ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN KEY TO GENDER EQUALITY -SHILPI ARORA

Gender disparity in the country and hill state of Uttarakhand can be tackled only through proactive intervention in areas such as economic empowerment of women, building of adequate social and physical infrastructure and improving women’s role in governance

Ëconomic empowerment of women was the key to not only meeting the objective of gender equality but also to eliciting full participation in nation-building and there was also a need to strengthen the systems and processes that facilitated women to take control and claim ownership of their lives..”said MS Shilpi Arora, President, Women’s Association for Training ,Empowerment and Resettlement (WATER) an NGO working for betterment of Women in the state while speaking at meet organised by Rotary Club, Ashok .

“Rural backwardness of women can be addressed only through concerted efforts to create equality in access and unearth the potentialities hidden in people. Women comprise 48.5 per cent of our total population. Though the overall sex ratio has increased by 7 points during the decade 2001 to 2011, the ratio of 940 females per 1,000 male population in 2011 is a disappointing figure and reflects the distance that remains in achieving true equality.” Said MS Shilpi Arora, Who is also General Secretary of Uttarakhand State Congress

“Poor women were often incapacitated to act individually, social mobilisation for their economic redemption was a critical necessity. “Participatory institution building through self-help groups has been found to be one of the most effective tools for the empowerment of women in the country.Empowering women to participate fully in economic life across all sectors is essential to build stronger economies, achieve internationally agreed goals for development and sustainability, and improve the quality of life for women, men, families and communities.”she added.

“Uttarkhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat had recently launched The ‘Mujhe Jine Do’ campaign by WOMEN’S ASSOCIATION FOR TRAINING, EMPOWERMENT AND RESETTLEMENT (WATER) and at Gadarpur in Udham Singh Nagar District, is an initiative to generate awareness about female foeticide, gender inequality, sexual harassment and to curb violence against women and girls in the Hill state of Uttarakhand and whole of nation in coming days.We plan to take the campaign to other parts of the state and than to Rajasthan an Haryana”she said . Rotary Ashok President Parkash Sharma were present on the occasion.