In the simplest of words it is basically the creation of an environment where women can make independent decisions on their personal development as well as shine as equals in society. Women want to be treated as equals so much so that if a woman rises to the top of her field it should be a commonplace occurrence that draws nothing more than a raised eyebrow at the gender. This can only happen if there is a channelized route for the empowerment of women. Thus it is no real surprise that women empowerment in India is a hotly discussed topic with no real solution looming in the horizon except to doubly redouble our efforts and continue to target the sources of all the violence and ill-will towards women.
Women empowerment is hard to fathom how slow moving the cultural exchange of the world is when you find out that there are several places across the country where harmful customs of the ancient world coexist with modern appliances and thought. However that may come as hardly any surprise to anyone who has lived in India – the dichotomy of society is something that cannot be ignored or denied.
Yes, it is only in India that glaring and brutal gang rapes occur frequently in a country where Goddesses like Durga, kali, laxmi etc. are worshipped. Gender discrimination is the least of worries for women in India, known otherwise as the fourth most dangerous country in the world for women. Other instances of violence against women has an astonishing and grim variety to it –with acid throwing, domestic violence stemming out of dowry ,rape, harassment and an assortment of others.
Thus we, at Mehaan Charitable Foundation, Gurgaon, strongly believe that issue of women empowerment should be dealt with much gravity. The proposed lines on which we look forward to take action would be:
- Educating girl child
- Spreading the awareness about the benefits of providing an education to a girl child and sensitizing the poor population about the issues involved.
- No Child marriages.
EVERY YEAR 14 MILLION GIRLS
ARE MARRIED AS CHILDREN, DENIED THEIR RIGHTS TO HEALTH, EDUCATION AND OPPORTUNITY, AND ROBBED OF THEIR CHILDHOOD. IF WE DO NOTHING, BY 2030 AN ESTIMATED 15.4 MILLION GIRLS A YEAR WILL MARRY AS CHILDREN.
Every year, an estimated 14 million girls aged under 18 are married worldwide with little or no say in the matter. In the developing world, one in seven girls is married before her 15th birthday and some child brides are as young as eight or nine.
Neither physically nor emotionally ready to become wives and mothers, these girls are at far greater risk of experiencing dangerous complications in pregnancy and childbirth, becoming infected with HIV/AIDS and suffering domestic violence. With little access to education and economic opportunities, they and their families are more likely to live in poverty.
Conducting empowerment sessions relating to health awareness among women and child.
At Mehaan Charitable Foundation, Gurgaon ,we believe that women also need to be provided proper medical and health care. For looking after her family’s health a woman should be healthy herself in the first place. And the first step towards this is putting an end to child marriages. In villages and rural areas marriages of girls as young as 13 years are pretty common. These young brides not only deteriorate their health but often die in child-birth. What is more horrible is that they are quickly replaced by another, again, of the same age. Poverty is another reason for exploitation of women. On an average the total hours of work, in the labour industry, put in by women is higher than that of men, however women are paid 30-40% less than men. Again education and general awareness are the only means of putting an end to such exploitation.
Further interlinking with other issues and organizations that can prove beneficial and will create a bigger impact on the society as a whole. We look forward to volunteers especially from human rights background to come and join us for the same.