Gender Equality and Women's Rights - Class VIII

The Hindu Succession Amendment Act, 2005 granted equal rights, duties, liabilities, and responsibilities to daughters that were earlier limited to sons. Earlier, women had right in the father's property until she is married afterwards she became entitled to her husband's property. But the 2005 amendment Act removed this disability and the daughters whether married or unmarried became entitled to the right in father's property.

Sexual harassment refers to physical or verbal behaviour that is of a sexual nature and against the wishes of a women. Women's movement led the Supreme Court to formulate guidelines in 1997 to protect women against sexual harassment at the workplace and within educational institutions.

The literacy rate among women is only 65% as compared to 82% among men. Similarly, a smaller proportion of girls go for higher studies because parents prefer to spend their resources for their boy's education rather than spending equally on their sons and daughters.

As per census 2011, Andhra Pradesh has the highest female population that is 4,21,55,652. But the highest sex ratio is in Kerala that is 1084 female per thousand males and in Andhra Pradesh, it is 993 females per thousand males.

The literacy rate among women is only 65% as compared to 82% among men. Similarly, a smaller proportion of girls go for higher studies because parents prefer to spend their resources for their boy's education rather than spending equally on their sons and daughters.

• Feminist is the person who supports or advocates for women rights.
• Charles Fourier coined the term Feminism.

 This is a form of hierarchical social division seen everywhere. The gender division tends to be understood as natural and unchangeable. However, it is not based on biology but on social expectations and stereotypes.

Mother Teresa was the first Indian woman to win Noble Peace Prize in 1979. She was born on August 26, 1910. She founded the missionaries of charity in 1950. She was also awarded Raman Magsaysay Peace Prize in 1962.

To have a fair proportion of women in the elected bodies, 1/3 of seats in local government bodies - panchayats and municipalities are made reserved for women. Now there are more than 10 lakh elected women representatives in rural and urban local bodies.

The 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment Acts mandated that one-third of seats in Panchayati Raj institutions be reserved for women.

Feminist movements aim to improve the status of women, including their political mobilization and participation in public life.

This question is likely based on specific comparative data where the USA or other Western nations are highlighted for higher female representation in parliament compared to the listed alternatives.

The participation of women in public life is very high in Scandinavian countries such as Sweden, Norway, and Finland.

Movements that specifically target equality in personal, family, and social life are defined as feminist movements.

As established by the 73rd and 74th amendments, seats are reserved for women in local government bodies, known as Panchayati Raj.

As per census 2001, the literacy rate of women in India was 54.16% and as per census 2011, the literacy rate of women in India is 65.46%.

Scandinavian countries like Sweden, Norway, and Finland are globally recognized for their high levels of female participation in public and political life.

In traditional societies, women were excepted to do domestic work such as cooking, cleaning, washing clothes, tailoring, looking after children, etc. They were not excepted to do any work outside the home.

The literacy rate among women is only 50 per cent compared with 76 per cent among men. 

Gender division in society often restricts women from participating in formal political structures. While women are active in families and child-rearing, politics has historically been a male-dominated sphere.

15th Lok Sabha elections were held in 2009. The 15th Lok Sabha had 58 women MPs. This is the first time when the representation of women has crossed 10%.

In many traditional societies, household chores are gendered. Cooking is often the primary domestic task that men are more willing to participate in compared to tasks like fetching water or childcare.

The National Commission for Women's Act 1990 deals with the matter related to the safeguards provided for women under the constitution, reports on working of safeguards and recommends on improving the conditions of the women. It conducts an investigation into specific problems or situations arising out of discrimination and atrocities against women, recommends a strategy for their removal.  

In Patriarchal society, women are supposed to do the domestic household work where men are supposed to all work outside the home to earn money.

Scandinavia is a region in Northern Europe. The term in local usage covers the three kingdoms of Denmark, Sweden and Norway. The participation of women in public life is highest in the Scandinavian countries. The women are able to make decisions on a larger level and bring about legislative reforms in the government policies.

