Utmost priority to bridge gender gap in India: Centre on WEF Gender Gap report
Responding to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Women and Child Development Savitri Thakur said the government is committed to reducing gender disparity through a "multi-pronged approach" across economic, educational and political domains.
"The Government of India has given utmost priority to bridge the gender gap in India, by reducing disparity between men and women and by increasing socio-economic status of women and their participation in various fields," Thakur said in a written reply.
She highlighted several initiatives including the enhanced paid maternity leave, cash benefits for mothers under the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, and schemes like Sakhi Niwas, Stand Up India and Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana to boost women's employment, entrepreneurship, and skill development.
Thakur also underlined the government's focus on political empowerment of women, citing the passage of the Constitution Act, 2023 or the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, which mandates one-third reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies.
On the education front, she said schemes like Samagra Shiksha, construction of gender-segregated toilets, and the Vigyan Jyoti initiative are focused on improving enrolment and participation of girls, particularly in STEM fields.
Responding specifically to the impact of the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme on India's gender ranking, Thakur said it had transformed from a policy into a "national movement."
She said the scheme has contributed to behavioural change, with the sex ratio at birth improving from 918 in 2014-15 to 930 in 2023-24 and gross enrolment of girls in secondary education rising from 75.51 per cent to 78 per cent during the same period.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
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