Women Empowerment Project

WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1................................................................................................................. 6
1.1 INTRODUCTION..............................................................................7
CHAPTER 2............................................................................................................... 11
2. OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY....................................................12
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2.1 OBJECTIVES..................................................................................12
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2.2 SCOPE.........................................................................................13
2.2.1 WOMEN'S RIGHTS AND SECURITY IN INDIA..................................13
Womens Rights:................................................................................................ 13
Womens Security:.............................................................................................. 14
Trafficking of Women and Girls:..........................................................................16
2.2.2 WOMEN'S ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES IN INDIA...........................16
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Womens Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights:................................................18
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2.2.3 WOMEN IN POLITICS IN INDIA.....................................................18
Historical Context:.............................................................................................. 18
Reservation at the Panchayat Level:..................................................................19
Caste and Class Politics:..................................................................................... 19
33% Reservation for Women:............................................................................. 20
2.3 METHODOLOGY............................................................................21
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT THROUGH SELF HELP GROUPS IN ANDHRA PRADESH 21
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KEY OUTCOMES.................................................................................25
Child Marriage, Trafficking of Women and Children:...........................................25
Child Labor:........................................................................................................ 25
Exploitative Social Practices:.............................................................................. 25
Gender Violence:................................................................................................ 26
Food Security:..................................................................................................... 26
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Health Insurance for the Poor:............................................................................26
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Disabled Persons:............................................................................................... 26
Land Access for Tribals and the Poor:.................................................................26
Improved Farming Practices:.............................................................................. 26
Economic Empowerment:...................................................................................27
Political Empowerment:...................................................................................... 27
2.1.4 NEED OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT..............................................27
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Chapter 3.................................................................................................................. 28
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3. ORGANIZATION PROFILE.................................................................29
DISTRICT RURAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY(DRDA)..................................29
3.1 OBJECTIVE:................................................................................................... 29
3.2 PURPOSE:..................................................................................................... 29
3.3 MISSION/VISION STATEMENT OF
DRDA...............................................30
3.4 BRIEF HISTORY OF DRDA.............................................................................. 31
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3.5 DUTIES OF DRDA :.................................................................................... 31
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3.6 MAIN ACTIVITIES / FUNCTIONS OF DRDA.............................................33
3.7 LIST OF SERVICES BEING PROVIDED BY DRDA....................................34
Swarnjayanti Gram
Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY).................................35
Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY).......................................35

Housing Schemes :-............................................................................................ 35
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Total Sanitation Campaign Programme (TSCP)...................................................36
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Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (Lok Sabha/ Rajya Sabha)
- MPLAD (LS/RS.................................................................................................. 36
Integrated Rural Energy Programme (IREP)............................................36
ORGANIZATIONAL DESCRIPTION..........................................................37
The staff positions of the DRDA at district level.................................................37
CHAPTER 4............................................................................................................... 39
4. DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION.............................................40
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4.1 Gender Differences in Education...................................................41
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4.2 Gender Differentials in Adult Literacy............................................43
4.3 Employment.................................................................................44
Womens and Mens Employment Status...........................................................44
4.4 Married women and decision making.............................................46
4.5 Spousal violence..........................................................................48
4.6 Gender, Womens Empowerment, And Selected Health, Nutrition, And
Demographic Outcomes.....................................................................49
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4.7 DRDA(stats).................................................................................50
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Schemes implementing......................................................................50
4.8 Self Help Groups..........................................................................52
SHG-BANK LINKAGES (UNDER NABARD REFINANCES SCHEME).........................52
4.9 Swayamsidha Scheme..................................................................53
4.10 Measures for Womens Empowerment.........................................57
The Constitution of India - Provisions Relating to Women..................................57
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Advancement of Women through Five Year Plans.............................................57
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CHAPTER 5............................................................................................................... 59
5. FINDINGS AND SUGESSIONS...........................................................60
5.1 WOMEN EMPOWERMENT IN INDIA MILESTONES & CHALLENGES...............60
5.1.1 GDI: Inter State Comparison.....................................................................63
5.1.2 Beijing conference 1995 indicators of women empowerment, qualitative &
quantitative Qualitative:.................................................................................... 63
5.1.3 Education:................................................................................................. 65
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5.1.4 Health:...................................................................................................... 66
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5.1.5 Political Participation:................................................................................ 67
5.1.6 Decision-Making:....................................................................................... 71
5.1.7 Self Help Groups:...................................................................................... 72
5.1.8 Violence:................................................................................................... 73
5.1.9 Women and Work:..................................................................................... 74
5.1.10 Women and Reforms:.............................................................................. 74
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5.1.11 Ownership of Land:................................................................................. 75
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5.1.12 State Initiatives:...................................................................................... 76
5.1.13 National Institute of Public Finance & Policy Gender Analysis of the Budget
........................................................................................................................... 77
5.2 International Policies and Indias Constitutional Provisions, Policies and
Programmes for Women.....................................................................78
5.2.1 UN Human Rights Instruments.................................................................78
5.2.2 Commitments at UN Conferences........................................................................79
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5.2.3 Constitution of India Guarantees..........................................................................79
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5.3 SCHEMES FOR ASSISTANCE...........................................................81
5.3.1 Ministry of Women and Child Development..............................................81
5.3.2 Central Social Welfare Board (CSWB.........................................................82
Other Schemes.................................................................................................. 82
5.3.3 Ministry of Human Resource Development, Department of Education......82
5.3.4 Ministry of Rural Development.................................................................83
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5.3.5 Ministry of Urban Development................................................................84
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5.3.6 Ministry of Textiles.................................................................................... 84
5.3.7 Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation....................................84
5.3.8 Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment............................................84
5.3.9 Ministry of Tribal Affairs............................................................................85
5.3.10 Ministry of Science and Technology........................................................85
5.3.11 Ministry of Health and Family Welfare....................................................86
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5.3.12 Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperation..................................................86
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5.3.13 Ministry of Labour & Employment...........................................................86
5.3.14 Ministry of Minority Affairs......................................................................87
5.3.15 Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Department of
Food and Public Distribution..............................................................................87
5.3.16 Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises...................................88
5.3.17 Ministry of Law and Justice.....................................................................88
5.3.18 Policy Documents....................................................................................88
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5.3.19 International Documents........................................................................89
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5.4 The Objectives of the National Policy for Empowerment of Women
include..............................................................................................89
5.5 Critical Areas of Concern..............................................................90
A. Women and Poverty...................................................................................... 90
B. Education and Training of Women.................................................................90
C. Women and Health........................................................................................ 91
D. Violence against Women............................................................................... 91
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E. Women and Armed Conflict...........................................................................91
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F. Women and Economy................................................................................... 91
G. Women in Power and Decision-making.........................................................92
H. Institutional Mechanisms for the Advancement of Women...........................92
I.
Human Rights of Women............................................................................. 92
J.
Women and the Media..................................................................................92
K. Women and the Environment.........................................................................92
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L. Womens Empowerment................................................................................ 93
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5.6 Programmes for Women...............................................................93
5.6.1 Working Womens Hostels.........................................................................94
5.6.2 Legislative Reforms................................................................................... 94
5.6.3 Status of Major International Human Rights Instruments.........................94
Conclusion.........................................................................................95
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Bibliography......................................................................................96
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LIST OF TABLES
Table 1- Organizational Description(The staff positions of the DRDA at District level)..37
Table 2- Field office(One for cluster of 5-7 Mandals).38
Table 3- Women and Men Employment status 45
Table 4- Self help groups52
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Table 5- SHG-Bank linkages(under NABARD refinances scheme)52
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Table 6- Swayamsidha Scheme all over India..53
Table 7- Some indicators depicting the progress in the situation of Indian women...55
Table 8- perspectives on Advancement of Women through Five Year Plans....58
LIST OF CHARTS
Chart 1- Trends in the sex ratio(females per 1,000 males) age 0-6 years, india.40
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Chart 2- Percentage of boys and girls attending school in the 2005-06 year..42
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Chart 3- Percentage literate among women and men age 15-49 by age..43
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Chart 4- percentage of married women and men age 15-49 employed for cash....47
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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
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1.1 INTRODUCTION
Womens empowerment in India is heavily dependent on many different variables that include
geographical location (urban/rural), educational status, social status (caste and class), and age. Policies
on womens empowerment exist at the national, state, and local (Panchayat) levels in many sectors,
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including health, education, economic opportunities, gender-based violence, and political participation.
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However, there are significant gaps between policy advancements and actual practice at the community
level.
One key factor for the gap in implementation of laws and policies to address discrimination,
economic disadvantages, and violence against women at the community level is the largely patriarchal
structure that governs the community and households in much of India. As such, women and girls have
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restricted mobility, access to education, access to health facilities, and lower decision-making power,
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and experience higher rates of violence. Political participation is also hindered at the Panchayat (local
governing bodies) level and at the state and national levels, despite existing reservations for women.
The impact of the patriarchal structure can be seen in rural and urban India, although womens
empowerment in rural India is much less visible than in urban areas. This is of particular concern, since
much of India is rural despite the high rate of urbanization and expansion of cities. Rural women, as
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opposed to women in urban settings, face inequality at much higher rates, and in all spheres of life.
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Urban women and, in particular, urban educated women enjoy relatively higher access to economic
opportunities, health and education, and experience less domestic violence. Women (both urban and
rural) who have some level of education have higher decision-making power in the household and the
community. Furthermore, the level of womens education also has a direct implication on maternal
mortality rates, and nutrition and health indicators among children.
Among rural women, there are further divisions that hinder womens empowerment. The most
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notable ones are education levels and caste and class divisions. Women from lower castes (the scheduled
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castes, other backward castes, and tribal communities) are particularly vulnerable to maternal mortality
and infant mortality. They are often unable to access health and educational services, lack decisionmaking power, and face higher levels of violence. Among women of lower caste and class, some level
of education has shown to have a positive impact on womens empowerment indicators.
Social divisions among urban women also have a similar impact on empowerment
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indicators. Upper class and educated women have better access to health, education, and economic
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opportunities, whereas lower class, less educated women in urban settings enjoy these rights
significantly less. Due to rapid urbanization and lack of economic opportunities in other parts of the
country, cities also house sprawling slum areas. Slums are informal sprawls, and most times lack basic
services such as clean water, sanitation, and health facilities. Additionally, slum dwellers mostly work in
unorganized and informal sectors, making them vulnerable to raids by the state, abuse by employers,
and other forms of insecurity. Women and children in slums are among the most vulnerable to violence
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and abuse, and are deprived of their basic human rights.
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As a result of a vibrant womens movement in the last 50 years, policies to advance human
rights for women in India are substantial and forward-thinking, such as the Domestic Violence Act
(2005), and the 73rd and 74th Amendments to the Constitution that provide reservations for women to
enter politics at the Panchayat level. There are multiple national and state level governmental and nongovernmental mechanisms such as the Womens Commission to advance these policies, and the
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implementation of these policies is decentralized to state and district-level authorities and organizations
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that include local non-governmental organizations.
The policy/practice gap in India cuts across all sectors and initiatives as a result of rampant
corruption and lack of good governance practices. State-level governments claim a lack of resources,
and the resources they do receive are highly susceptible to corruption. Financial corruption hinders the
governments ability to invest in social capital, including initiatives to advance womens empowerment.
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Since the 1990s India has put in place processes and legislative acts such as the Right to Information
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Act (2005) for information disclosure to increase transparency and hold government officials
accountable. Mistrust of political institutions and leaders remains high in the society with corruption and
graft allegations often covering media headlines.
In addition to corruption and inadequate resources for implementation of initiatives at the
community level, womens empowerment in India is negatively impacted by the pervasive
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discrimination of women in the family and the community. Discrimination against women in most parts
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of India (particularly the north) emerges from the social and religious construct of womens role and
their status. As such, in many parts of India, women are considered to be less than men, occupying a
lower status in the family and community, which consequentially restricts equal opportunity in women
and girls access to education, economic possibilities, and mobility.
Discrimination also limits womens choices and freedom. These choices are further dependent
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on structural factors like caste and class.
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Empowerment for women in India requires a crosscutting approach and one which addresses the
diversity of social structures that govern womens lives. Identity politics in India is a very critical
political instrument, which is both used and abused throughout political and social institutions. There
are numerous social movements fighting for the rights of the marginalized, such as the Dalit rights
movement, the tribal rights movement, etc. These movements have achieved many gains in assuring
representation of the traditionally marginalized communities into mainstream society. Womens rights
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within these movements are largely unarticulated and thus reinforce inequalities within the very
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structures from which they are demanding inclusion. Empowerment approaches for women therefore is
not only about providing services, but also about recognizing their lived realities of multiple layers of
discrimination that hinder their access to services.
Similarly, access to education for girls in some of the northern states like Uttar Pradesh and
Punjab does not only rely on proximity of schools. Access to education is part of a larger structural
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concern, including the practice of son preference, which creates inherent discriminatory practices.
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Education initiatives therefore cannot rely solely on building educational infrastructure, but also need to
address some of the root causes of discrimination against women and girls which affect the decisions
made by parents.
Womens security, decision-making power, and mobility are three indicators for womens
empowerment. In India, and more so for rural and less educated women, these three indicators are
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significantly low. Data from the NFHS-3 survey on womens decision-making power shows that only
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about one third of the women interviewed took decisions on their own regarding household issues and
their health. Decision-making power among employed urban women was higher than among rural and
less educated women. The survey also found that older married women had more decision-making
power than the younger married women. Younger women and girls experience an additional layer of
discrimination as a result of their age.
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Data on womens mobility in India indicates the lack of choices women have, and that urban and
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educated women have more mobility choices than rural women. The data shows that about half the
women interviewed had the freedom to go to the market or a health facility alone. Seventy-nine percent
of urban women from the highest education brackets and only about 40 percent of rural women without
education were allowed to go to the market alone.
Mobility restrictions for women are dependent upon how the family and community view
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womens rights. They also, however, are intrinsically dependent on the prevailing levels of violence
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against women in the household and the community. Abuse and violence towards women is
predominantly perpetrated within the household, and marital violence is among the most accepted by
both men and women. Wife beating, slapping, rape, dowry related deaths, feudal violence towards tribal
and lower caste women, trafficking, sexual abuse, and street violence permeate the Indian social fabric,
and create one of the most serious obstacles in achieving womens empowerment.
The gap in policy and practice in womens empowerment is most visible when it comes to the
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level and kinds of violence women face in India. Despite the policies, laws 6, and initiatives by civil
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society institutions, violence against women in India is widespread and the consequences for
perpetrators rarely match the crime. Enforcement of laws and sentencing of perpetrators are long and
arduous processes, and the gaps in these processes are further widened by corruption.
Another gap in implementing laws and policies on violence against women is the inaccessibility
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of information on victims' rights among rural and less educated women. Additionally, social stigma and
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the fear of abandonment by the family play a big role in women and girls ability or inability to access
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laws and policies to address sexual and physical violence.
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CHAPTER 2
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OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY
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2. OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY
2.1 OBJECTIVES
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
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of women.
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The goal is to bring about the advancement, development and empowerment of women. Specifically, the
objectives include..
Creating an environment through positive economic and social policies for full development of
women to enable them to realize their full potential.
The de-jure and de-facto enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedom by women on
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equal basis with men in all spheres political, economic, social, cultural and civil
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Equal access to participation and decision making of women in social, political and economic
life of the nation
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.
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Strengthening legal systems aimed at elimination of all forms of discrimination against women
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Changing societal attitudes and community practices by active participation and involvement of
both men and women.
Mainstreaming a gender perspective in the development process.
Elimination of discrimination and all forms of violence against women and the girl child; and
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Building and strengthening partnerships with civil society, particularly womens organizations.
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2.2 SCOPE
Mainstreaming the gender perspective is essential to achieve parity between men and women
where mainstreaming is a process of assessing the implications for women and men in respect of any
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planned action in all areas and at all levels.
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2.2.1 WOMEN'S RIGHTS AND SECURITY IN INDIA
Womens Rights:
Policies relating to women's rights have had a positive trajectory in the past few decades with
the central government articulating many progressive measures to advance gender equality in social,
economic, and political arenas. The Government of India (GoI) has two main bodies to advance gender
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equality: the Ministry of Women and Child Development and the National Commission for Women,
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which is an autonomous organization under the Ministry of Women and Child Development. 7 Both
bodies work on national- and state-level legal and social policies to advance gender equality. The
Ministry has widely implemented local-level micro-finance schemes to advance economic opportunities
for rural women. The National Commission for Women has been instrumental in creating legislative
changes, and has set up Complaint and Investigate Cells at the state level. The Grievance Cells receive
complaints of gender-based violence and are mandated to investigate, provide referrals and counseling,
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and ultimately report on such cases.
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With a vibrant womens rights movement in India, there are continuous demands for better
laws, provisions, and accountability for implementation. Most recent examples include the change in
Indias rape laws, where in 2006 marital rape was recognized. Currently, womens rights activists are
demanding better provisions in Sections 375 and 376 of the Indian Penal Code. Since then, there have
been multiple challenges by the womens movement leading to small but significant amendments. The
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2005 Domestic Violence Act provides protection from violence in the household from not only male
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perpetrators, but also female perpetrators like mothers-in-law and other female members in extended
families.
There also have been gains in women's inheritance rights, yet challenges remain in
implementation. Social biases and lack of enforcement continue to hinder the full realization of Indian
inheritance laws. Inheritance laws and property distribution fall under the Hindu and Muslim personal
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laws, both of which exempt agricultural land. For a country with a predominantly agro-based economy,
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womens inability to inherit agricultural land exacerbates feminization of poverty and neglects womens
welfare.
Like all other spheres of social change in India, there is an undeniable gap between policy and
practice. More notably, the deeply entrenched social hierarchies based on class, caste, ethnic, and
communal divisions leave many communities on the margins with little knowledge of their rights and
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even less protection from local, state, and national governmental policies.
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Inequality between men and women runs across the board, including in education, economic
opportunities, representation in governance, and other state and private institutions. Additionally,
women in India face high rates of violence. Some recent statistics on women include:
India ranks 18th among the highest maternal mortality rates in the world with 540 deaths for
1.
every 100,000 births
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2. Only 48% of adult Indian women are literate
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3. Among rural women, 36.1% have experienced physical violence in their adult lives
4.
66% of women who have experienced physical violence in their lifetimes are divorced,
widowed, or deserted
5.
Lower caste and tribal women are among those who experience the highest levels of physical
violence
85.3% of women reporting violence claimed that their current husbands were the perpetrators
7.
According to the most recent Demographic and Health Survey analysis, only 43% of currently
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6.
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married women (between ages 15-49) are employed as compared to 99% of men.
Womens Security:
The multiple forms of violence experienced in the household, at the community level, and in
some instances by the state, threaten womens security in India. In many parts of North India son
preference is a widely practiced phenomenon. Son preference has direct linkages to sex-selective
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abortion (illegal across India; however, enforcement by both police and some doctors is still lacking),
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and discrimination of girl children in access to health, nutrition, and education. Research conducted by
the International Centre for Research on Women (ICRW) found that, although not universal, particularly
in households where there is more than one daughter there are significant differences in nutrition and
health levels between male and female children.
Additionally, at the household level, incest, rape and domestic violence continue to hinder
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womens development across India. Forty percent of all sexual abuse cases in India are incest, and 94%
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of the incest cases had a known member of the household as the perpetrator.
Dowry related deaths, domestic violence, gang rape of lower caste women by upper caste men,
and physical violence by the police towards tribal women all contribute to womens insecurity in India.
The class and caste structure inadvertently put poor women from lower class and tribal communities at
the most risk of violence. Class and caste divisions also create grave challenges to poor, lower caste, and
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tribal women in accessing justice and retribution as victims and survivors of violence.
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Women and girls in urban India are also at high risk of gender-based violence. In Delhi, the
countrys capital, a scan of daily newspapers reveals shocking numbers of cases of violence against
women. The National Crime Bureau claims that a woman is raped every 29 minutes in Delhi. Street
violence in urban centers is a growing concern for young women and girls, who are increasingly moving
away from rural areas for economic opportunities and higher education. Particularly women and girls
from the northeast region of India living in urban centers such as Delhi have reported experiencing
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social discrimination and marginalization, and many times physical violence. In 2005, according to the
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North East Support Centre, among the 100,000 people from the northeast living in Delhi 86% had
reported racial discrimination and 41% of cases were sexual abuse cases.
The northeast states of India are a volatile region, with a number of active insurgencies. The GoI
has continuously deployed state troops to fight the insurgents, who predominantly follow the Maoist
ideology. This region, because of its physical and cultural proximity to Myanmar, China, and Bhutan,
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has for the most part been ignored by the central government, thereby fuelling the insurgents' demand
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for development and autonomy. In the northeast (as in most conflict-ridden regions) women bear the
brunt of war from both sides. There have been numerous instances of violence perpetrated by state
security forces against local and tribal women.
Trafficking of Women and Girls:
India is both a source and destination for trafficked women and girls into prostitution and
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bonded labour. While exact numbers of trafficked women and girls are difficult to ascertain, there have
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been figures projected by various national and international NGOs. Anti -trafficking measures in India
have increased with Indias commitment to international human rights protocols, and through strict legal
provisions at the national level. The Immoral Traffic Prevention Act 1956 (ITPA) is the widely used law
to prosecute traffickers, but also is invoked to target prostitution.
Sex work is a debated subject in the womens movement in India. The anti-prostitution law is
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seen by many to criminalize and further marginalize women who are in the sex trade. Womens rights
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organizations, activists, and organizations such as the Durbar Mahila Samanway Committee (a
nationwide sex workers collective) have long supported legalization of the sex trade in India. The
debate over legalization of sex work continues today and sex-work supporters are lobbying to change
the ITPA for better rehabilitation measures for those who have been rescued during brothel and street
raids. The ITPA also does not give adequate measures for those who are trafficked for purposes other
than sex work, and disproportionately targets women, making them further vulnerable to poverty and
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exploitation.
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2.2.2 WOMEN'S ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES IN INDIA
India is one of the worlds fastest growing economies, with women mainly from the middle class
increasingly entering the workforce. Urban centres like Delhi and Bangalore have seen an influx of young women
from semi- urban and rural parts of the country, living alone and redefining themselves. 25 However, the story of
economic empowerment for women is not a singular narrative; rather it is located in a complex set of caste, class,
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religious, and ethnic identities.
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The Global Gender Gap Report by the World Economic Forum in 2009 ranked India 114 th out of 134
countries for inequality between men and women in the economy, politics, health, and education. 26 On equal
economic opportunities and womens participation in the labour force, India ranked 127 th and 122nd respectively.27
The number of women in the workforce varies greatly from state to state: 21% in Delhi; 23% in Punjab; 65% in
Manipur; 71% Chhattisgarh; 76% in Arunachal Pradesh.
28
The diversity of womens economic opportunities
between states is due to the cultural, religious, and ethnic diversity of each state. Northern states like Delhi and
Punjab lag far behind on gender equality measures, including the alarming sex ratio between men and women
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(due to son preference and sex-selective abortion), low female literacy levels, and high rates of gender-based
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violence.
In rural India, womens economic opportunities remain restricted by social, cultural, and religious
barriers. Most notably inheritance laws embedded in Hindu and Shariat civil codes continue to marginalize
women in the household and the larger community. Rural women, particularly of lower caste and class, have the
lowest literacy rates, and therefore do not have the capacity to negotiate pay or contracts and most often engage in
the unorganized sector, self-employment, or in small scale industry. Self-help groups (SHGs) are a widely
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practiced model for social and economic mobility by NGOs and the government. SHGs provide women with the
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opportunity to manage loans and savings that can be used by members for varying needs. SHGs also are used to
promote social change among the members and the community at large. Members of SHGs have used their
experiences as leverage to enter other local institutions such as the Panchayat Khap.
Rural, low caste, and tribal women also make up 70% of domestic workers in India, a sector which is
largely unregulated and unorganized. Indias growing economy has allowed for many upper and middle-class
women to enter the workforce, and while poor rural women have little access to education and training, there is a
high demand for domestic workers in urban hubs.
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Domestic workers are mostly illiterate, with little or no negotiating power for wage equity, and are highly
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
vulnerable to exploitation and sexual and physical abuse.
There is a movement at the policy level to organize domestic workers and to create laws to regulate
minimum wage, working hours, and other measures such as life and health insurance. Currently a national- level
Taskforce on Domestic Workers has been formed that will present recommendations to the central government on
better enforcement of rights for the many undocumented domestic workers in India.
Women are also very visible in the construction sector in India, and like domestic workers are largely
unorganized and rely on daily wagers. Women construction workers are mostly poor and illiterate and have little
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negotiating power. This sector is also unregulated and highly vulnerable to exploitation. Women workers also earn
73
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
significantly less than men, although women are the ones who do most of the backbreaking work like carrying
bricks and other heavy materials on site.
On the other end of the spectrum, while India has one of the highest percentages of professional women in
the world, those who occupy managerial positions are under 3%. Most women work in low administrative
positions, and many of the young women migrating to urban centres mostly work in service and retail industries,
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although more and more women are entering the IT and other technical sectors.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Womens Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights:
The movement to assure womens economic, social, and cultural rights (ESCR) as basic human rights is just
emerging in India. The movement aims to locate womens rights within the larger human rights framework, and
by doing so moves away from looking at womens issues only within the framework of violence against women
and reproductive rights. ESCR attempts to look at the broader issues facing women, namely poverty, housing,
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unemployment, education, water, food security, trade, etc.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
While the human rights movement on ESCR is largely contained at the international policy level, there
are emerging social movements around the world. In the Indian context, projects like the Programme on Womens
Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (PWESCR), for example, is creating linkages between the international
human rights movement and the local articulation of womens rights. PWESCR aims to build a womens rights
movement in India that creates equality in all spheres of womens lives. By empowering women economically and
socially, ESCR provides for a broader discourse on rights that moves womens rights from a victim-centered
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approach to one that cuts across other fundamental human rights issues.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Womens economic opportunity in India is a rapidly changing landscape. Women are increasingly
entering the workforceparticularly women professionalsand are creating change, but there remains a large
number of invisible women workers in unorganized and volatile sectors. However, organizing at the local level,
albeit small, is widespread. Implementation of national and state level policies lags behind in ensuring that women
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workers have equal pay and are free from exploitation.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
2.2.3 WOMEN IN POLITICS IN INDIA
Historical Context:
During the independence movement, women were visible and active as nationalists, and as symbols of
Mother India. Gandhi, in particular, was instrumental in creating space for women through his non-violence
(and some would argue feminized) mode of protest. Gandhis legendary salt march initially excluded women, but
due to demands from women nationalists he later realized the power of women organizers at the local level. His
inclusion of women, however, was not located within a gender equality framework, but was a means to achieving
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a stronger and unified Indian state. The inclusion of women in the nationalist movement was also to debunk the
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
British colonial assertion of needing to save the poor, vulnerable women of pre-independence India.
As in many nationalist movements, women in India took part in the struggle, in turn propelling a
womens rights movement. And, as seen historically in many post-colonial countries, the nationalist womens
movement in India was confronted by the rebuilding of a patriarchal nationalist state. Women revolutionaries gave
way to their male counterparts who (as a result of Partition politics) created a strong, male, and Hindu "New
India".
The first post- independence Lok Sabha (the Peoples Council or the Parliament) had 4.4% women. The
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period between the early 1940s and late 1970s saw an emergence of the Indian womens movement, but it was
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
not until the 1980s that the womens movement gained real momentum.
Reservation at the Panchayat Level:

