Participation of Women in Panchayati Raj: A Historical Perspective

Author(s):  
T Sudalai Moni

Panchayati Raj plays a formidable role in enhancing the status of women in India during post-Independent times. In the colonial regime, women were not given adequate opportunity to involve and participate in the affairs of local bodies. However, in the 19th century, women gradually participated in the Panchayati Raj bodies when they were formally included in the electoral roll. During post-independent Era, due to the implementation of the Ashok Mehta Committee (1978) recommendation, National Perspective Plan, and 30 percent reservations seats for women in panchayats, there has been a substantial increase in women’s participation at all the levels of the Panchayati Raj bodies. Subsequently, the 72nd Amendment Bill and the 73rd amendment introduced in our parliament recommended 33 percent quotas for women. Encouraged by this, women have come forward in an ever-increasing number to join hands with the activities of Panchayat Raj Institution.Consequently, Central and State Governments encouraged women by implementing the 73rd constitutional amendment in 1993 (adding Article 243D and 243T), which also extended the privilege of seat reservation for SC/ST women in the local bodies. Due to this positive impetus, there has been a perceptible improvement in women’s participation in the last two decades. Due to unrestrained encouragement, the participation of women in Panchayati Raj is highly effective; thus, across India, more than 26 lakhs of women representatives got elected in PRI. This paper attempts to delineate the gradual growth of women’s participation in the Panchayati Raj Institution in various states in India.

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 86-118
Author(s):  
RATA B KENEA

Though the participation of women in economic development and community work usually realized low as a whole due to various reasons, the contribution of gender in creating the difference in terms of their status even among the participatory women is untouched area. For instance, the research conducted by Atinafu Diga (2013) on assessment of economic empowerment of women the related studies entitled Assessment of economic empowerment of Women in Kolobo kebele, Abay chomman Woreda dealt with only inadequate economic empowerment problems and low participation of Women in educational leadership areas respectively as their overall findings. As a result, this study is undertaken to assess the status of women disparity to participate in community work in case of kolobo kebele, Ambo town, Oromia Regional State; Ethiopia.This study is descriptive in nature. For this particular study, both quantitative and qualitative research approach were employed. In doing this research paper, of the total population,79 samples were selected from the town selected using simple random and purposive sampling techniques. Here, 79 were responded for the 20 close-ended questions of the questionnaire and another 10 were responded for open-ended questions of the interview. To analyses the quantitative data, techniques such as tabulation, percentages, and numerical figures were employed to. On the other hand, Narration and comparative discussion were covered to analyse the qualitatively collected data.


LAW REVIEW ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sangita Laha

Women have been struggling for self-respect and autonomy. Although women constitute one half of the population, they continue to be subjugated, unequal in socioeconomic and political status.There have been several attempts to improve the position of women since India got independence in 1947. Since mid-1980 owing to questioning by women themselves about their oppressed status and plight through varied women’s movements, the issue of ‘women empowerment’ came into focus. The Government of India declared the year 2001 as year for the ‘Empowerment of Women’, but the struggle to reach this stage has been long and arduous. . It has also resulted in the entry of a large number of women in decision-making bodies in rural areas, who were otherwise homemakers. Political participation and grassroots democracy have been strengthened considerably by the 73rd Constitutional Amendment that has created new democratic institutions for local governance yet t women are facing the various problem in the functioning of panchayats. After getting the reservation in the panchayats, they are still depending on their husband or other male members of their family. So for knowing the status of women in the all level of panchayats in India, this paper is based on the secondary data and deals with the political participation and representation of the rural women in the panchayats in India. The theoretical perspective of the evolution of the panchayati raj system in India and the journey of the women in the local governance has also been explained in the study.Several factors which responsible for women’s low participation have been dealt with.In this context, the paper tries to analyse the government initiative for women’s empowerment in the Panchyats, an opportunity to come forward through reservation and highlighting the factors which overtly or covertly tend to prevent women members from performing their roles. Some necessary steps for empowering the women have been suggested.


