Women empowerment; It brings prosperity & misery both. It's natural, one must welcome it...

In the interests of one and all ...

My dear countrymen!

Amidst all round demand from all quarters for women empowerment, it is more important and interesting too to know its pros and cons to our homes, families, and society at large.

As said rightly: " If we educate a man, we educate one person. If educate a woman, we educate the nation."

This is why we ought to give top priority to educate the girl child. People are sufficiently aware of its importance and government too is doing its part vociferously and constructively by encouraging it in every possible manner by launching various programs and schemes for their overall progress and development resulting nowadays we find them everywhere right from blue collar jobs to white collar jobs to service industry......etc.

But as we are aware we are a male dominated society and all outside activities are meant to the male member of the family and household jobs are destined to the female child of every family. But with the passage of time, this conservative belief system has been evaporated though slowly and today girls are doing all those jobs efficiently which were exclusively assigned to male members of the family. As regards education boys are given more attention and importance than girls since beginning irrespective of family's social, educational and economic background. 

These days, we find women in leadership roles in every field of their interests, be they politics, Education, Defence, Police, Aviation, Space, and Business ....etc. creating history every passing day by breaking old traditions and myths.

But the fact of the matter is, it is the economic necessity, compulsion, family background and on top of all it is their interest that are the driving forces attracting them towards self-empowerment and it may vary from case to case. As we know, " Necessity is the mother of invention."

Though no area is untouched to their glory and Laurel, woman's empowerment has affected the families and societies as a whole adversely too in various ways:

1. Her absence discomforts the joint family. Family routines get disturbed and male or some other members have to do their job unsystematically.
2. There are personality and ego clashes with husband and in-laws particularly when women earn more owing to their higher qualifications, and capabilities.
3. Children prevented from proper care and parental love more if nuclear family.
4. Relatives visiting homes are also not properly taken care of.
5. When women going out like men, prone to all types of risks of exploitation and torture everywhere mentally and physically both. As we know: "Beautiful flowers are soon picked,"
6. Generally, we see they don't get the same value and attention the male members of the family get.
7. With any new development taking place in the family, women only, are expected and asked for sacrifice their career, job, and dignity first.
8. Every family member has an eagle eye on her movements and whereabouts sometimes cause to suspicion and character assassination.
9. Women feel less freedom due to an imposition of many unnecessary conditions and restrictions which ultimately lead to misunderstanding and bone of contentions later in the family.
10. Sometimes their empowerment works against their personal life and ambition when family expects and demands more sacrifices which are unnatural. Depending parents delay their marriage and most of them avoid their marriage in their own interests and survival. In such precarious situations, women often do not opt for marriage themselves voluntarily.

People may admit it or not, above aforementioned points are a reality to every home with some variations. There is no denying the fact that among the many reasons one important reason for joint family turning into nuclear one is women empowerment that brings enormous opportunities and freedom to live and enjoy the life at their will and hence destabilised the entire family's structures and thinking process of the society. 

And it took rapid turns only after liberalisation took place in 1991. Liberalisation brings ample job opportunities to all sections of societies regardless of qualifications and experience. Easy access to fund, creating the temptations in them to fulfill all their wishes and needs required to upgrade their standard of living and also to lead comfortable lives.

During my time around 1979 -80, I never opted for a working Girl as my wife. Things were somehow easily manageable that time and I were also of opinion that housewife already has a full-time job by looking after the family. But it is not the case today. Nowadays, husband and wife both have to work as a necessity to lead a somewhat comfortable life. 

Above mentioned issues can easily be tackled if have some common senses:

First of all, we should not treat them as problems but a natural phenomenon generally occurs when rapid development takes place all around the country. Therefore we ought to welcome it as also take them as," blessing in disguise." for one and all. As their (women) going out make husbands developing feminism qualities in them by doing all household chores usually done by a female. It's a healthy tendency and good for society.

Educated and empowered women not only brings prosperity to families and societies but they are assets to the nation too. Everyone gets benefitted one way or the other directly or indirectly. When she is also bringing fortune to the home like male member/husband she deserves equally the same treatment like a male member of the home.

She must be treated as a person, human being returning from a full day outside job like a male. Also, differences of daughter and daughter in law must totally be eliminated, rather Bahu should have accorded priority on all important family issues to maintain harmony and to uproot the bone of contention in the family for good.

Everybody home must be expected to move with the time, be broad-minded and tend to look at things in totality having a clear picture of anything coming their way. She deserves the trust and respect from everyone in the family for her sacrifices and contributions towards the family. Her say must have value and given due weightage in family matters.

She (Bahu) under no circumstances put to inconvenience, insults or torture of any kind physically or mentally by anyone in the family including the daughter and also from relatives visiting home. On the other hand, all should be at her beck and call as a mark of respect to her.

Finally, she must have the freedom to express her mind freely and do whatever she likes keeping family values and traditions in view and gradually she will learn to treat her husband's home (Sasuraal) as real home paving the way for ideal society.

Now the time has come to totally reject the belief:

"Women should never be kept free. When a child, under the parental care; on adulthood under husband; and when old under the strict supervision of son."

Jai Hind.




Writer- Sinha.P.K. Views expressed are strictly personal. Feedback / Criticism welcome at Email -pkmsinha@gmail.com or follow @ pkmsinha.blogspot.in