In 1976 the Committee on the Status of Women in India was established and published a report
recommending an increase in elected women at the grassroots level, which led to the introduction of the 33.3%
reservation at the Panchayat level in 1988. It was only in 1993 that an amendment in the constitution made the
proposed reservation at the Panchayat (village level governing councils) a reality.
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In the last two decades since the reservation for women in elected Panchayats was passed, many studies have been
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
conducted to look at the impact of this policy. A survey conducted in 2008 yielded that women made up close to
50% of all the village councils across the India. The number of women representatives has certainly increased at
the grassroots level; however, questions still remain regarding their decision-making power within the councils. A
study in West Bengal and Rajasthan by the Institute of Management Studies (Calcutta) and the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT) found that where women Panchayat members were active, there were more robust
programs on water, irrigation, and infrastructure. The study conclusively states that in Panchayats where women
were present policies were more beneficial to the community than in Panchayats where women were absent. A
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study by The Accountability Initiative also states that in Panchayats with female presidents, the participation of
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
women in the larger council rose close to 3% in one year.40 The reason for the increase in womens participation is
correlated to two possible factors: first, women representatives exemplified new possibilities for change; and
second, women leaders took up issues that would have a positive impact on the community as a whole.
Caste and Class Politics:

The complexities of politics in India are embedded in class, caste, and religious identities. An analysis by
International Idea of women in the Indian Parliament between 1991 and1996 found that among the small number
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of women Parliamentarians, a disproportionate number represented the Brahmin caste (the higher caste in the
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Hindu caste system). Most local governments remain largely patriarchal and caste- based institutions, hindering
inclusive governance. Furthermore, social mobility remains a privilege of members of higher classes and caste,
although this is dramatically changing as a result of reservations for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes
(ST) in politics and education.
For women politicians, class, age, and caste all have significant impact in their political lives. India is one
of the few countries in the world that has elected a woman leader. Indira Gandhi was among the very few women
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leaders in the world during her time in office. However, her role as the Prime Minister was not seen as a win for
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
the womens movement in India. She was the granddaughter of Jawaharlal Nehru and represented the political
dynasty of her family. Additionally, her controversial political moves during the declared period of Emergency
(1975-1977) suppressed dissent, forcing many of the radical womens rights movements to go underground. In
2007 India elected its first female President, Ms. Pratibha Patil. While the President holds a mostly ceremonial
role in Indian politics, Ms. Patils election was deemed a symbolic move towards a more equitable representation
of women at the highest levels of government.
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Although representation of women and members of the lower castes in Indian politics is rapidly changing,
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
complexities of caste politics continue to govern representation. An interesting case study is that of Mayawati, the
Chief Minister of Utter Pradesh. Mayawati, a woman and a member of the Dalit caste, was the youngest Chief
Minister when first elected, and the only woman Dalit to be elected as a Chief Minister. Although Mayawati
represents transcendence of India's caste system, her political career is regrettably tainted with corruption charges,
extravagant spending, and little positive impact on the realities of caste and class barriers for men and women in
her State.
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33% Reservation for Women:
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The Womens Bill in April 2010, which gives 33.3% reservation for women in all levels of Indian politics,
took 14 years after its introduction to finally pass by the Rajya Sabha (the upper house of parliament). It is yet to
be passed by the Lok Sabha (the lower house of parliament). The reservation bill will ensure 181 out of the 543
seats at the Parliament level, and 1,370 seats out of the 4,109 seats at the State Assembly level. This is a historic
move in the Indian political landscape, as currently women occupy less than 10% of seats in the national
Parliament.
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The Womens Bill will also significantly change the demographics of class and caste among women
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
politicians in leadership positions in the Indian political structure. It will create a path for women from lower
classes and castes (who are currently confined to local-level governance) to enter state and national level
governments. In addition to the existing reservations for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, one third of the SC
and ST candidates must be women. Other Backward Class (OBC) members are not included in the reservation due
to the wide disagreement about who constitutes OBC and a lack of existing data on the OBC population.
The two main arguments against the bill are that it will only benefit elite women (particularly in national
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level politics) and that there should be reservations for Dalit, minorities (particularly Muslim women), and OBCs.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
However, supporters of the bill do not agree with creating quotas within the existing 33% women quota in
parliament, as SC and ST quotas already exist.
The bill mandates that all political parties reserve one third of their electoral ticket for women, including in
the already mandated reservations for SC and STs. This will inadvertently create spaces for lower caste and class
women to enter state and national level politics. The passage and implementation of the Womens Bill, and its
impact on the existing gender, class, and caste barriers, is yet to be realized, but one thing is clear: Indias politics
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is moving closer to equitable inclusion than ever before.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
2.3 METHODOLOGY
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT THROUGH SELF HELP GROUPS IN ANDHRA PRADESH
The Government of Andhra Pradesh has taken up the theme of womens empowerment as
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one of the strategies to tackle the socio economic poverty. Self Help movement through savings
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
has been taken up as a mass movement by women a path chosen by them to shape their destiny for
better. Development Agenda of the State in the last few years placing the people, especially women
in the fore -front has enabled formation of a large number of Self Help Groups (SHGs) throughout
the State and majority of women are saving one rupee a day. The State government is consciously
making an effort to assist SHGs by providing Revolving Fund / Matching grant under various
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programmes.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
SHGs - A MOVEMENT IN ANDHRA PRADESH:
There are about 4.65 lakhs women SHGs in Andhra Pradesh covering nearly 61.70 lakhs poor women.
Andhra Pradesh alone has about half of SHGs organized in the Country.
The SHGs are also
popularly called DWCRA Groups, ant this name became popular after the DWCRA programme
(Development of Women and Children in Rural Areas) through which womens groups were assisted
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initially. The SHGs are not only resorting to thrift but also are taking small loans out of the corpus
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
available with the group. The group corpus consists of savings, government assistance and also
bank loan. Members use the loan out of group corpus for their personal needs initially. However in
the long run such loans are utilised for income generation activities. Since inception an amount of
Rs.1556.90 crores is mobilized as corpus by these groups.
MICRO CREDIT TO SHG:
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Micro credit summit conducted in 1997 in Washington resolved to reach 100 million poor
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
women by 2005 all over the world. In Andhra Pradesh alone, 61.70 lakh women were covered
under micro credit with a saving of a rupee per day and the financial institutions extending loans
upto 4 times to the amount of group savings. From the year 1997 to January 2003, Banks extended
a loan of Rs.1345 crores to SHG and the recovery of loans is more than 95%. Recently commercial
banks have reduced interest rate on the loans extended to SHGs from 12% to 9%.
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BUILDING INSTITUTIONS FOR SHGs:
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Womens savings movement started in 1993 as an off shoot of total literacy campaigns
successfully conducted by the pro-active government initiatives in the southern part of Andhra
Pradesh, poor women agitated against sale of arrack, organized themselves into Thrift and Credit
groups with one rupee saving in a day had now turned into a mass movement in which 61.70 lakh
members saved more than Rs.887.47 crores which is rotated internally and lent amongst the
members twice in a year as per the interest rates fixed by the groups. Such amounts are used for their
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daily consumption needs and also for production of goods for sales to earn incomes.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT OF SHGS:
60% of the women take up economic activities related to agriculture and allied activities.
Land lease for growing agricultural crop is a common practice in the 9 Telangana districts.
Vegetable and Flower cultivation, food crops and pulses, oil seeds cultivation are
taken up on leased lands. Similarly rearing of calves, ram lamb, chicks, piggery and duckery, dairy,
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value addition to milk and milk products are preferred by women agricultural labourers. Illiterate and
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
unskilled women engage in small business activities.
Nearly 20% of the SHG members are
artisans and engaged in making handicrafts and handloom products.

Public private partnership method is adopted in promoting economic opportunities to SHG
members by appointing them as dealers for the sale of products manufactured by companies like
Hindustan Levers Limited, TVS, TTK-Prestige, Colgate-Palmolive, Philips etc. Companies in
return train SHGs in finance management, enterprise development, packaging, branding and
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pricing of products. This partnership is a win win model.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Andhra Pradesh is now engaged in intense pursuit of development prgrammes utilizing
information technology (IT) and to strategize as to how the benefits of IT could be taken to rural
areas.
SHGs are encouraged to get PCs and software for accessing information and developing
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their business. Their products are photographed, scanned and displayed on websites. These are put
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
on the portals of e-commerce companies. Handicrafts, herbal medicines and cosmetics, hand woven
and embroidered curtains, toys, paintings etc., are thus finding national and international markets.
This would not have been possible, but for the internet. The members are enabled to take a mobile
telephone and use it not only for the sales but as a public telephone.
IMPACT OF SHG:
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Various organisations evaluated SHGs. NGOs universities, National Bank for Agricultural &
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Rural Development (NABARD) and ORG-Marg.
Some of the salient features are.
98% of the members make savings regularly as the norms prescribed by the groups.
All the groups meet at least once in a month to discuss various social issues related to their
day to day life.
98% of eligible members adopt small family norms.
100% children of SHG members are able to access immunization services against the 6
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diseases.
30% of the members have access to safe cooking fuels (LPG) under the Government
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
promoted scheme popularly known as DEEPAM.
80% of the total SHGs have accessed financial assistance from banks and repayment is
98%.
10,000 SHG members were elected to the local bodies (3 term Panchayat Raj Institutions) in
1997 November elections.
CHAPTER 1
Members are engaged in 450 varieties of income generating activities.

