SOCIO ECONOMIC

PROBLEMS OF
INDIA

PRESENTED BY:- DHIRAJ KUMAR

BBA(H)-008, SEC-‘A’
REG NO-09121458
WBUT ROLL NO- O9149050105

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 Acknowledgement
I would like to convey my special
thanks to Mrs. Babita das paul, for her
support and dedication. She shared
enough knowledge with me which
helped me a lot in completion of my
project.
- ( Dhiraj kumar)

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CONTENTS-
1. Introduction………………………………………4-5
2. Objectives………………………………………...5
3. Types……………………………………………...5-16
4. Some Psychological Intervention For Enhancing Group
Behavior………………………………………….16-17
5. Gender Discrimination…………………………...17-20
6. Gender Development, Women‟s Movement……..20-23
7. Women and Political Participation……………….23-24
8. Gender Issues in India…………………………….24-25
9. Gender Bias in Health Concerns in India………...25-26
10. Reproductive Health Status of Women In India….26-29
11. Conclusion……………………………………….29-30

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 SOCIO ECONOMIC PROBLEMS OF INDIA

Introduction
Population explosion, Unemployment, beggary, Child labour, Prostitution, Social
malfunctions like child and women trafficking,suicides of farmers and unemployed
youth, Dowry problems faced by poor indian women, negligence of old age
people, illegal mafia activities all are inter related with socio economic problems of
our indian society.
One of the most obvious problems in India has to be the unrestrained birth rate.
This issue of overpopulation affects everything else that ails India --
too many mouths to feed too many people viewing for a limited amount of jobs
educational opportunities for children lacking due to too many kids and
inadequate resources overcrowding in communities and villages sickness and

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epidemics that cannot be managed effectively due to the ever-burgeoning birth
rate, and so on.
Objectives
 Conprehend literacy situation in India
 Understand population explosion and its problems
 Explain corruption as an evil and
 `Proverty & Causes

TYPES-

Since India‟s Independence in 1947, country has faced several social and economic
issues:
1.Religious violence
2.Illiteracy
3. Terrorism
4. Naxalism
5. Caste related violence
6. Overpopulation
7. Economic issues
8. Poverty
9. Corruption
10.Sanitation
11.Social tensions

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Religious violence
Constitutionally India is a secular state, but large-scale violence have periodically
occurred in India since independence. In recent decades, communal tensions and
religion-based politics have become more prominent.
Although India is generally known for religious pluralism, the Hindutva ideology
propagates that India belongs to the Hindus, and the Christians and the Muslims
are “aliens”, and many proponents of this ideology portray violence against
Muslims and Christians as a form of “self-defence” against “invaders”.
The Hindutva ideology is at the core of Sangh Parivar politics and its expression in
violence against religious minority. Throughout the history of post-Independence
India, both Muslim and Christian communities have faced repeated attacks from
Hindu activists. As the Hindutva ideology has grown more powerful over the
years, many Hindutva activists have partaken in riots against minority
communities.
Over the last decade, religious violence in India has increasingly become what
academics believe to be organized pogroms to eliminate minority communities.
Some state governments in India have been accused of not effectively prosecuting
those who attack religious minorities. Major religious violent incidents include
Ayodhya debate, Bombay Riots, 1993 Bombay bombings, 2002 Gujarat violence.
Although related, Hinduism and Hindutva are different.
Hinduism is a religion while Hindutva is a political ideology. The Hindutva
movement is not supported by majority of Hindus. Some tolerant or “secular”
Hindus use the term “Hindu Taliban” to describe the supporters of the Hindutva
movement. Fukuoka Asian Culture Prize-winning Indian sociologist and cultural
and political criticAshis Nandy argued “Hindutva will be the end of Hinduism.”

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In Jammu and Kashmir, Since March 1990, estimates of between 250,000 to
300,000 pandits have migrated outside Kashmir due to persecution by Islamic
fundamentalists in the largest case of ethnic cleansing since the partition of India.
The proportion of Kashmiri Pandits in the Kashmir valley has declined from about
15% in 1947 to, by some estimates, less than 0.1% since the insurgency in Kashmir
took on a religious and sectarian flavor. Many Kashmiri Pandits have been killed
by Islamist terrorists in incidents such as the Wandhama massacre and the 2000
Amarnath pilgrimage massacre.
In recent years, there has been a sharp increase in violent attacks on Christians in
India, often perpetrated by Hindu Nationalists.The acts of violence include arson of
churches, re-conversion of Christians to Hinduism, distribution of threatening
literature, burning of Bibles, raping of nuns, murder of Christian priests and
destruction of Christian schools, colleges, and cemeteries.
The Sangh Parivar and related organisations have stated that the violence is an
expression of “spontaneous anger” of “vanvasis” against “forcible conversion”
activities undertaken by missionaries, a claim described as “absurd” and rejected
by scholars. Between 1964 and 1996, thirty-eight incidents of violence against
Christians were reported.
In 1997, twenty-four such incidents were reported. In 2007 and 2008 there was a
further flare up of tensions in Orissa, the first following the Christians‟ putting up a
Pandhal in land traditionally used by Hindus and the second after the unprovoked
murder of a Hindu Guru and four of his disciples while observing Janmashtami
puja. This was followed by an attack on a 150-year-old church in Madhya Pradesh,
and more attacks in Karnataka.

