Do We Really Believe in Women Empowerment or Just Celebrate it?
Do We Really Believe in Women Empowerment or Just Celebrate it?
- Sayan Basak
The days are never free and the nights never end
without the successful completion of errands in the life of a woman. The super
wondrous role played by them must be abided in every respect – be it of a
caring mother, loving daughter, a responsible wife or a brave soldier
safeguarding the peaceful sleep of the innocent citizens.
Life for women is the conundrum of roles which are
to be played at home and outside of it. Every role has to be played without any
delay or excuses. A kid’s future depends on the fragile yet strong shoulders of
women, right from welcoming the tiny, innocent soul into the beautiful world
till the time where she is enveloped into the wooden box resting till eternity,
eyes closed with satisfaction. She did all in her power to raise her kids to be
a responsible person.
The importance of a loving mother or innocent
daughter in a family can never be ignored. Their contribution on various
forefronts has bought them the unbeatable position of the fearless tigress of
the wild jungle. They juggle, they hustle, day in and out and have rose to the
level equivalent to their fortunate counterparts.
Outside the role of the caring mother and a loving
daughter, women are the heroes of the fields dominated by men. Countless times
women have proven their worth on various platforms by their strong demeanour.
The unbeatable courage shown on the field by Sakshi Malik and PV Sindhu are the
glittering bold names written on the mindset of ones who thought of them as a
liability, having the sole purpose to get married and live a life devoted to
their husbands.
Strong headed women have rose and have proven their
worth. They have smashed patriarchy hard in its face. There seems to be no
denial of the fact that India is a male-dominated society and places women into
a tough situation of proving their worth. The difficulty to break the
deep-rooted taboos was not and will never be an easy nut to crack, but still,
there are sparkling examples of women shining and proving the otherwise
Gender Discrimination
Gender discrimination is not an unheard quote.
Women fight the long battle at every step where they have to consistently
debunk the deep-rooted taboos which are passed on from generations of dominance
by the male members of the society. Violence and discrimination against women
is not a new thing.
The lure of money has handcuffed the mental powers
to understand and take proper actions against the cringe-worthy practice of
killing an innocent soul.
The irony lies where women do not understand the
pain of other women. Discrimination against women is a very sensitive issue
across the globe. The journey has always been long where women are supposed to
walk that extra mile to prove their worth. If these beliefs are deeply rooted,
the status of our country can never be altered from developing to developed
country. Development and empowerment go hand in hand. In rural areas, the
condition of women is below normal, and their contribution to the economy
however huge is considered negligible. They make up for 50% of the population
but still are far behind in the race to achieve equal status.
Reasons behind the Inequality
The obstructions to the empowerment are many, such
as, female infanticide where girls are killed every hour to the baseless
superstitions which is creating gender imbalance. The favouritism nature is
deeply rooted in the patriarchal mindset where boys are prioritised over girls.
The condition is prevalent in both rural and urban areas. The other factor
responsible beyond the consistent killing is the regressive practice embedded
in the Indian household where the girl child is demeaned, and on the flip side,
the birth of a baby boy is rejoiced.
Female foeticide has stood as one of the exceptional
examples for the sheer misuse of pre-natal technology where parents have become
the killers of an innocent soul which is growing safely inside the womb, but
destiny seems to hold a different turn. The new mother is baffled by the
decision but has no say when undergoing the abortion.
Separating foetus from the womb is the gruesome
crime which results in not only the death of a non-existent foetus but also the
mother who lost herself to the societal norms and time again a girl child is
eliminated from the face of this earth.
Traditional and conservative families are aiding to
deepen the rift of gender inequality where a girl child is considered as a
liability as pockets of the groom family are to be stacked with cash and other
precious items on her marriage is the general thought prevalent in our society.
The never-ending ordeal on the part of the daughter’s parents has created a
huge gap towards the favouritism for boys.
Wind of Change
The winds of change are slow, but the soft breezes
brushing our faces are good for the meantime. The exceptional example set by
women in different sphere has no doubt stood distinctly in proving that nothing
is impossible. Fortunately, the condition is getting altered where medical
practitioners are discouraged to use these sorts of practices. Judicial
law is strengthening and help in curbing the practices against female
infanticide. The development however little is very encouraging for the growth
of the entire nation. The change will indirectly help to maintain the perfect
sex ratio, putting an end to the imbalances created by the society.
Final Word
The gradual shift of mindset is visible where women
are succeeding in different walks spheres. They have proven themselves in
distinct professions that were considered exclusive domains for men. The
country has now started to raise the voices against the issues and has resulted
in all-around empowerment for women.
Let end with an
oath to take the tiniest step possible to empower womanhood and consider this
our moral responsibilities to combat the practices which are standing as strong
barrier restricting women from flying high into the skies of freedom.
By
Sayan Basak
Associate Director, Research and
Publications- ProBono India
3rd Year, Department of Polymer Science and Technology, University of Calcutta
External Links and References-
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2014/mar/06/international-womens-day
https://www.legallyindia.com/Blogs/womens-day-a-day-of-womens-empowerment-html
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/my-womens-day-speech-nilofer-arshad