Additional family incomes to member range from Rs.1000-3000 per annum depending on
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
the income generating activities.
Increase in self confidence and self esteem
Increase in awareness levels about the society and community. Voluntary participation in
community activities like laying roads, planting trees conserving environment, construction of
water harvesting structures, donations to the victims of natural calamities helping to reduce
crime against girls & women, campaign against eradication of social evils like dowry,
child marriages, untouchability, AIDS, rescue and rehabilitation of orphaned children,
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counseling adolescent girls, support to widows and destitutes are a few to mention.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
SHG members learning from the past experiences are walking through the present are marching
ahead for a bright future. Government of Andhra Pradesh has rightly realized that the involvement
of the rural poor women in development will speed up attainment of Swarnandhrapradesh and
realising the Vision indeed!
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Social, Legal, Political and Economic Empowerment
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The women Self Help Groups (SHGs) hold regular weekly meetings, save and repay regularly,
and use trained bookkeepers for proper bookkeeping. All SHG members abide by the principles of
saying no to child marriages, child labor, domestic violence and wasteful expenditures.
The weekly meetings provide a platform for sharing and discussing broad social, legal, political
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and economic issues that affect their lives. Issues range from entitlements to land, access to NREGA and
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
PDS, whether teachers and health workers are actually doing the work allotted to them, and women's
own rights in the case of domestic violence.
The women discuss family planning, the number of children they should have, and the spacing
between births, indicating a significant change in their ability to exercise reproductive choice within the
household. They have also not hesitated to take up difficult issues like domestic violence, the trafficking
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of women and children, and the jogini system of exploitation.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
KEY OUTCOMES
While this is a continuous and evolving process, these poor womens groups have made a number
of gains in a variety of spheres:
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Child Marriage, Trafficking of Women and Children:
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Womens groups have been able to prevent over 5000 child marriages. A study by the Center
for Economic and Social Studies in Hyderabad finds that the incidence of child marriage has declined
among project participants. Groups have also started campaigns against the trafficking of women and
girl children with the support of police, the revenue administration and NGOs.
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Child Labor:
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
In a bid to reduce child labor, new residential schools have been set up in six districts to
provide quality education to girl child laborers. Over 40,000 girls are now enrolled in these schools.
According to an impact evaluation, these schools have outperformed other public schools in terms of
regular attendance, academic results and facilities provided to students, leading to a fall in the drop out
rate from 14.8% in 2001 to 4.3% in 2005-2006.
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Exploitative Social Practices:
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Groups have achieved considerable success in eradicating exploitative social practices such as
the jogini (temple concubine) system. Says a Community Activist, from Mahabubnagar District: I
was made a jogini when I was eleven years old by my parents. Joining the SHG gave me confidence
and, despite opposition, I got married to lead a normal life. There are still thousands of joginis still
operating in and around my community, whom we are trying to rehabilitate. As the children of these
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jogini mothers are considered illegitimate by the village, we are going to conduct DNA tests for four
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
thousand of them to determine who their father is and ask them for support. We want to ensure that these
children are proud of their mothers and lead a normal life.
Gender Violence:
Womens groups discuss sensitive issues such as gender violence, and make special
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efforts to identify victims and help them to start new livelihoods.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Food Security:
The project has helped to improve food security of the poor. Over half a million households in
six districts have benefited from access to food grains and other essential commodities of good quality
at relatively lower prices, provided on a credit basis. Destitute women, especially elderly widows, are
being helped by a special program through which community members contribute a fistful of rice to a
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common pool which is then distributed among these women.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Health Insurance for the Poor:
Over 21,000 households have been covered with health insurance on a pilot basis. The
community managed risk fund aims to provide quick financial support to meet families health
expenditure, including during emergencies. 1.2 million women SHG members have purchased life
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insurance cover.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Disabled Persons:
Over 160,000 disabled persons have been mobilized into some 17,500 SHGs and have
received support to start new livelihoods.
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Land Access for Tribals and the Poor:
112
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The project has facilitated the resolution of several land issues affecting the poor including the
restoration of illegally occupied land. Para legals have been trained, and efforts are on to establish a land
rights center for tribal areas in association with the Law College at Hyderabad, and organize lok adalats
(public courts).
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Improved Farming Practices:
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
In a forward-looking move, womens groups have also developed a local movement against the
indiscriminate use of pesticides, covering 186,000 acres by 2006-07. By replacing chemical and other
external inputs with local knowledge and natural methods of pest management, they are reducing the
cost of cultivation. Cost savings have ranged from about US$40 to US$120 per acre leading to a 75%
increase in the income of a farmer. This has also had positive effects on farmers health status.
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Economic Empowerment:
114
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Social empowerment issues have become the basis for the subsequent economic empowerment
of women. The program enables womens organizations to develop the skills to negotiate with market
institutions and develop other financial services.
Political Empowerment:
Grassroots leaders developed through the program have contested local government
elections; 32000 candidates have filed their nominations for a variety of positions, and 9500 women
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from SHGs.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
2.1.4 NEED OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Our constitution, in its Fundamental Rights, has provisions for equality,
social justice and
protection of women. These goals are yet to be realized. Women continue to be discriminated,
exploited and exposed to inequalities at various levels.
By empowerment women would be able to develop self esteem and
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their potential and enhance their collective bargaining power.
116
confidence, realize
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Women empowerment can be viewed as a contribution of several inter- related
reinforcing competent.
Awareness building about
and mutually
womens situations, discrimination, rights and opportunities will
act as a step towards gender equality.

Capacity building and skill development, especially the ability to plan, make decisions,
organize, manage and execute will enable to deal with people and institutions in the course of
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business.
117
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Participation and greater control and decision making power in the home, community
CHAPTER 1
society will develop leadership qualities.

Action is needed at all levels to bring about greater quality between men and women.
118
and
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
119
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
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Chapter 3
120
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
ORGANIZATION PROFILE
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
3. ORGANIZATION PROFILE
DISTRICT RURAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY(DRDA)
DRDAs are established for effective implementation of anti-poverty programmes in rural areas at
the district level. It is an institution that acts as a delivery agency to support and facilitate the
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development process. The role of the DRDA is to plan for effective implementation of anti-poverty
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
programmes; coordinating with other agencies like Governmental, non-Governmental, technical and
financial for successful programme implementation. They enable the poor rural community to
participate in the decision making process.
3.1 OBJECTIVE:
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The Primary objective of the DRDA is to effectively manage the anti-poverty
123
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
programmes of the Ministry of Rural Development and interact effectively with
other agencies/Line Departments.
3.2 PURPOSE:
To implement the Rural Development Programmes of the Ministry

of Rural Development
in
the
U.T of
Pondicherry
through
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Block Development Offices strictly in accordance with the guidelines
124
the
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
To Plan for effective implementation of anti-poverty programmes
To execute the plans for the benefit of the target groups either directly
or through others in co-ordination with the existing agencies engaged
in
this
direction
in
the
field
whether
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Private/Public/Cooperative/Corporation/Agency/ Banks (Co-operative
125
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Banks, Commercial
Banks) Department of the State
and Central
Government etc.
To
liaison with
other
agencies-Governmental,
Non-Governmental,
Technical and Financial for successful programme implementation and

to secure inter-sectoral and
CHAPTER 1
cooperation for reducing
126
inter-departmental coordination and
poverty in the G u n t u r district of Andhra
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Pradesh.
To enable the community and the rural poor to participate in the
decision making process,
To oversee the implementation of Rural Development Programmes and
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to
127
ensure that
the benefits
specifically
earmarked
for
certain
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
target groups (SC/ST, women and disabled) reach them. DRDA will
also take necessary steps to achieve the prescribed norms.
To review the progress of the execution of these activities as well
as effectiveness of the benefits directed towards the target groups.
To
ensure
adherence
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efficiency; reporting
128
to
to
guidelines,
quality,
equity
the
prescribed
authorities
on
and
the
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implementation; and promoting transparency in decision making and
implementation.
3.3 MISSION/VISION STATEMENT OF
DRDA
To constantly strive to give the rural poor of the Guntur district,Andhra pradesh,
the information,
Education, Financial and Physical means to better their
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standard of living and quality of life. To foster the economic and social development
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
of the rural areas of the district and to strengthen
entrepreneurial
opportunities
of
quick,
efficient,
transparent, just and equitable and sustainable manner, always by
trying to
understand their genuine needs.
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3.4 BRIEF HISTORY OF DRDA
130
the
infrastructure, employment and
ordinary
person
in
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
This agency was created originally to implement the Integrated Rural Development
Programme(IRDP). Subsequently the DRDAs were entrusted with number of programmes of both state
and central governments.
Since its inception the District Rural Development Agency(DRDA) has been the principal
organ at the District level to oversee the implementation of different Central Government anti-poverty
programmes. It is also taking up State Government Programmes.
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From 1st April,1999 a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme for strengthening the DRDAs has
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
been introduced. This scheme, which is funded on a 75:25 basis between Centre and States, aims at
strengthening and professionalizing the DRDAs for effective functioning of the organization.
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3.5 DUTIES OF DRDA :
132
1.
To oversee the implementation of the following Rural Development.
2.
Monitor the
performance
of
the
Rural
Development Programmes,
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Area Development and Energy Programmes and take corrective action.
3.
Collect the
Action
Plan
proposals
under
Block Development Offices and finalise
all schemes
from
the District Action
the
Plan in
February of each year.
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4.
133
Conduct the Governing Body meeting once in six months to approve
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the Action Plan, other proposals and for ratification of works carried
out in the previous year without approval, for policy directions and
for approval of audited and unaudited statement of accounts of DRDA
5.
Conduct meetings, Conferences and arrange for discussions for creation
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of awareness among the public and sharing of experiences
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
6.
Submit
1st
and
2nd
Utilization Certificates
installment
proposals
for expenditure incurred
to
GOI
along with
for getting
funds
under various Rural Development programmes.

7.
Funds
received under
all schemes will
be
reallocated among the
Block Development Offices based on their needs and released within 15
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days after receipt of funds from GOI.
135
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
8.
Applications received under SGSY will be verified and eligible SHGs will
be released with Revolving Fund and subsidy
9.
Regular training Programmes will be arranged for the

members in the
activities chosen by
them
and
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reputed institutions and agencies/Govt. Departments.
136
Self Group
through
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
10. Arrangements will be
made for provision of marketing linkages and
infrastructure support to the SHGs.

11.
Applications received from the Block Development Offices under IAY

will be scrutinized and sanction will be issued for issue of work order
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by the Block Development Offices.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
12. Estimates received under Civil works viz., in SGRY, TSC and MPLADs
work will be scrutinized and sanction will be issued.
13. Popularize the use of Energy Conserving Devices among the public.
14.
Monthly Progress
Reports
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consolidated Report under
138
are
collected and
each scheme is sent
compiled and
to GOI. Quarterly
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Reports and Annual Reports are also sent to GOI.
15. Conduct of regular inspection at the Project Director level, Project Officer
level and at the APO level to assess the progress under various schemes.
16.
Conduct of
District Level
SGSY
CHAPTER 1
Committee on TSC meeting Vigilance and
139
Committee meeting, District

Monitoring
Committee
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
meetings
and
District Advisory Committee meeting on IREP (once in
three months)
17.
Conduct of BPL Survey at the beginning of every Five Year Plan as

per the guidelines of Ministry of Rural Development and prepare the
CHAPTER 1
list of Below Poverty Line Population (BPL).
140
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
3.6 MAIN ACTIVITIES / FUNCTIONS OF DRDA
1. Effective implementation of the Rural Development Programmes (Viz.,

SGSY, SGRY, IAY, PMGY and TSC)
through
CHAPTER 1
Development Offices in accordance with the guidelines.
141
the
Block
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
2.
Implementation of the MPLAD (LS/RS) scheme
3.
To
prepare
and
implement
area
based
Integrated
Rural
Energy
Programme (IREP) through which the optimum mix of all types of Energy
sources is utilised for meeting
Energy
CHAPTER 1
subsistence and productive purpose.
142
needs
of
Rural
People
for
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
4.
To keep the Block level agencies informed of the basic parameters,

the requirements of the programmes and the tasks to be
performed
under the Programmes.

5.
To co-ordinate and oversee the surveys , preparation of the perspective
CHAPTER 1
plans and Action Plans of the blocks and finally prepare a District Plan.
143
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
6. To conduct the BPL Survey for identification of BPL population for
targeting under various rural development programmes.
7. To evaluate and monitor the programme to ensure its effectiveness.
8. To secure inter sectoral and interdepartmental co-ordination and
CHAPTER 1
operation.
144
co-
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
9. To give publicity to the achievements
made under the programme
and
disseminate knowledge and build up awareness about the programme.

10.
To send periodical returns to the GOI & State Govt., in the prescribed
CHAPTER 1
formats.
145
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
3.7 LIST OF SERVICES BEING PROVIDED BY DRDA.
DRDA is
implementing
Guntur, Andhra pradeshas
per
Development.Sustained efforts
various
the
are
Rural
Development Programmes in
guidelines of
being taken
the
by
Ministry of
the
District
Rural
Rural
Development Agency, Guntur to implement rural development schemes successfully
CHAPTER 1
in the rural areas giving high priority to the disadvantaged sections of the society.
146
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The Centrally sponsored /Plan Schemes implemented by DRDA are as follows:-
1. Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY)
CHAPTER 1
2. Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY)
147
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
3. Housing Schemes :- a) Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY)
b) Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojana (PMGY)
CHAPTER 1
4. Total Sanitation Campaign Programme (TSCP)
148
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5. MPLAD (Lok Sabha/ Rajya Sabha) Scheme.
6. Integrated Rural Energy Programme (IREP)
Swarnjayanti Gram
Swarozgar
Yojana (SGSY)
CHAPTER 1
Poverty is an obstruction to a dignified life. Self Employment is a significant
149
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
step to have sustained incomes and remove the shackles of poverty. DRDA
provides self employment to rural poor by organizing them into SHGs ,
motivating to savings habit providing skill upgradation training and bring
the assisted poor families (Swarozgaris) above the poverty line by providing
them subsidy and bank credit so as to enable them to undertake economic
CHAPTER 1
activities and earn regular income.
150
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY)
Provides additional and supplementary wage employment to rural poor

especially to the
security and
agricultural
labourers
improve nutritional levels.
and
Creates
thereby
durable
ensures
food
Community,
Social and Economic assets and provides infrastructure in the rural areas
CHAPTER 1
and thereby increases opportunities of employment through access to the
151
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
market oriented economy.
Housing Schemes :-
a) Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY) &

b) Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojana (PMGY)
CHAPTER 1
Housing is one of the basic requirements for human survival. For a normal
152
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
citizen, owning a house provides significant economic security and dignity in
society. DRDA implements two housing schemes viz., Indira Awaas Yojana
and
the
Pradhan Mantri Gramodya Yojana
construction of houses to the rural poor.
CHAPTER 1
Total Sanitation Campaign Programme (TSCP)
153
and
provides subsidy
for
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Individual Health and
hygiene is
largely dependent
on
adequate
availability of drinking water and proper sanitation. There is, therefore, a

direct relationship between water, sanitation and health.
DRDA coverage in
rural areas and bring about an improvement in the general quality of life in
the rural areas. Encourages cost effective and appropriate technologies in
Sanitation by providing incentive subsidy for construction of individual
CHAPTER 1
household toilets.
154
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (Lok Sabha/ Rajya
Sabha) - MPLAD (LS/RS)
Undertakes area development works as per the recommendations of the Honrable
CHAPTER 1
Member of Parliament (LS/RS).
155
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Integrated Rural Energy Programme (IREP)
Popularize the use of non-conventional energy sources like solar wind, bioenergy and the devices such as Solar Water Heating system, Solar Cooker, Solar
Street Light and Biogas plant etc., in the U.T of Pondicherry by providing subsidy
CHAPTER 1
as per the guidelines of Ministry of Non-conventional Energy Sources. (MNES)
156
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
ORGANIZATIONAL DESCRIPTION
The staff positions of the DRDA at district level
S.N
o
CHAPTER 1
157
STAFF POSITION
Project Director
REMARKS
Each district has its own District Rural
Development Agency, headed by a project
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
director who is of the rank of an Additional
District Magistrate.
The Project Director is a senior scale officer of
All India Services or a senior officer of the State
Service, eligible for appointment to the All India
Services.
He/ She is overall in-charge of the activities of
CHAPTER 1
the DRDA and responsible for interaction with
158
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
the District/State administration as well as with
CHAPTER 1
159
Two Subject Specialists (Could
Government of India.
The PD is exclusively for DRDA work.
Each district to identify the specialization required as per
be from
the livelihood opportunities in the district. The subject
Agriculture,horticulture,animal,
specialists to be taken from the pool of APOs and DPMs
husbandry,business,service
depending on their expertise, or on contract or on
sector)
deputation from the Governments line department,
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
One district
3
coordinator(Institutional and
To be selected from the pool of APOs or DPMs
Capacity Building)
One District
Coordinator(Microfinance,Com
munity,Investment Fund)
Administrative Officer
Finance Manager
CHAPTER 1
160
To be selected from the pool of APOs or DPMs
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
7
Monitoring and Learning officer

Field office (One for a cluster of 5-7 Mandals)
S.No
1
Area
coordinator(AC) (To
CHAPTER 1
be
161
CAPABILITIES AND
POSITIONS
selected
from
ROLES
EXPERIENCE
Take decitions relating to
To work with the CBOs
Ability to nurture the the project implementation
HGs,VOs,MSs
as per AWFP in the 5-7
Ability to guide and
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
APOs(DRDA),DPM
mentor
Mandals covered by the
S(SERP)
CCs,MBKs,MTCs.etc
office
Support the AC on
Micro
Finance(MF)
Coordinator(To
selected
all the MF related
be Experience in Micro finance and

from Auditing
APMs,EO(DWCRA)
activities
Preparation
micro
plan,SHG-
CHAPTER 1
bank Linkages
162
of
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Livelihood
Coordnator(To
CHAPTER 1
in
CIF Implement CIF component

programmes
component of the project Promote
be
To have knowledge in related to the livelihood of

promoting the livelihoods the poor
of the poor
163
expertise
implementing
selected from Las or

EO(DWCRA)
To have
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Each DRDA has the following wings
Self-employment wing
Womens wing
Wage employment wing
CHAPTER 1
Accounts wing
164
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
Monitoring and Evaluation wing
165
CHAPTER 1
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
166
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 4
167
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
168
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
4. DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
A fundamental indicator of gender inequality in India, and arguably, one of the most powerful, is a preference for sons so strong that it is manifested as limiting the birth and survival of
girls. The 2001 census data for India revealed a sharp decline in the sex ratio for the population
CHAPTER 1
age 0-6, from 945 females in 1991 to 927 females per 1,000 males. The trend in the sex ratio of
169
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
the under-seven population based on National Family Health Survey data for the period
1992-93 to 2005-06 also provides evidence of continued decline and shows that in 2005-06 the underseven sex ratio had fallen further to 918 females per 1,000 males.
Trend data based on the three NFHS surveys provide strong evidence of declines in the sex ratio
(females per 1,000 males) of the population age 0-6 and in the sex ratio at birth for births in the
CHAPTER 1
170
five years preceding each survey.