Author(s):  
Anithamol Babu ◽  
Sonny Jose

The Kerala Model of Development is widely acclaimed for its contribution in generating favourable social indices at par with Scandinavia. The central issue of the development in almost all the underdeveloped and developing countries is the empowerment of women constituents. In Kerala, the story of empowerment of women, is not just economic, but psychologically, and this has happened largely through the Kudumbashree and LSGs. Under Article 243(D) of the Constitution of India, there is a mandate to provide 50% reservation for women in Panchayati Raj Institutions, this constitutional amendment is regarded as a path-breaking move to empower women at the grassroots level. The present study portrays the impact of government interventions for ensuring the participation of women in decision-making as well as in the power structure in Panchayaths. The researcher(s) used cross-sectional research design for this particular study which adopts purposive sampling. The data was collected through in-depth interview and focus group discussion is used for triangulation. The finding of the study shows that how the women are empowered though various government interventions such as Kudumbashree, Thozhil-urappu Padhathi (MGNREGA), ASHAs (frontrunners for the NRHM), Panchayati Raj and house wives.


2006 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judy McGregor

Since the first woman was appointed as editor of a major newspaper in New Zealand in the mid 1980s, what has been the progress of women to top editorships? And what is the status of women at governance, management and staff journalist levels? These questions examine gender equality issues and are important given the power and ubiquity of the news media in modern society. The article analyses participation of women in the news media against the so-called ‘feminisation’ of pre-entry journalism training. The findings show that little progress has been made at editorship level, while there is more progress for senior women just below editorship level. Further, there is a difference in the status of women in governance of public service versus privately-owned broadcasting. The article is critical of the data available to monitor participation by gender and ethnicity in New Zealand journalism over time. Strategies to help break down the pervasive power of ‘man-made news’ are proposed. These include female shareholder activism at the governance level of media companies, and a greater commitment by the New Zealand Journalism Training Organisation to regular monitoring of women’s newsroom participation. Without it the status of women in New Zealand journalism remains invisible.


Author(s):  
Khedija Arfaoui ◽  
Jane Tchaïcha

This paper considers the important events and challenges as they per- tain to female governance in the “New Tunisia”, resulting in large part from the National Constituent Assembly (NCA) elections charged with writing a new constitution. The analysis focuses on the role women played in the election process, including women’s participation in the interim government (January 2011-November 9, 2011) and political parties. It continues with an in depth ex- amination of the debates and actions that emergedamong various factions during the first two years following the revolution, which has led to increased concern about the preservation of Tunisian women’s rights. The principal re- search question asks, “To what extend have Tunisian women been able to par- ticipate actively in shaping the new Tunisia and will this trend continue?” The study integrates several investigative approaches: historical narrative of fac- tual events, participant observation (from both researchers), interviews, and careful review of the ongoing actions and activities of women’s groups and societal challenges since October 23, 2011, which in turn, has spunconsiderable debate within Tunisian society about the status of women in the new Tunisia.


Author(s):  
Preety Choudhari ◽  
Trisha Roy ◽  
Khushboo Verma ◽  
Reena Bharti ◽  
Sonia Verma

The 73rd Amendment to the Constitution of India was introduced with a stated legislative intent of reserving not less than a third of seats for women in institutions of local self-government, the three-tier panchayati raj institutions. That amendment is considered a milestone in India’s project of empowerment of women. This paper evaluates the power and prestige of the post of an adhyaksha (chairperson) of a zila (district) panchayat (council) in general, and in particular the status of women elected to the post during 2016 in the state of Uttar Pradesh (UP). Analysing the candidature, electoral success, electoral practices and subsequent functioning of zila panchayat adhyakshas (ZPAs), the authors argue that despite seats being reserved for women, no meaningful political empowerment of women has occurred in UP. The paper questions the efficacy of the indirect mode of election of ZPAs in bringing about empowerment of women, arguing that indirect elections enable powerful ruling elites to use women as proxies, subverting the legislative intent of the 73rd Amendment. The paper therefore proposes electoral reforms.


2021 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 75-86
Author(s):  
Sandrine Bergès

Is the virtue of domesticity a way for women to access civic power or is it a slippery slope to dependence and female subservience? Here I look at a number of philosophical responses to domesticity and trace a historical path from Aristotle to the 19th century Cult of Domesticity. Central to the Cult was the idea that women’s power was better used in the home, keeping everybody safe, alive, and virtuous. While this attitude seems to us very conservative, I want to argue that it has its roots in the republican thought of eighteenth-century France. I will show how the status of women before the French Revolutions did not allow even for power exercised in the home, and how the advent of republican ideals in France offered women non-negligible power despite their not having a right to vote.


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