the State level Centres are set up in all States and UTs.
The NRCW and SRCW have been operating successfully and effectively on various inter sectoral and critical issues related to women like declining child sex ratio, violence against women etc.
Child Abuse
As per the data maintained by the National Crime Records Bureau in its publication “Crime in India, 2012”, the number of cases of crime against children, which includes violence, sexual violence and abuse has increased from 26,694 in 2010 to 38,172 in 2012.
The reasons for the rising cases of violence against children include: discrimination on the basis of gender, class, caste and religion, making children vulnerable to abuse and violence and low awareness and knowledge on legal provisions for the protection of children.
Empowerment of Women through NMEW
The scheme “National Mission for Empowerment of Women” is being implemented by the Ministry of Women and Child Development. It has the mandate to strengthen inter-sectoral convergence and facilitate the process of coordinating all the women’s welfare and socio-economic development programmes across Ministries and Departments.
The economic empowerment of women as envisaged under the NMEW includes:
I. Provision of skill training, technology transfer, technical support and promotion of market linkages.
II. Giving women access to social programmes and leverage funds for asset creation, which would reduce drudgery, and give them access to clean drinking water, fuel and fodder.
III. Provision of effective delivery system at the state, district and village level by strengthening delivery system through gender budgeting and preparation of gender sensitive programmes.
The State Resource Centre for Women (SRCW) under NMEW provides technical assistance, guidance, mentoring as also monitoring of the activities related to women. The SRCWs are mostly under State Women’s Development Organization. The primary objective of SRCW is to work for holistic empowerment of women in the state cutting across sectors.
Poorna Shakti Kendra’s (PSK) or Women Resource Centres as one stop centre for services to women were opened in 150 Gram Panchayats (GPs) to provide a platform/forum for women to come together, explore their potentials and possibilities, raise women’s awareness about their contributions to society and their social, economic and political rights, and facilitate access to schemes and entitlements. The Mission is also implementing 11 thematic convergence projects on various issues affecting women including declining Child Sex Ratio (CSR), Access to Rights, Access to Sustainable livelihoods etc. in association with Partner Ministries including Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MOPR), Ministry of Law and Justice (MOLJ), International Agencies and Civil Society Organisations (CSO) since 18th August, 2012.
So far 30 States have started SRCW to achieve empowerment of women and 21 PSKs are set up in the country. A sum of Rs.520.84 lakhs have been sanctioned for these SRCWs and Rs.308.98 lakhs have been sanctioned for these PSKs, since the inception of Mission.
National Early Childhood Care and Education Policy The Core Committee constituted for preparing the draft National Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Policy had representatives from State Governments among others who participated in the process of policy formulation and its crystallization. The Committee also held four regional consultations in which representatives of State Women and Child Development Departments, Education Departments, Health Departments also participated. The draft National ECCE Policy was circulated amongst the concerned Ministries, State Governments/UT Administrations and other stakeholders on 13-03-2012 for feedback and it was also uploaded on the Ministry’s website. A National Consultation for finalization of the draft National ECCE Policy was held on 29-10-2012 in which Women and Child Development and Education Secretaries from various States were participated/ invited.
As per Census 2011, India is home to 158.7 million children under six years of age who will be impacted by the National ECCE Policy.
The Policy has been notified in the Gazette on 12-10-2013 and becomes effective. As per Policy, various elements have timelines as well as States/UTs will be responsible for rolling out of State/UT ECCE Policies and Action plans in three years.
irst Preliminary Report on Status of Women in India Presented
The High Level Committee on Status of Women has presented its first copy of the Preliminary Report to the Minister for Women and Child Development, Smt. Krishna Tirath, here today.
The High Level Committee identified Violence Against Women, Declining Sex Ratio and Economic Disempowerment of Women as three key burning issues which require immediate attention of the nation, and action by the government.
The flagged recommendations for immediate action are as follows:
1. That the constitutional promise of a right-based approach needs to be promoted for positive outcomes to enhance the status of women.
2. That there is an urgent need to formulate National Policy and Action Plan for Ending Violence Against Women impacting the life cycle of female population at every stage of her life.
3. Institutional mechanisms should be strengthened and well resourced. The Minister for Women and Child Development should be of cabinet rank, thus reflecting the Government’s concern with women’s issues.