Females are under-represented among births and over-represented among births that die.
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Sex ratios at birth decline with wealth, suggesting that sex selection of births is more common
among wealthier than poorer households.

Ultrasound tests are being widely used for sex selection, with sex selection being more evident
for the wealthiest women than for women in the other wealth quintiles.
Sex ratios of all last births and last births of sterilized women show clearly that couples
typically stop having children once they have the desired number of sons.
The child mortality rate, defined as the number of deaths to children age 1-4 years per 1,000
CHAPTER 1
children reaching age 1 year, is 61% higher for girls than for boys.
171
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Chart1-Trends in the sex ratio(females per 1,000 males) age 0-6 years, india
940
935
930
925
Trends in the sex

ratio(females per 1,000
males) age 0-6 years, india
934
926
920
CHAPTER 1
915
172
910
918
NHFS-1(1992-93) NHFS-2(1998-99) NHFS-3(2005-06)
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
4.1 Gender Differences in Education
Eliminating gender differences in access to education and educational attainment are key elements on
the path to attaining gender equality and reducing the disempowerment of women. In recognition of the
pivotal role of education in development and of persistent gender inequalities in access to education, the
CHAPTER 1
elimination of gender disparity in primary education is one of the Millennium Development Goals.
173
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The achievement of universal primary education has been a key goal of Indian planning since
Independence. However, increasing access to primary schooling still leaves the twin questions
of educational quality and school retention unanswered. Continued economic development
cannot be sustained with a population that has merely completed primary school; it needs a
dependable supply of highly educated and skilled human capital for which a high level of
educational attainment of both women and men is necessary. However, ensuring a continued
CHAPTER 1
supply of skilled human capital to sustain economic growth is only one objective of reducing
174
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
gender inequalities in educational attainment: the other is that education, particularly higher
education of women, is a key enabler of demographic change, family welfare, and better
health and nutrition of women and their families. Higher education has the potential to
empower women with knowledge and ways of understanding and manipulating the world
around them. Education of women has been shown to be associated with lower fertility, infant
mortality, and better child health and nutrition.
CHAPTER 1
Childrens school attendance
175
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Only two-thirds of girls and three-fourths of boys age 6-17 years are attending school. The sex
ratio of children attending school is 889 girls per 1,000 boys.

There is gender equality in school attendance in urban areas; but, in rural areas, the female
disadvantage in education is marked and increases with age.

Age-appropriate school attendance is lower than any school attendance for both boys and girls.
However, boys and girls who are in school are about equally likely to be in an age-inappropriate
CHAPTER 1
176
class.
School dropout beyond primary school is a major problem for both girls and boys.
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Literacy and educational attainment among adults ..
The percentage of adults who are literate is much lower in rural than in urban areas; nonetheless,
even in urban areas one-fourth of women and more than one-tenth of men are not literate.
Gender disparity in literacy is much greater in rural than in urban areas and declines sharply
CHAPTER 1
with household wealth.
177
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Forty-one percent of women and 18% of men age 15-49 have never been to school.
Educational attainment remains very low: even among the 20-29 age group, only 27% of women
and 39% of men have 10 or more years of education.

The percentage of ever-married women with 10 or more years of education has risen very
CHAPTER 1
slowly from 11% in NFHS-1 to 17% in NFHS-3.
178
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Chart 2 showing percentage of boys and girls attending school in the 2005-06 year,NHFS-3,India
Boys
85
75
81
Girls
80
70
66
CHAPTER 1
49
34
6-17 years
179
6-10 years
11-14 years
15-17 years
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
4.2 Gender Differentials in Adult Literacy
180
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Literacy , i.e., the ability to read and write, is the foundation of education. NFHS-3 shows
that only 55% of women and 78% of men are literate in India. Literacy has, however, been increasing
over time for both women and men as measured by chances across age groups. In fact, literacy among
women is almost twice as high in the 15-19 age group than in the age-group 45-49 that is 30 years older.
CHAPTER 1
Nonetheless, even in the youngest age group, one in four women and one in ten men are not literate.
181
CHAPTER 1
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
182
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Chart 3 showing percentage literate among women and men age 15-49 by age, NFHS-3,india
Women
89
84
81
Men
76
74
70
69
64
CHAPTER 1
55
48
15-19
183
68
20-24
25-29
30-34
43
35-39
40
38
40-44
45-49
CHAPTER 1
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
184
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
4.3 Employment
In addition to education, employment can also be an important source of empowerment for
women. Employment, particularly for cash and in the formal sector, can empower women by
providing financial independence, alternative sources of social identity, and exposure to
CHAPTER 1
power structures independent of kin networks (Dixon-Mueller, 1993). Nonetheless, early ages
185
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
at marriage and child bearing and limited access to education limit womens ability to
participate in the labour market, particularly in the formal sectors. By contrast, male gender
roles are compatible with employment and men are typically expected to be employed and be
breadwinners for their families. Not surprisingly, men dominate most formal labour markets.
This chapter describes womens and mens labour force participation in order to highlight
gender inequalities in access to employment and types of employment. NFHS-3 found that,
CHAPTER 1
among all women age 15-49, 43% had been employed at any time in the past 12 months with
186
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
the majority of them being currently employed. By contrast, 87% of men in the same age group
have been employed in the past 12 months. In the rest of this chapter and report, men and
women referred to as employed are those who have been employed at any time in the past 12
months.
CHAPTER 1
Womens and Mens Employment Status
187
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Employment according to marital status Since women are much more likely to be
constrained by marriage and child bearing and rearing than men, Table provides information on
womens and mens employment within each marital category.
Among women, employment varies greatly by marital status. Women who are divorced,
separated, deserted, or widowed are much more likely to be employed than currently married
women; never married women are least likely to be employed. For men, employment varies
CHAPTER 1
little between those who are currently married and those who were formerly married;
188
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
however, never married men are, as expected, less likely than ever-married men to be
employed. Nonetheless, the proportion of never married men who are employed is almost
twice as high, at 66%, as the proportion of never married women who are employed, at 37%.
Employment by residence Womens employment is likely to be affected by residence, since
agricultural work, which accounts for most employment in rural areas, is typically more
compatible with womens other responsibilities as well as with low levels of education and
CHAPTER 1
skill development. In fact, NFHS-3 finds that women are about two-thirds more likely to be
189
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
employed in rural than in urban areas. Table shows that employment is higher in rural
than in urban areas in every marital category, although the differential by residence is greatest,
at 23 percentage points, among currently married and never married women. Among men, the
differential by residence in employment is negligible across marital categories, with the
CHAPTER 1
highest variation, at only 4 percentage points, being among the never married.
190
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
Women
191
Men
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Divorced/
Married
Seperated
/
Divorced/
Widowed
Never
married
Total
Marrie
Seperated
Deserted
CHAPTER 1
Residence
Urban
27.1
Rural
49.8
Age
15-19
31.4
192
Never
Widowed
marrie
Total
Deserted
66.4
71.5
63.4
70.9
29
42.1
29.3
49.4
98.8
98.8
94.8
94.2
97.7
98.5
63.9
68.1
84
88.7
60.4
56.8
34
33.4
87.6
100
49.3
50.4
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
20-29
37
64.4
30-39
48.8
76
40-49
47.7
70
Education in years of study
None
55.4
77.5
0-4
45.7
68.6
years
5-9
30.9
61.9
years
193
68.6
75.8
64
42.2
58.7
58.3
38.5
50.6
49.7
98.5
99.3
98.8
98.8
93.8
91.2
100
98.7
97.7
82
95.6
85.3
90.3
99
98.5
75.2
58.6
57
99.2
94.2
98.7
95.5
98.6
71.5
55.7
48.8
99.2
88.2
97.5
92.6
97.6
51.8
37.3
33.6
99
96.6
97.4
70.4
87.2
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
10-11
21.5
44.1
47.1
22.3
22.3
99.1
99.8
100
50.2
74.7
29.8
years
Wealth quintile
60.4
67.8
31.3
31
97.5
92.8
100
56.3
79.7
62.4
99.1
89.1
99.9
78.3
93.8
54.4
98.9
93.9
96.5
74.5
91.2
years
12+
61.5
83.8
Second
53.8
70.7
CHAPTER 1
Lowest
194
82.
58.
3
76.
4
50.
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Middle
47
71.8
Fourth
32.7
60.9
21.5
52.1
42.8
69.7
Highes
t
CHAPTER 1
Total
195
2
69.
6
42.
8
60.
2
30.
9
44.
8
22.
1
68.
4
36.
47.3
98.8
96.6
98.3
70.4
88.5
33.5
98.8
96.7
97.3
67.1
85.9
22.5
98.6
99.5
99.4
53.2
78.8
42.8
98.8
94.4
98.3
66.3
87
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
4.4 Married women and decision making
Empowerment literally means to invest with power. However, in the context of womens
empowerment the term has come to denote womens increased control over their own lives,
bodies, and environments. Further, the concept of empowerment encompasses a growing
intrinsic
capabilitygreater
self-confidence
and
an
inner
transformation
of
one s
consciousness that enables one to overcome external barriers (Sen and Batliwala, 2000).
CHAPTER 1
Greater control and increased capabilities to overcome barriers all translate into increased
196
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
agency or the ability to make and implement choices. An important indicator of agency is
decision making power.
In this chapter, indicators of married womens participation in various types of decisions typically made
in households are examined. Decisions asked about are decisions about the use of women s own
earnings and husbands earnings, decisions regarding small and large purchases, and other types of
CHAPTER 1
personal or household decisions.
197
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Among those who have earnings, more women (1 in 5) than men (1 in 18) do not have a major
say in how their own earnings are used and fewer women (about 7 in 10) than men (about 9 in
10 men) have a major say in how their spouses earnings are used.
Womens control over own earnings increases with education and wealth, but mens control
remains consistently high in all educational and wealth categories. Participation in decisions
about the use of spouses earnings increases with education and wealth for women; for men, by
CHAPTER 1
198
contrast, it does not vary by education and declines with wealth.

About one in five currently married women who earn, earn at least as much as their husbands.
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Women who earn about the same as their husbands are more likely to have a major say in the
use of their husbands earnings than both women who earn less than their husbands and who
earn more than their husbands.
Less than two in three currently married women participate, alone or jointly, in decisions about their
own health care, large household purchases, purchases for daily need, and visits to her family and
CHAPTER 1
relatives. The regression analysis shows:
199
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The number of decisions women make alone varies nonlinearly with education and does
not vary with wealth;

The number of decisions women make jointly varies positively with education and nonlinearly
with wealth; and

For women, having earnings that they control is associated with greater participation in
decisions; however, having earnings without a major say in their use is negatively associated
with the number of decisions made jointly and, unexpectedly, positively associated with the
CHAPTER 1
number of decisions made mainly alone.
200
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Chart 4-percentage of currently married (2005-06)women and men age 15-49 employed for cash by whether they have the main say in the use of their earnings,NFHS-3,India
Women Men
94
81
66
CHAPTER 1
57
201
28
24
Alone
Jointly
Alone or Jointly
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
4.5 Spousal violence
About two in five currently married women age 15-49 have experienced spousal violence in
their current marriage, and among women who have ever experienced such violence, more than
CHAPTER 1
202
two in three have experienced violence in the past year.

Slapping is the most common form of spousal physical violence.
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Recent experience of spousal violence varies little by marital duration, but, as expected, ever
experience of spousal violence increases with marital duration.

Women who report both physical and sexual violence are more likely to have injuries and are
subject to more severe forms of physical violence than women who have experienced physical
but no sexual violence.

Women who make household decisions jointly with their husbands, including decisions about
the use of their own earnings, are less likely to experience spousal violence than women who do
CHAPTER 1
not have a major say in these decisions or who make the decisions mainly alone.
203
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Although women who agree that wife beating is justified have a higher prevalence of violence,
one out of three women who do not agree that wife beating is justified have also experienced
violence.
Higher education and wealth consistently lower womens risk of spousal violence; and
husbands consumption of alcohol and having a mother who was beaten by her spouse
significantly increase the risk.

The prevalence of violence is higher for women whose mothers experienced spousal violence
CHAPTER 1
than for women who have husbands whose mothers experienced spousal violence.
204
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Prevalence of spousal violence is higher for women who are employed than women who are not;
however, controlling for wealth and education, employment for cash is related positively only to
emotional violence; it is unrelated to physical violence and is associated with lower odds of
CHAPTER 1
sexual violence (OR=0.85).
205
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
4.6 Gender, Womens Empowerment, And Selected Health,
Nutrition, And Demographic Outcomes
Child vaccination and nutritional status
Girls are less likely to be fully immunized than boys and this differential is
evident even when mothers education and household wealth are controlled for.
CHAPTER 1
206
Childrens likelihood of being fully immunized increases with mothers
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
education; but girls benefit more than boys from having a mother who is highly
educated.
Having mothers who mainly alone decide the use of their husbands earnings
increases a girls but not a boys likelihood of being fully immunized.

Two out of five children age 0-35 months are underweight, with boys and girls
about equally likely to be underweight.

A higher proportion of children are underweight if their mother
CHAPTER 1
207
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
o
is employed than if she is not; however, this association is explained away by
poverty which affects both underweight and womens employment.

has experienced spousal violence than if she has not. Controlling for wealth, this
association is explained away for girls, but remains significant for boys.
Adult nutritional status
More than one in three women and men age 15-49 are too thin. Among couples,
CHAPTER 1
wives are more likely than husbands to be too thin.
208
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Controlling for wealth and education, employment, not having a main say in
decisions about large household purchases, and experiencing spousal physical
or sexual violence are all negatively associated with womens nutritional status.
However, women who have the main say alone on the use of their earnings are
less likely to be too thin than other employed women.

Modern contraceptive use among currently married women
Controlling for number of children ever born and other relevant factors, the
CHAPTER 1
likelihood of women using a modern contraceptive method is
209
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
higher for women who are employed, particularly for cash, and for women who
make decisions mainly alone about large household purchases; and

lower for women who experience both spousal physical and sexual violence.
CHAPTER 1
4.7 DRDA(stats)
210
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
To overcome the issues and empower women DRDA came into existence and implementing so
many programs. The District Rural Development Agencies (DRDAs) help the Rural Development
Department in implementation, monitoring and evaluation of various Rural Development Programmes
at district level. These DRDAs are registered societies under the Registration of Societies Act.
Some of the services are..
CHAPTER 1
211
Eradicating poverty in rural areas.
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Empower grass root level peoples organizations
Mobilize self-help groups of poor women
Co-ordinating voluntary efforts in poverty eradication
Ameliorate deterioration of natural resources and enable common property resource
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management by stakeholders.
212
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Developing skills in rural communities to handle self-employment programmes and microenterprises.

