Bridging gaps: Know about some laudable public schemes for empowering Indian women

Indian government schemes for women 

India is world-famous for its diversity and vividness. Along with the landscape, climates, and even regional cultures, one can also observe the diversity in views and treatment of different sections of the society. One such queer division is between males and females. On one hand Indian ancient texts applauses women and positions them on a high pedestal, saying that “the house which treats its women well always prospers”. On the other hand, though, there are many vices directed against the fair gender. Dowry, illiteracy, and denial of equal opportunities are some social vices still prevalent in some sections/regions/communities of the country. However, the times have changed a lot and today there are many Indian government schemes for women to empower them and make them feel protected.

Indian Government: An ally in the progress of Indian Women

Thankfully the latter part of the last century and post-millennium period has witnessed many endeavours to help Indian women regain and reclaim their glory. Fortunately, the Indian government is also actively involved in these endeavours. Every year they introduce several schemes to protect women and help them prosper.

However, there is generally a communication gap that prevents women from knowing about these schemes and taking benefit from them. So, we will publish a series of such schemes in a quick and digestible format. To keep it simple we have divided each piece of content into a themed list of 5 schemes. Here is the first list and the theme is “Empowerment and Education”:

Working women hostels

Safety is a great concern for women- more so when they relocate to a new place for a job or studies. For such women, the government has started working women hostel schemes to assure safe and convenient accommodation. Many such centres also offer day-care facilities thus relieving working women from any worries regarding their children at home. Interested women can visit the site of the Department of women and child development official website to check the locations and details.

One-Stop Centre Scheme (popular as Sakhi)

Starting on 1st April 2015, the One-stop centre scheme offers different types of assistance to the violence victims including legal, shelter, counselling medical and police desks. All the facilities are provided under a single roof to save victims from unnecessary legwork or ordeal. Moreover, there is a round-the-clock helpline for instant access to the help. This toll-free service can be availed by dialling 181.

Mahila E-haat

An initiative by the ministry of women and child development, Mahila E-Hatt is an online commerce platform creating reliable income opportunities for the fair gender. It encourages women entrepreneurs to start and run their businesses digitally from anywhere. As a result, more women would be able to start their entrepreneurial journey regardless of social and financial challenges.

STEP

AN acronym for Support to raining and employment program, the STEP is another laudable initiative of the Indian government to train girls/women in various skills that make them employable. There are several sectors included in this scheme like Horticulture, Agriculture, Tailoring, Handlooms, Stitching, Embroidery, Zari, Embroidery, and more. Besides, it also includes soft skills training, building professional competencies in English, and various other skills. Hence there I a wide variety of menus to choose from depending on the interest and inclinations of the participants.

Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao

Female foeticide is an unfortunate reality in several sections of Indian society- even today. To eradicate this social evil, the government started Beti Bachao, Beti Padao initiative in 2015. Starting with a capital of 100 crore- as fond, it is a joint initiative by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the ministry of women and child development, and the ministry of Human Resource Development. Along with the northern belt of Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, and Uttarakhand, the state of Punjab also form the key work area of this initiative. The initiative also focuses on welfare services for Indian girls.