Special Interactive session with Women Parliamentarians : Shifting the conversation- From Empowerment to Equality

Education is the key to bring about a social and economic change in the status of Indian women. It is essential to equip women with education and skills to allow them to become financially independent which will go a long way in uplifting them at the grass roots. It is also time for the stakeholders including the government, industry and society to work in tandem to give women the status they truly deserve.

This was the shared view of Indian women Parliamentarians, Dr. Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Ms. Arpita Ghosh, Ms. Geetha Kothapalli, Ms. Meenakshi Lekhi and Ms. Supriya Sule. It was a rare occasion to witness the representatives of different political parties come together on the same platform to discuss and voice their consensus in favor of an agenda.

Special invitees, Dr. Udit Raj, MP (BJP); Mr. Harish Chandra Meena, MP (BJP); Prof Rajeev Gowda MP (INC) and Mr. Vivek Gupta MP (AITC), spoke in favor of giving women their due. The MPs said that to give women equal rights, the country needed statesmen who had the ability to think long-term, keeping in mind the aspirations of the future generations. They agreed that education and skill development were critical for women empowerment and equality besides mentorship, internships and training programmes should be organized to teach women the nuances of running a business.

The feat was achieved on the first day of the Budget session, when FICCI’s Forum of Parliamentarians (FoP) and FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO) co-organized an interaction with Members of Parliament on the significant role that women MPs play in empowering women of the country, especially economically. The theme of the programme was ‘Changing Lives – Women for Women: Changing the conversation – From Empowerment to Equality’.

Ms. Meenakshi Lekhi said that women should be made technology-savvy. This will bring about equality for women. Besides skill training should be the baseline for women and these positive interventions at various levels would be effective in giving women a stronger economic background.

Dr. Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar said that women’s empowerment and equality go hand-in-hand and education and innovation can make a big difference. She added that there was no need for reservation for women if goodwill prevailed in the society to promote women in various spheres of life.

Ms. Geetha Kothapalli said that organizations like FICCI should come forward and take up projects for development of skills for women as there is no alternative to education. An enlightened mind, she added, could be empowered easily to work in all fields.

Ms. Arpita Ghosh said that there was a need for change in the mindset of the people. She urged FICCI to take up skill development initiative in her far-flung constituency which misses out on the opportunity available to women in urban areas.

Ms. Supriya Sule said that industry could impart marketing and packaging skills to women entrepreneurs besides providing guidance and assisting them in their other endeavors. She added that domestic violence and dowry were realities in India and only financially independent women could overcome such evils of society.

In her welcome remarks, Dr. Jyotsna Suri, Immediate Past President FICCI, quoted a recent statement by a bench of Supreme Court judges that women are no longer passive recipients of welfare-enhancing help but are increasingly becoming active agents of change. She said that there is a close relationship between economic development and women’s empowerment. Equality ensures empowerment, she pointed out.

Ms. Archana Garodia Gupta, President, FLO, said that women’s representation in the Parliament is important on the grounds of social justice, legitimacy of the political system, as also improved representation of women’s various interests. She added that it was a privilege for FLO to have eminent women parliamentarians on a single platform. She congratulated the MPs for coming together on a platform for this cause despite differing party affiliations.

Mr. Akshay BD, Founding Member, Uber India Team, said, “We are excited to partner with FICCI FLO to create economic opportunities for women on the Uber platform. Our women driver partners prefer Uber due to the flexibility of being able schedule their work around their family commitments and this often becomes a key to creating sustainable economic opportunities for them. With this partnership, drivers will make up to Rs. 40,000 per month.”

The vote of thanks was delivered by Ms. Vinita Bimbhet, President Elect, FLO.