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ILLITERACY
Illiteracy is another major problem before the society. It‟s a sad state of affairs that
a country which had higher level of literacy (than British) at a time when British
came two centuries ago is now facing the challenge of a huge number of people
who are illiterate and cannot read or write. The lack of these skills renders them
deprived of the opportunities for upward social mobility. Such people have to
depend on others for various things are exploited in various ways. For example the
poor rural people are asked to put their thumb impression of various legal
documents and are subjected to exploitations and legal hassles. Keeping these
negative consequences in view the government is trying to universalize primary
education. The lack of reading and writing skills makes a person incapable of
availing the various opportunities to help themselves. Each and every educated
person, therefore, is expected to contribute to the literacy mission and making it
success.

Terrorism
The regions with long term terrorist activities today are Jammu and Kashmir,
Central India (Naxalism) and Seven Sister States (independence and autonomy
movements). In the past, the Punjab insurgency led to militant activities in the
Indian state of Punjab as well as the national capital Delhi (Delhi serial blasts, anti-
Sikh riots). As of 2006, at least 232 of the country‟s 608 districts were afflicted, at
differing intensities, by various insurgent and terrorist movements.
Terrorism in India has often been alleged to be sponsored by Pakistan. After most
acts of terrorism in India, many journalists and politicians accuse Pakistan‟s
intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence of playing a role. Recently,
both the US and Afghanistan have accused Pakistan of carrying out terrorist acts in
Afghanistan.

Naxalism
Naxalism is an informal name given to communist groups that were born out of the

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Sino-Soviet split in the Indian communist movement. Ideologically they belong to
various trends of Maoism. Initially the movement had its centre in West Bengal. In
recent years, they have spread into less developed areas of rural central and eastern
India, such as Chattisgarh and Andhra Pradeshthrough the activities of
underground groups like the Communist Party of India (Maoist).The CPI (Maoist)
and some other Naxal factions are considered terrorists by the Government of
Indiaand various state
Caste-relatedviolence
Caste-related violence and hate crimes in India have occurred despite the gradual
reduction of casteism in the country. Independent India has witnessed considerable
amount of violence andhate crimes motivated by caste. Ranvir Sena, a caste-
supremacist fringe paramilitary group based in Bihar, has committed violent acts
against Dalits and other members of the scheduled caste community.
Phoolan Devi, who belonged to Mallah lower-caste, was mistreated and raped by
upper-caste Thakurs at a young age. She then became a bandit and carried out
violent robberies against upper-caste people. In 1981, her gang massacred twenty-
two Thakurs, most of whom were not involved in her kidnapping or rape. Phoolan
Devi went on to become a politician and Member of Parliament.
Over the years, various incidents of violence against Dalits, such as Kherlanji
Massacre have been reported from many parts of India.
At the same time, many violent protests by Dalits, such as the 2006 Dalit protests
in Maharashtra ,have been reported as well.
The Mandal Commission was established in 1979 to “identify the socially or
educationally backward”, and to consider the question of seat reservations and
quotas for people to redress caste discrimination.

