Women empowerment in the Indian context

“There is no tool for development more effective than the empowerment of women.” This
statement by Kofi Annan accentuates how a society rises with their women, who discreetly form its
backbone and build it block by block. A pleasant day to one and all present here, I stand before you
to speak on Women Empowerment in the Indian context.

India, a country which worships goddesses with such fervency, yet disregards all the injustice and
prejudice that her women endure. Observin g women around me, they’re expected to manage
households and satisfy everyone around them, as if the greatest possible achievement in a woman’s
life is be an accessory to other lives, thereby abandoning their own. In India, a woman who attempts
to break the mould of a religious, orthodox housewife is seen in a negative light. She is seen as
“corrupted” and “influenced by western culture”. In the name of Indian culture, women are required
to conform to traditions that restrain them from fulfilling their potential.

I believe that societal attitudes play a consequential role as to how women are perceived. Patriarchy
has its vices so deeply embedded in some societies that even women are conditioned to pit
themselves against other women and concur that men should be seen as superior, and bring down
anyone who tries to prove otherwise. In my opinion, these culture and traditions mostly stem from
religion and its archaic codes of life. Those blinded by the allure of religion fail to see the illogical
facets of it, and perpetuate them without any foresight of plausible ethical consequences, thus
leading to unspeakable acts of violence against women.

The foundation to bringing about equity in India where women are still condemned for their
lifestyles, is to sensitise people to the idea of uplifting women, and to see them as more than objects
for personal gratification. There must be a shift in the perception of feminism and that its
quintessence lies not in bringing men down, but uplifting women and providing them the rights they
deserve.

In conclusion, I believe that women deserve just as loud and significant a voice as men have in
society. Indian women, in particular, are entitled to a society wherein they can pursue their goals
without being chastised and inhibited. Regressive practices like dowry and marital rape that still run
amock must be criminalised. Any biases against and towards them must be cleared, to ensure an
impartial and progressive society.