“Women empowerment” is an excellent electoral bait. It’s a staple in every election manifesto. Political parties seek votes promising to implement schemes that empower women and save them from the throes of discrimination. But unfortunately, it has become a repetitive, hollow cliché, used in public rallies.
For every successive government, ‘women’s empowerment’ is a promise that gets lip service, a broken promise. The Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao campaign (BBBP), which translates to Save the daughter, educate the daughter,” launched by the BJP led government on 22 January 2015 is a classic example.
The initiative seeks to address the declining child sex ratio, promote girl child education, and enable “issues of women empowerment over a life-cycle continuum.” A joint effort of three Ministries – Ministry of Women & Child Development, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and the Ministry of Human Resource Development – the programme aims to serve a daughter’s interests from childhood to adulthood. As the official Prime Minister’s Official website says:
There is a strong emphasis on mindset change through training, sensitization, awareness raising and community mobilization on ground.
A campaign that attempts to tackle girl-child discrimination – across a spectrum of issues, from survival and education to empowerment and “mindset change” – must be celebrated. But a closer examination of facts surrounding the scheme paints a grim picture.
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