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In 1980, the commission‟s report affirmed the affirmative action practice under
Indian law whereby members of lower castes were given exclusive access to a
certain portion of government jobs and slots in public universities. When V. P.
Singh Government tried to implement the recommendations of Mandal
Commission in 1989, massive protests were held in the country. Many alleged that
the politicians were trying to cash in on caste-based reservations for purely
pragmatic electoral purposes.In 1990s, many parties Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP),
the Samajwadi Party and the Janata Dal started claiming that they are representing
the backward castes. Many such parties, relying primarily on Backward Classes‟
support, often in alliance with Dalits and Muslims, rose to power in Indian states
At the same time, many Dalit leaders and intellectuals started realizing that the
main Dalit oppressors were so-called Other Backward Classes and formed their
own parties, such as the Indian Justice Party.
The Congress (I) in Maharashtra long relied on OBCs‟ backing for its political
success. .Bharatiya Janata Party has also showcased its Dalit and OBC leaders to
prove that it is not an upper-caste party. Bangaru Laxman, the former BJP
president (2001–2002) was a former Dalit. Sanyasin Uma Bharati, former CM of
Madhya Pradesh , who belongs to OBC caste, was a former BJP leader. In 2006
Arjun Singh cabinet minister for MHRD of the UPA government was accused of
playing caste politics when he introduced reservations for OBCs in educational
institutions all around.
Overpopulation
India suffers from the problem of overpopulation. Though India ranks second in
population, it ranks 33 in terms of population density below countries such as The
Netherlands, South Korea and Japan. To cure this problem, Indira Gandhi, Prime
Minister of India, had implemented a forced sterilization programme in the early
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1970s but failed. Officially, men with two children or more had to submit to
sterilization, but many unmarried young men, political opponents and ignorant,
poor men were also believed to have been sterilized. This program is still
remembered and criticized in India, and is blamed for creating a wrong public
aversion to family planning, which hampered Government programmes for
decades.
Poverty
One-third of India‟s population (roughly equivalent to the entire population of the
United States) lives below the poverty line and India is home to one-third of the
world‟s poor people. Though the middle class has gained from recent positive
economic developments, India suffers from substantial poverty. According to 2010
ACS, 46.2 million people or about 15.3 percent of the U.S. population had income
below their respective poverty threshold during the year. Compared with the 2009
ACS estimates, the number of people in poverty increased by 3.3 million and the
poverty rate increased by 1.0 percentage point.
One of the 8 Millennium Development Goals is to eradicate extreme poverty and
hunger by 2015. According to a report of the Committee constituted by the
government of India to estimate poverty, nearly 38% of India‟s population is poor,
based on indicators for health, education, sanitation, nutrition and income to
estimate the extent of poverty. Since 1972 poverty has been defined on basis of the
money required to buy food worth 2100 calories in urban areas and 2400 calories
in rural areas. It indicates a condition in which a person fails to maintain a living
standard adequate for his physical and mental efficiency. It is sad that even after
more than 60 years of Independence India still has the world‟s largest number of
poor people in a single country. Of its nearly 1 billion inhabitants, an estimated
260.3 million are below the poverty line, of which 193.2 million are in the rural
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areas and 67.1 million are in urban areas. Poverty affects the woman most in as
much as the female members in the family are denied education, healthcare,
nutritious food, and good sanitation because of poverty.
Corruption
Corruption is widespread in India. India is ranked 95 out of a 179 countries
in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index, although its score
has improved consistently from 2.7 in 2002 to 3.1 in 2011. Corruption has taken
the role of a pervasive aspect of Indian politics and bureaucracy. In India,
corruption takes the form of bribes, evasion of tax and exchange
controls, embezzlement, etc. A 2005 study done by Transparency
International (TI) India found that more than 50% had firsthand experience of
paying bribe or peddling influence to get a job done in a public office. The chief
economic consequences of corruption are the loss to the exchequer, an unhealthy
climate for investment and an increase in the cost of government-subsidised
services. The TI India study estimates the monetary value of petty corruption in 11
basic services provided by the government, like education, healthcare, judiciary,
police, etc., to be around Rs.21,068 crores. India still ranks in the bottom quartile
of developing nations in terms of the ease of doing business, and compared to
China and other lower developed Asian nations, the average time taken to secure
the clearances for a startup or to invoke bankruptcy is much greater.
Sanitation
Lack of proper sanitation is a major concern for India. Statistics conducted by
UNICEF have shown that only 31% of India‟s population is using improved
sanitation facilities as of 2008. It is estimated that one in every ten deaths in India
is linked to poor sanitation and hygiene. Diarrhoea is the single largest killer and

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accounts for one in every twenty deaths. Around 450,000 deaths were linked to
diarrhoea alone in 2006, of which 88% were deaths of children below five.Studies
by UNICEF have also shown that diseases resulting from poor sanitation affects
children in their cognitive development.
Without proper sanitation facilities in India, people defecate in the open or rivers.
One gram of faeces could potentially contain 10 million viruses, one million
bacteria, 1000 parasite cysts and 100 worm eggs. The Ganges river in India has a
stunning 1.1 million litres of raw sewage being disposed into it every minute. The
high level of contamination of the river by human waste allow diseases like cholera
to spread easily, resulting in many deaths, especially among children who are more
susceptible to such viruses.
A lack of adequate sanitation also leads to significant economic losses for the
country. A Water and sanitation Program (WSP) study The Economic Impacts of
Inadequate Sanitation in India (2010) showed that inadequate sanitation caused
India considerable economic losses, equivalent to 6.4 per cent of India‟s GDP in
2006 at US$53.8 billion (Rs.2.4 trillion).In addition, the poorest 20% of
households living in urban areas bore the highest per capita economic impacts of
inadequate sanitation.
Recognising the importance of proper sanitation, the Government of India started
the Central Rural Sanitation Program (CRSP) in 1986, in hope of improving the
basic sanitation amenities of rural areas. This program was later reviewed and, in
1999, the Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) was launched. Programs such as
Individual Household Latrines (IHHL), School Sanitation and Hygiene Education
(SSHE), Community Sanitary Complex, Anganwadi toilets were implemented
under the TSC. Through the TSC, the Indian Government hopes to stimulate the
demand for sanitation facilities, rather than to continually provide these amenities
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to its population. This is a two-pronged strategy, where the people involved in this
program take ownership and better maintain their sanitation facilities, and at the
same time, reduces the liabilities and costs on the Indian Government. This would
allow the government to reallocate their resources to other aspects of
development. Thus, the government set the objective of granting access to toilets to
all by 2017. To meet this objective, incentives are given out to encourage
participation from the rural population to construct their own sanitation amenities.
In addition, the government has set out to educate its people on the importance and
benefits of proper sanitation through mass communication and interpersonal
communication techniques. This is done through mass and print media to reach out
to a larger audience and through group discussions and games to better engage and
interact with the individual.
Social Tension