4. Currently large amount of resources continue to be directed towards child development under the Ministry of Women and Child Development. Increased resources would enable prioritization of gender concerns as well.
5. Further, the MWCD should engage with, participate in and draw from international debates. It is also not out of place to point out that the Concluding Observations of the CEDAW Committee should be revisited and acted upon by Government of India as part of our international commitments to uphold women’s rights.
6. The parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women must examine the gender implications of all proposed legislations. There is also a need for the Committee to meet more often, and its meetings should be open to civil society groups as observers.
7. The role of the National Commission for Women must go beyond reactive interventions to fulfill the proactive mandate of studying, recommending and influencing policies, laws, programmes and budgets to ensure full benefits to the stake holders.
8. The National Commission for Women, as an apex body is responsible for and answerable to 50% of the Indian population. In keeping with this, the selection and composition of the members must be made through an institutionalized and transparent process. A selection committee comprising of experts must be given the task of searching, identifying and selecting the members who must be professionals of proven expertise. Appointments must be made keeping professional capability in mind and not political affiliations.
9. Gender Responsive Budgeting coupled with gender audits should be taken more seriously to reflect purposive gender planning.
10. The development paradigm must have a major thrust on decentralization which would result in larger numbers of women participating in the developmental process.
11. Legislation for 50 per cent reservation for women in all decision-making bodies should be enacted.
12. Assessment of the status of women in India should be a regular feature. It took 25 years for the first Status Report and now 40 years to constitute the present High Level Committee. There should be a regular mechanism for continuous examination and assessment of status of women and reporting back publically to the nation and women of India on a bi-annual basis.
The Government of India had set up a High Level Committee on the Status of Women to undertake comprehensive study to understand the status of women since 1989 as well as to evolve appropriate policy interventions based on a contemporary assessment of women’s needs vide this Ministry’s Resolutions No. 4-5/2009-WW dated the 27th February, 2012 and 29th June, 2012 comprising of the Chairperson, Member Secretary and seventeen Members.
Initiatives for Enhancing Safety of Women
The Women and Child Development Ministry of the Government of India has taken a number of legislative as well as programmatic measures to enhance the safety of women in the country.
Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013
The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 came into force with effect from 9th December 2013. The Act seeks to cover all women, irrespective of their age or employment status and protect them against sexual harassment at all workplaces both in public and private sector, whether organized or unorganized.
“Sexual harassment at the workplace” is defined in a comprehensive manner, in keeping with the definition laid down in the Vishaka judgment, and broadening it further to cover circumstances of implied or explicit promise or threat to a woman’s employment prospects or creation of hostile work environment or humiliating treatment, which can affect her health or safety.
Furthermore, the Act goes much further in defining the ‘workplace’ to include organisations, department, office, branch unit etc. in the public and private sector, organized and unorganized, hospitals, nursing homes, educational institutions, sports institutes, stadiums, sports complex and any place visited by the employee during the course of employment including the transportation.
For the first time, the Act provides protection to regular/temporary/ad hoc/daily wage employees, whether for remuneration or not and can also include volunteers. This covers domestic workers too.
The Act under Section 4 and Section 6 creates a redressal mechanism in the form of Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) and Local Complaints Committee (LCC). The Act mandates that the Committee shall complete the inquiry within a time period of 90 days. On completion of the inquiry, the report will be sent to the employer or the District Officer, as the case may be and they are mandated to take action on the report within 60 days. The Act under Section 19 casts a responsibility on every employer to create an environment which is free from sexual harassment.
Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, (POCSO), 2012
The Government enacted the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, (POCSO), 2012 as a special law to protect children from sexual abuse and exploitation. The POCSO Act was formulated to address the heinous crimes of sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children.
The Act is gender-neutral and defines a child as any person below the age of eighteen years.
It defines different forms of sexual abuse, including penetrative and non-penetrative assault, as well as sexual harassment and pornography, and deems a sexual assault to be “aggravated” under certain circumstances, such as when the abused child is mentally ill or when the abuse is committed by a person in a position of trust or authority vis-a-vis the child, like a family member, police officer, teacher, or doctor.
In keeping with the best international child protection standards, the Act provides for mandatory reporting of sexual offences.
The Act prescribes stringent punishment graded as per the gravity of the offence, with a maximum term of rigorous imprisonment for life, and fine.
It also prescribes punishment for a person if he/she provides false information with the intention to defame any person, including a child. Most importantly, the Act provides for child-friendly procedures for reporting of offences, recording of evidence, investigation and trial.
