WOMEN EMPOWERMENT SCHEMES:

SABLA:
The Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Girls (RGSEAG) Sabla is a centrally
sponsored program of Government of India initiated on April 1, 2011 under Ministry of Women and Child
Development.[1]

Objective [edit]
The objectives of the program are:

Enable the Adolescent girls for self-development and empowerment

Improve their nutrition and health status.

Promote awareness about health, hygiene, nutrition, adolescent reproductive and sexual health
(ARSH) and family and child care.

Upgrade home-based skills, life skills and integrate with the National Skill Development
Program (NSDP) for vocational skills.

Mainstream out of school adolescent girls into formal/non formal education.

Provide information/guidance about existing public services such as PHC (Primary health centre),
CHC (community health centre), Post Office, Bank, Police Station, etc.

Content[edit]
An integrated package of services is to be provided to adolescent girls as follows:

Nutrition provision

Iron and Folic Acid (IFA) supplementation

Health check-up and Referral services

Nutrition & Health Education (NHE)

Counselling/Guidance on family welfare, ARSH, child care practices and home management

Life Skill Education and accessing public services

Vocational training for girls aged 16 and above under NSDP

Eligibility criteria [edit]

The program would cover adolescent girls 1118 years old under all ICDS projects in selected 200 districts
in all states/UTs in the country. The target group would be subdivided into 11-15 and 1518 years. [2]

The Indira Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojana

(IGMSY)
The Indira Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojana (IGMSY) is a flagship program of the government
of India introduced in 2010 under the Ministry of Women and Child Development. It is a conditional cash
transfer scheme. Pregnant and lactating women 19 years of age and older for first two live births are
eligible for the scheme. Its goal is to partly compensate them for wage-loss during childbirth and childcare
and to provide conditions for safe delivery and good nutrition and feeding practices. The scheme was
originally implemented on pilot basis in 53 selected districts and has been scaled up to 200 additional 'high
burden districts' in 2015-16. Thus total 253 districts are now covered under this scheme. The beneficiaries
in 2011-12 were: 3.05 lakhs; and during 2012-13, 3.76 lakhs.

Program[edit]
It envisions the achievement of its objectives by:

Promoting appropriate practice, care and institutional service utilization during pregnancy, delivery
and lactation

Encouraging the women to follow (optimal) nutrition and feeding practices, including early and
exclusive breast-feeding for the first six months; and

Providing cash incentives for improved health and nutrition to pregnant and lactating mothers.

IGMSY provides financial assistance as grant-in-aid to state governments. [1

Program[edit]
It envisions the achievement of its objectives by:

Promoting appropriate practice, care and institutional service utilization during pregnancy, delivery
and lactation

Encouraging the women to follow (optimal) nutrition and feeding practices, including early and
exclusive breast-feeding for the first six months; and

Providing cash incentives for improved health and nutrition to pregnant and lactating mothers.

IGMSY provides financial assistance as grant-in-aid to state governments. [1][2]

Benefits and Eligibility [edit]

All pregnant women of 19 years of age and above are eligible for conditional cash transfer benefits of Rs.
6000, except those who receive paid maternity leave. The payment is made in two installments of Rs. 3000
each. The cash transfers under the Scheme are subject to the following conditions:

The first transfer (at the end of second birth / pregnancy trimester) of Rs.3000 requires the mother
to:

Register pregnancy at the Anganwadi centre (AWC) within four months of conception

Attend at least one prenatal care session and taking IFA tablets and TT (tetanus injection),
and

Attend at least one 3. counselling session at the AWC or healthcare centre.

The second transfer (three months after delivery) of Rs.3000 requires the mother to:

Register the birth

Immunize the child for OPV and BCG at birth, at six weeks and at 10 weeks

Attend at least two growth monitoring sessions within three months of delivery

Additionally the scheme requires the mother to:

Exclusively breastfeed for six months and introduce complementary feeding as certified by
the mother,

Immunize the child for OPV and DPT

Attend at least two counselling sessions on growth monitoring and infant and child
nutrition and feeding between the third and sixth months after delivery.[3]

Janani shishu suraksha kARYAKRAM

(JSSK)

Introduction
Government of India has launched Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakaram (JSSK) on 1st
June, 2011.

The scheme is estimated to benefit more than 12 million pregnant women who access
Government health facilities for their delivery. Moreover it will motivate those who still choose
to deliver at their homes to opt for institutional deliveries. . It is an initiative with a hope that
states would come forward and ensure that benefits under JSSK would reach every needy
pregnant woman coming to government institutional facility. All the States and UTs have
initiated implementation of the scheme.

