Condition Of Indian Woman
India a land having the distinction of boasting the world’s largest number of professionally qualified women is yet to ensure a life dignity for the majority of its womenfolk.
India’s male to female ratio is an alarming 1000:933. Women form half of the country’s population, yet only about half of them are iterate. Close to 1.5 lakh women become victims of various crimes annually, as per reported cases. Further, an estimated 5 crore women face mental and physical cruelty. Although the legal marriageable age for a girl in India is 18 years, our girl child doesn’t have a say when she is going to be a woman.
Ironically enough, India has the distinction of having the world’s largest number of professionally qualified women! India prides in having more women as doctors, surgeons, scientists and professors than the United States has.
Then again, woman faces discrimination at her home, starting from womb to tomb. She ventures out to the street and she’s not sure what harassment would greet her at the corner. If she bears a daughter, she doesn’t know why rest of her life won’t be the same again! The saga continues; generation after generation; leaving little chance for Indian society to take a giant leap.
As a matter of fact, gender-based discrimination and societal behaviour leading to physical and psychological harassment, emotional violence bordering on cruelty is never scant in a woman’s basket of woes. Social evils begin at the womb with female foeticide, infanticides, sexual harassment, rape and dowry-related tortures putting an end to her misery only at the tomb.
To combat this increasingly alarming issue Aim Foundation running a comprehensive programme for women development.
A FIVE-FOLD STRATEGY WAS USED TO BRING ABOUT THIS TREMENDOUS CHANGE.
| 1. | Provide market-oriented vocational skill training to women and adolescent girls. |
| 2. | Commitment to help mothers of children, who are attending educational classes, and involve them in saving, thrift and credit, skill training and income generation activities. |
| 3. | Integration of adult literacy with skill training and income generation or making literacy a precondition for skill training and income generation activities. |
| 4. | Development of leadership within the communities and linking them with government and non-government facilities. |
| 5. | Generation of awareness among common people through involving women from project locations. |