Domestic Violence Act, 2005
The Act seeks to cover those women who are or have been in a relationship with the abuser where both parties have lived together in a shared household and are related by consanguinity, marriage or a relationship in the nature of marriage, or adoption; in addition relationship with family members living together as a joint family are also included. Even those women who are sisters, widows, mothers, single women, or living with the abuser are entitled to get legal protection under the proposed Act. `Domestic violence’ includes actual abuse or the threat of abuse that is physical, sexual, verbal, emotional and economic. Harassment by way of unlawful dowry demands to the woman or her relatives would also be covered under this definition.
One of the most important features of the Act is the woman’s right to secure housing and appointment of Protection Officers and NGOs to provide assistance to the woman w.r.t medical examination, legal aid, safe shelter, etc.
The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013
The Ministry took special initiatives for amendment in the Cr. P.C. & I.P.C. for inclusion of offences like voyeurism, stalking, disrobing, voluntarily throwing or attempting to throw acid as crimes. There has been significant change in the definition of ‘Rape’ under IPC and stringent punishment has been prescribed for crimes against women.
Marriage Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2010
The Marriage Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2010 has been introduced in Parliament. It aims to amend the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and the Special Marriage Act, 1954, to provide therein irretrievable break down of marriage as a ground of divorce. It provides safeguards, to parties to marriage who file petition for grant of divorce by consent, from the harassment in court if any of the party does not come to the court or wilfully avoids the court to keep the divorce proceedings inconclusive.
Ahimsa Messenger
The Ahimsa Messenger programme was launched in September 2013. The programme aims at sensitising society on violence faced by women and children and creating awareness about their legal rights. It enlists women and men, especially young boys and girls to work as ‘Ahimsa Messengers’ who help prevent crime and violence against women and children and ensure timely justice in cases where violence is committed against women and children.
Trained Ahimsa messengers work as the link between victims of violence and officials who can provide relief and redress and also facilitate follow-up during judicial processes.
Training to Women Engaged in Agriculture Sector
The Schemes of the Government of India under which training is imparted to the women farmers to acquaint them with the knowledge required for adoption of agricultural technology including the use of farm equipments include:
1. Support to States Extension Programme for Extension Reforms: This Scheme is being implemented in 630 districts of 28 States and 3 UTs of the country. The latest agricultural technologies are imparted to farmers including women farmers through exposure visits, demonstration, Kisan Melas, mobilization of farmers groups and setting up of farm schools. 30% of beneficiaries the Scheme have to be women farmers. In order to ensure participation of women farmers as well as beneficiaries from north eastern and hilly states, the beneficiary contribution has been reduced from 10% to 5% for selected beneficiary oriented activities.
2. Under the Central Sector Schemes, Promotion and Strengthening of Agricultural Mechanization through Training, Testing and Demonstrations and Post Harvest Technology & Management, training is provided to the farmers including Women Farmers through State Government and Farm Machinery Training & Testing Institutes.
3. Cooperative Education & Training and Assistance to National Cooperative Development Corporation for Development of Cooperative Programme: National Cooperative Union of India is running four exclusive women’s development projects located at Shimoga (Karnataka), Berhampur (Orissa),Imphal (Manipur) and Bhopal (MP). Under these projects, women are organized into Self Help Groups to help them to develop thrift habits. Women are also provided training to equip them to undertake income-generating activities with the help of their own resources or by borrowing from cooperatives and also marketing the produce in local market and by organizing fair and exhibitions.
4. National Horticulture Mission: Women are organized into Self Help Groups and farm inputs and technological & extension supports are provided to make women self-reliant.
5. National Food Security Mission (NFSM): Under Crop Diversification programme farmer’s training is organized for all categories of farmers including women for adopting scientific crop production technologies. As per NFSM guidelines, at least 30% of the funds is to be earmarked for women beneficiaries/farmers.
6. Development and Strengthening of Infrastructure Facilities for Production and Distribution of Quality Seeds: The objective of the Scheme is to develop and strengthen the existing infrastructure for production and distribution of certified/quality seed to farmers including women farmers. Implementing Agencies/States have been requested to allocate sufficient funds and also ensure participation of women in Seed Village Programme. For effective transfer of seed technology, training programmes for the farmers including women farmers are organized on field to upgrade the quality of farmer saved seeds.
