Glass ceilings are meant to be broken; women are busy breaking free, and women are on a glass breaking spree. The year 2022 began on a positive note as women challenged the opposite sex on their turf across the fields and contributed to a global reset. In the Indian version of 'Shark Tank', 40 per cent of participants were women. Shark Tank India was a stark testimony to the decreasing incongruities of man versus woman.
The number of women-led business are rising. Can the trailblazing that has erupted sustain its momentum?
Indian women are no exception in driving the transformation. Last year, Air India's all-women crew created history by flying over the North Pole. Indian-American Dr Swati Mohan put India on the world map for aerospace. Dia Mirza drove change by getting her wedding solemnized by a female priest. From the abolition of 'Sati' practice, the passing of the widow remarriage act, prohibition of child marriages, and the universal suffrage granting the right to vote in an election, which was enshrined in Article 326 in the Indian Constitution, India's journey on women empowerment and gender equality has been painful and rough, witnessed difficult hurdles and obstacles. Women always had to fight for their rights and equality in society, but women were never at the end of their rope.
Thanks to the combined endeavour -- reforms, socioeconomic changes, untiring efforts by women's rights activists and progressive feminist movements -- this land's women are somewhat better off now. Women's fighting spirit and resilience will continue to inspire generations to come. Internet, technology and globalization brought many changes in cultural diversity for women and girl children concerning the right to education, reproductive rights, employment and politics.
However, thinking of this as absolute empowerment and celebrating the achievement would surely be a big mistake. India is still fighting the barriers and finding it difficult to arrest critical issues such as: sexual objectification and sexual harassment, incidents of everyday violence against women, traditional social structures, unlawful cultural discrimination, religious rituals, gender prejudice.
We still have miles to go to accomplish gender equality.
In the syllabus of social problems, the topic of women's empowerment isn't something we can finish. We have bigger fish to fry concerning women's economic empowerment. Women's financial freedom is the sine qua non of women empowerment. Women's economic empowerment is fundamental to realising women’s rights and gender equality.
Historically, women coexisted with restrictions on freedom and economic rights. Each society has its share of barriers, suppression, and holding women back by cultural, economic, legal, and social means.
Until the 80s, Indian women never got the opportunity to seek their right to financial freedom. Most women never had a bank account except for pensioners and pension earning widows. Why do they need a bank account when women were disparaged as just a vote bank? Age-old traditions and conventional beliefs never let women obtain financial literacy and were traditionally considered unfit for money management.
The majority of women during the 90s had no clue about investments. Capital market, equity, stock market trading, mutual funds and bonds were Greek and Latin. On paper, women often made the beneficiaries of immovable assets for official records as women enjoy some concession in the registration fee rates.
Women were ambivalently received when they began exploring unconventional jobs and lucrative professions other than tailoring, teaching, midwifery, and stenography-typing. Either they were discouraged by family members or were prevented by society from seeking employment in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. Even seeking a job was seen as a sign of financial desperation. Lack of education and awareness collided with the social structures, which kept many women in oppressive conditions.
Unmarried Women from the lower strata of the bourgeoisie primarily depended on parents and brothers; and husbands and sons after the marriage. The hoi polloi were never encouraged to possess money at their disposal and even handle money matters. Traditionally, girls were brainwashed that the kitchen is a woman's domain. Women are perceived as less competent in managing finances. Women were reduced to an object that maintains the count of soiled clothes given out for laundry.
Today's women are equally educated and enlightened, which led to the emancipation and empowerment of women. Indian women today are free from traditional customs, norms, and beliefs. They utilize every right from opening a bank account to buying a beer or breezer from the wine shop. These rights, however, were hard-won through a peaceful revolution. Conversely, most women from rural India and indigenous females suffer from social norms, illiteracy, and gender-based discrimination.
These underprivileged women do not have access to education, healthcare, financial freedom, and social awareness. Due to a lack of cognisance and education, these women are often vulnerable to the lure of extremists, traffickers, and fraudsters—the majority of victims of fraudulent chit funds and Ponzi schemes hail from rural India. These women easily fall prey to fraudulent schemes and mis-selling. The exploitation of indigenous and rural women has been present since times immemorial.
Financial dependency continues to hinder their overall development. These women take up informal work and involve themselves in seasonal or multiple activities such as agriculture, forestry, fisheries, handicrafts, cottage industries, etc.
Rural women are most exposed to severe health conditions due to the pathetic living conditions and time-consuming activities such as collecting water, fuel, and household work apart from breadwinning. Unlike their urban Indian counterparts, rural women do not have the luxury of making valiant efforts in achieving economic freedom. They remain grunts and must continue to fight it hard with the dragon, known as gender-blindness.
The discrimination against women concerning economic freedom and empowerment is continuing. Women have not yet conquered economic and financial freedom. In insurance, just 23 per cent of women have health insurance coverage, and 36 per cent have life cover. Women rarely get to make buying decisions when taking insurance cover for the family. It is not only a downright disgrace but also keeps women underinsured.
Two-thirds of women are unfamiliar with mutual funds. Eighty percent of women do not access the fixed income market in India. The representation of women in capital markets increased, albeit in urban India. Only one-third of Indian women have Demat accounts. Rural women are less likely to be entrepreneurs as they face more discrimination during early-stage entrepreneurial activities.
India's digital divide also proved to be a gendered one. The rural woman still struggles to gain equal economic opportunities, despite women being at the helm of the finance ministry and leading the charge at banks and financial institutions.
Undoubtedly, corporate India now has more women directors due to the SEBI-mandated gender diversity in company boards following the Kotak panel's recommendations. Women directors are the most sought-after in the boardrooms of prominent listed companies.
However, if you analyse the data, it looks like an eyewash. Arguably, women's directorship in listed companies improved primarily due to the induction of women members by the family businesses. Gender neutrality was a fundamental tenet in the UN Charter in 1945.
Three-quarters of a century later, girls and women are still fighting female gender issues, disparities and inequalities. Is it not too early to brag about our accomplishments? We still need plenty of reforms to restructure the political and social systems to reshape gender gap at breakneck speed.
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