The Indian society consists of people from different religious, linguistic and ethnic
backgrounds. Since long there has been cultural give and take between the people
from India and other countries. Since 1947 when India gained political
independence the country has been engaged in the gigantic task of nation building.
Efforts have been made to put nation on the path of socio-economic development.
The transformation of nation as a self sufficient and cohesive political entity has
proved to be a difficult challenge. The colonial past, socio-economic disparities in
the society and raised aspirations have culminated in a complex situation.
Traditionally the Indian society was hierarchically arranged and the different
communities and caste groups showed a pattern of social distance in which low
caste, tribals and minority groups were discriminated against and looked down
upon. Many of the communities were considered as untouchables. The Indian

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constitution prohibits against such discrimination and has abolished untouchability.
However, it is still practiced in certain ways. All these condition have created a
situation in which various kinds of social tensions have become very frequent
events are as follows :

1. If we look at the historical trends we notice that the partition of India led to
considerable degree of violence and the harmonious relations between Hindus and
Muslims were disturbed. As a result suspicion and mistrust has developed between
Muslims and Hindus. This has led to a number of clashes and conflicts which have
been violent and have generated hatred. 2. Various parts of the country are
experiencing separatist movements. You must have read about political
movements in North East part of India (Assam, Nagaland, Tripura) where demands
for separate political identities have been raised from time to time. The Kashmir
region is experiencing the negative impact of cross border terrorism and people are
suffering. The Nuxalite movement in certain parts (Andhra Pradesh, Bihar,
Madhya Pradesh) is also creating political instability and problems of governance.
3. Caste-related prejudice and discrimination has also been on rise in certain parts
of the country. In the course of socialization people acquire negative attitudes and
stereotypes. Many times these are not founded in our real life experiences. Instead,
they are based on false information, personal impressions and hearsay. However,
they are very powerful and shape our behaviour in important ways. Thus if we
have prejudice against some one it may lead to aggression, hostility and harm
doing towards the target groups. In recent years inter group conflicts related to
caste have moved from the social to the political arena of life. In fact caste based
alliances, groups and organization are growing fast. They utilize caste-related
identity for political gains. Today caste-affiliations are not so important in social or

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religious matters as they are in political matters. In this context the rise of low
caste groups who often call themselves Dalits is becoming a prominent feature of
modern India. The presence of this group has changed the complexion of Indian
political scene.

On the whole the Indian society is currently experiencing social tensions of various
kinds. They are related to the pattern of social change. In particular the rise of
middle class migration of people from villages to cities, increase in the degree of
economic inequality, spread of education and media are playing key role. The
tensions in the lives of people at individual, family and community level is clearly
visible. Most of the conflicts and tensions revolve around the issue of identity.
Assertion of separate identity and promoting the same with different tactics is
becoming a central problem. People use identities in an emotionally charged way
to create a group structure for promoting certain goals. Thus associations,
committees and organizations are created to serve these purposes. The creation of
identity involves strategies which enhance similarity within the group and
difference between the groups. In this way a diversion of “in group” or “own group
and “out group” or other group is created. This kind of differentiation is present in
almost all societies. This also implies that the differences across groups cannot be
totally eliminated.