In India, the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment Acts mandated that one-third of seats in local self-government institutions (Panchayats and Municipalities) be reserved for women.

Gender division refers to the social construction of roles, where society assigns different expectations and responsibilities to men and women, rather than biological differences.

The scheme was launched during 2000-01 with an objective to empower rural women and make them self-reliant by inculcating the habit of savings and proper utilization of financial resources. Stree Shakti Groups are formed at the village level to inculcate the savings habit in the members empowering the women economically. About 15 to 20 women members who are from below poverty line families, landless agricultural labourers, SC/ST women join together. Stree Shakti Groups are formed through Aanganwadi workers and taluka federations.

According to the facts and figures provided by the UN Women Organisation, the average percentage of women parliamentarians is least in the Pacific region and the Arab States with 17% in the former and 17.8% in the latter States.

National Women's Suffrage Association (NWSA) was started in 1869 by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton in New York. NWSA worked to secure women's right to vote through a federal constitutional amendment. Stanton addressed issues such as women's parental, custody rights, property rights, employment, and income rights, divorce, birth control, etc.

Marriageable age are declared for the betterment of both girls and boys . 
This is declared by 61st amendment act of indian constitution. 

Women’s movement has argued that FAMILY LAWS of all religions discriminate against women. So they have demanded that government should change these laws to make them more equitable. 

• Child Sex Ratio defined as the number of females per thousand males in the age group 0–6 years in a human population.
• Child Sex Ratio in  2011  Census is 919.
  

Laxmi Lakra was the first woman to join the Northern Railways in India as an engine driver and the second woman to join the Central Railways, only after Surekha Yadav. Laxmi Lakra hailed from Jharkhand and is an inspiration to many, because she broke the stereotype by choosing a male dominated profession.

A stereotype is a belief or set of beliefs that are fixed and usually wrong, in a manner that it generalizes a certain subject or object for which the stereotype is used. For instance, the idea boys don't cry, is a stereotype that fixes a certain idea of holding back tears to each and every boy, irrespective of their personal characteristics. It is a fixed belief that the society has set up for an entire community of boys, disregarding their characteristics.

In this question, it is important to take note of each option because the answer is relative in nature, which means that out of the given options, no one is right by itself but in relation to one another, the answer is evident. Throughout the history of humankind, women, in relation to men have been given far less opportunities at any stage and in any aspect of life. They were initially not considered even for basic civic rights which were given to men and even male children.

International Women’s Day is celebrated on March 8. It is celebrated in different regions the focus of the celebrations ranges from general celebration of respect, appreciation and love towards women for their economic, political and social achievements. 

Rashsundari Devi wrote her autobiography called Amar Jiban which was published in 1867. Rashsundari Devi was born in Bengal and her autobiography which was written in Bengali, was the first full fledged autobiography written in Bengali language.

The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act is an act that defined domestic violence including both physical and mental violence against a woman as a crime. It was enacted in 2005 by the legislature but brought into force only in 2006.

Rashsundari Devi was born in Bengal in 1810, in Pabna. She was the most well known for her autobiography called Amar Jiban and was among the first few Bengali writers who had written autobiographies.

Muthu Lakshmi was a prime reformer in abolishing the Devadasi system. Devadasi is a girl dedicated to worship and serve a deity or a temple for the rest of her life. 

The
statement "Poor girls drop out of school because they are not
interested in getting an education".  is false because in many parts of
the country, especially in rural and poor areas, there may not even be
proper schools nor teachers who teach on a regular basis.Parents are not
willing to send their girl child to distant schools due to lack of
transportation and unable to bear the cost of education.

