Fact File: Women in India - Stuart Cameron

Education

- Female literacy has increased five times since 1951
- Female literacy still lags behind male literacy: in 2000 it was 45% for females and 68% for males [1].
- There is a wide variation between states and levels of female literacy. In Kerala literacy is almost universal whereas in Rajasthan it stands at around 20% [2].
- The gross rate of enrolment in primary schools is 85% for girls compared to that of 100% for boys
- Only 32% of girls entering primary stage education complete schooling [2].
- In 1950, 40,000 women were enrolled in higher educational institutions. In 1995-96, over 2 million were enrolled - an increase of over 50 times. [2]
Health and population

- In the U.K. there are 103 women for every 100 men: in India there are 94 women for every 100 men.
- The phenomenon of India's 'missing women' has been ascribed to higher female mortality, due to poor nutrition, gender discrimination in the provision of healthcare, and the persistent preference for a male child.
- Between 1971 and 1991 female life expectancy rose to overtake male life expectancy [2]
- Mortality rates are higher for female children than for male. The main factors for this are accidents, injuries, fevers, and digestive disorders - all are preventable and relate to neglect and living conditions. From childhood to old age, women have less access to healthcare than men. [2]
- India's maternal mortality rate is high at 440 per 100,000 live births (compared to 60 in China and around 7 in the UK). [2].
Work and economic activity

- 23% of women participate in paid work compared to 52% of men.[2]
- affecting women at work includes the provision of maternity benefits
- Although Hindu personal law grants women equal rights to property, cultural traditions often prevent women from using these rights.
- Women's access to credit is constrained by the need for security and collateral in the form of property by banks. Although Hindu personal law grants women equal rights to property, cultural traditions often prevent women from using these rights [2] .
Legal & Political system

- The principle of gender equality provides for equality before the law and equal protection of the law, prohibition of discrimination and equality of opportunity in public employment. [2]
- The National Commission for Women was set up in 1992 to bridge the gap between the written law and practice, to ensure that legal safeguards reach women. [2]
- Women's access to legal services is often hampered by lower levels of education, limited exposure to laws, legal procedures, social taboos and limited financial means.
- The presence of a greater number of women in previously maledominated institutions has changed the nature of manyinstitutions: women are seen as more accessible to the community than men, more transparent, and more effective in fighting corruption
- Women have drawn attention to issues generally not focused on by men, such as education, water, sanitation, fuel and alcohol abuse. [6]
- The Indian Government has long had a policy of encouraging grassroots women's organisations and NGOs, whose roles include acting as intermediaries between women and government, allowing women to participate in the political and developmental process.
- The above organisations also provide many essential services where government mechanisms fall short, such as legal advocacy, credit unions, healthcare, childcare, and adult education.
- 9% of members of the Indian Parliament are women [1].
- A Bill to introduce reservations for women in state-level and national governmen, as well as local government, was formulated in the early 90s but has not yet even been discussed by parliament, despite being an election manifesto commitment of the ruling BJP. [4]
- 2001 was announced by the Indian government as Women's Empowerment Year. The year was dismissed by critics as "a lot of programmes with fancy names", lacking the money and political commitment to make a real difference. Brinda Karat, general secretary of the All India Democratic Women's Association observed, "No amount of legislation will be effective as long as the political will to promote gender equity is absent." [5]
References

[1] Population Reference Bureau: Women of Our World 2002. http://www.prb.org
[2] Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) - India's first report. Department of Women and Child Development. http://wcd.nic.in/CEDAW4.htm
[3] UN Statistics Division: The World's Women 2000. http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/ww2000/
[4] Sakuntala Narasimhan, Jan 2002. Women's Empowerment Year. Indiatogether. http://www.Indiatogether.org/women/opinions/year2001.htm
[5] from Rashtra Mahila, June 2002. Published by National Commision for Women. http://www.ncw-india.org/
[6] Ajaya Kumar Mohapatra, 2002. Putting women in their place? Participation in Indian local governance. BRIDGE. Institute of Development Studies.
http://www.ids.ac.uk/bridge/dgb9.html

Links

http://wcd.nic.in/
Indian Department of Women and Child Development. Includes report on the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), with comprehensive information about the position of women in India.
http://www.kamat.com/kalranga/women/index.htm
Women in India: general information, culture, religious practices, etc.
http://www.ids.ac.uk/bridge/index.html
BRIDGE development and gender site, from the Institute of Development Studies.