Some psychological intervention for enhancing group behaviour

Since groups are inevitable and constitute an important part of our social reality
what we need is to recognize the essence and value of pluralism. All groups are
important and play distinct role. We need to appreciate this diversity in our social
life in a positive manner. The approach should be to evolve a strategy in which
diverse groups and communities are able to live distinct patterns of life the way
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they want. The various groups or communities should compliment each other and
help in achieving their goals. Super ordinate goals may be created that may be
shared by all the groups. To this end the following steps may prove very helpful.
1. Increasing dialogue amongst the diverse groups existing in the society.
2. Building an atmosphere of mutual trust and harmony.
3. Equity and equality of opportunity for different groups needs to be ensured.
4. Greater opportunities for mutual care, respect and complementarity need to be
created.
Gender Discrimination
Women and men are equally important for the growth and development of
individual and social lives. The women play the important role as mother and the
same makes it unique. However, careful analysis of Indian society indicates that
the situation is not good for women folk. The sex ratio of male and female in the
India population has been changing and becoming unfavourable towards women.
In the Indian society women are considered major contributors to family and
society. We have gods and goddesses both and one of the incarnation of lord Shiva
is Ardhanareeshwar, which is made of half male and half female in its constitution.
Unfortunately this equality and prominence tells an incomplete fact. The women
are also subjected to discrimination in learning, dowry deaths and exploitations of
various kinds which are very common. In fact the women are becoming targets of
atrocities of many types. The same is manifested in discrimination against them
from very early period. The incident of infanticide, early marriage, emphasis on
domestic activities and lessor emphasis on education and career have made
women‟s lives full of problems. They are discriminated against from early
childhood. The Indian dependence on others (e.g. parents, husbands) becomes fate
of the majority of the women folk. The pattern of discrimination against women

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varies across rural, urban and tribal areas. They are assigned diverse
responsibilities and treated as relatively weaker and less competent. This image is
still prevailing in various sections of the society. It is reflected in the
discriminatory practices in the family such as distribution of work, food and social
activities. The girl child is usually burdened with responsibilities that are beyond
her capacity. Such exploitations function as obstacles in the process of
development and growth of the girl child.
When a girl child matures and becomes an adult she is often found to be physically
weak and mentally constrained. They are neither able to realize their potentials nor
able to contribute to the mainstream of society. Their contributions are often
limited to family and that too are ignored. However, some Indian women have
been able to overcome the barriers in their path and became successful in many
walks of life. In this connection one can mention the names of Pandita Rama Bai,
Sarojini Naidu, Indira Gandhi who emerged as leaders at national level. The
provision for education, legal provisions about the age of marriage and reservation
for women in various walks of life has contributed to change in their situation.
Today the presence of women in various occupations and public offices is much
more prominent than what it used to be during earlier periods. However, the Indian
society has still to go a long way as for as gender equality is concerned.
India is a multifaceted society where no generalization could apply to the nation‟s
various regional, religious, social and economic groups. Nevertheless certain broad
circumstances in which Indian women live affect the way they participate in the
economy. A common denominator in their lives is that they are generally confined
to home, with restricted mobility, and in seclusion. Other, unwritten, hierarchical
practices place further constraints on women. Throughout history, women have
generally been restricted to the role of a home-maker; that of a mother and wife.
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Despite major changes that have occurred in the status of women in some parts of
the world in recent decades, norms that restrict women to the home are still
powerful in India, defining activities that are deemed appropriate for women. They
are, by and large, excluded from political life, which by its very nature takes place
in a public forum.
In spite of India‟s reputation for respecting women, including treating her as a
Goddess, history tells us that women were also ill-treated. There was no equality
between men and women. This is true of ancient, medieval and early modern times
barring some revolutionary movements such as that of Basaweshwara, the 12 th
century philosopher in Karnataka, who advocated equality, casteless society, status
for women, and betterment of the downtrodden. Reform movements in the 19th
and 20th centuries led by great social reformers provided boost to women‟s legal
status in India.
Independence of India heralded the introduction of laws relating to women. The
Constitution provided equality to men and women and also gave special protection
to women to realise their interests effectively. Special laws were enacted to prevent
indecent representation of women in the media and sexual harassment in
workplaces. The law also gives women equal rights in the matter of adoption,
maternity benefits, equal pay, good working conditions etc. At the international
level, the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Convention
on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) sought
to guarantee better legal status to women. However, certain contentious issues like
the Jammu and Kashmir Permanent Resident (Disqualification) Bill 2004 (which
deprived a woman of the status of permanent residency of the State if she married
an outsider) and the Supreme Court judgment in Christian Community Welfare
Council of India (in an appeal over the Judgment of the High Court, Mumbai). The
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latter has permitted, under certain circumstances, the arrest of a woman even in the
absence of lady police and at any time in the day or night. These instances have
once again brought to the forefront the traditional male domination.