Enabling technology to be accessible to rural areas
Narrowing down gap between urban-rural Sectors and achieve a urban-rural continue
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213
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Schemes implementing
The D.R.D.A. is playing crucial role to bring the various Government Sponsoring Schemes to the door
step of the poor people residing at villages. Following are the variousCentral Government schemes
CHAPTER 1
monitoring by DRDA
214
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
215
S.G.S.Y
S.G.S.Y Special projects
National Old Age Pension Scheme
National Family Benefit Scheme
Krishi Shramik Samajik Suraksha Youjana
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The Government of India introduced a Life Insurance Coverage cum Social Security
Scheme for Poor Agriculture Labourers as Pilot Project in 50 District in the Country and 3 District in the
State from November, 2002. The West Godavari District is one of the Pilot Project District for
implementing the KSSSY Scheme.
CHAPTER 1
The following State Government schemes are also implementing the District.
216
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
State Matching Grant

Deepam
Gruhamitra
Self Employment Generation
Additional Old Age Pensions
Weavers Old Age Pensions
Further the Government of Andhra Pradesh has merged the Youth Welfare and CMEY and
CHAPTER 1
directed the C.E.O., SETWEL to work under the control of P.D., D.R.D.A. The Government of Andhra
217
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Pradesh emphasizing the Convergency of Self Employment Schemes and established Employment
Generation Mission under the Chairmenship of Honble Chief Minister at State Level, The District
Collector at District Level the Collected designated as Chairman for Employment Generation
Committee and P.D., D.R.D.A. as Special Officer, Employment Generation for monitoring and
CHAPTER 1
implementing the various Self Employment Schemes in the District
218
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
4.8 Self Help Groups
District Total No.of Members
CHAPTER 1
(A).Thrift
(B).R.F/M.G
(C).SHG-Bank Loans
(D).IRDP/SGSY
219
No.of Groups
22025
12288
15950
703
2,90,380
Amount(Rs.in lakhs)
5680.06
1699.26
3803.23
640.46
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
(E).R.F/M.G matching loan
CORPUS(A+B+C+D)
2613
391.95
12214.96
SHG-BANK LINKAGES (UNDER NABARD REFINANCES SCHEME)
CHAPTER 1
S.NO
220
YEAR
NO.OF.GROUPS
TOTAL
AVERAGE PER
AMOUNT(IN
GROUP(RS IN
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
1
2
3
4
5
1999-2000
2000-2001
2001-2002
2002-2003
TOTAL
% GROUPS
COVERED SO
CHAPTER 1
FAR
221
930
2240
7714
5066
15950
LAKHS)
130.20
529.60
1773.08
1370.35
3803.23
72%
LAKHS)
0.15
0.23
0.22
0.27
0.24
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
222
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
4.9 Swayamsidha Scheme
Swayamsidha is an integrated scheme for empowerment of women through formation of self help
groups (SHGs). The scheme was launched in February 2001 and aimed for holistic empowerment of
women through sustained mobilization and convergence of all the on-going sectoral programmes by
improving access of women to micro credit, economic resources, bank linkages, etc. The scheme
culminated in March 2008. Against a target of 65,000 SHGs, 69,803 SHGs were formed and 1 million
CHAPTER 1
women covered under the scheme. The number of SHGs formed under Swayamsidha is given in
223
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Table.
S. No.
India/State/UT
Funds Release
during 200708 (Rs. in
Lakhs)
No. of
Districts
2287.3
335
India
Andhra Pradesh
2.
Arunachal Pradesh
CHAPTER 1
1.
224
0
9.35
No. of Blocks
Covered
650
23
38
No. of SHGs
Formed
69803
3874
600
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Assam*
Bihar
5.
Chhattisgarh
6.
Delhi*
7.
8.
Goa
Gujarat
9.
Haryana
CHAPTER 1
3.
4.
225
110.12
492.45
20
19
24
63
2400
6340
57.63
16
17
1620
69.96
20
27
2772
24.35
13
1300
276
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Himachal Pradesh
44.25
11.
Jammu & Kashmir
36.85
13
13
1300
12.
Jharkhand
127.47
11
24
2427
13.
Karnataka
12
20
2992
14.
Kerala
4.76
18
2246
15.
Madhya Pradesh
115.4
13
36
3667
16.
Maharashtra
36.04
20
36
3922
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10.
226
969
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
17.
Manipur
18.
Meghalaya
19.
Mizoram
20.
Nagaland
300
534
300
600
S. No. India/State/UT
Funds Release
No. of
No. of Blocks
No. of SHGs
21.
Orissa
105.93
during
2007-08
36
3600
22.
Punjab
99.96
15
2059
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227
32.73
0
11.31
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Rajasthan
18.23
26
30
3000
24.
Sikkim
22.6
576
25.
Tamil Nadu*
65.76
44
5452
26.
Tripura
19.75
327
27.
Uttar Pradesh
539.33
54
94
9268
28.
Uttarakhand
33.73
11
1100
29.
West Bengal
39
5184
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23.
228
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Union Territories
30.
Andaman & Nicobar
31.
225
Chandigarh
32.
Dadra & Nagar Haveli
33.
Daman & Diu
34.
Lakshadweep*
273
35.
Puducherry*
300
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2.97
229
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Other Expenses
206.37
The implementers of the scheme i.e. 6 Programme Officers and 13 CDPOs i.e. Project
Implementing Authorities (PIAs) of Swayamsidha Distt. have been trained in Legal Literacy and Micro
Enterpreneur Development through the NGOs and on Self Help Groups concepts and Income
Generation Activities. One exposure visit was also conducted for the implementers at National Institute
CHAPTER 1
of Rural Development, Hyderabad during July, 2005. During the 6 years of implementation of the
230
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
project period the members of all the SHGs have been imparted training such as Self Defence Training,
Confidence Building Training, Legal Literacy Training, Accounts Keeping Training and Gender
CHAPTER 1
Sensitization Training by the NGOs.
231
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Some indicators depicting the progress in the situation of Indian women are given in Table
Development Indicators
Women
Men
Total Women
Men
Total
* Demography
- Population
CHAPTER 1
(in million in 1971 & 2001)

- Decennial Growth (1971 & 2001)
232
264.1 284.0
24.9
24.4
548.1
24.6
495.7 531.2 1027.1

21.7
20.9
21.34
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
* Vital Statistics
- Sex Ratio (1971 & 2001)
930 -
- Expectation of Life at Birth
50.2
50.5
(1971 & 2001-06)

- Mean Age at Marriage (1971 & 1991)
17.2
22.4 -
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* Health and Family Welfare
233
933 50.9
66.91 63.87 19.3
23.9 -
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
- Birth Rate (1971 & 2008)
36.9 -
- Death Rate (1970 & 2008)
15.6
15.8
15.7
- Infant Mortality Rate (1978 & 2008)
131
123
127 55
(2007) (5-14 years) - Maternal Mortality Rate (1980 & 2006)
468 -
CHAPTER 1
Per 1000 live births

- Child Death Rate (2007) (0-4 years) -
234
6.8
22.8
8.0
7.4
52
53
15.2
16.0
1.2
1.1
254 -
1.2
16.9
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
* Literacy and Education
- Literacy Rates (1971 & 2001)
7.9
24.9
16.7
54.28 75.96
65.38
(1990-91 & 2006-07) (%)

Classes I-V
85.5 113.9
100.1
107.8 114.4
111.2
Classes VI-VIII
47.8
CHAPTER 1
- Gross Enrolment Ratio
235
76.6
62.1
69.5
77.4
73.6
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
- Drop-out Rate
(1990-91 & 2006-07) (%)
Classes I-V
46
Classes I-VIII
Development Indicators
Women Men
CHAPTER 1
* Demography
236
40.1
-
42.6
26.6
24.4
25.4
45.3
46.6
46.0
Total
Wom Men
Total
en
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
- Population
264.1
284.0 548.1
495.7 531.2
1027.
- Decennial Growth (1971 & 2001)
24.9
24.4
24.6
21.7
20.9
121.34
- Sex Ratio (1971 & 2001)
930
933
- Expectation of Life at Birth
50.2
50.5
50.9
66.91 63.87
- Mean Age at Marriage (1971 & 1991) 17.2
22.4
19.3
CHAPTER 1
* Vital Statistics
237
23.9
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
* Health and Family Welfare
238
- Birth Rate (1971 & 2008)
36.9
22.8
- Death Rate (1970 & 2008)
15.6
15.8
15.7
6.8
8.0
7.4
- Infant Mortality Rate (1978 & 2008)131
123
127
55
52
53
1000 Death
live births
-PerChild
Rate (2007) (0-4 years)-
16.9
15.2
16.0
(2007)
(5-14 years)
- Maternal
Mortality Rate (1980 &468
254
2006)
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
* Literacy and Education
- Literacy Rates (1971 & 2001)
7.9
24.9
Classes I-V
85.5
Classes VI-VIII
47.8
16.7
54.28 75.96
65.38
113.9 100.1
107.8 114.4
111.2
76.6
69.5
73.6
- Gross Enrolment Ratio
CHAPTER 1
- Drop-out Rate
239
62.1
77.4
CHAPTER 1
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
240
Classes I-V
46
40.1
42.6
26.6
24.4
25.4
Classes I-VIII
45.3
46.6
46.0
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
4.10 Measures for Womens Empowerment
India attained freedom from British rule on 15th August 1947. India was declared a sovereign
Democratic Republic on 26th January 1950. On that date the Constitution of India came into force.
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All citizens of India are guaranteed social, economic and political justice, equality of status and
241
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
opportunities before law by the Constitution. Fundamental freedom of expression, belief, faith,
worship, vocation, association and action are guaranteed by the Indian Constitution to all citizenssubject to law and public morality.
The Constitution of India - Provisions Relating to Women
CHAPTER 1
The Constitution of India not only grants equality to women, but also empowers the State to
242
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
adopt measures of positive discrimination in favour of women for removing the cumulative socioeconomic, educational and political disadvantages faced by them.
Advancement of Women through Five Year Plans
There has been a progressive increase in the plan outlays over the last six decades of
CHAPTER 1
planned development to meet the needs of women and children. The outlay of Rs. 4 crores in the
243
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
First Plan (1951-56) has increased to Rs. 7,810.42 crores in the Ninth Five Year Plan, and Rs. 13,780
crores in the Tenth Five Year Plan. There has been a shift from welfare oriented approach in the
First Five Year Plan to development and empowerment of women in the consecutive Five Year
CHAPTER 1
Plans.
244
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Perspectives on Advancement of Women through Five Year Plans

First Five Year Plan
It was mainly welfare oriented as far as womens issues were concerned. The
(1951-56)
Central Social Welfare Board (CSWB) undertook a number of welfare measures

through the voluntary sector. The programmes for women were implemented
CHAPTER 1
through the National Extension Service Programmes through Community
245
Development Blocks.
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Second Five Year
Efforts were geared to organise Mahila Mandals (womens groups) at
Plan(1956-61)
grass-roots levels to ensure better implementation of welfare schemes.
Third, Fourth, Fifth and
They accorded high priority to womens education. Measures to improve
other
maternal and child health services, and supplementary feeding for children,
Interim
Plans
(1961-74)
Sixth Five Year Plan
nursing and expectant mothers were also introduced.

This is regarded as a landmark in womens development. The Plan adopted a
(1980-85)
multidisciplinary approach with a three-pronged thrust on health, education and
CHAPTER 1
employment of women.
246
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Seventh Five Year
Development programmes for women were continued, with the objective of
Plan(1985-90)
raising their economic and social status and bring them into the mainstream of
national development.
A very significant step therein was to identify and
CHAPTER 1
promote beneficiary-oriented programmes which extended direct benefits to
247
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Eighth Five Year
It attempted to ensure that the benefits of development from different sectors
Plan(1992-97)
did not bypass women. Special programmes were

implemented to complement the general development programmes.
The flow of benefits to women in the three core sectors of education, health
and employment were monitored vigilantly. Women were enabled to function as
equal partners and participants in the developmental process with reservation in
CHAPTER 1
the membership of local bodies.
248
This approach of the Eighth Plan marks a
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Ninth Five Year
The Ninth Five Year Plan envisaged :
Plan(1997-2002)
a) Empowerment of women and socially disadvantaged groups such as

Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes and Minorities
as agents of socio-economic change and development.
b) Promoting and developing peoples participatory institutions like
Panchayati Raj institutions, cooperatives and self-help groups. c) Strengthening
CHAPTER 1
efforts to build self-reliance.
249
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Tenth Five Year
The Tenth Five Year Plan was formulated to ensure requisite access of women to
Plan(2002-2007)
information, resources and services, and advance gender equality goals.
Eleventh Five Year
The Eleventh Five Year Plan proposes to undertake special measures for
Plan(2007-2012)
gender empowerment and equity. The Ministry of Women and Child

Development would make synergistic use of gender budget and gender
CHAPTER 1
mainstreaming process.
250
CHAPTER 1
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
251
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 5
252
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
FINDINGS AND SUGESSIONS
253
CHAPTER 1
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
254
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5. FINDINGS AND SUGESSIONS
5.1 WOMEN EMPOWERMENT IN INDIA MILESTONES & CHALLENGES
Empowerment is now increasingly seen as a process by which the one's without power gain greater
control over their lives. This means control over material assets, intellectual resources and ideology. It
involves power to, power with and power within. Some define empowerment as a process of awareness
CHAPTER 1
and conscientization, of capacity building leading to greater participation, effective decision-making
255
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
power and control leading to transformative action. This involves ability to get what one wants and to
influence others on our concerns. With reference to women the power relation that has to be involved
includes their lives at multiple levels, family, community, market and the state. Importantly it involves
at the psychological level women's ability to assert themselves and this is constructed by the 'gender
roles' assigned to her specially in a cultural which resists change like India.
CHAPTER 1
The questions surrounding women's empowerment the condition and position of women have
256
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
now become critical to the human rights based approaches to development. The Cairo conference in
1994 organized by UN on Population and Development called attention to women's empowerment as a
central focus and UNDP developed the Gender Empowerment measure (GEM) which focuses on the
three variables that reflect women's participation in society political power or decision-making,
education and health. 1995 UNDP report was devoted to women's empowerment and it declared that if
human development is not engendered it is endangered a declaration which almost become a lei motif
CHAPTER 1
for further development measuring and policy planning. Equality, sustainability and empowerment were
257
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
emphasized and the stress was, that women's emancipation does not depend on national income but is
an engaged political process.
Drawing from Amartya Sen's work on 'Human capabilities' an idea drawn from Aristotle a
new matrix was created to measure human development. The emphasis was that we need to enhance
CHAPTER 1
human well being flourishing and not focus on growth of national income as a goal.
258
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
People's choices have to be enlarged and they must have economic opportunities to make use of these
capabilities. States and countries would consider developments in terms of whether its people lead a
long healthy painless life or no are educated and knowledgeable and enjoy decent standards of living.
The intuitive idea behind the capability is twofold according to Martha Nussbaum (2003) first, that
CHAPTER 1
there are certain functions that are particularly central to human life. Second, that there is something do
259
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
these in a truly human way, not a mere animal way. The list of capabilities that she draws is crosscultural as necessary element of truly human functioning. They include:
Life-being able to live to the end of human life of normal length: not dying prematurely, or
before one's life is so reduced as to be not worth living.
CHAPTER 1
260
Bodily health being able to have good health including reproductive health, to be adequately
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
nourished, to have adequate shelter.
Bodily integrity Being able to move freely from place to place, to be secure against violent
assault, including sexual assault and domestic violence; having opportunities for sex satisfaction
and for choice in matters of reproduction.
CHAPTER 1
261
Senses, imagination and thought Being able to use the sense, to imagine, think and reason in a
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
truly human way including but not limited to literacy. Being able to use one's mind and
imagination protected by freedom of expression.
Emotions being able to have attachments, to love, to grieve to experience longing gratitude
and justified anger. Not having one's emotional development blighted by fear and anxiety.
CHAPTER 1
262
Practical Reason Being able to form a conception of the good and to engage in critical
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
reflection about planning of one's life's protected by liberty of conscience.
Affiliation Being able to live with and toward others to have social interactions, to have the
capability of both justice and friendship. This would entail freedom of assembly and free speech.
Having social bases for self-respect and non-humiliation, being protected against discrimination
CHAPTER 1
on the basis of race, sex sexual orientation religion caste or region.
263
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Other species Being able to concern with nature.
Play being able to laugh, play and enjoy.
Control over one's environment.
a) Political. Being able to participate effectively in political choices that govern one's life, having
CHAPTER 1
the right to political participation, protection of free speech and association.
264
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
b) Material. Being able to hold property to seek employment on equal bases and having freedom
from unwarranted search and seizure. In work, being able to work as a human being, exercising
practical reason and entering into meaningful relationships of mutual recognition with the
workers.
These capabilities cover the so called "first generation rights" (political & civil liberties) as well as the
CHAPTER 1
"second generation rights" (economic and social rights0. It has been emphasized that women all over the
265
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
world have been short shifted and have not found support for their central human functions. Women are
capable of these functions given sufficient, nutrition, education and other support. Women are most
often not treated as subjects. Women are as capable as men of exercising will, controlling desires and
taking decisions but males enjoy support of social institutions and women are excluded as the 'other'.
Women are often not treated as "ends in themselves" persons with dignity who deserve respect from
laws and institutions instead they are treated instrumentally as reproducers, caregivers, sexual receivers,
CHAPTER 1
agents of family's general prosperity.
266
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Human development report since 1999 demonstrate that practically no country in the world
treats its women as well as men according to the measures of life expectancy wealth and education.
Developing countries present especially urgent problems where caste and class result in acute failure of
human capabilities of women. Women in this part of south East Asia lack essential support for fully
functioning human lives. Within the country there are many issues to be addressed closely.
CHAPTER 1
5.1.1 GDI: Inter State Comparison
267
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The virtues of a measure such as the GDI, which can project the status of women by
encapsulating achievements in three basis dimensions, soon become clear to policy makers. It spurred
efforts to rank States in India by calculating their GDI (Shiv Kumar 1966, Seeta Prabhu, Sarkar and
Radha 1996; Aasha Kapur Mehta 1996; Hirway and Mahadevia 1996). A comparison of the HDI and
GDI reveal that in Punjab, Haryana, Bihar. West Bengal and Rajasthan development has been inequitous
and women did not get equal share in the development. For Uttar Pradesh which has the lowest HDI
CHAPTER 1
rank as well as the lowest GDI rank, the challenge is to see how men and women can more from being
268
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
equal partners in slow development to partners in dynamic growth.
Empowerment of women is a commitment for PACS and some others strategic programmes,
while developing strategies for empowering women some programmes are sensitive to recognizing
women's contribution and their knowledge as the first step. The appreciate that women require
principally social support to fight their sense of inadequacy and fears to enhance their self-respect and
CHAPTER 1
dignity. Empowering women means control over their bodies and becoming economically independent,
269
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
controlling resources like land and property and reduction of burden of work. A society or programme
which aims at women's empowerment needs to create and strengthen sisterhood and to promote overall
nurturing, caring and gentleness. PACS emphasis on emphasis on women SHG's as a collective is one
such efforts. Being conference 1995 had identified certain quantitative and qualitative indicators of
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women empowerment.
270
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.1.2 Beijing conference 1995 indicators of women empowerment,
qualitative & quantitative Qualitative:
Increase in self-esteem, individual and collective confidence;
Increase in articulation, knowledge and awareness on health, nutrition reproductive rights, law
CHAPTER 1
and literacy;
Increase an decrease in personal leisure time and time for child care;
Increase on decrease of work loads in new programmes;
Change in roles and responsibility in family & community;
Visible increase on decrease in violence on women and girls;
Responses to, changes in social customs like child marriage, dowry, discrimination against
271
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
widows;
Visible changes in women's participation level attending meeting, participating and demanding
CHAPTER 1
participation;
Increase in bargaining and negotiating power at home, in community and the collective;
Increase access to and ability to gather information;
Formation of women collectives;
Positive changes in social attitudes;
Awareness and recognition of womens economic contribution within and outside the household.
Women s decision-making over her work and income.
272
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Quantitative indicators:
A. demographic trends
maternal mortality rate
fertility rate
sex ratio
CHAPTER 1
273
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
life expectancy at birth
average age of marriage
B. Number of women participating in different development programmers