The following are the Free Entitlements for pregnant women:

Free and cashless delivery

Free C-Section

Free drugs and consumables

Free diagnostics

Free diet during stay in the health institutions

Free provision of blood

Exemption from user charges

Free transport from home to health institutions

Free transport between facilities in case of referral

Free drop back from Institutions to home after 48hrs stay

The following are the Free Entitlements for Sick newborns till 30 days
after birth. This has now been expanded to cover sick infants:

Free treatment

Free drugs and consumables

Free diagnostics

Free provision of blood

Exemption from user charges

Free Transport from Home to Health Institutions

Free Transport between facilities in case of referral

Free drop Back from Institutions to home

Essay on Problems Related to Women in India!

Many empirical studies have been conducted to assess the problems
faced by women in and outside family and to know the quality of

change in the status of women in India. Almost all studies reveal that
sexism still prevails everywhere. Women often encounter prejudice,
discrimination and abuse from both men and women both in the
family and at workplace.
Almost daily we come across some or the other incident of dowry
death, domestic violence, exploitation, rape cases, harassment, etc.,
reported in newspapers or magazines. Most of these incidents or
accidents are reflection of the problems still faced by women in India.
Apparently, women are now fully emancipated and free to choose
their profession, life partner and the way of life. But, the
fundamentally deep-rooted feeling of inequality and discrimination
still persists due to domineering attitudes of males and the age-old
customs and traditions.
A few urban educated women may look upon themselves as
emancipated, enlightened and progressive. They may ape the western
way of life but the deep-rooted inhibitions and age-old restraints
always cram their mind. In public women might get a lot of lip
respect, especially on womens day or mothers day, but at home
their equal rights and privileges are a mere myth.
Most husbands and fathers took upon their wives and daughters as
their own possessions. Obedience to her husband is still expected
from a good Hindu wife even in the so-called well-educated families.
True and full expression of her individuality, unfettered by restraints,
is unheard of.
The normal Indian wifes thinking is conditioned in such a manner
that she cheerfully accepts any amount of domination. She takes it for
granted that her likes and dislikes, her wishes and ideas will never be
placed on the same level as her husband.
Working wives are however treated with a little more respect and
consideration. Economic dependence of Indian women on her

husbands has kept them in a state of perpetual bondage. This is the

crux of the whole problem of Indian women.
The condition of women narrated above is still true for rural India.
Exploitation of women in the countryside still prevails. She is still
identified as a daughter, daughter-in-law, mother, mother-in-law,
wife, etc., and not as a person. She has no independent connections,
friends and relatives outside the family.
Earlier sociologists stressed that a change in the structure of the
family, e.g., from joint to nuclear, would automatically lead to a
change in the status of women. But it has not come true. It is a very
simplistic approach because the socialization of a woman ensures
that she remains in a subordinate position irrespective of family
structure. Hence, the institutions of family and marriage both need a
reorientation.
To conclude, it may be said that considering the long history of
suppression of women under patriarchy, women seem to be on the
path to empowerment although at a slower pace. The fact that women
come forward to contest elections for various civic bodies from
panchayat to parliament and hold positions in these bodies and work
as Collector, Chief Secretary, I.G., Professor, Vice-Chancellor,
engineers, doctors, business and bank executives, pilots and many
other responsible posts is itself a step on the road to empowerment.
In raising the issue of womens autonomy and right to go out to work,
they challenged entrenched gender roles, and even suggested that not
getting married might be valid choice for women. Christensen,
President, National Council of Family Relations once remarked that
sex has suffered much from giving married women complete equality
with their husbands.
It has encouraged her to become more aggressive and hence more
masculine. Furthermore, she sometimes has confused equality with

identity, and in her effort to be equal with man she has tried to copy
manin dress, mannerisms, even vulgarities.At the same time, man
has tended to soften both because of womens inroads and because of
the comforts of modern culture which means that he is becoming less
masculine. Womens equality with man in this sense is harming sex.
And, there is a growing tendency to love things more than people.
Issues Related to Gender Equality in India!
The Constitution of India ensures gender equality in its preamble as a
fundamental right but also empowers the state to adopt measures of
positive discrimination in favor of women by ways of legislation and
policies.
India has also ratified various international conventions and human rights
forums to secure equal rights of women, such as the ratification of
Convention on elimination of all forms of discrimination against women in
1993. Women have been finding place in local governance structures,
overcoming gender biases.
Over one million women have been elected to local Panchayats as a result of
1993 amendment to the Indian Constitution, requiring that 1/3 rd of the
elected seats to the local governing bodies be reserved for women. The
passing of Pre-natal Diagnostic Tech Act in 1994 also is a step in removing
gender discrimination.
This Act seeks to end sex- determination tests and female foeticide and
prohibits doctors from conducting such procedures for the specific purpose
of determining the sex of the fetus. The Government also announced the
National policy for empowerment of women in 2001 to bring out
advancement, development and empowerment of women.
The Government has also drawn up a draft National Policy for the
empowerment of women which is a policy statement, outlining the states
response to problems of gender discrimination. As persistent gender
inequalities continue, we need to rethink concepts and strategies for

promoting womens dignity and rights. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan

has stated, Gender equality is more than a goal in itself.

Dowry Prohibition Act 1961