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STATUS OF WOMEN IN INDIA

INTRODUCTION

As per the latest census carried out by the government of India, there are 933

females for every 1000 males in our country. Male dominance is everywhere.

We can find superiority of men in every phase of our lives. When we are born,

we have our fathers to look after us, our brothers then share the responsibilities

of the father when we enter our teenage years, then we have our life partners

who decide everything in our married lives, lastly our sons enter the bandwagon

in our old age days. To a very large extent, lives of women in our country are

decided and controlled by the men in their lives.

This scenario is slowly changing in recent years. We can see a slow and steady

rise of women in all fields of importance. Women of today are not just restricted

to cooking and taking care of their households, they have stepped out of their

comfort zones to create their own images in the outside world as well. This in
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short, can be termed as women empowerment. Society has now changed its

stand and the way it looks at women, due to the progress achieved by women in

all spheres of life. Men of today are more understanding towards the women in

their lives, yet we hear many cases of harassment against women. Let us look

deeper into the topic perspective by perspective.

The status of women in India has been subject to many great changes over the

past few millennia. With a decline in their status from the ancient to medieval

times, to the promotion of equal rights by many reformers, their history has

been eventful. In modern India, women have held high offices including that of

the President, Prime Minister, Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Leader of the

Opposition, Union Ministers, Chief Ministers and Governors.

Women's rights under the Constitution of India mainly include equality, dignity,

and freedom from discrimination; additionally, India has various statutes

governing the rights of women.

As of 2018, the President of India, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and the Leader

of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha (Lower House of the parliament) have been

women. However, women in India continue to face numerous problems such as

sexual assault gender inequality and dowry.

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According India’s constitution, women are legal citizens of the country and

have equal rights with men (Indian Parliament). Because of lack of acceptance

from the male dominant society, Indian women suffer immensely. Women are

responsible for baring children, yet they are malnourished and in poor health.

Women are also overworked in the field and complete the all of the domestic

work. Most Indian women are uneducated. Although the country’s constitution

says women have equal status to men, women are powerless and are mistreated

inside and outside the home.

WOMEN IN THE TRADITIONAL TIMES

Traditionally, women were considered to be care takers of the home. They had

to look after the running of the family smoothly, they had to manage the

expenses in the most economical way possible, they had to look after aged in-

laws, nurture the children etc. They were judiciously kept out of decision

making matters as the primary role of women was not that of ruling the family.

They were expected to obey orders of the husband, the elders of the family but

kept in isolation when it came to major decisions related to the family.

Women were not too educated in the bygone eras. They would be married off

one day to their in-laws place and hence would not need too much of knowledge
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was the previous thinking. Women, who were still part of families that thought

otherwise, saw some respite in this narrow minded approach. There were

women in olden days too, who were

well educated and led paths of success

in many spheres of life because of

support from their families. It is these

women who led paths of change and

brought about a transformation in the

way people viewed women in the

society.

THE MODERN DAY WOMAN

Women have completely transformed in the modern day, the urban woman

especially has changed from being a mere homemaker to the modern day

multitasking woman, handling responsibilities without fear. She has taken on

the world with confidence. Women of today handle their duties and chores at

home, manage a career outside their homes, nurture their children and balance

their family lives with their professions. This is the scene in most of the urban

households today. The modern day woman is independent, takes right decisions

boldly, stands up for her rights and walks a path of success. Kalpana Chawla,
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Indra Nooyi, Sushma Swaraj, Aishwarya Rai and many more are women

achievers in their chosen fields.

This is the scene in the developing economy of today. Women are well

educated, they have crossed horizons, and their presence can be felt in many

male dominated areas. Women have been sent on many space missions. We see

women rise as

journalists,

politicians, doctors,

engineers, lawyers,

actors and in many

other professional

spheres. Women of

today choose the right career paths that determine their future and thus we see

them excelling in every walk of life.