GENDER, DEVELOPMENT, WOMEN’S MOVEMENT

The above situation is especially visible in the world of development, and finds its
clearest expression in proliferating references to “gender” in local, national and
international forums, and activists. One repeatedly hears of gender bias, gender
sensitization, gender planning and gender training, to mention just some of the
more common examples of its contemporary use. To begin with, discussions were
limited to only “women”, rather than about systemic relations of inequality,
involving the relations between both men and women.
The task in India then, as everyone seeks to take account of 60years of
independence from two centuries of British colonial rule, is to try and face up to
this recent slice of history; a history we would like to claim as our very own. What
would an assessment of half a century of development thinking and planning look
like from the perspective of women? In the 1991 World Bank Report on Gender
and Poverty in India, Lynn Bennett announces: “Now, researchers, women‟s
activities, and government departments are reaching a new consensus: women
must be seen as economic actors –actors with a particularly important role to play
in efforts to reduce poverty”. But, the Shramshakti report on self-employed women
and women in the informal sector published in 1988 deplored women‟s extremely
vulnerable working conditions across diverse occupations under high levels of
discrimination, as well as the range of health hazards women are exposed to on an
everyday basis.

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If the World Bank report concluded that poor women are clearly more efficient
economic actors, with greater managerial and entrepreneurial skills than men, the
Shramshakti report recommended that women require greater access to resources,
especially credit and social services. Wider disparities exist among various
women‟s groups culturally and socially. As a result one can perceive as difference
in the cognitive, connotative, and consumption patterns of women residing in
various spheres of social and economic layers. The victims of exploitation and
oppression have been largely women of the third world countries in general and
lower sections among them in particular.
WIDOW IMMOLATION OR SATI
The first serious challenge for the reformers was the problem of „widow
immolation‟ or „Sati‟, where Hindu widows climbed the funeral pyres of
their husbands; an ancient tradition, prevalent in Bengal, Rajasthan and
the South Indian kingdom of Vijayanagar. Sati was never a religious
obligation, but it was believed that by burning herself on the funeral pyre, a
widow sanctified her ancestors and removed the sins of her husband. She
was believed to ascend to the heaven on committing Sati. Strong social
pressures on the widow and the status of widows among the Hindus were
also factors which helped the growth of this custom. Sati was first abolished
in Calcutta in 1798; a territory that fell under the British jurisdiction. Raja
Ram Mohan Roy fought bravely for abolition of sati and with assistance
from Lord William Bentinck, and a ban on sati was imposed in 1829 in the
British territories in India.
WIDOW REMARRIAGE
The status of widows in India was deplorable in that they were not allowed
participate in any religious and social functions. Their lives were worse than

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death; one of the reasons as to why many widows opted for Sati. The upper
caste widows were most affected by the then prevailing customs.
Prohibition against remarriage of widows was strictly observed only
amongst upper caste Hindus. Attempts to make laws to facilitate
remarriage of widows by the British were vehemently opposed by the
conservative Hindus, who held that remarriage of widows “involved guilt
and disgrace on earth and exclusion from heaven.”
Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, who wrote Marriage of Hindu Widows relying
heavily on the Shastras, fought for widow remarriage. Reformers like
Mahadev Govind Ranade and Dayananda Saraswati also actively
participated in the reform movement, resulting in the enactment of the
Hindu Widows Remarriage Act XV of 1856. The major drawback of the Act
was that it was only applicable to the Hindus. Also, people showed little
enthusiasm to implement the provisions of the Act. In Maharashtra, social
reformers like Pandit Vishnu Shastri, Sir R.G. Bhandarkar, Agarkar and
D.K. Karve have made significant contributions in this regard.
CHILD MARRIAGE
Another serious problem that women faced was that of child marriage.
Small kids and in some cases even infants in the cradle were married off.
Early marriage affected the growth and development of the children. Fixing
the minimum age of marriage of men and women by law was voiced as
early as the mid-19th century by Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and Keshab
Chandra Sen. Vidyasagar argued that early marriage was detrimental to the
health of women, their efforts, coupled with that of Mahatma Gandhi,
resulted in the passing of the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929.
FEMALE INFANTICIDE

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A girl is considered a burden by parents. Since a girl child would be going to
her husband‟s place upon marriage, the parents did not want to waste their
resources on her upbringing. Again the demand for large dowry and the
huge wedding expenses caused a lot of hardship to the parents. So, the
parents preferred a male child as they would be able to bring in large
dowry. These considerations led to the practice of killing the girl child once
she was born. The practice of female infanticide was common among
certain castes and tribes in India, especially in the north and north-western
states. The custom of infanticide was particularly prominent among
communities which found it difficult to find suitable husbands for their
daughters and an unmarried daughter was considered a disgrace to the
family. The difficulty was exacerbated by the extravagant expenditure
which conventions demanded on the occasion of a daughter‟s marriage. The
earliest efforts to stop female infanticide were made in Kathiawar and
Kutch. In 1795, infanticide was declared to be murder by Bengal Regulation
XXI. The evil of female infanticide was ended by propaganda and the
forceful action on the part of the British Government.
Marriage Act of 1872 was passed, which abolished early marriages, made
polygamy an offence, sanctioned widow remarriages and inter-caste marriages. In
1901, the Government of Baroda passed the Infant Marriage Prevention Act. This
Act fixed the minimum age for marriage for girls at 12 and for boys at 16. In 1930
the Sarda Act was passed, to prevent the solemnization of marriages between boys
under the age of 18 years and girls under the age 14 years. However, even today,
the Act remains merely on paper on account of several factors.
WOMEN AND POLITICAL PARTICIPATION

