Friday 18 January 2013

Concerns Of Indian Women


Sexual Harrasment : Molestation andl harrasment remains one of the biggest unsolved problem for the working Indian  women. Although the government has taken many steps to decrease eve teasing and molestation, still it has failed to overcome the problem. In 1997, the Supreme Court of India took a strong stand against sexual harassment of women in the workplace.It laid down detailed guidelines for prevention and redressal of grievances but the problem still exists in the society.
Malnutrition : In India, the  average female life expectancy  is lower as  compared to many other  countries, but over the years , it has started  showing  gradual improvement . In many families, especially rural ones, the girls and women face nutritional discrimination within the family, and are anaemic and malnourished.
Poor Health : still in some part of the country, in many families the girls and women face nutritional discrimination within the family and are often diagonised with as anemic and malnourished. This situation occurs mainly in the rural regions
Forced Marraiges and Child Marriage : In India, even in educated families, females are not allowed to take their own decision of marriages. They have to settle down for a groom chosen by her family. Child marriage has been traditionally prevalent in India and continues to this day.  In the past, the child widows were condemned to a life of great agony, shaving heads, living in isolation, and shunned by the society. Although child marriage was outlawed in 1860, it is still a common practice. According to UNICEF’s “State of the World’s Children-2009” report, 47% of India's women aged 20–24 were married before the legal age of 18, with 56% in rural areas. The report also showed that 40% of the world's child marriages occur in India.
Female infanticide : India has a a very high masculine sex ratio. One of the main reason  being that many indain women die before they reach adulthood.  Female infanticides and sex-selective abortions are the other reason for this high masculine sex ratio. Although all the  medical tests  used to determine the sex of the child have been legally banned in India, female infanticide is still prevalent in many parts of the country. The abuse of the dowry tradition can be considered as  one of the main reasons for sex-selective abortions and female infanticides in India.
Ill treatment/domestic violence : The incidents of domestic violence are higher among the lower Socio-Economic Classes. Many laws have been passed in India in favour of women such as The Hindu Marriage Act of 1955, The Hindu Succession Act of 1956, The Hindu Widow Remarriage Act of 1856, The Hindu Women Right to Property Act of 1937, The Dowry Prohibition Act of 1961. These laws are to protect women .  But the conviction rate of crime against women  in India is very low.
Maternal  mortality :  The maternal mortality in India is the second highest in the world where only 42% of births are supervised by health professionals. And in rural areas, where the Indian women is still uneducated, she has  little or no control over her reproductivity.  Also  due to lack of proper food and often marriage at an early age results in preganancies at an early age resulting in many other gyanacological problems in females.
Talking about urban Indian women who are now often well educated ,are in a better condition and they take care of themselves eating right foods,exercisisng,  having a control on their reproductivity etc.
Dowry : In 1961, the Government of India passed the Dowry Prohibition Act, making the dowry demands in wedding arrangements illegal. However, many cases of dowry-related domestic violence, suicides and murders have been reported in India and it still exists in the society. Even the upper section of the society has not remained untouched from this practice.
Dependency on male members of the family for decisions : Often women in India is not allowed to take her own decisions. India still remains a male dominemt society where the women depends on the decisions made by the male members of the family. Though there are exceptions but still this problem remains a main hudle in the progess of Indian women.

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