GENDER PARTICIPATION IN INDIA Case Study on India as

a Developing Nation

PG 136 Gender and Development

Group 5

Google Map of India

CONTENTS

Introduction India Political Participation Gender in Economic Participation Gender in Cultural Participation Religious Participation Social Relations of Gender (Caste) Summary (Future of India)

COUNTRY BACKGROUND Republic of India (Capital City: New Delih) Population : 1,293,057,000 (as of 2016) Area: 3.1milliion sq km (1.2 million sq miles), excluding Kashmir Major Language: Hindi, English and more than 20

other official languages Major religions: Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism and Buddhism Life Expectancy: 64 Years (men) 68 years (women) Currency: Rupee UN World Bank Current PM : Narendra Damodardas Modi is the 14th

PM

INTRODUCTION

India is the seventh largest country by land mass area and the second most populous country with over 1.2 billion people after china. It has 29 states and practiced democratic system. The country shares the border with other several countries to the east, west and northern part which is China, Nepal and Buthan. India was not known until the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, the first European to explore the region by establishing the sea rout from Europe to India. (Wikipedia, 2016)

POLITICALSTATUS OF WOMEN’S REPRESENTATION IN INDIA’S LEGISLATIVE BODIES1 In India women participation in political area is very low.2 In Lok Sabha it is not even 10%.3 In State Assembly it is as low as 5%.4 Latin America and Africa women participation is higher than India.

STEPS CAN BE TAKEN TO IMPROVE WOMEN’S REPRESENTATION IN POLITICS

1 It should be legally binding to have fair proportion representation of women in the elected bodies.2 Some seats should be reserved for women in State Assemblies and in lok sabha.Political parties should give proper representation to women members.4 Women participation can be increased by raising the literacy rate.

8.30%

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NEGATIVE&POSITIVE IMPACTS 1.Mahatma Gandhi used to say that “religion can never be separated from politics. According to him, politics must be guided by ethics, drawn from all religions.”

NEGATIVE 1.Deviation from Campaign 2.Women's are seen as inferior and

subordinate3. Ignoring seniors in the party4. The Educational Barriers5. One man showPOSITIVE1. Foreign Relations2. Government steps in support for women3. Bold steps and Courage's 4. Legislate Reserve Seat for Women (33%)5. Equal Participation in Voting

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Smt. Sumitra MahajanSpeaker of Lok Sabha

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RELIGIONS 

Religion in India is characterized by a diversity of

religious beliefs and practices. The

Indian subcontinent is the birthplace of four of the

world's major religions; namely Hinduism, Buddhism,

Jainism and Sikhism. Throughout India's history,

religion has been an important part of the country's

culture. Religious diversity and religious tolerance are

both established in the country by the law and custom

; the Constitution of India has declared the right to

freedom of religion to be a fundamental right.

Wikipedia ,2016

CONSTITUTIONAL GENDER PROVISIONS THAT MAKE INDIA A SECULAR STATE1 There is no official

religion for the Indian State.❖In Sri lanka-Buddhism❖In Pakistan- Islam❖In England- Christianity2 The Constitution provides to all individual and communities freedom to profess, practice and propagate any religion of their own choice regardless of cultural/Gender perceptions

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MAJOR BELIEFS OF COMMUNIAL PEOPLE

Hinduism Hinduism is the world’s third largest religion with

over 900 million followers. It is the dominant religion in India. Eighty-two percent of the Indians are followers of Hinduism.

Hinduism is a colorful religion with a vast gallery of Gods and Goddesses which describes the aspects and nature of the universal spirit called Brahman, the creator of the universe.

Hinduism is based on the Vedas (collection of sacred texts) and is the direct descendant of the Vedic religion (Vedism). They are the most sacred literature of Hinduism.

Other texts include Upanishads, the Mahabharata, and the Ramayana. These writings contain hymns, incantations, philosophies, rituals, poems and stories from which Hindus base their beliefs.

Other main religions include; Christians & Muslims Google Image

NEGATIVE/POSITIVE PRACTICESNegative

In Hinduism, tradition gives more importance to men rather than women in matters regarding marriage.

A woman has limited freedom. She is dependent entirely in a household dominated by make members.

In historical times, Hindu women had to throw themselves on their husband’s funeral pyre if their husband died before the.

Women were not allowed to own property in society. In addition, women had to marry at a very young age which did not allow for them to finish their education under the practice of Hinduism.

Female infanticide in the form of abortions are performed to get rid of female infants due to the fact that they consider female child as a burden.

Positive Historically, women were often respected

figures in society. Often times, these women were courtesans, magicians and even mathematicians.

Women’s duty is only to serve, assist and enable. That is, they play a secondary role and serve as an enabler for her husband to achieve his four aims of life.

Traditionally according to the law books, the women of the house should play an important role in family and household work, but keep a low profile in social matters.

In certain stages, such as the Gupta period, women enjoyed freedom and held administrative posts. They also acted as teachers and participated in debates and public discussions.

The law books prohibit men from harassing or neglecting women in thief households. It is a man’s obligatory duty to protect his wife and take care of her until the end.