7. National Watershed Development Project for Rainfed Areas (NWDPRA): Women living in the watershed area are mobilized into Self Help Groups and Users Groups of Women. The Guidelines have been revised infavour of women so as to ensure all the perspectives and interests of women are adequately reflected in the watershed action. Plan.
8. Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs): of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) organizes trainingprogrammes for farmers and farm women on various aspects of agriculture including farm equipments/ implements/ tools and machinery. During the current year, 1917 such training programmes were conducted with the participation of 14298 women farmers.
9. The Ministry of Women & Child Development launched a Central Sector scheme named Support to Training & Employment Programme for Women (STEP) in the year 1986-87 with an objective of extending training for up-gradation of skills and sustainable employment for women through a variety of action oriented projects which employ women in large numbers. The scheme was revised in the year 2009-10 and covers 10 traditional sectors of employment besides the option of supporting the locally appropriate sectors. Agriculture is also a selected sector in this scheme.
10. The Department of Rural development is implementing a programme Mahila Kisan SashaktikaranPariyojna (MKSP), which was announced in the budget of 2010-11 as a sub - component of the National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) to meet the specific needs of women farmers and achieve socio-economic and technical empowerment of the rural women farmers, predominantly small and marginal farmers. The primary objective of the MKSP is to empower women in agriculture by making systematic investments to enhance their participation and productivity, as also create and sustain agriculture based livelihoods of rural women. Projects are conceived in such a manner that the skill base of the women in agriculture is enhanced to enable them to pursue their livelihoods on a sustainable basis. Under MKSP sustainable agriculture, 58 projects from 14 States have been sanctioned which will benefit 24.5 lakhs Mahila Kisans during the period.
Population Control Measures
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As per World Population Prospects – The 2012 Revision, the population of India will cross the population of China by 2028. The projected population for India in 2028 will be 1.454 billion, while that of China will be 1.452 billion. The projection of population of India by the year 2060 is not available.
The Government has been focussing on family planning activities as one of the many measures for achieving population stabilization. As a result of the efforts of Government the decadal growth rate of the country has declined significantly from 21.54% for the period 1991-2000 to 17.64% during 2001-11. The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) also declined from 3.6 in 1991 to 2.4 in 2012 as per Sample Registration System (SRS). 23 states/UTs have achieved the replacement TFR of 2.1 or less. Various measures taken by Government of India under Family Planning is given below:-
Strategies for attaining population stabilization
Interventions under family planning program:
1. Scheme for Home delivery of contraceptives by ASHAs at doorstep of beneficiaries: The govt. has launched a scheme to utilize the services of ASHA to deliver contraceptives at the doorstep of beneficiaries.8.85 ASHAs are now distributing contraceptives at the door step.
2. Scheme for ASHAs to ensure spacing in births: The scheme is operational from 16th May, 2012. Under this scheme, services of ASHAs are being utilised for counselling of newly married couples to ensure delay of 2 years in birth after marriage and couples with 1 child to have spacing of 3 years after the birth of 1st child.
3. Pregnancy testing kits have been made an integral part of ASHA kit and are being used to diagnose pregnancy early, so as to ensure early registration of pregnancy/safe abortion services.
4. A new family planning method, i.e. post-partum IUCD (PPIUCD) has been introduced in the program. PPIUCD services are being provided by trained health providers in government hospitals, within 48 hours after the delivery.
5. Basket of choice has been expanded with introduction of a new IUCD-375 of 5 years effectivity, in addition to the already existing IUCD–380A of 10 years effectivity.
6. Dedicated counselors (RMNCH counsellors) are placed at high case load facilities for providing family planning counseling to clients.
7. Celebration of World Population Day 11th July & Fortnight: The event is observed over a month long period, split into fortnight of mobilization/sensitization followed by a fortnight of assured family planning service delivery and has been made a mandatory activity from 2012-13 and starts from 27th June each year.
8. Other On-going interventions:
· Assured delivery of family planning services for both IUCD and sterilisation.
· National Family Planning Indemnity Scheme’ (NFPIS) under which clients are insured in the eventualities of deaths, complications and failures following sterilization and the providers/ accredited institutions are indemnified against litigations in those eventualities.
· Compensation scheme for sterilization acceptors - under the scheme MoHFW provides compensation for loss of wages to the beneficiary and also to the service provider (& team) for conducting sterilisations.