This is just one side of the story. Women in downtrodden regions and rural

backgrounds have still to compete a lot in terms of their urban counterparts. Not

that the rural women are backward in any aspect, but the change and

transformation that the urban woman sees, is definitely a little slower to the

rural women. Women, be it from urban or rural backgrounds, still face

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harassment and humiliation in domestic as well as professional circles.

However high they reach in their lives, women are still made to feel helpless

when men mete out unhealthy treatments and behave badly in front of them.

We see presence of women in rackets of prostitution, as call girls, as dance bar

girls etc that focuses on the other side of society. The society is coming to terms

and accepts the presence of both classes of women. Women may come from

socially challenging situations, they may be part of difficult situations, and they

may cease to have any kind of support from their families. Reasons unknown,

they may be provoked to earn a livelihood out of immoral practices which

makes women vulnerable and want to join easy, but wrong routes to earning

money. This is another side of the story.

We talk of women having achieved great feats and laurels, but there always

exists a sad part of the story which we cannot move away from. The necessity

of the day is a strong legislation and most importantly, education and

empowerment of women that will take them away from being part of these dark

areas of the country.

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SOCIO-ECONOMIC PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN

We have women who are bus drivers, metro rail drivers, conductors, post

masters, flight squadrons, pilots, scientists, etc. Women have proved to the

world that there is literally nothing that is unconquerable by them. They have

taken over male bastions and proved successful in their own ways. Women

today are law makers; we have had many presidents and prime ministers in our

nation who were women. Women ruled the country on many important

occasions and proved to be the best decision makers in times of emergency.

Women in power steal the limelight and make men respect their decisions.
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DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

Domestic violence in India is endemic.[116] Around 70% of women in India are

victims of domestic violence, according to Renuka Chowdhury, former Union

minister for Women and Child Development. [117] Domestic violence was legally

addressed in the 1980s when the 1983 Criminal Law Act introduced section

498A "Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty".

The National Crime Records Bureau reveal that a crime against a woman is

committed every three minutes, a woman is raped every 29 minutes,

a dowry death occurs every 77 minutes, and one case of cruelty committed by

either the husband or relative of the husband occurs every nine minutes. [117] This

occurs despite the fact that women in India are legally protected from domestic

abuse under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act.[117]

In India, domestic violence toward women is considered as any type of abuse

that can be considered a threat; it can also be physical, psychological, or sexual

abuse to any current or former partner. [119] Domestic violence is not handled as a

crime or complaint, it is seen more as a private or family matter. [119] In

determining the category of a complaint, it is based on caste, class, religious

bias and race which also determines whether action is to be taken or not.
[119]
Many studies have reported about the prevalence of the violence and have

taken a criminal-justice approach, but most woman refuse to report it. [119]These

women are guaranteed constitutional justice, dignity and equality but continue
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to refuse based on their sociocultural contexts. [119] As the women refuse to speak

of the violence and find help, they are also not receiving the proper treatment.
[119]

SEXUAL HARASSMENT

Eve teasing is a euphemism used for sexual harassment or molestation of

women by men. Many activists blame the rising incidents of sexual harassment

against women on the influence of "Western culture". In 1987, The Indecent

Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act was passed [140] to prohibit indecent

representation of women through advertisements or in publications, writings,

paintings or in any other manner.

Of the total number of crimes against women reported in 1990, half related to

molestation and harassment in the workplace.[34] In 1997, in a landmark

judgement the Supreme Court of India took a strong stand against sexual

harassment of women in the workplace. The Court also laid down detailed

guidelines for prevention and redressal of grievances. The National Commission

for Women subsequently elaborated these guidelines into a Code of Conduct for

employers.[34] In 2013 India's top court investigated on a law graduate's

allegation that she was sexually harassed by a recently retired Supreme Court

judge.[141] The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention,

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Prohibition and Redressal) Act came into force in December 2013, to prevent

Harassment of women at workplace.