ECONOMIC PARTICIPATION

In 2015, the Indian Economy was the world's 7th largest by nominal GDP and third largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). Following market based economic reforms in 1991, India became one of the fastest- growing major economies; it is considered a newly Industrialised country. However, it continues to face the challenges of poverty, corruption, malnutrition and inadequate public healthcare.

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WOMEN IN THE LABOUR FORCE Overall, the labor force participation rate for women is falling:

from 37% in 2004-05 to 29% in 2009-10.27 In 2011-2012, women comprised 24.8% of all rural workers,

down from 31.8% in 1972-73. In 2011-2012, women comprised 14.7% of all urban workers, a

small increase from 13.4% in 1972-73. 13.4% of Indian working women have a regular salaried job

compared to 21.2% of working men (aged 15–59). Women earn 56% of what their male colleagues earn for

performing the same work. The more educated a woman is, the wider the gender pay gap. The gender pay gap increases as women advance in their

careers.

Women’s participation in the workforce in India is quite low, and has been falling over the last few years. India’s female labor participation was 29 percent according to the International Labor Organization (ILO) in 2009.

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Positive Negative

Enhance the productivity of the economy.

Reduce unemployment They can contribute

significantly to the growth and development of India in multifaceted ways.

Reduce poverty Stop gender disparity

(Gender Gap)

Drop in economy Drop in labor force Increase in

unemployment Increase in poverty Gender Discrimination Parallel Black

Economy of Marriage

GENDER IN CULTURAL ENVIRONMENT A cultural environment is a set of

beliefs, practices, customs and behaviours that are found to be common to everyone that is living within a certain population.

The culture of India is the way of living of the people of India. India's languages, religions, dance, music, architecture, food, and customs differs from place to place within the country.

Cultural environments are determined by the culmination of many different aspects of culture that influence personal choices and behaviours.

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NEGATIVE AND POSITIVEP RACTICESNEGATIVE

Caste system Forced Arranged marriages (non-

acceptance of love marriages) Patriarchy and Misogyny i.e. no

respect for women Judgmental attitude of people False sense of pride aversion to change and blindly

following outdated rituals and practices in name of culture

No concept of privacy and individual space. people constantly interfering in your life and asking personal questions.

POSITIVE PRACTICES Food Variety of festivals and

dance forms Different languages Yoga Non-violence Music and art

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SYMBOLIC CULTURE

Purdah is the practice among some communities of requiring women to cover their bodies so as to cover their skin and conceal their form.

It imposes restrictions on the mobility of women , it curtails their rights to interact freely an it is a symbol of the subordination of women.

It those not reflect the religious teachings of either Hinduism or Islam, contrary to common belief, although misconception occurred due to the ignorance and prejudices of religious of both faiths.

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GENDER IN SOCIAL RELATIONSCaste originate when Indo-European Aryans invaded India in 1500 BC. They were Warrior people who established control and began to restructure Indian social Classifications. Under their influence, Indian people divided into 5 different social groupsGender Relations1. In India casteism is different from other societies as in India hereditary occupational division was sanctioned by rituals.2. Members of the same occupation married with their caste group and did not eat with the members from other caste group. (Wikipedia, 2016)

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CASTE INEQUALITIES STILL CONTINUE IN INDIA

MEANING OF CASTEISM- Organizations of people into social groups for the purpose of marriage, work and diet is known as Caste System.

CASTE INEQUALITIES1. Unlike gender and religion, caste division to India.2. In the Caste System in India, hereditary occupational division was sanction by rituals.3. It was based on exclusion of and discrimination against the outcast group

4. disadvantage in government jobs and at state-run educational institutes.

1. Most people marry within their own caste and tribe.2. Despite provision in the constitution untouchability has not ended completely.3. There has been rich and educated people from lower caste also now-a-days but their percentage is much less as compared to upper caste.4. Large mass of low caste people still do not have access to education and have remained illiterate and uneducated.

CASTE SYSTEM IS DISAPPEARING IN INDIA

“Social reformers like Jotiba Phule, Mahatma Gandhi, Dr.B.R Ambedker ,etc. advocated and worked to establish a society in which caste inequalities are absent.” (S.Shadna, 2016)

The constitution of India prohibits discrimination of any type. It provide equal opportunities to all.The caste system can further be reduced spreading education and by promoting inter-caste marriages.

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SUMMARY (FUTURE OF INDIA) Interventions from governments include the enactment of laws

that would remove barriers to women entering the workforce, mandating protection of women at the workplace and legislating quotas for women in political office and on company boards.

“Governments need to increase the size of the cake, making the right to work a fundamental right for all citizens, men as well as women,” says Dewan.

Increasing access to education and addressing dropout rates by girls at the higher school levels is another way to increase women’s workforce participation. “In some services sectors, regulatory issues like women not being allowed to work night-shifts also need to be addressed.

India could add 60% to 2025 GDP by bridging gender gap at work: End of Caste System and engage more resilient participation Do away with Religious Differences

Reference

Positive and Negative practices .(1971). Retrieved October 8th ,2016, from https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-positive-and-negative-aspects-in-Indian- cultureIndia cultural environment practices ,(2002).Retrieved October 10th ,2016, from

https://www.google.com/search?q=india+cultural+environment&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-b-abRetrieved from https://www.google.com/search?q=google+map+of+India&ie=utf- 8&oe=utf-8#q=caste+system+in+india&tbm=vid