Women In India

Odisha Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida said the scheme will be launched in Sundargarh district, highlighting that it will benefit more than 2 million women

The Kerala High Court has quashed a criminal case against film director Sreekumar Menon who was accused by a prominent Malayalam actress of abusing and defaming her, saying that mere utterances of unpleasant words against a woman would not result in insult to her modesty. The order by Justice S Manu came on the plea by Menon, who is the director of the 2018 Indian Malayalam-language fantasy drama film 'Odiyan' starring Mohanlal. The female actor had alleged that the director had engaged in defaming her during the shooting, promotion and release of the film 'Odiyan' in which she too had a role. She had also alleged that he behaved in an indecent manner with her and mentally harassed her at the shooting locations. She later claimed that Menon also used abusive words against her in front of people at Dubai airport. Based on her complaint, an FIR under sections 354D (stalking), 294(b) (use of obscene words in a public place) and 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty

India's progress towards gender equality has accelerated in recent years, with increased investments and focus on women's leadership at the grassroots but social norms, limited workforce participation and gaps in safety measures hinder full gender parity, UN Women officials said. In an interview, Daniel Seymour, UN Women's Director of Strategic Partnerships and Susan Jane Ferguson, Country Representative for UN Women in India, shared insights on the country's strides and the challenges that remain. The conversation highlighted India's increased investments in women's empowerment and gender-responsive policies, yet stressed that deep-rooted social norms and limited financing continue to hamper full progress. "India's progress is significant, but closing the remaining gaps requires targeted efforts across both public and private sectors," Ferguson said. India has seen substantial growth in recent years, especially in gender-responsive budgeting, which has increased to 6.8 per cent, .

A significant number of women-owned micro businesses in India lack savings for financial emergencies, making them highly vulnerable to economic shocks, said a report. The report titled 'Decoding the Financial Health of Women-Owned Micro-Businesses (wMB) in India' was prepared by MicroSave Consulting (MSC) in collaboration with Sa-Dhan and supported by JPMorgan Chase. The research covers six regions - Delhi-NCR, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Telangana, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu - providing data-driven insights and calls for targeted interventions. Data was collected through 1,460 computer-assisted personal interviews, key informant interviews with financial institutions and enterprise support organisations, and comprehensive desk research. Interviews with 150 women-owned micro businesses across the six regions revealed insights into their financial decision-making processes, challenges and motivations. The report indicated that 45 per cent of women entrepreneurs lack savings for financial

Asserting true equality and justice requires more women in politics, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Sunday urged women, who are passionate about creating real change to join the 'Shakti Abhiyan' which aims to create an equal space for 'women's interests' in politics. "A year ago, we launched the 'Indira Fellowship' with a mission to amplify women's voices in politics. Today, this initiative has grown into a powerful movement for women's leadership," Gandhi said on X. "True equality and justice requires more women in politics. 'Aadhi Abadi, Poora Haq' embodies our unwavering commitment to this cause," he said. "I urge all women who are passionate about creating real change to join the 'Shakti Abhiyan' and become active participants in women-centric politics. By getting involved, you will contribute to building robust grassroots organisations and driving meaningful change. Join us and register today at http:haktiabhiyan.in," he said. "Together, we can create .

Global agriculture company Corteva Agriscience on Tuesday unveiled a programme aimed at empowering two million women farmers across India's agri-value chain by 2030. The initiative seeks to bolster the role of women as farmers, researchers, and entrepreneurs through targeted support and resources. Subroto Geed, President of Corteva Agriscience South Asia, emphasised on the critical role of women in agriculture, stating, "Women are the backbone of rural life and agriculture. We hope this focus will accelerate India's path to becoming a developed nation." The programme's key components include promoting climate-smart practices through women-only farmer producer organisations (FPOs) and cooperatives; capacity-building and mentorship for female STEM students; and prioritising health, wellness, and financial literacy for women farmers. At a roundtable discussion following the launch, Subha Thakur, Additional Secretary in the Union Agriculture Ministry, called for increased public-privat

A BJP leader has been arrested for allegedly molesting a teenager in the ??Almora district of Uttarakhand. Almora SSP Devendra Pincha said on Sunday that Bhagwat Singh Bora, accused of molesting a 14-year-old girl, was arrested on Saturday night. Meanwhile, taking cognisance of the incident, Bora, who was the block unit chief of the party's Salt region, has been expelled with immediate effect on the instructions of BJP's state president Mahendra Bhatt. The SSP said the alleged incident took place on August 24 in the Salt revenue area, and an information regarding this was received on August 30. Pincha said that a case has been registered against the accused under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and Section 74 (assault or criminal force on a woman to outrage her modesty) of the BNS. Meanwhile, after recording the girl's statement, her medical examination was also conducted. Attacking the ruling BJP over the issue, state Congress president Karan Mahara .