C. Greater access and control over community resources/government schemescrche, credit cooperative, non formal education
CHAPTER 1
D. Visible change in physical health status and nutritional level
274
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
E. Change in literacy and & enrollment levels
F. Participation levels of women in political processMonitorable targets for the Tenth Plan and beyond
had certain key issues related to gender.
All children in school by 2003; all children to complete five years of schooling by 2007.
Reduction of gender gaps in literacy and wage rates by at least 50% by 2007.
CHAPTER 1
275
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Reduction of IMR to 45 per 1000 live births by 2007 and 28 by 2012.
Reduction of maternal mortality ratio (MMR) to 2 per 1000 live births by 2007 onto to by 2012.
India's declining sex ratio caused through foeticide, infanticide and systematic neglect requires urgent
and comprehensive action. It is well evidenced that low literacy, endemic under nutrition and social
CHAPTER 1
inequality are closely related gender inequality is a crucial antecedent to endemic undernutrition.
276
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.1.3 Education:
Women's education is extremely important intrinsically as it is their human right and required for
the flourishing of many of their capacities.
It is, however, noticed that most programmes for education of girls and women in India have
CHAPTER 1
reinforced Gender roles specially motherhood in curriculum as well as impact evaluation. The huge
277
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
study of nearly 94% of India's population done by Drez and others looks at female literacy and its
negative and statistically significant impact on child mortality.
The questions of power are interlinked and we understand that what is necessary is both objective
power in terms of economic resources, laws, institutional roles and norms held by others as well as
subjective power in terms of self efficacy and entitlements. Empowerment of women is closely related
CHAPTER 1
to formal and informal sources of education. Late 19
278
th
century & 20th century reformers advocated
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
women's education as a principal strategy to answer the 'women's question'. Many innovative efforts are
accelerated after the NPE. In UP a renewal process of correcting gender stereotyping was initiated in
1998 looking at textbooks and training besides infrastructure and community mobilization. There is
marked improvement in girls enrollment and steady decline in drop out rates.
Despite statistically positive trends closer studies show that privileged spaces in classrooms
are occupied by boys. Girls are rarely addressed by their names. Girls sit in last rows in classes of
CHAPTER 1
mathematics and rarely muster courage enough to come close to the board where the teacher sits
279
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
(usually a male in most remote areas? Private school initiative for gender concerns is rare Madarsas
have large number of girls but like convents and Arya Kanya Pathshala's gender transformation is not
their agenda. Moral science text books still have preponderance of men. Women as agents of social
reform are not mentioned. CSO efforts have very often shown greater enhancement of girls self-esteem
but in many cases there is poor cognitive development generally attributed to low paid, low qualified
but highly motivated instructor. Kanya Vidya Dhan, free uniforms, mid-day meal, school attached
CHAPTER 1
crche, mothers meetings have all had positive results.
280
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
In various surveys conducted by ISST it has been apparent that parental apathy or opposition
to girl child education is fast reading even in traditional male dominated states of north Indian. Given
the right infrastructure-schools located in neighbourhoods, preferably with female teachers parents
would allow girls to study "as long as they would like to". It may however be noticed as evidenced by
researchers, the same families who are willing to see girls in college react violently if the girl decides to
CHAPTER 1
choose her partner in marriage or challenge other norms of feminine behavior.
281
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.1.4 Health:
2005-06 National Family Health Survey (NFHS 3) conducted through 18 research organizations
between 2005 December and August 2006 provides us with several important data based insights not
provided by earlier surveys. There has been a steady increase in institutional delivery percentages from
NFHS 1 to 3 from 26 to 41 the increase in rural from 17 to 31 is more promising than urban from 58
CHAPTER 1
to 69. Overall fertility rate has declined from 3.4 to 2.7. The states of Punjab and Maharashtra have
282
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
reached the replacement level of fertility, i.e. around 2 children per woman. Women in Chatisgarh and
Orrissa are expected to have an average of about 2.5 children at current fertility rates. The urban areas in
five states studied by NFHS, Chattisgarh, Gujrat, Maharashtra, Orissa and Punjab have reached below
replacement level fertility. There is a difference between the fertility of women with no education and
those with 10 or more years of schooling. Trends in antenatal care have remained more or less constant
in NFHS 1 and 2 between rural and urban women but have increased from 65 to 77% total. The five
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state study shows regional imbalances in post natal care from only 23 per cent in Chhatisgarh to 54-59
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
per cent in Maharashtra, Punjab and Gujrat.
More than 40% ever married women and about one third men in orissa and Gujrat are thin
for their height, undernutrition is much lower in Punjab (12-14%) obesity is the major problem in
Punjab 38% women are overweight. Overweight or obese women percfedntage hjas incrfeased in the
last 7 years from 16 to 20 per cent in Gujrat from 12 to 17 per cent in Maharashtra and from 4 to 7 per
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cent in Orissa. The extent of overweight is greater in women than men. Overall 14.8% women are
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
obese. Except in Punjab in the other states more than 50 per cent of the children of women without any
education are underwseight. The percentage of anaemia ranges from 38% in Punjab to 63% in Orissa.
Anaemia prevalence is alarming among pregnant women 57.9 which is more than last recorded 49.7%.
33% of women still have BMI below normal, which has declined from 36.2. IMR has gone down but
gender differences persist. This is true also of under 5 mortality. Life expectancy of women however
stands a level higher than that of men. From 1961 to 2001 both in total population as well as in the
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population of 0-6 there has been a decline in sex ratio from 943 to 935 and 976 to 927 respectively.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
There is a fear that overall reduction of state resources in the welfare sector and specially less than 1%
investment in health is going to exacerbate the existing gender bias in society.
5.1.5 Political Participation:
Women's political participation has been considered a major measure of women's empowerment.
Globally, through histories of the world we have records of very few regents, sovereigns, and active
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agents in nobility who were women. Champions of liberalism like John Stuart Mill had advocated
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
women's participation in governance by the struggle for women suffrage in the self avowed liberal west
very well illustrates the entrenched nature of Patriarchical resistance to women's empowerment. In the
last century more women heads of state could be counted in Asia as compared to Europe and the
struggle for women suffrage in India was physically less violent but this is not reflective of greater
acceptance of women in decision-making in public spaces.
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To measure women's empowerment now GEM takes 3 indicators, women's participation in
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
economic, political and professional activities. Within political power what is measured is mainly
women in parliament, judiciary or in local bodies. Women's empowerment or disempowerment has to be
seen in all areas physical, socio cultural religious, political legal and economic.
It is also now often pointed out that women's empowerment must be seen as a process where in
we must consider women's awareness consciousness, choices with live alternatives, resources at their
disposal, voice, agency and participation. These are all related to enhancement of women's capabilities
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and decisions they take individually or collectively for themselves.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Several programmes in India like Mahila Samakhya have accepted the process nature of women's
empowerment. The understandings of empowerment in PACS has also been similar but planning of
activity, time and budgets to ensure the empowering processes need greater scrutiny. Women's
education, livelihood and personal exercise of agency have to be systematically promoted .
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The 73
289
rd
and 74th Amendments of the Constitution have impacted nearly 600 million Indian
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
people in 500,000 villages. Interestingly the percentage of women at various levels of political activity
have risen from 4-5% to 25-40%. Both nationally as well as at the state and local levels women in
elected bodies have been very few and even those who have been elected when observed from closer
quarters present a complex picture. The money and muscle associated with the electoral process inhibits
a large number of women from joining politics. Restriction on mobility, lack of control over resources
and low literacy rates are well known obstacles but recent panchayat elections have evidenced a
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phenomenally large number of elected leaders much beyond reserved 33% seats. Areas where PACS,
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Mahila Samakhya or other CSO initiatives are working women are more articulate and vigilant and have
used opportunity to improve ICPS centres, primary schools sanitation and have also publicly dealt with
issues of misbehavour with girls, violence and alcoholism as well as sensitive issues of widowed women
dressing in coloured clothes. Women are increasingly demanding not only basis but also land literacy
and fuller longer trainings instead of being short changed through orientations.
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It is obvious that a more active Gram Sabha which is sensitive to women's specific issues is a
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
much desired goal as a woman sarpanch or BDC member in a gender hostile panchayat may not be able
to accomplish and sustain much for the benefit of women or the village community at large. More
women in grass root organizations; better law and order will ensure better engagement of women in
decision-making.
More than one million women have now entered political life in India and 43% of the seats are
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occupied by them district, province and national level. Women's participation is understood in terms of
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
voter turn out, number of women contestants apart from the number of those who succeeded in winning.
In an interesting study sponsored by State Planning Commission in U.P. 2006 about 45%
women both rural and urban reported being influenced by men of the family (father/husband) in
decision- making in the exercise of their ballot. 9 per cent reported external influence while 46 per cent
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exercise independent choice.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
However, the battle to make the PRI's affective instruments of local rural governance is a battle, a
struggle of the grass roots, population (women and men) against administrative apathy and listlessness,
against ignorance and low awareness. For women these odds are accompanied and intermeshed with
deep rooted patriarchal practices that determine and sanction norms of speech and behaviour both within
and outside the home.
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Thus while Pre election trainings of voluntary organisations and CSVOs serve to build awareness
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
about the duties, responsibilities of PR's and about voting practices, the presence and working of
women's voluntary organisations at the grass roots have served to sharpen women's understanding about
the operation of patriarchy in personal lives and work places and the methods and practices to overcome
and combat them individually and collectively.
Organisations such as Mahila Samakhya working to conscientise and organise women in groups
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and sanghas are able to address the issue of women and their participation in a two fold manner. On the
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
one hand they organise intensive training programmes for women PRI representatives to make them
effective functionaries and on the other hand tghere own programmes with their members within there
collectives serve to build a culture of questioning, critical thinking, collective decision-making and
mobilisation on public issues. A mobilised community of women is thus able to raise issues of
significance to the local community within the meetings, demand accountably from representatives and
administrative officials regarding financial and procedural matters and intervene with creative
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suggestions.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
It is thus that the dominance of patriarchy money power, party politics muscle power are steadily
undercut and eroded and women's concerns are gradually pushed to the forefront of local politics.
Drawing from intensive discussions at the level of sanghas and mahasanghas and the
experiences culled called from functionaries and from trainings, Mahila Samakhya has drawn out
learnings to strengthen women's participation in the Panchayats. A memorandum incorporating these
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has been presented to the Panchayat Raj Department. It states
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
It is imperative to inscribe the budget for the village on the Panchayat Bhawan.
Thefre should be rules and strategies to train and activate women members who have been
elected to the post of Pradhans or members.
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There should be strict rules for ensuring the participation of 2/3 voters in the open meeting.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
the signatures of the people in the executive register of the open meeting should be ensured.
It should be compulsory for the Pradhan/Secretary to sit in the panchayat Bhawan.
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The development plan should be widely disseminated so that it can reach the general public.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The dates and time of the panchayat meetings in the state of U.P. should be decided in advance.
The venue of the meeting should be either the Panchayat Bhawan ofr a public place, to enable
all gram sabha members to present their problems.
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Thus it is apparent that women see effective and efficient functioning of panchayats closely linked to the
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
issue of active women's participation. (Mahila Samakhya U.P. Annual Report 20045-05.
Entry into public space, utilisation of authority in practice, trainings by government and nongovernment agencies are all part of a process of gradual growth of knowledge, self -esteem and
empowerment, which gives women the agency to function effectively in the political process.
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Even proxy and dummy candidates may experience this process of empowerment women who
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
stand and win from general seats are more likely to have a higher commitment towards, and an
understanding of the political process.
Having a high participation of women at the local self government level can create an environment
which is enabling for other women, receptive to the idea of gender based initiatives and can serve to
monitor and implement community and gender based programmes of the government related to
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education, nutrition and health.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
It offers a potential opportunity which can be utilised at an optimum level by appropriate trainings both
capacity binding and information enhancing by government departments and the NGO Sector.
5.1.6 Decision-Making:
In terms of decision-making NFHS II had reported in the rural areas women take 71%
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decisions regarding "what items to cook" 26% decisions regarding obtaining health care fro herself 10%
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
in purchasing jewellery or other major household items. 12% decisions were taken by women with
reference to staying with their parents or siblings and 37% about how to spend money, which they had
earned. In the urban areas these figures were 71%, 35%, 13%, 18% and 57% respectively. Women
between ages 15 to 19 nearly 24% are not involved in any kind of decision-making only. 14% do not
ask permission to go to the market. In rural sector 10% are involved with any decision-making and 74%
need permission for going to the market. In urban sector however only 7% are not involved with any
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decision-making and 53% need permission for going to the market. Survey reports that of the 52%
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
illiterate women 74% of urban resident and 55% of rural resident have access to money. Small studies
on elected Panchayat leaders show episodic increase of their decision-making in personal, social and
political spaces. Studies of the NFHS scale are necessary to retrieve such data specially in PACs
programme areas. This could be done with reference to internal lending of SHG's as well as leveraging
through other agencies in terms of both economic status enhancement and their decision- making.
Interestingly some studies reflect that women's working outside home in paid job does not always
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translate into appreciably greater autonomy within the household for most women. In a sample study at
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Sonepat and Noida 66% need to consult somebody and take permission before changing jobs 27.6%
women in Noida and 35.3% in Sonepat said they are allowed to buy nothing at all.
Working outside home women do believe that they have more experience (91.6%), enlarged social
networks (48.3%) and stronger personality (32.2%) and an increased self esteem 985.3%) besides their
decision-making power (62.2%). The researchers however observe that objective state of affairs do not
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bear this out and women's decision-making is concentrated to making small purchases. In buying and
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
selling assets they have no say.
Methodologically here there is a dilemma about privileging of perspective that of the responmdent
or that of the urban middle class educated researcher. This is particularly pertinent as the sense of being
empowered is also importantly about "feeling empowered".
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5.1.7 Self Help Groups:
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
PACS programme has largely utilized SHG's as an empowsering instrument. More than 80% of these
are exclusively for women. The fifth national synthesis report (Draft) reports that official perception has
changed as SHG's are firmly raising voices and SHG's are being used to achieve RTI awareness:
> Women members are elected as PRI representatives.
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> SHG/PRIs are regularly organising Gram Sabha as a forum for public appraisal.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Anecdotal accounts suggest that women are economically empowered those suffering domestic violence
are given legal reference and awareness to prevent child marriage promote girls education and prevent
dowry marriage and alcoholism.
Self-help groups have emerges as an important strategy for empowering women and
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alleviating poverty. SHG's are based on idea of dialogic small groups, which shall function at
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
developing collective consciousness. Linked with micro credit these groups are able to access credit and
subsidy to meet crisis needs as well as developmental needs reducing their dependence on money
lenders. There is fair amount of evidence to suggest that PACS SHG's have successfully ensured
people's entitlements including women.
Statistically PAC's initiatives in realizing entitlements show that In Balika Samriddhi Yojana
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189 females have been benefitted rfealizing 2572400 Rs. in Employment Guarantee Scheme 55397
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
women have been provided, 1271 girls enrolled and 9524 women provided Indira Awas Yojna. Kanya
Vidya Dhan has been availed by 131 girls while Mahila Samridhi Yojana has benefitted 7 women.
Maternity benefits have reached 2943 women and NFE educated 862 women. Old age pension went to
7774 women while no woman benefitted from the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna. Sam Vikas Yojna
benefitted 975 women compared to 467 men Bridge courses benefitted 740 girls. Widow pension was
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ensured to 2948 women and 217 women get yellow cards.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The realization of entitlements has been primarily through RTI, NREGS and the women further
train communities. in Jharkhand a large number of women were trained in social audit. In total number
of beneficiaries of entitlement 13342 women in Bihar 156217 in Jharkhand 19906 women in
Maharashtra 18762 in M.P. and Chhattisgarh and 55114 in U.P. were reached. Men have however
benefitted more except in Bihar.
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5.1.8 Violence:
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
The questions regarding crimes against women are most entrenched, as most of them are
committed within the family NCRB records that the highest percdentage of crime against women is
torture (37.7%) followed by Moleslation (22.4%), Rape (11.8%), Kidnapping (8.8%) and immoral
traffic (3.7%). 4.6 Dowry Death and 6.5% eve teasing were recorded. the further details report that in
victims of rape 532 were below 10 and 1090 below 14. 3189 within ages of 30-50. No age is safe for
women. In U.P. nearly 32% crimes against women were committed within the family by husbands and
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relatives. This figure when compounded with 12% dowry deaths makes 45% of crimes domestically
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
located. Incidents of honour killings and battery through not large are often threats to women's
functioning and their emotional development is severely blighted. In caste ridden society women's caste
membership increase her vulnerability. Small efforts to train police by UN agencies and state initiatives
are encouraging but very small in scale. They require follow-ups and support monitoring.
5.1.9 Women and Work:
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Women's work is statistically less visible non monetized and relegated to subsistence production
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
and domestic side this accounts for 60% of unpaid family work and 98% of domestic work. The non
paid work includes domestic chares like cooking, cleaning, child care aand care for the elderly and the
handicapped-traditonally understood as women's work. Subsistence activities like pitches gardening
post harvest processing, feeding farm hands, live stock maintenance, gathering of fuel, forest produce,
unpaid family labour in family farm or enterprise are done by women who are reported to be non
working housewives Census estimates 51.93% men & 25% women workers while NSS estimates 52.7
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male and 25.68 female workers. Most men are in stable employment. Micro studies report many
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
challenges 20 out of 104 women reported in a survey as non working were actually winnowwwing,
thrashing or paraboling (WB). S. Mukhopadhyaya in her study reports 4 times more work participation
in her study. Female work participation rate in U.P. is reported as 11% with a Gender gap of 52% equal
to. West Bengal but less than Punjab. 56% women are in community service 17% in Manufacturing &
8.6 rural women in agriculture. Only 4% women as against 10% men are in the formal sector. If
women's work is rendered visible specially unpaid household work there will be many dramatic results.
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Studies show that working women but 664 hours & others put 872 hours on child care, womens' share
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
of work in 55% women's unpaid work is 51% while men's is 33%. R. Malathy's extrapolation estimates
23,773 core as the value of wowmen's household reserve rendered by women in the urban sector alone.
From 17% women's contribution will increase to 33% of agricultural earning will include unpaid
household work. Restriction on women's mobility, complete child care responsibility ideology of female
seclusion, vulnerability to abuse, low access to information and mass media, low literacy, assumption
that women's supplementary and confinement to largely manual untrained tasks leads to women's poor
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access to income.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.1.10 Women and Reforms:
It is often argued that economic reforms have had a differential gender impact but there are further
complexities. The reforms have meant more openness in trade regime and progressive decontrol of
domestic production sector. There seems a steady withdrawal of state presence from the production
sector arguing that this would promote greater efficiency and accountability. There has however been
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much protest that this will leave labour more vulnerable as profit motive alone drives the market.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Market argue that since women are crowded towards the bottom end of labour market they will be more
adversely impacted. The 55th round of National Sample Survey organization (1999-2000) generally
reflects that over the years specially in urban areas gender differences in the structure of industrial and
occupational distributions and distribution of labour status categories seems to have lessened. There is
higher demand of female labour in some sectors which can be linked to a thrust towards export
orientation and deregulation in the domestic production sector. According to Swapna Mukhopadhyaya
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changes in structure of job opportunities have not translated into overall reduction in the degree of
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
market segmentation along gender lines. There is marginal decrease in employment of men and
marginal increase for women in urban India. Educated women in the labour market who are
unemployed are for more than their male counterparts 62.7% unemployed women in rural areas as
compared to 56.9% men. It seems IT enabled sectors in recent years may have benefitted educated
women. There is not enough reliable data but persistently low wages of women to the tune of 50% to
80% compare to men suggest systematic wage discrimination. Wage earnings in casual female workers
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in 1999-2000 were 64.70% of corresponding male earnings in rural India are even lower at 60.57% in
320
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
urban India. 2005 HDR reports that women spend 457 minutes at work as compared to 391 minutes per
day for men.
5.1.11 Ownership of Land:
A recent legislation of the Central Government, the Hindu succession Amendment Act 2005 has
also moved towards women's equality in property rights. It makes Hindu women's inheritance rights in
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agricultural land legally equal to those of men. All daughters including married daughters age Co-
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
parceners in joint family properly daughters now have the right to claim partition and to become 'Karta'.
All daughters, married or unmarried can reside, seek partition of the parental dwelling place.
This law of the centre well have the power to displace any conflicting laws of the state which are
unequal to women. this is a far reaching message to assure women control over property.
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According to a recent study made by Bina Agarwal in Kerala, women's risk of physical violence
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
from husbands is dramatically less of they own hand or a house. The incidence of violence is 49 per cent
among women without property, but 18 per cent among land owning women and 7 per cent of they own
both land and house.
Recent initiative of the state of U.P. (ordinance of 23 Feb. 2006) regarding the reduction of stamp
duty on the purchase of land from 7 per cent 6 per cent has worked in the direction of more land being
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bought in the name of women in the family. This transfer of asset in favour of women though initially
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
used by male members of the family to save family money will gradually contribute to build women's
agency. 2,97715 transactions have been done in the name of women in 68 districts of Uttar Pradesh
between April 2006 and August 2006. The women move out of their homes to sign the papers in Tehsils
and in many cases it is their first exposure to an office. This initiative developed with women's trainings
on legal, land and human rights literacy will go a long way.
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However, this effectiveness is greatly linked with the willingness of the state administration to
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
devolve effective administrative and financial power to the local self-governing units, and the
responsiveness and sensitivity of the lower echelons of the administrative machinery to the aspiration
and needs of the local population. Alcohol has not favoured women and increase in indirect taxes has
also impacted them poorly. The thrust of budgets also seems to push people to private providers.
Government schemes could be seen as Relief policies like widow pension schemes. Gender reinforcing
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assistance like mother support schemes in health and Empowering schemes for women to demand and
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
enjoy full human rights.
5.1.12 State Initiatives:
Development writers are so often used to repeating that focus of women development in India has
shifted from 'welfare' in the 50's to development in the 70's and now to empowerment. This is hardly
borne out in the programmes on the ground. There are largely schemes for relief like old age and
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widowhood schemes and major schemes related to Gender reinforcing assistance related to reproduction
326
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
National Institute of Public Finance and Policy undertook the first gender budget exercise and
categorized expenditure in 3 categories.
5.1.13 National Institute of Public Finance & Policy Gender Analysis of