· More emphasis on Spacing methods like IUCD.
· Availability of Fixed Day Static Services at all facilities.
· Quality care in Family Planning services by establishing Quality Assurance Committees at state and district levels.
· Contraceptives supply management up to peripheral facilities.
· Demand generation activities in the form of display of posters, billboards and other audio and video materials in the various facilities.
Following stretagies have been taken by Jansankhya Sthirata Kosh/National Population Stabilization Fund as population control measures:
Advocacy & IEC activities:-
JSK as a part of its awareness and advocacy efforts on population stabilization, has established networks and partnerships with other ministries, development partners, private sectors, corporate and professional bodies for spreading its activities at the national, state, district and block level.
Prerna Strategy:-
JSK has launched this strategy for helping to push up the age of marriage of girls and delay in first child and spacing in second child the birth of children in the interest of health of young mothers and infants. The couple who adopt this strategy awarded suitably. This helps to change the mindsets of the community.
Santushti Strategy:-
Under this strategy, Jansankhya Sthirata Kosh, invites private sector gynaecologists and vasectomy surgeons to conduct sterilization operations in Public Private Partnership mode. The private hospitals/nursing home who achieved target to 10 or more are suitably awarded as per strategy.
Kanyashree Prakalpa, a West Bengal government scheme that provides scholarship to girls from economically-backward backgrounds, has been given international recognition by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) and UNICEF. State representatives have been invited to the Girl Summit 2014 in London and to talk about the scheme to a global audience.
The conditional cash transfer scheme for school girls was inaugurated by the Trinamool Congress government on October 1, 2013, with the express purpose of ensuring the education of girls and thereby preventing forced child marriage.
-Under the scheme, the government provides an annual scholarship of Rs. 500 to girls between 12 and 18 years (class eight to class 12) to continue with their studies, provided they are unmarried.
- A one-time grant of Rs.25,000 is also provided to the girl, once she reaches the age of 18, to pursue higher studies.
- UNICEF has provided technical assistance to the scheme and is aiding the State in its evaluation and monitoring processes.
-UNICEF representatives also pointed out that apart from increasing enrolment in schools and preventing child marriages, the scheme would address the issue of trafficking of young girls.
-In an attempt to mark the scheme and increase awareness, the State had announced August 14 as Kanyashree Divas.
| Welfare Schemes for Women- Brief Details |
The Government of India is administering the following schemes for welfare of women including the single mothers;
(i) Swadhar and Short Stay Homes to provide accommodation to women in difficult circumstances.
(ii) Working Women Hostels for which funds are given for construction of Hostel for ensuring safe accommodation for working women away from their place of residence.
(iii) Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women (STEP) to ensure sustainable employment and income generation for marginalized and asset-less rural and urban poor women across the country.
(iv) Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (RMK) extends micro-finance services to bring about the socio-economicupliftment of poor women.
(v) National Mission for Empowerment of Women (NMEW) has been set up with the aim to strengthen the overall processes that promote all-round Development of Women.
(vi) Rajiv Gandhi National Creche Scheme for Children of Working Mothers (including single mother) provides day care facilities for running a crèche of 25 children in the age group 0-6 years from families having monthly income of less than Rs.12, 000.
Apart from these, the following other schemes are also being implemented:-
(i) Indira Gandhi National Widow Pension Scheme under which pension is provided to a widow in the age group of 40-64 years and living below poverty line.
(ii) Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme under which pension is provided to persons above sixty five years of age belonging to BPL including women.
(iii) MGNREGA, under which willing persons including women are entitled to 100 days guaranteed employment during a year;
(iv) Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment is also administering an Integrated Programme for Older Persons which is being implemented since 1992 with the objective of improving the quality of life of senior citizens including women by providing basic amenities like shelter, food, medical care etc.
