Faces of Women

8/3/2019 Faces of Women

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One of the most enduring clichs about India isthat it is the country of contradictions. Like all

clichs, this one too has a grain of truth in it. Atthe heart of the contradiction stand Indianwomen: for it is true to say that they are amongthe most oppressed in the world, and it is equally

true to say that they are among the mostliberated, the most articulate and perhaps even themost free. Can these two realities besimultaneously true?

Urvashi Butalia


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Background: Facts about India

Place of Women in Indian Society

Indian Women in Modern Times

Education

Employment

Empowerment

Trivia: Famous Faces Indian Women

Introspection


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Largest democracy in the world Land boundaries with Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, China, Nepal

and Pakistan Area: 3,287,590 sq.km (slightly more than one-third the size of US) Coastline: 7,000 k.m. Population: 1,065,070,607 (Growth rate of 1.44%)-second largest

population in the world Sex ratio: 1.07 male (s)/female Life expectancy at birth: 63.25 years (male) and 64.77 years (female) Ethnic groups: Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other

3% Religions: Hindu (81.3%), Muslim (12%), Christian (2.3%), Sikh(1.9%),

Others (2.5%) Languages: 18 major languages; 216 languages in total and several

thousands dialects Literacy: 59.5% (total population); 70.2% (male); and 48.3% (female)


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The Goddess (Devi)

The motherThe sister

The wifeThe daughter-in-law


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Education Literacy

Gender gaps: Differences across states

(Kerala has highest femaleliteracy; Rajasthan, Bihar andUttar Pradesh have thelowest)

Differences between ruraland urban areas

Parental preference for boysgoing to school

Higher dropout rate amonggirls

Female Male

1971 22% 46%

1991 39% 64%

2003 48% 70%


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Gender gaps in higher education

About 1 percent of total women population

has college education

Women account for a third of the students

at college/university level

In engineering and business, the proportion

of female students is much smaller

In education, nearly half of the students are

women


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Poverty: one-fourth of Indias populationlives below the poverty line (2002)

Social values and parental preferences Inadequate school facilities

Shortage of female teachers: 29 percent at

the primary level and 22 percent at theuniversity level (1993)

Gender bias in curriculum


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Difficult to get an overall picture ofemployment among women in India Most women work in the informal sector

Women accounted for only 23 percent ofthe total workers in the formal sector in1991

The number of female workers hasincreased faster than the number of maleworkers

Female unemployment rates are similar to

male unemployment rates


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Category Female Male

Agricultural laborer 46.3% 23.0%

Cultivator 34.6% 39.9%

Household industry 3.5% 2.1%

Non-household industry 3.8% 8.8%

Services 8.3% 10.8%

Other categories 3.5% 15.5%


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Cultural Restrictions

Discrimination at Workplace and pay

Lack of employment opportunities

Social inequalities

Atrocities on womenDomestic violence


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Social EmpowermentEducation There is no direct relationship between education

and work force participation; but may affect theirparticipation in household decision making

Economic Independence: Economic independence does not imply

significant improvement in social standing Culture and tradition play an important role

A small fraction has opened up towards Westernvalues


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Economic Empowerment

Property Rights

Patriarchal society

Economic Decision Making In the household

In businesses


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Political Empowerment

Representation in democraticinstitutions

Government reservations policy forwomen: the constitutionalamendment of 1990s


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TRIVIA

Recognize Famous Faces


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http://www.rainews24.rai.it/ran24/speciali/9_11_2003/foto/arundhati.jpg


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Faces of an Indian woman

Wife

Mother

Sister

Bread earnerCompassionate member of the

society


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The origin of a child is a mother, a woman..she shows a man what sharing, caring,and loving is all about. That is the essence ofa woman."

Sushmita Sen., Miss Universe 1994


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but that is just a beginning.

Documents

Faces of Women