the Budget
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NIPFP undertook the first gender budget exercise and categorized expenditure in 3 categories.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
1. Specifically targetted expenditure on women.
2. Pro women allocation composite expenditure in the women component (at least 30%).
3. Mainstream expenditure with gender differential impact.
It was understood that public expenditure can be clustered in terms of 4 categories:
a) Protective and welfare services accounting for 67%
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b) Social service-education, water housing health 26%
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
c) Economic resources-self employment training fuel supply management 4%
d) Regulatory services awareness generation NCW 3%
Allocation for women directed scheme is pitiful. Only ten ministries/Departments have specially
targetted schemes for women in India. The share of women specific programmes in departments like
education, agriculture, tribal affairs and social justice is also only around one percent. No proper
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administrative mechanism for execution and monitoring of expenditure. Heads still under ruberic of
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
benefits for mother and child. Shelter homes and counselling centres are still low on priority. NIPF
observed that reduction in cost of foreign liquour has not positively impacted them.
It is, however, necessary that even though schemes are relief oriented the process of accessing them has
often been an individual and collected struggle which has sometimes led to empowerment and at others
disheartening. PACS strategy of collective pressure to access public resources for women has largely
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been empowering though anecdotal.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
There are several critical issues to ensure a just an equitable state with reference to gender. Some
issues are not addressable due to procedural limitations of data collection which makes specific
recommendations difficult. There is need to develop a workable gender audit system for govt. & CSO
programmes which would look at targets, training recruitments promotion, infrastructure and decision
making opportunities. The verbal change from women welfare to women rights needs to be converted
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into reality. This has some direct fall outs. Pitiful allotment for Vriddha and Vidva Pension and
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
minimum wages will have to be reconsidered in terms of living wages, recent work and human right to
opportunities for highest form of physical and mental health.
Greatest inequity exits in family but poverty alleviation schemes address only the family. Just as
one poverty calculation takes per capita consumption it should also address per capita income
CHAPTER 1
enhancement not family.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Gender budgets need participation of other departments besides the existing ones. Gender
auditing of all organizations is necessary.
As is evidenced in many studies level of awareness of government schemes is very low so more
effective publicity is necessary. A more effective MIS system for monitoring women welfare, women
empowerment programmes is to be developed which is simple, transparent and involves both
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government and non government functionaries. Gender resource centres with autonomy need to be
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
established in all states and in case of larger states there must be more than one such centre involving
academic & activities.
Practically no schemes exist to encourage women in non stero typical occupations. Training of
women in leadership market research and entrepreneurship with follow ups must be institutionalized. At
the national as well as state levels we need a full fledged mechanism to ensure gender sensitive policy,
CHAPTER 1
implementation through a participatory apex body. Clearer definition of work, Joint Pattas for women &
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
men will ensure better control of women over resources as well as their acknowledgement in National
income. Country's inclusive agenda requires a consistent engendering at all levels.
5.2 International Policies and Indias Constitutional Provisions,

Policies and Programmes for Women
CHAPTER 1
5.2.1 UN Human Rights Instruments
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Universal Declaration of Human Rights - adopted in 1948
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights adopted in 1966 / entered into
force in 1976, monitored by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR)
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination - adopted
in 1965 / entered into force in 1969, monitored by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial
Discrimination (CERD)
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Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women - adopted in 1979
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
/ entered into force in 1981, monitored by the Committee on CEDAW
Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
- adopted in 1984 / entered into force in 1987, monitored by Committee Against Torture (CAT)
Convention on the Rights of the Child - adopted in 1989 / entered into force in 1990, monitored
by the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC)
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5.2.2 Commitments at UN Conferences
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
World Conference on Education for All (1990) Jomtien
UN Conference on Environment and Development (1992) Rio de Janiero
Second UN World Conference on Human Rights (1993) Vienna
International Conference on Population and Development (1994) Cairo
World Summit on Social Development (1995) Copenhagen
Fourth World Conference on Women (1995) Beijing
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Second UN Conference on Human Settlements (1996) Istanbul
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
World Food Summit (1997) Rome
Education for All Dakar Framework (2000) Dakar
5.2.3 Constitution of India Guarantees
Equality Before Law for Women (Article 14)
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The State not to discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex,
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
place of birth or any of them [Article 15 (I)]
The State to make any special provision in favour of women and children [Article 15 (3)]
Equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to employment or appointment to any
office under the State (Article 16)
The State to direct its policy towards securing for men and women equally the right to an
adequate means of livelihood [Article 39 (a)]; and equal pay for equal work for both men and
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women [Article 39 (d)]
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
To promote justice, on a basis of equal opportunity and to provide free legal aid by suitable
legislation or scheme or in any other way to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not
denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities [Article
39A)
The State to make provision for securing just and humane conditions of work and for maternity
relief (Article 42)
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341
The State to promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
sections of the people and to protect them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation
(Article 46)
The State to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living of its people and the
improvement of Public Health (Article 47)
To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of
India and to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women [Article 51(A) (e)]
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342
Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
scheduled castes and the scheduled tribes) of the total number of seats to be filled by direct
election in every panchayat to be reserved for women and such seats to be allotted by rotation to
different constituencies in a panchayat [Article 243 D (3)]
Not less than one-third of the total number of offices of chairpersons in the panchayats at each
level to be reserved for women [Article 243 D (4)]
Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the
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scheduled castes and the scheduled tribes) of the total number of seats to be filled by direct
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
election in every municipality to be reserved for women and such seats to be allotted by rotation to
different constituencies in a municipality [Article 243 T (3)]
Reservation of offices of chairpersons in municipalities for the scheduled castes, the scheduled
tribes and women in such manner as the legislature of a State may by law provide [Article 243 T
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(4)]
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.3 SCHEMES FOR ASSISTANCE
5.3.1 Ministry of Women and Child Development
> Support to Training and Employment Programme (STEP)

> Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Girls (RGSEAG)
> Swawlamban, erstwhile Setting up of Employment and Income Generating Training- cum-
CHAPTER 1
Production Units for Women (NORAD)

> Construction/Expansion of Hostel Building for Working Women with a Day Care Centre(WWH)
345
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> Balika Samriddhi Yojana (BSY)
> National Programme for Adolescent Girls (Kishori Shakti Yojana)
> Shishu Greh Scheme (Erstwhile - Homes for Infants and Young Children for Promotion of In-
CHAPTER 1
Country Adoption)
>Integrated Scheme for Street Children
> Scheme for Welfare of Working Children in Need of Care and Protection
> Prevention and Control of Juvenile Maladjustment
> Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS)
> Conditional Cash Transfer Scheme for the Girl Child with Insurance Cover
> General Grant-in-Aid for Voluntary Organisations in the Field of Women and Child
346
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
347
Development
National Mission of Empowerment of Women
Scheme for Leadership Development of Minority Women
Conditional Maternity Benefit Scheme
Other Programmes (Relief to and Rehabilitation of Rape Victims)
Education Scheme, Food and Nutrition Board (FNB)
Ujjawala, Scheme for Combating Trafficking
Nutrition Programme for Adolescent Girls (NPAG)
Wheat Based Nutrition Programme
Anganwadi Karyakati Bima Yojana
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.3.2 Central Social Welfare Board (CSWB)
> General Grant-in-Aid for Voluntary Organisations in the field of Women and Child
CHAPTER 1
Development
> Mahila Mandal Programme (MMP)
> Short Stay Homes for Women and Girls (SSH)
> Socio-Economic Programme (SEP)
348
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Other Schemes
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
349
Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS)

The Swa-Shakti Project, a scheme for Rural Womens Development and Empowerment
Swadhar, Scheme for Women in Difficult Circumstances
Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (Credit for Women)
Scheme for Rescue of Victims of Trafficking
Priyadarshini, Womens Empowerment and Livelihood Programme in the Mid Gangetic Plains
Innovative Work on Women and Children
Scheme for Relief to and Rehabilitation of Victims of Rape
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.3.3 Ministry of Human Resource Development, Department of
Education
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
350
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA)

District Primary Education Programme (DPEP)
National Programme of Mid Day Meals in Schools
The Scheme for Providing Quality Education in Madrassas
Scheme for Infrastructure Development in Minority Institutions
Prarambhik Shiksha Kosh (PSK)
Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA)
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
Integrated Education for Disabled Children (IEDC)

Inclusive Education for Disabled at Secondary School (IEDSS)
Scheme of Vocationalisation of Education +2 Level
Scheme for Universal Access and Quality at the Secondary Stage (SUCCESS)
National Scheme for Incentive to Girls for Secondary Education (SUCCESS)
National Means cum Merit Scholarship Scheme (NMMS)
Scheme for Construction and Running of Girls Hostel for Students of Secondary andnHigher
CHAPTER 1
Secondary Schools
> Adult Education and Skill Development Scheme
> Development of Womens Studies in Universities and Colleges
351
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
352
Schemes for Promotion of Higher Education for SC/ST/Minorities/OBC

Post Graduate Scholarships for Students belonging to SC/ST/Minorities/OBC
Post Doctoral Fellowship for Women
District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) for Special Groups
National Programme for Education of Girls at Elementary Level (NPEGEL)
Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV)
Kendriya Vidyalayas (KV)
Navodaya Vidyalayas (NV)
National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS)
Focus on Minority Areas
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> National Literacy Mission (NLM)
> Jan Shikhan Sansthan (JSS)
> Mahila Samakhya : Education for Womens Equality
5.3.4 Ministry of Rural Development
CHAPTER 1
> Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY)

> Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY), including Food Grains Component
> Assistance for Rural Employment Guarantee Schemes
353
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
354
National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP)

National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA)
National Food for Work Programme (NFWP)
National Common Minimum Programme (NCMP)
Central Rural Sanitation Programme (CRSP)
Cash Component for Food for Work Programme
Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY)
Accelerated Rural Water Supply Programme (ARWSP)
Rural Sanitation
Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> Provision of Urban Amenities in Rural Areas (PURA)
5.3.5 Ministry of Urban Development
CHAPTER 1
> Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)

> Water Supply and Sanitation
> Housing
355
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.3.6 Ministry of Textiles
> Handloom Weavers Comprehensive Welfare Scheme
> Handicraft Artisans Comprehensive Welfare Scheme
5.3.7 Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation
CHAPTER 1
> The Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY)

> Jawahar Lal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)
356
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
>
>
>
>
>
Interest Subsidy Schemes for Housing for Urban Poor (ISSHU)

Integrated Low Cost Sanitation Programme
UNDP Assistance for National Strategy for Urban Poor
Valmiki Ambedkar Awas Yojana (VAMBAY)
Other Housing Schemes
5.3.8 Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
CHAPTER 1
> Book Banks for Scheduled Caste Students
357
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
358
Hostels for OBC Boys and Girls

Hostels for Scheduled Caste Girls and Boys
Scheme of Pre-Matric Scholarship to the Children of Scheduled Castes and OBCs
Post Matric Scholarship to Students belonging to Scheduled Castes and OBCs
Scheme of Assistance to Voluntary Organisations for Welfare of Scheduled Castes
Scheme of Pre-examination Coaching for Weaker Sections based on Economic Criteria
Aids and Appliances for the Handicapped
Schemes for Implementation of Persons with Disability Act
Education Work for Prohibition and Drug Abuse Prevention
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.3.9 Ministry of Tribal Affairs
> Schemes for Pre-Matric Scholarship (PMS),
>
>
>
>
Students
Scheme of Top Class Education for Scheduled Tribe Students
Coaching and Allied Scheme for Scheduled Tribes
Scheme for Construction of Hostels for Scheduled Tribe Girls and Boys
Educational Complex in Low Literacy Pockets for Development of Womens Literacy in Tribal
CHAPTER 1
Areas
359
Book Bank and Upgradation of Merit of ST
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
>
>
>
>
Post Matric Scholarship for Scheduled Tribes Students

Scheme for the Development of Primitive Tribal Groups
Ashram Schools in Tribal Sub-Plan Area
ACA for Educational Development of Tribal Children in Schedule-V areas and Naxal- affected
areas
> National/State ST Finance and Development Corporations
> Scheme of Assistance to State Scheduled Tribes
Finance
and
Development
CHAPTER 1
Corporation(STFDCs)
> Scheme of GrantInAid to Voluntary Organisations Working for Welfare of the
360
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Scheduled Tribes
> National Overseas Scholarship Scheme
> Village Grain Banks Scheme for Protection of Tribals from Starvation
> Vocational Training in Tribal Areas
5.3.10 Ministry of Science and Technology
CHAPTER 1
> Science and Technology Programmes for Socio - Economic Development

> Science and Technology Application Programme
361
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> Tribal Sub-Plan and Scheduled Castes Sub-Plan for Development of Scheduled
> Caste Population
> National Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Development
5.3.11 Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
CHAPTER 1
> Reproductive and Child Health Programme (Maternal Health and Child Health)
> National Rural Health Mission (NRHM)
> National Urban Health Mission (NUHM)
362
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
363
Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojana for Primary Health Sector

Universal Immunization Programme
Pulse Polio Immunization Programme
Prophylaxis Programme to Prevent Blindness due to Vitamin A Deficiency
Prophylaxis Programme to Prevent Anaemia due to Iron Deficiency
Prophylaxis Programme to Prevent Iodine Deficiency Disorders (Goitre)
Janani Suraksha Yojana (National Maternity Benefit Scheme)
National Mental Health Programme
Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (Financial Assistance to BPL Patients)
National AIDS Control Programme
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> National Diseases Control Programmes (TB, Leprosy, Malaria, etc.)
5.3.12 Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperation
> Assistance to National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) for Cooperative
CHAPTER 1
Development
> Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY)
364
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.3.13 Ministry of Labour & Employment
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
365
Labour Welfare Schemes