A study by ActionAid UK found that 80% of women in India had experienced

sexual harassment ranging from unwanted comments, being groped or

assaulted. Many incidents go unreported as the victims fear being shunned by

their families.

HISTORY OF WOMEN IN INDIA

Ancient India

Women during the early Vedic period enjoyed equal status with men in all

aspects of life. Works by ancient Indian grammarians such

as Patanjali and Katyayana suggest that women were educated in the

early Vedic period. Rig Vedic verses suggest that women married at a mature

age and were probably free to select their own husbands in a practice

called swayamvar or live-in relationship called Gandharva marriage. The Rig

Veda and Upanishads mention several women sages and seers, notably Gargi

Vachaknavi and Maitreyi (c. 7th century BCE).

Medieval period

The Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinent brought changes to Indian

society. The position of Indian women in society deteriorated during this period.
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The purdah system and Jauhar are attributable to the Muslim rules that existed

from 10th century onwards.

The Rajputs of Rajasthan, started the practice of Jauhar after a century of

Islamic invasions in the 10th century. The early Islamic invasions in Sindh did

not result in Jauhar, as is evident from the history of Raja Dahir or Sindh. After

the attack by Mohammed-Bin-Qasim in 10th century, and the killing of Raja

Dahir, his wife and daughters were sent off as sex slaves to Damascus. This

type of slavery prevalent in 10th century may have resulted in the evolution of

Jauhar in Western India, which were the first parts of India exposed to invasions

from the Persian and Turkish empires.

Polygamy was practised among Hindu Kshatriya rulers. However, this practice

may not be considered a uniform social behavior, as at the same time, there

were kingdoms which practised polyandry also. Nair warrior communities in

Kerala practiced polyandry for centuries, during the medieval period up to the

British 18th century.

HISTORICAL PRACTICES

There have been positive practices of women as subject of respect in India, and

there have been regressive practices as well. Here are some practices
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Naari Puja

In Kerala’s Alappuzha district, an ancient temple called Chakkulathu Kavu

holds an exceptionally remarkable annual ritual of worshipping women in the

month of December.

Popularly known as Naari Puja, the ritual is conducted every year on the first

Friday of Dhanu maasam. The chief priest of the temple himself conducts the

puja.Thousands of women are worshipped during the ceremony regardless of

the caste, religion or creed they belong to. Women are seated on a chair

(peetom) for the ritual and the chief priest washes their feet. The women are

later garlanded and offered flowers.

Sati

Sati was an old, almost completely defunct custom among some communities,

in which the widow was immolated alive on her husband's funeral pyre. After

the foreign invasions of Indian subcontinent, this practice started to mark its

presence, as women were

often raped or kidnapped

by the foreign forces. It

was abolished by the

British in 1829. However,

there have been around

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forty reported cases of Sati since Indian independence. In 1987, the Roop

Kanwar case in Rajasthan led to The Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act. [24]

Purdah

Purdah is the practice among some Muslim communities requiring women to

cover themselves for the purpose of modesty.[25][better source needed]

Devadasi

Devadasi or Devaradiyar means “servant of God”. These women were

dedicated to God and were considered given in marriage to God, meaning that

they could therefore not marry any ‘mortal’. Nevertheless, they were free to

choose partners, from among married and unmarried men alike. [citation needed] These

relationships could be long and stable, or just for a short period of time. But in

no way were these women economically dependent on their partners. They

learned music and dance, and as many as 64 types of arts. They would dance

and sing in temples or in front of royalty and earn gold and land as a reward.