Campaigning is a method by which political parties bring forth to the citizens their agendas before elections, for which they usually promise to pass new laws. Campaigning is a tactic used to attract voters. Thus, it is an ideal match for passing new laws. Second in place, the 1961 Census of India records a literacy rate of 40.40 % among boys. And lastly, Women's movement represents the struggle of each woman that she faces in the domestic sphere, in educational institutions, at workplaces etc and also the discrimination that the community of women faces. Thus it is both an individual and a collective struggle.

Rashsundari
Devi , Ramabai and Rokeya are able to achieve their goal only by
education. they were able to put an impact on the society by writing
their ideas or stories or setting up schools through which can never be
achieved without learning.Thus , learning the alphabet was so important
because it will not only help them in their day to day social life but
help them in pursuing their education and dream.

Protesting; In this method, public rallies and demonstrations were held by women to raise their voice against violations of law affecting them.
Raising awareness;  This helped in creating public awareness on women's rights issues through street plays, song, and public meetings.

When
people not treated equally or with respect indulging in discrimination.
It happens when people or organisations act on their prejudices.
Discrimination usuallytakes place when we treat some one differently or
make a distinction.

The 2003-2004 Education Survey revealed that a huge chunk of enrolled students drop out of school in the middle and the secondary school, particularly during the transition from class 1 to 2 and between 8th, 9th and 10th. A greater percentage of the drop outs were in Secondary school. What was also highlighted was the fact that most of these drop outs were females.

Note: We must understand that at a pan India level, it is the Supreme Court which is entitled to formulate guidelines, and not a particular High Court which mostly looks only after the state that it represents.

Women's Movements have taken a prominent place in the Modern era. Such movements attempt to bring equality, freedom, basic civic rights etc for women who have been victims of gender discrimination ever since. Many activists and organizations have launched several women's movements in order to spread awareness regarding the issue of gender discrimination, fight this discrimination and demand justice wherever required. In India, such activities have been brought under the ambit of the Feminist Movement of India.

In 2005, with the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, domestic violence was defined broadly as any form of violence against women in the domestic sphere by her biological relatives or her husband and his relatives. Any form of physical, mental, emotional, sexual, verbal or economic abuse was to be treated as Domestic Violence. Thus, both mental and physical abuse in the domestic sphere form a part of the the legal definition of Domestic Violence.

Pressure from the family and society points towards their negative influence on a person. Teasing or bullying is one such evil that refers to provoking an individual using unfair verbal or physics tactics. Demands made by elders, is also a form of pressure as it can manipulate the subject indirectly because of societal pressure. Both of these are forms of harassment.

Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 was passed in 2005. This law was implemented in 2006. This gave women protection from domestic violence.

Campaigns
to fight discrimination and violence against women are an important
part of the women's movement.Campaigns have also led to new laws being
passed. Efforts made by the women's movement led the Supreme Court to
formulate guidelines in 1997 to protect women against sexual harassment
at the workplace and within educational institutions.

In
the 1980s, women's groups across the country spoke out against 'dowry
deaths' - cases of young brides being murdered by their in - laws or
husbands, greedy for more dowry.Women's groups spoke out against the
failure to bring these cases to justice. They did so by coming on to the
streets , approaching the courts, and by sharing information.

Rashsundari Devi was apparently the first Indian woman to study history. She was a writer by occupation and is the most well known for her autobiography called Amar Jiban, which was published in 1876. She was among the first few Bengali writers who had written autobiographies.

With regard to sexual harassment at workplaces and educational institutions, the Supreme Court formulated a set of guidelines called the Vishaka guidelines in 1997. An act concerning the same issue was later paased by the legislature in 2013.

• Literacy rate among women in 2001 was 54%.
• Literacy rate among men in 2001 was 76%.
• The literacy rate of India in 2001 was 65%.

• Patriarchal society is the society which values men more and gives ruling power to men over women.
• Matriarchal society is the society which values women more and gives ruling power to women over men.
• Gender equality is valuing both men and women rights equally in the society.

• All the above mentioned factors are responsible for miserable condition for women in India.