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Indians wanted a nation state after independence in which women had a right to
vote. Unlike the British and American women, Indian women did not face great
difficulty in securing franchise. Gandhiji stressed on the need for active
participation of masses during the freedom movement, including women. He
encouraged total participation of women resulting in the emergence of a large
number of women freedom fighters. The Swadeshi movement, the non-
Cooperation (1920-22) movement, the Civil Disobedience movement (1930-34)
and the Quit India (1942) movement drew large number of women. Such
participation helped women to voice the need for women‟s participation in the
legislation process. Annie Besant, Madame Cama and Sarojini Naidu formed the
Women‟s Indian Association. But, women still constitute a mere 10% of the
legislators in the Parliament and State Assemblies. “According to the 1955
International Parliamentary Union Survey, women hold just 11.7% of all seats in
Parliament around the world.” Success at the Panchayat level based on reservations
for women convinced women‟s organizations that it is the correct time to extend
these reservations to the higher levels. It is a different matter that even at the
Panchayat level women members face lot of opposition in as much as the male
members of the Panchayat do not consider them as equals. Women face opposition
from the family members, often resulting in their resigning their membership.
Karnataka and West Bengal are good examples where women have exceeded the
reserved 33% with 42% and 39% respectively. These examples show that given a
chance women can excel in any field. Women just need the necessary support and
encouragement.
GENDER ISSUES IN INDIA
Sociologically the word gender refers to the socio-cultural definition of man and
woman, the way societies distinguish men and women and assign them social
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roles. The distinction between sex and gender was introduced to deal with the
general tendency to attribute women‟s subordination to their anatomy. For ages it
was believed that the different characteristics, roles and status accorded to women
and men in the society are determined by sex, that they are natural and therefore
not changeable.
As soon as a child is born families and society begin the process of gendering. The
birth of a son is celebrated, the birth of a daughter is filled with pain; sons are
showered with love, respect, better food and proper health care. Boys are
encouraged to be tough and outgoing; and girls to be homebound and shy. All
these differences are gender differences and they are created by the society. Gender
inequality is therefore a form of inequality which is distinct from other forms of
economic and social inequalities and stems from pre-existing gendered social
norms and social perceptions. Gender inequity has adverse impact on development
goals as reduces economic growth. It hampers the overall wellbeing because
blocking women from participation in social, political and economic activities can
adversely affect the whole society. Many developing countries including India
have displayed gender inequality in education, employment and health. It is
common to find girls and women suffering from high mortality rates and vast
differences in education level. India has witnessed gender inequality from its early
history due to its socio-economic and religious practices resulting in a wide
disparity between the position of men and
women in the society.
GENDER BIAS IN HEALTH CONCERNS IN INDIA
Government of India‟s National Rural Health Mission aims at correcting rural
inequities in the matter of health. It seeks to integrate health with sanitation,
hygiene, safe drinking water and nutrition. Like most of the schemes and
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programmes initiated by Government, even the NRHM also has failed to achieve
the goals at the implementation level, with the primary health centres and sub-
centres crumbling. Women from infant stage to their old age women get an unfair
deal in the matter of health. Their health concerns receive a low priority resulting
in women bearing pain and discomfort in silence for long periods of time without
seeking relief. The sex ratio in India speaks volumes about the neglect. It is not just
the poor who for want of resources and with the inherent preference for a boy are
guilty of bias. Even in well-to-do families parents tend to spend more on the
health-care of boys than on girls.

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH STATUS OF WOMEN IN INDIA

Reports show that India‟s maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is highest in South Asia.
An estimated 1, 36,000 women die in India every year due to pregnancy related
setbacks. However the measures taken by the government have not proved
effective despite the fact that high fatalities occur among women every year due to
poor reproductive health practices. One of the reasons why women succumb to
reproduction related complications is the absence of timely transportation to the
nearest hospital. Experts estimate that 70% of the maternal-related deaths are
preventable. Good sanitation and nutrition and avoiding overwork and stress will
improve the health of Indian women. The need is to shift focus from the medical to
the social, beginning with healthy antenatal care. But cultural, social and economic
barriers delay or prevent women from seeking reproductive health care at any
state-antenatal, delivery or post nature. India still ranks first among the 12
countries that account for 2/3 of under-five and maternal deaths in the world. One
of the major problems is the shortage of trained healthcare personnel. In India there
is an estimated shortfall of 74,000 ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activists)
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workers and 21,066 ANMs. The health of a woman is closely linked to her
educational and socio-economic status. Despite maternal mortality rates showing a
decline in India, thousands of women continue to die every year due to lack of
access to basic healthcare facilities; and where they are
available they are of poor quality aggravating the situation.