Some chose to dedicate themselves only to God and stayed without a partner all

through their life. The tradition of Devadasi culture can be traced back to as

early as the 7th century, particularly in southern parts of India during the reigns

of the Cholas, Chelas, and Pandyas. The women were well treated and

respected, and held a high social status in the society. [citation needed] It was common

for them to be invited to be present at or initiate sacred religious rituals. As long

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as the temples and empires flourished, so did they. With the death of the

empires, the Devadasi practice degenerated into a practice of sex labour, and

child prostitution. A law banning the practice of Devadasi prostitution was

enacted. However, according to the National Human Rights Commission, in

2013, there were as many as 450,000 Devadasis in India

BRITISH RULE

During the British Raj, many reformers such as Ram Mohan Roy, Ishwar

Chandra Vidyasagar and Jyotirao Phule fought for the betterment of

women. Peary Charan Sarkar, a former student of Hindu College, Calcutta and a

member of "Young Bengal", set up the first free school for girls in India in 1847

in Barasat, a suburb of Calcutta (later the school was named Kalikrishna Girls'

High School).

While this might suggest that there was no positive British contribution during

the Raj era, that is not entirely the case. Missionaries' wives such as Martha

Mault née Mead and her daughter Eliza Caldwell née Mault are rightly

remembered for pioneering the education and training of girls in south India.

This practice was initially met with local resistance, as it flew in the face of

tradition. Raja Rammohan Roy's efforts led to the abolition of Sati

under Governor-General William Cavendish-Bentinck in 1829. Ishwar Chandra

Vidyasagar's crusade for improvement in the situation of widows led to

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the Widow Remarriage Act of 1856. Many women reformers such as Pandita

Ramabaialso helped the cause of women.

POLITICS

India has one of the highest number of female politicians in the world. Women

have held high offices in India including that of the President, Prime

Minister, Speaker of the Lok Sabha and Leader of the Opposition. The Indian

states Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh,[68] Andhra

Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa, Raja

sthan and Tripura have implemented 50% reservation for women in PRIs.

Majority of candidates in these Panchayats are women. Currently 100% of

elected members in Kodassery Panchayat in Kerala are women.[71] There are

currently 2 female chief ministers in India as of Sept 2018.

As of 2018, 12 out of 29 states and the union territory of Delhi have had at least

one female Chief Minister.

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EDUCATION AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Though it is sharply increasing,[82] the female literacy rate in India is less than

the male literacy rate.[83] Far fewer girls than boys are enrolled in school, and

many girls drop out.[34] In urban India, girls are nearly on a par with boys in

terms of education. However, in rural India, girls continue to be less educated

than boys. According to the National Sample Survey Data of 1997, only the

states of Kerala and Mizoram have approached universal female literacy.

According to scholars,

the major factor

behind improvements

in the social and

economic status of

women in Kerala is

literacy.

Under the Non-Formal Education programme (NFE), about 40% of the NFE

centres in states and 10% of the centres in UTs are exclusively reserved for

females. As of 2000, about 300,000 NFE centres were catering to about 7.42

million children. About 120,000 NFE centres were exclusively for girls.
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WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Women’s day is celebrated, not to glorify the beauty and grace of women, but to

bring about awareness among the public regarding women’s safety. Women

need to strengthen themselves by building up their inner strengths. They should

work on increasing their moral strengths and face the world without fear.

Women are taught to be bold and outgoing in these days of modernism.

We should empower the women in our lives to lead independent lives. They

should take independent decisions regarding their careers, professions, choices

in matters of life partners, etc. They should have a say in all important matters

of the family. They should be taught to be self reliant and should not depend on

anyone to meet their financialneeds; they should be taught to handle their own

expenses.
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Population

 As per Census 2011, India’s population was 121.06 Cr and the females

constituted 48.5% of it.

 In 2011, the sex ratio (number of females per 1000 males) at all India level was

943 and the same for rural and urban areas are 949 and 929 respectively. The

sex ratio for 0 - 19 age group was 908 while that of 60+ age group was 1033.

The sex ratio in the economically active age group (15 - 59 years) was 944.

 Sex ratio in the age group 0 - 6 years has increased in rural from 906 in 2001 to

923 in 2011. However, the ratio has a decline in urban area in the same period.

 The SRS 2014 showed that, the women’s mean age at marriage at all India level

was 22.3 years and the same in rural and urban areas are 21.8 years and 23.2

years respectively.

