The Winds Of Change

We cannot rest on victories of the past alone. While we laud the efforts of strong women over the last 60 years, we bring to the fore, innovations, changes, and initiatives that we look forward to in the near future. Whether to improve women’s safety and security, to provide them with the benefits they deserve, or bring them equality that they are and will keep fighting for, these aspects rank high on Femina’s future forward list.

EDUCATE, EMPOWER, ELEVATE

Accesiblity to education still remains elusive for girls at large

Even before the class VII teacher could pose the question, an enthusiastic Sarita shot up her hand. Before she could have the chance to answer, she was summoned to the principal’s office and asked to go home. Her mother had taken ill and she had to step in to cook and finish chores. Yes, in India, primary and secondary education for girls is not only compulsory, but also free, but in the 72 years after Independence, the country has yet to better literacy rates for girls.

The patriarchal system is one of the primary reasons for girls being pulled out of school, especially in low income groups. The families believe that they eventually have to get married, so it’s better to have them drop out. Shaheen Mistri, founder and CEO, Teach For India, says that the organisation sees huge gender issues within communities with boys being given opportunities, girls, not many. “Girls are pressured to drop out of the system, and all the stuff one reads about, is true,” she says.

According to the latest census of 2011, India’s female literacy rate is 65.46 per cent, significantly lower than the world average of 79.7 per cent. In many cases, the laws are in place, but effective implementation is lacking. The Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009, makes elementary education free and compulsory, but statistics don’t show the expected results. While educationists are fast to cite the example of Kerala, the state with the highest female literacy rate—92.07 per cent— backward states such as Bihar with 51.5 per cent do not match up.