INFANT MORTALITY
According to a recent report by Save the Children, an international NGO, one-
fifths of the world‟s new born deaths occur in India. According to the report, over
four lakh new-borns die within the first 24 hours every year in India. India also has
the highest under-five mortality with over 2 million children dying before their
fifth birthday. About 90% of these deaths are preventable. One-third of all
malnourished children live in India and 46% of children under-3 years are
underweight. A child‟s chances of survival vary in different states-the infant
mortality rate in Orissa is 96 per 1000 live births in Kerala it is only 14 per 1000.
India ranks 171 out of 175 countries in public health spending.
In Delhi, the national capital, the child sex ratio is an alarming 868. While the
reason for this varies from higher female mortality at a younger age as a result of
neglect, to infanticide and foeticide. This dismal pictures a telling comment on the
educated society that refuses to rid itself of its male bias. The Pre-natal Diagnostic
Techniques Regulations and Prevention of Misuse Act came into force in 1994 to
curb selective sex determination. The Act was amended in 2003 in order to make it
more comprehensive. Central Supervisory Board and state-level supervisory
committees have been set up to monitor the implementation of the Act. But, sex
determination continues to be practices.
EDUCATIONAL PROBLEMS
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In spite of certain outstanding examples of individual achievements, and a definite
improvement in their general condition over the years, it remains true that Indian
women still constitute a large body of under - privileged citizens. Women of
course do not form a homogenous group in class or caste terms. Nevertheless, they
face distinctive problems that call for special attention. The Backward Classes
Commission set up by the Government of India in 1953 classified women of India
as a backward group requiring special attention.
The Ministry of Education clubs girls with Scheduled Castes and Tribes as the
three most backward groups in education. The educational, economic, political and
social backwardness of women makes them the largest group hindering the process
of social change. It is inevitable that when this „backward‟ group has the major
responsibility of bringing up future generations the advancement of society cannot
be rapid or take any significant form of development. In the report of the
committee appointed by the National Council for Women‟s Education it was
emphatically stated that what was needed to convert the equality of women from
de jure to de facto status was widespread education for girls and women and a re-
education of men and women to accept new and scientific attitudes towards each
other and to themselves. A changing society and a developing economy cannot
make any headway if education, which is one of the important agents affecting the
norms of morality and culture, remains in the hands of traditionalists who
subscribe to a fragmented view of the country‟s and the world‟s heritage. The
differences between the positions of men and women in the society will not lessen
leave alone disappear, as long as there are differences between the education levels
of men and women. Inadequate education or no education is the most important
factor contributing to the backwardness of our masses, especially women. The low
literacy among women brings down the national literacy. This gap which exists
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between the literacy rates of the two sexes also exists between the enrolment of
girls and boys at all levels of education. Right from the primary school to the
university, we find that the number of girl students is considerably lower than
boys. According to Article 45 of the Constitution, universal compulsory and free
education until the age of 14 was to be achieved by the year 1960. Looking at the
present condition of primary education in villages, it is doubtful whether we can
achieve 100% enrolment of girls. It is unfortunately true of our
society that children are sent to school not according to their intelligence or
aptitude but according to their sex. The reasons for not sending girls to school are
both economic and social. In rural areas, girls are required to help in household
work. The resources of the rural poor are so limited that they do not have anything
to spare for children‟s education. If resources are available, it is the boy who is sent
to school first. Parents also do not see the value of educating especially a daughter
who would get married and remain a housewife. Since they cannot see any direct
relationship between education and economic betterment, they have very little
motivation to send their children to school.
It is still not being realized that there is definite connection between education,
good motherhood and efficient house management. The management of millions of
households and the upbringing of millions of children is thus in the hands of
illiterate women. It is here that a change is required if our democratic and
socialistic intensions are not to remain a mere pretence. People can be motivated to
have their children educated only if educational system is directly linked with
economic and social development.

Conclusion-

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Along with the development of the earth is a series of social events need to be
addressed, such as population growth, food shortages and water shortages in many
parts of the world. Specifically, people in Australia are facing with the threat of
water shortage in the future. This problem has created an economic problem and
urged the Australian government to find the solutions for this problem. This essay
will explain the economic problem and answer the question how do markets
attempt to solve the problem of water scarcity in Australia, focusing on the
economic problem, water scarcity in Australia, the role of markets and water
market in Australia.The economic problem can be known as the competition
between unlimited wants and scarce resources. Unlimited wants are goods and
services that people want to have are unlimited. But, scarce resources, things to
make products, are limited.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
WWW.GOOGLE.COM
WWW.WIKIPEDIA.COM
WWW.SCRIBD.COM
BOOKS-

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