 As per National Sample Survey (July 2011 - June 2012), 11.5% households in

rural areas and 12.4 % households in urban areas are female headed households.

Health

 The SRS 2014 estimates showed a Crude Birth Rate (CBR) of 21 and General

Fertility Rate (GFR) of 77.6 at all India level.

 In 2014, the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) was 2.3. TFR was high for illiterate

women both in rural and urban areas, higher among rural illiterate women and

statistics reveal that improvement in educational level lowers the TFR.

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 The SRS 2014 reported that the age - specific fertility rate was highest (174.9)

in the age group 20 - 24 years followed by the age group 25 - 29 years (143.7)

and 30 - 34 years (76.6).

 The mortality rate among females across all ages was 6.2 and that among males

was 7.1 in 2014.

 The Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) has declined from 301 in 2001 - 03 to

167 in 2011 - 13.

 In 2014, the Infant Mortality (IMR) of females was 40 while that of males was

37. The rate of decline in the IMR of females was faster than that of IMR

among males.

 In 2014, urban mothers received 1.27 times more medical attention at the time

of delivery as compared to rural mothers (urban:93.2%, rural:73.2%).

 The life expectancy for females was 69.6 years and for males was 66.4 years

during the period 2010 - 2014, depicting higher life expectancy of females as

compared to males.

PARTICIPATION IN ECONOMY

 In 2011, the Workforce Participation Rate at all India level was 25.51% for

female and 53.26% for males. While there was no rural – urban gap for males

(53%), there was considerable rural – urban gap for females (rural - 30%, urban

- 15.4 % ).
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 As per NSS 2011 - 12, 59.3% of the female workers in rural India are self

employed while in urban areas the corresponding figure was 42.8%. Among the

male workers, 54.5% in rural areas and 41.7% in urban areas are self employed.

In rural areas the share of regular wage/ salaried employees was less for both

females (5.6%) and males (10%) compared to urban areas (42.8% - females,

43.4 - males).

 In 2015 - 16 (5th Annual Employment – Unemployment Survey conducted by

Labour Bureau), the unemployment rate for persons aged 15 +years was 3.7 at

all India level. For females (15+ years) , the unemployment rate was 5.8, while

for the males (15+ years) the same was 3.0. There was considerable rural–urban

gap in unemployment rate of females (rural - 4.7, urban - 10.9).

 The 6th Economic Census (2013-14) showed that, 21.49% of the total

establishments are owned by females and 18.29% of the workers employed in

establishments are females.

CONCLUSION

Women play many roles in their lives, that of a daughter, sister, wife, daughter-
in-law, mother, friend, colleague, professional and the list is never ending. With
addition of roles, comes addition of responsibilities and women have to handle
everything in a very dignified manner. The modern day woman is more aware
of the society around her and believes in her strengths, handles her weaknesses
with grace, identifies the goodness in things and is socially responsible towards
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her duties. Women don many roles and handle them with grace. There is no
profession that does not have women enrolment.

The government has put together many schemes especially for the
empowerment of women. Many seats are reserved in parliament to encourage
women participation. Education of girls is made free and compulsory in
government schools to encourage women to join different institutions and
render their valuable services. Our armed forces have seen a rise in women
enrolment and it’s a matter of pride for the nation to have great daughters in the
country.
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INDEX

SR.NO TITLE PAGE NO

1 INTRODUCTION 1
2 WOMEN IN THE TRADITIONAL TIMES 3
3 THE MODERN DAY WOMAN 4
SOCIO-ECONOMIC PARTICIPATION OF
4 7
WOMEN
5 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 8
6 SEXUAL HARASSMENT 9
7 HISTORY OF WOMEN IN INDIA 10
8 HISTORICAL PRACTICES 11
9 BRITISH RULE 14
10 POLITICS 15
11 EDUCATION AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 16
12 WOMEN EMPOWERMENT 17
13 PARTICIPATION IN ECONOMY 19
14 CONCLUSION 20