Facts:
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UN report ” Cyber violence against women and girls” – 73% women reported facing violence online.
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Stalkers and abusers online take advantage of anonymity and are encouraged by viral nature of the online medium which provides instant fame.
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Gender Development Index: 132ndrank
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Gender Equality Index: 127th rank
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Suffers from one of the lowest sex ratios (940 in 2011) in South Asia
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Gender ratio on the electoral rolls: 800 (almost)
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Women representation increased from 4.4% in first Lok Sabha election in 1952 to 11.9% in the 16th Lok Sabha in 2014. Global average is 22.9%.
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On average, women are paid 34% less than men in India. This gender wage gap is highest in world.
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The gender pay gap is still high in India and women in the country earn 19 per cent less than men.
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The agricultural census reveals that 73.2% of rural women are engaged in farming activities but only 12.8% own landholdings.
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Women’s representation has marginally increased in police, prisons and the judiciary.Women now accounts for
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10% of all police personnel up from 7% in 2017;
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13% prison staff (10% in 2016) and
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3% of judges (26.5% in 2017-18).
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The obstacles to political empowerment are mainly in three areas :
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Registration as voter,
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Actual participation in voting,
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Contesting as candidate
General elections of 2014 :
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Women’s turnout shot up from 55.82 to 65.63 per cent — a jump of nearly 20 per cent
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16 states- Outnumbered their male counterparts
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Gender gap- Used to be higher than 10 per cent, came down to an all-time low of 1.46 per cent
Participation of women as candidates :
India is way behind more backward countries of South Asia; even conservative Muslim countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh have higher female representation
Breakthrough: The enactment of the 73rd and 74th amendments to the Constitution in 1992
2009: The Union cabinet approved an increase in reservation for women from 33 to 50 per cent in Panchayati raj institutions
Bill for women’s reservation in legislatures: Been pending in Parliament
Government Initiatives:
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NARI Portal: The NARI portal will provide information to women on issues affecting their lives.
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e-Samvad Portal: The MWCD also launched the portal to provide platform for NGOs and Civil Societies to interact with the ministry.