Suchergebnisse

Empowerment of women is important for decision making in relation to health seeking, family planning, nutrition and economic issues not only for her but also for the family. Women's empowerment in India is heavily dependent on many different variables which include geographical location (urban/rural), educational status, social status (caste and class) and age. Policies on empowerment of women exist at national, state and local (panchayat) levels. Still women face differentiation in many sectors like health, education, economic opportunities and political participation which shows that there are significant gaps between policy advancements and actual practice at the community level. This paper reveals current status of women empowerment indicators in India. It focuses on various laws and policies framed for women empowerment for women. The reasons for discrimination of women in society are given despite adequate laws for protection of their rights. The study is concluded by making appropriate recommendations to ameliorate the status of women. Framing and implementation of sound policy framework, education and disseminating social awareness regarding empowerment of women can lead to achieve the desired goals in removing the plight of women in Indian society.

India became independent in 1947 and adopted a Constitution in 1950, which remains in force today.1 Part III of the Constitution protects fundamental rights, including the right to life, which has been interpreted to mean the right to live a life with dignity and free from violence.2 The Constitution also empowers the State to take affirmative measures to protect women under Article 15.3 The Indian Parliament has often invoked Article 15 to pass special legislative or executive measures to protect women, which have generally been upheld by the CourtsIt took India fourteen years after independence to pass its first law directly relating to violence against women. In 1961, the Dowry Prohibition Act (DPA) came into effect which penalized not only taking but giving of dowry. However, the Act did not effectively curb the practice of dowry.5 The Indian Parliament later passed Dowry Prohibition (Amendment) Acts in 1984 and 1986, but their impact was as negligible as that of the 1961 Act.6