The government will soon launch a scheme to train 14-18 years old girls in non-traditional job roles, a move aimed at increasing women's participation in the labour force, a top official said on Wednesday. The pilot of the scheme will be launched in the next 2-3 weeks, Secretary in Ministry of Women and Child Development Anil Malik said. The scheme, which is being launched in 27 districts in the pilot phase, will eventually be expanded to cover 218 districts across the country, he said. A non-traditional career is generally defined as a certain role that has less than 25 per cent of a specific gender, either men or women. As part of the 'Introduction of Special Project for Empowering Adolescent Girls & Women', 14-18 years old girls would be provided training near their schools and homes while they continue their education. The secretary shared that the pilot will be launched in 2-3 weeks under which training in non-traditional job roles will be provided along with digital ...

Lok Sabha elections 2024: 38% of candidates studied between standard 5 to 12; 26 candidates declared themselves illiterate

The number of board seats held by women across India Inc has increased gradually over the past five years with them holding 18.3 per cent board seats in 2023, a Deloitte report said on Friday. The 'Women in the boardroom: A global perspective' report, however, said that it is lower than the global average of 23.3 per cent. The report by Deloitte Global Boardroom Program analysed more than 18,000 companies in 50 countries exploring representation of women in the boardroom. This includes analysis of 400 companies from India. "Boardroom diversity requires a paradigm shift. Since many companies prefer to recruit board members with CEO or CFO experience, these numbers do not paint an optimistic outlook for pipeline development. India Inc. must break from historical patterns and prioritise capabilities over past roles," Deloitte South Asia Chairperson Shefali Goradia said. The report shows a gradual increase in the number of board seats held by women across India Inc, with women holding

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday said the focal point of all initiatives of his government is women. On #InternationalWomensDay, celebrating the women of Assam; courageous, enterprising, resilient and changemakers. We are committed to ensure that each women in the State gets a fair opportunity to grow as the focal point of all our governance initiatives are women! the CM said on X. In another post, Sarma thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for reducing cooking gas cylinder prices by Rs 100. With the earlier cut of ?200 & latest cut of ?100 on LPG cylinders, our mothers and sisters can now significantly save and put this money to better use. On behalf of entire #ModiParivarAssam, I sincerely thank Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji, for this bold decision, he added. Announcing the price cut on the occasion of International Women's Day on Friday, the PM said it will significantly ease the financial burden on millions of households across the country, ...

Since 2021, India has seen a steady growth rate of 13 per cent in content related to women on Wikimedia projects because of the efforts of individual contributors as well as collective initiatives

With elections approaching, women have become the focus of political contestations, but no amount of handouts can change the reality of gender disparity in India

Around 64 countries are going to polls in 2024

Indian women are taking the lead as change-makers in every field, NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma said here on Wednesday. She said sitting at home women are also trying to learn something new because of the societal mindset change. "Women are now the change makers, and we are not only changing for the better, but we are the change-makers in the society, whether entrepreneurship, start-ups or having own business, being in services, CEO of companies or a homemaker", the National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson said while talking to reporters here. "When the prime minister spoke from the Red Fort on Independence Day about women-led empowerment, the things around started changing and we have seen in the last nine years things are changing positively", she said. Asked about the increasing rate of crime against women, Sharma said people are saying there is an increase in crime against women because of increase in data. In the past, those in chair did not listen to women coming up to

The parade had themes of 'Viksit Bharat' (developed India) and 'Bharat - Loktantra Ki Matruka' (India - the mother of democracy)

The trailblazer's crown sits firmly on the head of J Jayalalithaa, widely recognised in Tamil Nadu as the mother of welfare schemes

There is a rise in the number of women elected to the five state legislatures in 2023 compared to 2018, except in Rajasthan

President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday reviewed the passing out parade of 145th course of the National Defence Academy (NDA) at Khadakwasla in Pune and lauded the participation of the first batch of women cadets in the marching contingent. Terming it as a historic day, Murmu extended good wishes to the women cadets, while noting that today daughters have to struggle to select a career of their choice. Around 15 women cadets participated in the passing out parade along with their male counterparts. Last year, the first batch of 19 women cadets joined the NDA, Khadakwasla, a premier tri-services institution that has given the country the finest military officers, and they are currently in the second year of the military-cum-academic training, a defence official earlier said. The second and third year cadets take part in the passing out parade, the official said. President Murmu, the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, on Thursday congratulated all the cadets who completed their ...

Centre to bear 80 per cent of the cost of drone estimated at Rs 10 lakh