Improvement in Working Conditions of Child and Women Labour
Vocational Training for Women
Beedi Workers Welfare Fund
Cine Workers Welfare Fund
Employees Pension Scheme
Family Pension cum Life Insurance Scheme for Plantation Workers in Assam, Deposit link
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
366
Insurance Scheme for Tea Plantation Workers in Assam

Rajiv Gandhi Shramik Kalyan Yojana
Diversification and Extension of Vocational Training Programmes for Women
Establishment of Regional Vocational Training Institutes (RVTI)
Establishment of Placement Cells and Conducting Training Needs Assessment
Grants-in-Aid for State Governments for Establishing Women Industrial Training Institutes(ITI)
Social Security (Health Insurance) for Unorganised Sector Workers
Rehabilitation of Bonded Labour
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.3.14 Ministry of Minority Affairs
>
>
>
>
>
Grants-in-Aid to Maulana Azad Education Foundation

Free Coaching and Allied Scheme for Minorities
Pre-Matric Scholarship for Minorities
Post Matric Scholarship for Minorities
Merit - cum - Means Scholarships for Professional and Technical Courses of
CHAPTER 1
Undergraduate and Post Graduate Level

> Multi - Sectoral Development Programme for Minorities in Selected Minority
367
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
>
>
>
>
Concentration Districts
National Fellowship for Students for the Minorities Communities
Schemes for Leadership Development of Minority Women
Grants-in-Aid to Wakf
National Minority Development and Finanace Corporation
CHAPTER 1
5.3.15 Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution,

Department of Food and Public Distribution
368
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> Village Grain Bank Scheme
> Evaluation, Monitoring & Research in Food Grain Management and Strengthening of Public
>
>
>
>
Distribution System
Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS)
Antyodaya Anna Yojana
Mid-Day Meal Scheme (Implemented by Ministry of Human Resource Development)
Wheat Based Nutrition Programme (WBNP) (Implemented by Ministry of Women and Child
CHAPTER 1
Development under ICDS Scheme)

> Annapurna Scheme (Implemented by Ministry of Rural Development)
369
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
>
>
>
>
Emergency Feeding Programme (EFP)

Schemes for Supply of Foodgrains to Hostels/Welfare Institutions (5% of BPL Allocation)
Schemes for Supply of Foodgrains for SC/ST/OBC Hostels
Nutritional Programme for Adolescent Girls (NPAG) (Implemented by Ministry of Women and
Child Development)
5.3.16 Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
CHAPTER 1
> Credit Support Programme
370
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> Rajiv Gandhi Udyami Mitra Yojana
> Prime Ministers Employment Generation Programme
> Workshed Scheme for Khadi Artisans
5.3.17 Ministry of Law and Justice
CHAPTER 1
> Fast Tracks Courts

> Assistance to State Governments for Establishing and Operating Gram Nyayalayas
371
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.3.18 Policy Documents
> National Commission for Self Employed Women and Women in the Informal Sector: Shram
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
372
Shakti Report 1988

Committee on Status of Women in India CSWI Towards Equality 1975
National Child Labour Policy 1987
National AIDS Control Policy 2002
National Commission on Women Act 1990
National Health Policy 2002
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 1
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
373
National Nutrition Policy 1993

National Perspective Plan 1988
National Plan for Action 1976
National Plan of Action for the Girl Child (1992-2000) 1992
National Policy for the Empowerment of Women 2001
National Policy on Education 1986
National Population Policy 2000
Report of National Expert Committee on Women Prisoners 1987
National Charter for Children 2004
National Plan of Action for Children 2005
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> Protocol for Pre-Rescue, Rescue and Post-Rescue Operations of Child Victims of Trafficking
5.3.19 International Documents
>
>
>
>
Beijing Declaration - Platform for Action

Declaration of Mexico Plan
Narobi Forward Looking Strategies
United Nations Convention on the Elimination of
CHAPTER 1
Women (UN CEDAW)
374
All Forms of Discrimination Against
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.4 The Objectives of the National Policy for Empowerment of
Women 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
CHAPTER 1
equal basis with men in all spheres - political, economic, social, cultural and civil
375
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
(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.
CHAPTER 1
(v) Strengthening legal systems aimed at elimination of all forms of discrimination against women
376
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
(vi) Changing societal attitudes and community practices by active participation and involvement
of both men and women
(vii) Mainstreaming a gender perspective in the development process
(viii) Elimination of discrimination and all forms of violence against women and the girl child;
and
(ix)
Building and strengthening partnerships with civil society, particularly womens
CHAPTER 1
organizations
377
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.5 Critical Areas of Concern
A. Women and Poverty
o Strategic Objective: Review, adopt and maintain macroeconomic policies and
development strategies that address the needs and efforts of women in poverty.
o Revise laws and administrative practices to ensure womens equal rights and access to
CHAPTER 1
economic resources.
o Provide women with access to savings and credit mechanisms and institutions.
378
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
B. Education and Training of Women
o Ensure equal access to education
o Eradicate illiteracy among women
o Improve womens access to vocational training, science and technology, and
CHAPTER 1
continuing education
o Develop non-discriminatory education and training
o Allocate sufficient resources for and monitor the implementation of educational
379
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
reforms
o Promote lifelong education and training for girls and women
C. Women and Health
o Increase womens access throughout the life cycle to appropriate, affordable and
CHAPTER 1
quality health care, information and related services

o Strengthen preventive programmes that promote womens health
o Undertake gender-sensitive initiatives that address sexually transmitted diseases,
380
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
HIV/AIDS, and sexual and reproductive health issues
o Increase resources and monitor follow-up for womens health
D. Violence against Women
o Take integrated measures to prevent and eliminate violence against women
o Study the causes and consequences of violence against women and the
CHAPTER 1
effectiveness of preventive measures

o Eliminate trafficking in women and assist victims of prostitution and trafficking.
381
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
E. Women and Armed Conflict
o Increase the participation of women in conflict resolution at decision-making levels and
protect women living in situations of armed and other conflicts or under foreign
occupation
o Reduce excessive military expenditures and control the availability of armaments
o Promote nonviolent forms of conflict resolution and reduce the incidence of human
CHAPTER 1
rights abuse in conflict situations
382
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
o Promote womens contribution to fostering a culture of peace
o Provide protection, assistance and training to refugee women, other displaced
women in need of international protection and internally displaced women
o Provide assistance to women of the colonies and non-self governing territories
F. Women and Economy
CHAPTER 1
o Promote womens economic rights and independence, including access to
383
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
employment, appropriate working conditions and control over economic resources
o Facilitate womens equal access to resources, employment, markets and trade
o Provide business services, training and access to markets, information and
CHAPTER 1
technology, particularly to low income women

o Strengthen womens economic capacity and commercial networks
o Eliminate occupational segregation and all forms of employment discrimination
o Promote harmonization of work and family responsibilities for women
384
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
G. Women in Power and Decision-making
o Take measures to ensure womens equal access to and full participation in power
structures and decision-making
o Increase womens capacity to participate in decision-making and leadership
CHAPTER 1
H. Institutional Mechanisms for the Advancement of Women
385
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
o Create or strengthen national machineries and other government bodies
o Integrate gender perspectives in legislation, public policies, programmes and projects
o Generate and disseminate gender-disaggregated data and information for planning and
evaluation
I. Human Rights of Women
CHAPTER 1
o Promote and protect the human rights of women, through the full implementation of
386
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
all human rights instruments, especially the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms
of Discrimination Against Women
o Ensure equality and non-discrimination under the law and in practice
o Achieve legal literacy
J.
Women and the Media
CHAPTER 1
o Increase the participation and access of women to expression and decision-making in
387
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
and through the media and new technologies of communication
o Promote a balanced and non-stereotyped portrayal of women in the media
K. Women and the Environment
o Involve women actively in environmental decision-making at all levels
o Integrate gender concerns and perspective in policies and programmes for
CHAPTER 1
sustainable development
o Strengthen or establish mechanism at the national, regional and international levels to
388
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
assess the impact of development and environmental policies on women
L. Womens Empowerment
The National Policy for the Empowerment of Women with the objective of bringing about
advancement, development and empowerment of women in all walks of life has been
CHAPTER 1
formulated
Stree Shakti Puraskars to honour and recognize the achievement and contribution of individual
389
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
women and institutions who have done outstanding work in the social sector have been
instituted
Guidelines for operationalisation of District Level Committees on Violence against Women and
Helplines for women in distress have been issued
A National level Committee to monitor Supreme Courts Guidelines on prevention of sexual
harassment of women at workplace has been set up.
A National Resource Centre for Women (NRCW) Portal has been set up to inform and empower
CHAPTER 1
women, and lodge complaints of womens rights violations on-line.
390
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Gender Budget analysis of various Ministries spending was undertaken to assess the utilization of
funds for women.
5.6 Programmes for Women

Swawlamban, the erstwhile Training-cum-Employment Programme for Women provides skill
training to women to facilitate their employment or self- employment on a sustained basis in
CHAPTER 1
traditional and non- traditional trades. Till December 2002, 902 projects including 262 continuing
391
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
projects benefiting 58,458 women were sanctioned. With effect from 1.4.2006, Swawlamban is
being transferred to the States. During 2005-06, 7660 beneficiaries availed benefits under the
scheme.
The Department has initiated the gender budgeting exercise to assess the impact and
outcome of Government spending on Women. Gender Budget Cells have been set up in 9
Departments/Ministries namely, Health, Family Welfare, Elementary Education and Literacy,
CHAPTER 1
Labour and Employment, Rural Development, Social Justice and Empowerment, Tribal
392
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Affairs, Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation and Small Scale Industries.
Measures have been initiated for preparing Gender Development Index for the States
and Districts.
Swayamsiddha, an integrated scheme for womens empowerment, is based on the
formation of women into Self Help Groups (SHGs) and aims at the holistic empowerment of
women through awareness generation, economic empowerment and convergence of various
CHAPTER 1
schemes. Against the target of 65,000 SHGs, 69,803 Womens Self Help Groups have been
393
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
formed, covering a total of 1.002 million beneficiaries till 2008. The scheme ended on
31.03.2008.
Support and Training for Employment Programme (STEP) provides updated skills and
new knowledge to poor and asset-less women in traditional occupations for enhancing their
productivity and income
generation. A package of services such as training, extension,
infrastructure, market linkages, etc. is provided besides linkage with credit for transfer of assets.
CHAPTER 1
Since its inception in 1987, about 0.8 million women have been covered under various projects till
394
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
2008-09. Since 2005-06, each year between 31,000 to 40,000 women benefit under STEP. So far
women in dairying sector have received maximum support keeping in view the nature of demands.
This is followed by handlooms, handicrafts, sericulture, piggery and poultry.
5.6.1 Working Womens Hostels
876 Working Womens Hostels have been sanctioned benefiting 63,989 women, with 321 having
CHAPTER 1
Day Care Centres, benefiting 8442 children in 2009.
395
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
5.6.2 Legislative Reforms
Comprehensive review of legislation affecting women has been undertaken by Sub- Groups
formed under the Task Force on Women and Children.
5.6.3 Status of Major International Human Rights Instruments
CHAPTER 1
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination 1965
396
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 1966
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights 1966
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women 1979
Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989
Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
CHAPTER 1
1984
Ratification, accession or succession
Signature not yet followed by ratification
397
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Conclusion
The primary objective of this project was to assess progress in India toward the twin goals of
gender equality and womens empowerment. The specific areas investigated included son preference,
education, age at marriage, spousal age differentials, employment, female household headship,
womens
access
to resources, gender relations in the household, womens participation in
CHAPTER 1
decisionmaking, and spousal violence. In general, the report finds that gender inequality is persistent in
398
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
every domain examined, and women are disempowered both absolutely and relative to men. Further, an
examination of indicators for which trend data are available shows that the progress toward gender
equality and womens empowerment remains very slow.
In addition to examining progress toward achieving gender equality and womens empowerment,
the report also examined gender differentials in selected health and nutritional outcomes and evaluated
differences by sex in the relationship of womens empowerment and experience of spousal violence
CHAPTER 1
with indicators of these selected health and nutrition outcomes. Finally, the variation in current use of
399
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
modern contraception by indicators of womens empowerment and experience of spousal violence was
CHAPTER 1
also explored.
400
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Bibliography
> DATA FROM THE 2005-06 NATIONAL FAMILY HEALTH SURVEY (NFHS-3) AND ITS
CHAPTER 1
TWO PREDECESSOR SURVEYS, NFHS-1 (1992-93) AND NFHS-2 (1998-99).
401
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> ECONOMIC RESTRUCTURING AND GENDER IN CANADA: FEMINIST POLICY
INITIATIVES
Macdonald, M.
> MEASURING WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT AS A VARIABLE IN INTERNATIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
Malhotra, A. Et Al
CHAPTER 1
> INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES (ICT) AND THEIR IMPACT

ON AND USE AS AN INSTRUMENT FOR THE ADVANCEMENT AND EMPOWERMENT
402
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
OF WOMEN
Marcelle, G.
> WOMEN EMPOWERMENT: PARTICIPATION AND DECISION-MAKING
Marilee, K.
CHAPTER 1
> GENDER EMPOWERMENT AND THE WILLINGNESS OF STATES TO USE FORCE

Marshall, M.G. And D.R. Marshall
403
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> PROPOSED GLOBAL RESEARCH FRAMEWORK FOR CARE'S STRATEGIC IMPACT
INQUIRY ON WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT
Martinez, E. And K. Glenzer (CARE USA, Atlanta, 2005)
CHAPTER 1
> MICRO FINANCE AND THE EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN: A REVIEW OF THE KEY
ISSUES
Mayoux, L.
404
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT THROUGH SUSTAINABLE MICRO FINANCE:
RETHINKING BEST PRACTICE
Mayoux, L.
> WOMEN, EMPOWERMENT AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Mehra, R.
CHAPTER 1
> TRENDS, COUNTERTRENDS, AND GAPS IN WOMEN'S EMPLOYMENT

Mehra, R. And S. Gammage
405
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> RECASTING INDICES FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: A GENDER EMPOWERMENT
MEASURE
Mehta, A. Kapur
> MICRO FINANCE AND WOMEN EMPOWERMENT: A CRITICAL EVALUATION
Menon, S.V.
CHAPTER 1
> WOMEN EMPOWERMENT AND HD IN INDIA, Indian Economic Review, 47(3), 2005)
Mitra, T.K. And G. Sinha
406
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> MEASURING WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT: PARTICIPATION AND RIGHTS IN CIVIL,
POLITICAL, SOCIAL, ECONOMIC, AND CULTURAL DOMAINS
Moghadam, V.M. And L. Senftova
> ON THE CONCEPT OF 'EMPOWERMENT'
Mohanty, M.
CHAPTER 1
> ASSESSING WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT: TOWARDS A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

Mosedale, S.
407
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> GENDER AND INDICATORS: OVERVIEW REPORT
Moser, A.
> THE CHANGING STATUS OF WOMEN IN INDIA- THE CHALLENGES AHEAD
Mukherjee, I. And S. Sen
CHAPTER 1
> TOWARDS GENDER-AWARE DATA SYSTEMS: INDIAN EXPERIENCE

Mukherjee, M.
408
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
> GENDER EQUALITY AND WELL-BEING OF RURAL WOMEN
Mukherjee, N.
CHAPTER 1
> GENDER EQUALITY AND WOMEN'S SOLIDARITY ACROSS RELIGIOUS, ETHNIC

AND CLASS DIFFERENCE IN THE KENYA CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW PROCESS
Mutua, A.
409

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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Womens Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights:................................................18

WOMEN EMPOWERMENT THROUGH SELF HELP GROUPS IN ANDHRA PRADESH 21

Health Insurance for the Poor:............................................................................26

3.4 BRIEF HISTORY OF DRDA.............................................................................. 31

3.5 DUTIES OF DRDA :.................................................................................... 31

Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY).................................35

Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY).......................................35

Total Sanitation Campaign Programme (TSCP)...................................................36

4.1 Gender Differences in Education...................................................41

Advancement of Women through Five Year Plans.............................................57

5.1.11 Ownership of Land:................................................................................. 75

5.2.3 Constitution of India Guarantees..........................................................................79

5.3.5 Ministry of Urban Development................................................................84

5.3.12 Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperation..................................................86

5.3.19 International Documents........................................................................89

E. Women and Armed Conflict...........................................................................91

Human Rights of Women............................................................................. 92

Women and the Media..................................................................................92

K. Women and the Environment.........................................................................92

Table 5- SHG-Bank linkages(under NABARD refinances scheme)52

and abuse, and are deprived of their basic human rights.

on structural factors like caste and class.

laws and policies to address sexual and physical violence.

OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY

planned action in all areas and at all levels.

and ultimately report on such cases.

every 100,000 births

2. Only 48% of adult Indian women are literate

religious, and ethnic identities.

The diversity of womens economic opportunities

unemployment, education, water, food security, trade, etc.

workers have equal pay and are free from exploitation.

Reservation at the Panchayat Level:

Caste and Class Politics:

33% Reservation for Women:

is moving closer to equitable inclusion than ever before.

The SHGs are also

BUILDING INSTITUTIONS FOR SHGs:

Nearly 20% of the SHG members are

artisans and engaged in making handicrafts and handloom products.

pricing of products. This partnership is a win win model.

Some of the salient features are.

Members are engaged in 450 varieties of income generating activities.

Social, Legal, Political and Economic Empowerment

of women and children, and the jogini system of exploitation.

Child Marriage, Trafficking of Women and Children:

Exploitative Social Practices:

efforts to identify victims and help them to start new livelihoods.

common pool which is then distributed among these women.

Land Access for Tribals and the Poor:

Improved Farming Practices:

social justice and

their potential and enhance their collective bargaining power.

womens situations, discrimination, rights and opportunities will

act as a step towards gender equality.

society will develop leadership qualities.

The Primary objective of the DRDA is to effectively manage the anti-poverty

To implement the Rural Development Programmes of the Ministry

Block Development Offices strictly in accordance with the guidelines

Private/Public/Cooperative/Corporation/Agency/ Banks (Co-operative

Banks) Department of the State

Technical and Financial for successful programme implementation and