India on Friday announced the establishment of the ‘Alliance for Global Good — Gender Equity and Equality’ on the sidelines of the ongoing World Economic Forum 2024 at Davos arising from the country’s abiding commitment to the cause of women-led development as propounded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
As a follow-up to the activities of the Engagement Group and initiatives under the G20 framework, inter alia, the Business 20, Women 20 and G20 EMPOWER, this alliance aims at taking forward the commitments of the G20 leaders for the benefit of the larger global community.
The goal is to reinforce India’s position as a proactive force in the pursuit of a more inclusive and sustainable world. The aim of the alliance is to bring together global good practices, knowledge sharing, investments in the field of women’s health, education, and enterprise.
This, however, is not the only initiative of the Narendra Modi-led government to promote gender equality. Here are a few ways in which the Centre is working tirelessly to promote Nari Shakti in the country:
• Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana: As of February 2023, over 3 crore houses have been constructed. Over 70 per cent houses are either solely or jointly owned by women. By providing ownership of houses under PMAY-G, it has fulfilled the aspirations of women of owning a pucca house and strengthened their participation in the financial decision-making of the household.
• Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana: To safeguard the health of women and children and provide them with clean cooking fuel, Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) was launched by PM Modi in May 2016. Its goal is to make clean cooking fuel, such as LPG, accessible to rural and underprivileged households. As on January 2023, around 10 crore LPG connections have been released.
• Poshan Abhiyaan: The scheme was launched to ensure a healthier and brighter future for mothers and daughters by reducing anaemia and malnutrition. A Poshan Tracker App was also launched for real-time monitoring of nutritional status.
• PM Jan Dhan Yojana: Over 55 per cent bank accounts are held by women in the world’s largest financial inclusion programme. A support of Rs 500 per month was given to over 20 crore women to tide over the Covid-19 pandemic.
• STEM Push: Several schemes have been launched to push women towards achieving progress in scientific fields that are often associated with men. The Vigyan Jyoti Scheme is aimed at promoting women in different fields of science and tech, while the WISER Scheme encourages women to join R&D projects between India and Germany. The CURIE Scheme supports science programmes in women’s PG colleges.
• Swachh Bharat Mission: 100 per cent Open Defecation Free (ODF) status was achieved on October 2, 2019. Over 11 crore individual household toilets have been constructed and 2.23 lakh community sanitary complexes built.
• Jal Jeevan Mission: Compared to August 2019, when 3.23 crore houses had safe and adequate drinking water through individual household tap connections, the number jumped to 12 crore in May 2023. This has come as a major relief to women who no longer have to walk miles to get water for their families.
• Business Push: Over 68 per cent account holders in PM Mudra Yojana are women, while 83 per cent entrepreneurs under the Start-Up India programme are women. Under the Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana, over Rs 3.85 lakh crore bank credit has been given to Self Help Groups since 2013-2014. Of all recognised start-ups, 45 per cent have at least one woman director.
• Menstrual Hygiene: Over 77 per cent women in the 15-24 age group now observe menstrual hygiene by using sanitary products. More than 34.71 crore sanitary pads have been sold at Jan Aushadhi Kendras. In a progressive move, the government introduced sanitary napkins at just Re 1 per pad to eliminate the problem of affordability. The safe sanitation facilities such as more toilets in schools also mean fewer girls dropping out.
• Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana: More than three accounts have been opened in the name of girl children with a minimum deposit of Rs 250.
• Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao: For the first time ever, India is seeing a favourable sex ratio with 1,020 girls for every 1,000 boys. There is also a decline in maternal mortality ratio. The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 2021, has also reduced unsafe abortion and its attendant mortality.
• Women’s Reservation Bill: Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated all Indian women over the passing of the Women’s Reservation Bill in Parliament, saying: “Today, I congratulate all women of the country. Yesterday and the day before, we witnessed the making of a new history. It is our fortune that crores of people gave us the opportunity to create that history.”
• Triple Talaq: In a big victory for the Narendra Modi-led BJP government, the triple talaq bill was passed by the Parliament in 2019. Under the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, divorcing through instant triple talaq is illegal, void and can attract a jail term of three years for the husband.
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