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| National Resource Centre for Women | |||||||||
| The Government of India has set up a National Resource Centre for Women (NRCW) under National Mission for Empowerment of Women (NMEW). The NRCW comprises of gender experts from various thematic domains like health and nutrition, gender budgeting and gender mainstreaming, gender rights and gender based violence, economic empowerment and poverty alleviation, communication and advocacy etc. It works at the national level as an engine for achieving convergence and as an integral part of the Mission Directorate. The State Resource Centres for Women (SRCW) have been set up in 30 States and UTs. The NRCW and SRCWs carry out studies and research projects in various areas and is responsible for carrying out impact assessment studies of policies, schemes and programmes of the Government. Further, the NRCW is responsible for devising suitable media strategy to highlight the programmes and schemes of the Government as well as public service campaigns to focus on retrograde practices which afflict the society. The NRCW operates from Delhi while 30 states and UTs have also set up SRCWs in Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Daman and Diu, Tripura, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Tamil Nadu, Sikkim and Maharashtra. Since these resource centres work at the policy level and as facilitating agencies, the benefits to women are indirect. The campaigns and awareness raising programmes of SRCW benefit a large cross section of women throughout the country. The NRCW and SRCWs work on critical issues relating to women. Since most of these issues are multi sectoral in nature, these Centres work with the objective of achieving inter sectoral convergence for holistic empowerment of women and facilitate the process of coordinating all the women’s welfare and socio economic development programmes across Ministries and line Departments. These bodies also work towards raising awareness about various schemes and programmes related to women and important Acts and other legal information which have a direct impact on women. While there is a national level Centre, the State level Centres are set up in all States and UTs. The NRCW and SRCW have been operating successfully and effectively on various inter sectoral and critical issues related to women like declining child sex ratio, violence against women etc.
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| irst Preliminary Report on Status of Women in India Presented |
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Crimes against women rise sharply, most of all in Delhi
For the first time, official crime statistics establish Delhi as the “rape capital” of the country. Even as the city has been informally referred to as such, data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) shows that this is the first time that the numbers back Delhi’s dubious reputation.
With 18.63 reported rapes for every one lakh women, the Capital for the first time tops the country in reported rapes as a proportion of its population.
In 2012, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim and Tripura all had higher numbers of reported rapes relative to their populations.
Delhi experienced the biggest jump in the number of reported rapes among all States, with the number more than doubling to reach 1,636. In absolute terms, Madhya Pradesh still leads the country in reported rapes, as it has historically.
Among cities, while Delhi city has the highest number of reported rapes, Gwalior and Jabalpur (both in Madhya Pradesh) had a higher number of rapes as a proportion of their populations.
A 27 per cent increase in crimes against women propelled overall crime in India to its highest level in three years, data from the NCRB for 2013 shows. The murder rate fell slightly, while the rates of theft and robbery rose by 10 per cent and 17 per cent respectively. However, the number of reported rapes, molestation and harassment of women rose the fastest among cognisable crimes.
There were 33,707 rapes reported in 2013, or one rape reported every 15 minutes. In over 94 per cent of reported rapes, both nationally and for Delhi, the alleged perpetrator was known to the victim, the NCRB data shows.
Cruelty by husband or in-laws still makes up the largest component (38 per cent) of crimes against women, followed by molestation, kidnap and rape.
Among crimes against women, the biggest increases over 2012 were in molestation cases (70,739 cases, or a 56 per cent increase) and in harassment (12,589 cases, or a 37 per cent hike).
While the number of persons arrested for rape also rose substantially (35 per cent increase compared to 7.8 per cent for the previous period), the conviction rate for rape cases rose only slightly from 23 per cent to 27 per cent.
Juveniles were increasingly the alleged perpetrators of crimes against women. The number of juveniles charged with rape rose by 60 per cent over 2012, and the number accused of molestation more than doubled.
While Kerala remains the State with the highest crime rate, likely on account of better reporting and police recording, Delhi is now the second-most crime-prone State ahead of Madhya Pradesh, which was at second place in 2012.
Acid attack survivors fight back
HC orders one-stop relief in rape cases
New Delhi
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Govt & Legal Body To Submit Plan By Aug 6
Rape survivors will not have to wait for months to get compensation from the government. In an order that would expedite the rehabilitation process, the high court on Wednesday asked the Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DSLSA) and the Delhi government to devise a “single-window“ mechanism for providing immediate compensation to the survivors.
Observing that it was “not satisfied“ with the way disposal of compensation was being done, the high court asked the Delhi State Legal Services Authority to work out the modalities with the divisional commissioner and place a concrete proposal on the disbursal of compensation before the court by August 6, the next date of hearing.
On April 16, 2014, the court had termed as “unacceptable“ the delay in payment of compensations to rape survivors and had asked Delhi government to ensure that they are paid within two weeks after the issue is decided by the DSLSA.
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