Human behaviour is full of flaws and we improve ourselves in the process of becoming

better. The tendency to neglect certain chunks of society is one such. However, the
pandemic did not do so, it lashed every section of society severely, ensuring all are hit hard
and compelled to fall. All of us are being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, maybe it is
too harsh but we have to face it. After all the agonies of the epidemic, it cannot be any worse
when you lose a partner, the loss itself is devastating.

In the existing scenario, widows face countless challenges being shot at them. The
patriarchy that reigns in India ensured that women depend on men in their family for their
most needs, and the discriminatory glance through which society looks at them does not
help the situation either. Their contemporary condition demands special attention. The loss
of a husband is puffed up by their fight for daily survival, their social dignity and primarily
their fulfilment of their basic human rights.

In the view of Indian widows (hailing from poor background mostly), they seem to lead a life
slightly better than death. The figures are approximately 40 million (might be more even) in
India who fight for their living, run a family, school their children and do all the errands single-
handed. One in every ten widows leads a life in acute poverty. The lack of job opportunity is
one of the many reasons for such vulnerability.

One might ponder, why do we need to know the problems faced by widows? We have our
share of problems. This is because it is imperative to acknowledge their issues and to work
for them subsequently. Who knows tomorrow your mother could be widowed or your sister
or your wife? What do you do then? We need to step out, work for them and try to make their
life a little more comfortable in the little way possible by us.

INSIGHT OF THE PANDEMIC IN INDIA

A survey of 940 widow farmers by MAKAAM ( Mahila Kisan Adhikar Manch) uncovered the
skyrocketing feebleness of the single women farmers during the COVID-19 pandemic and
the lockdown in Maharashtra. Widows face consistent obstacles, which include biased land
inheritance rights and control over assets after the death of the husband. According to World
Bank research, it likely happens in 40 percent of countries, India being one of the primary
ones.

The pandemic has exacerbated the settings even more. It is evident that widows are being
forced out of their shelters by their in-laws, and mostly during the lockdown as they are
viewed as an extra burden, not a part of the family anymore. In most cases, widows depend
upon their late husbands for property rights, but the family of the deceased hinders always.
Sometimes, to get rid of the widows, they are forced to marry another man by their in-laws.

The economical background of an individual plays a vital role every time, so is the case in
the pandemic scenario. The virus has killed the majority of people from poor backgrounds.
The reason being obvious, poor people have a lack of access to proper medical services.
These deprived widows are posed with a double burden, consequently impacting both their
and their progeny’s lives for years to face.

SUGGESTIVE MEASURES;
 Regardless of the odds faced by widows, they make a valuable contribution to the
community in addition to the country. It becomes our first and foremost duty to repay them.
They too form the society. As an exemplary citizen of the 21 century, one must not be
st

biased towards widows and their rights, contributing in every little possible way would not be
unnoticed.

Creating reservations for them would be futile, it would make them feel outcast and create
the stigma of being unalike. Instead, creating equal opportunity for all would serve a better
purpose. Certain extra privileges however come into account when one contemplates the
pain she undergoes after losing her partner. Keeping in mind, the majority of widows are
uneducated in India, thus it would not be possible for them to work in firms or offices without
any receipt of formal education. Having being considered less robust than male counterparts
create less scope too for them to work as labourers. Only about 15 percent of the world’s
farmland is owned by women according to Landesa. Compiling all these glitches faced by
them would trigger one to give extra privileges to widows, which would aid them mentally,
physically and primarily financially.

AN APPEAL FROM THE AUTHOR

I would like to request all my readers to contribute in the minute way possible towards the
furtherance of the lives of widows. If the lockdown can strike a financially stable person
harshly, think about a helpless woman who does not know whether she will be having food
on her plate before next week, whether her children will be educated, whether she will have
a roof above her head to live. We all are affected by the lockdown but trust me they are
surviving the worst.