EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN

National Plan of Action

            A National Plan of Action to operationalise the National Policy for the Empowerment of Women has been drafted.  The Plan of Action contains concrete action points and measurable goals to be achieved by the year 2010 in all spheres of activities.

Gender Budgeting

The Department of WCD has taken the initiative of formalising the concept of “Gender Mainstreaming” and to develop a comprehensive approach to realisation of the objective of gender equity. In order to promote adoption of a gender perspective in all public expenditure and policy, detailed guidelines have been developed and circulated to the Union Ministries and State governments. These have been designed to serve as a powerful policy guiding, review and gender audit tool.

The Department is currently focusing on four areas for the empowerment of women, namely, Food and Nutrition Security (for the family with focus on women and girl child) and employment guarantee, Water and Sanitation, Adequate Health Facilities and, Asset Base for Women (land, home, livestock etc.).

Protective legislation for women’s welfare

            A Bill on prevention of sexual harassment of women at workplace, as proposed by the National Commission for Women, has been discussed with all stake holders and the State governments in a meeting in May 2005, and is being considered for introduction in Parliament.

            A Bill to provide compulsory registration of marriages has been sent to the Legislative Department for consideration for enactment (marriage being a subject allocated to the Legislative Department).  Compulsory registration of marriages will mainly benefit and empower women by helping to address the problems of child marriages, bigamy and desertion.

            Rules under the Protection of Women from domestic Violence Act, 2005 are being framed so that the Act can be brought into force.  Among other things, the rules will lay down the details of appointment of Protection officer and registration of service providers.  

            A draft scheme for relief and rehabilitation of victims of rape has been drafted.  Among other things, the scheme envisages payment of compensation to the victims of rape.  The Scheme has been sent to the Planning Commission for ‘in principle’ approval.

            National Commission for Women is reviewing the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, in order to suggest amendments to make the Act more effective.

            Amendment to the Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act, 1987 to ensure harsh punishment for those who incite women for Sati and Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986 are also contemplated.

             The Hindu Succession Act, 1956, was amended in the year 2005, nearly 50 years after enactment of the Act, in order to establish gender parity in the property laws governing the Hindu society.  By virtue of the amendments, females (including widows of male coparceners who have remarried) can inherit in the ancestral property on the same footing as their male counterparts.  A female heir can also ask for partition of the property of a joint family.  The provisions of the Act also now cover agricultural holdings.

Rural Women Awareness Programme

            The National Commission for Women launched a programme “Chalo Gaon Ki Ore” on February 3, 2006, to make the rural women aware of the rights, health problems, violence and ill-treatment meted out to them, Government schemes for their upliftment, availability of free legal aid and their rights under the rural Employment Guarantee programme and the Right to Information Act.

National Plan of Action for Children

The Ministry has prepared a National Plan of Action for Children 2005, to improve the overall status of the Indian child.  The National Plan of action includes goals, objectives, strategies and activities for improving nutritional status of children, reducing IMR and MMR, increasing enrolment ration and reducing drop out rates, universaliation of primary education, increasing coverage for immunisation etc.

The Government has also planned to set up a National Commission for Protection of Child Rights and Commissions at the State level to safeguard rights of children and examine children related issues.  A Bill in this regard has been passed in Parliament. 

Expansion of ICDS Scheme:   

Implementation of ICDS Scheme in X Plan was limited to 5,652 Projects. However, to fulfill its commitments contained in the National Common Minimum Programme (NCMP) to universalise the Scheme, the Government, in 2005-06, has approved expansion of the ICDS Scheme to 467 additional projects and 1.88 lakh additional AWCs. The expansion of the Scheme is estimated to cost an additional sum of Rs. 476 crore per annum.

Ø                                        Kishori Shakti Yojana which was in operation only in 2000 Blocks has been expanded in the last fiscal year 2004-05, to cover all 6,113 ICDS Blocks with additional financial implication of about Rs. 45.30 crore per annum.

Ø                                        Total allocation of the Scheme has also increased from Rs. 2,167.44 crore in 2004-05 to Rs. 3,685.30 crore in 2005-06 and Rs. 4,543 crore in the current year, 2006-07.

Ø                                        Financial norm of Re. 1 per beneficiaries per day for supplementary nutrition under the ICDS Scheme, fixed earlier, has been almost doubled in October 2004.

Ø                                        Till 2004-05, States were responsible for providing supplementary nutrition out of their own resources. With a view to improving the nutritional and health status of children and women, grant-in-aid pattern has, however, from the year 2005-06, been modified and the Government of India now provides Central assistance to States for supplementary nutrition also to the extent of 50 per cent of the financial norms or 50 per cent of the actual expenditure incurred by States, whichever is less.  A sum of Rs. 974.59 crore was released to States in 2005-06 under the scheme.  

Ø                                        The Government has also decided to undertake construction of Anganwadi Centres in North East States with increase in cost of construction from Rs. 1.25 lakh to Rs. 1.75 lakh per AWC.  During 2005-06, funds for construction in the NE States have been released @ Rs.1.75 lakh per AWC.

Ø                                        BPL is no longer the criteria for selection of beneficiaries of supplementary nutrition under the ICDS Scheme.

Ø                                        There has been significant progress in the implementation of ICDS Scheme during the last two years, both in terms of increase in number of operational projects and Anganwadi Centres (AWCs), and coverage of beneficiaries as indicated below:-

	No. of operational projects	No. of operational AWCs	No. of beneficiaries of Supplementary nutrition	No. of pre-school education beneficiaries
31.03.2004	5267	649307	415.08 lakh	204.38 lakh
31.03.2005	5422	706872	484.42 lakh	218.41 lakh
31.10.2005	5645	745120	514.71 lakh	231.38 lakh

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