Approaching equity - Indiagovernance.gov.in

1. Contexti. WomenWomen’s labour is getting casualised and there isincreasing feminisation of poverty. With traditionaloccupations eroded and wiped out, women are now beingforced to enter new markets, where labour laws are notenforced. Mushrooming of Special Economic Zones andFree Trade Zones are live examples of what is happening tothe labour market. This is the result of the neo-liberal policiesthat have only helped in widening the gap between the richand the poor, with the poorest of the poor being women.While there is little hope of reversal of these policies, whatcan be expected is to ensure that further marginalisation ofwomen does not take place. There should be mechanisms topromote asset-building for women, including land. Wagedisparities should be removed and proper implementationof both the Minimum Wages Act as well as the EqualRemuneration Act should be ensured.There is a need to upgrade women’s skills and equipthem to face the changing times. Women constitute a majorproportion of the agricultural workforce and yet they arenot considered farmers. They do not have right to assetsand control over natural resources, though women arethe conservers of resources. With increasing migration ofwomen and out-migration of men, there are more womenheadedhouseholds and the burden of both economic andsocial responsibility is borne by women. The informal sectoris widening and labour laws are not implemented. Thus,women are exploited and denied benefits which the formalsector workers get.Recurrent disasters, both natural and human-made, haveresulted in destroying traditional livelihoods, where womenplayed a key role. These need to be revived and upgradedso that women’s indigenous knowledge and experience inthese areas can contribute to the nation’s productive growth.Even in the formal sector, there is a glass ceiling that doesnot allow women in high-level decision-making positions.ii. YouthThere exists at present unequal access to skill buildingopportunities and huge disparities within the educationsystem for young people across regions, caste, class, andgender. The social group determines the type of skills theylearn and the professions they are permitted to practise. Forexample, Dalits have traditionally worked as sweepers whileboys are not encouraged to go in for nursing or psychology.The education system lacks practical orientation. It also doesnot encourage experimentation or experiential learning. Thepressure of getting certificates for secure mainstream jobsdoes not allow young people to explore their interests andtalents, discover their passions, take risks and start theirown enterprises. Instead, they are forced by their parents toenter socially recognized professions such as law, banking,medicine, engineering and the civil service. There is nofocus at present on building entrepreneurial skills in youngpeople. The education system also has an urban bias and23