The Week That Was: Indian Women Empowerment News Overview (28 February - 05 March)

By: WE Staff

"Today, in our country, from Parliament to panchayat, women are reaching new heights in different fields. In the army, daughters are now playing responsibilities in new and bigger role. The country has lifted the restrictions on the admission of daughters in Sainik schools. Look at the start-up world. In recent years, thousands of new start-ups began in the country. About half of these start-ups have women as director," says honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 86th episode of his monthly radio show, Mann ki Baat. As he stated, Indian women are pursuing a range of new opportunities and demonstrating that they are not lesser to males. Here are a few examples of women's empowerment stories from this week.

INDIAN BOXERS NIKHAT ZAREEN & NITU WIN GOLD MEDALS AT STRANDJA MEMORIAL BOXING TOURNAMENT IN BULGARIA

At the 73rd Strandja Memorial Boxing Tournament in Sofia, Bulgaria, Indian boxers Nikhat Zareen and Nitu won gold medals.

Zareen won her second gold medal at Europe's oldest international boxing tournament, the European Championships, with a 4-1 victory in the women's 52kg final. In 2019, she won the Strandja Memorial title for the second time.

Nitu outpunched Italy's Erika Prisciandro, the reigning Youth World Championships bronze medalist, 5-0 in the women's 48kg final.

KOLKATA POLICE'S "TEJASHWINI" WORKSHOP FOR WOMEN TO KICKSTART ON MARCH 11

Tejashwini, the Kolkata Police's self-defence programme for women, will be hosted at nine different locations around the city from March 11 to March 20. The programme was held in four locations in December.

 Nawab Ali Park, Harish Park, Santosh Mitra Square, Kishore Bharati Stadium, Maddox Square, Eastern Railway Sports Complex, Rabindra Kanana, Gitanjali Stadium, and Subhas Sarobar are the nine locations for the workshop.

 From March 11 to 15, a five-day self-defense training will be held in Nawab Ali Park, Santosh Mitra Square, Harish Park, and Kishore Bharati Stadium. The session will begin on March 16 and finish on March 20 for the remaining sites.

WINNERS OF FORMULA WOMAN INDIA ADVANCE TO UK FINALS

The winners of the Formula Woman India competition are Anushriya Gulati, Deepa John, and Pragathi Gowda. The three drivers will now vie for a spot as a McLaren Customer Racing Driver in the 2022 UK GT Cup at the Formula Woman world finals.

Manisha Kelkar, another Indian, will compete in the finals, but not as an Indian contender because she advanced through the UK evaluation stages.

Formula Woman is a British initiative that seeks for women from all around the world who are enthusiastic about motorsport, both on and off the track. Track days, training sessions, race meets, and other activities are available to registered members. Formula Woman began a campaign to identify "the next female motor racing champion" as part of this project. Drivers that make it through numerous selection rounds will be able to compete in the UK GT Cup using McLaren GT4 vehicles.

FORMER MISS INDIA LAUNCHES BOOK "YASHODA" WHICH DEPICTS WOMEN'S STRUGGLE IN CHAMPARAN DISTRICT

Shivani Jadhav, the former Miss India, has launched 'Yashoda,' a book about a self-sufficient woman whose life storey defined women's empowerment and encouraged women's self-worth in a small village in Bihar.

Shivani Jadhav said, "The book highlights that starting up as a woman in small towns in India is a daunting task and shares steps of Yashoda Devi from Bettiah in Bihar to overcome daily challenges and concerns successfully."

Yashoda Devi, who faced enormous social, economic, and political hurdles, successfully pursued her aspirations in a patriarchal culture, and pushed women to move beyond their job of homemaking 50 years ago, received rich acclaim from the Femina Miss Grand India 2019.

THE MAHARASHTRA GOVERNMENT PREPARES DRAFT FOR WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT POLICY

According to Maharashtra Minister Yashomati Thakur, the state government has drafted a new women's empowerment strategy that takes a holistic approach to gender equality.

Recognizing the importance of equal gender relations, the policy seeks to engage actively with men and boys in fostering gender equality, according to a statement released on Wednesday by the state minister for women and child development.

GOVT. TO PRIORITIZE ON STRENGTHENING OSCS FOR WOMEN IN DISTRESS

The WCD ministry has decided to focus on strengthening OSCs, which are seen as a vital refuge for many women in distress, by training and certifying the staff steering the 704 one-stop centres (OSC) in managing the mental and emotional trauma of survivors of violence and protecting the well-being of personnel operating these centres by allowing for a INR 5 lakh insurance cover for OSC staff.

Under the Nirbhaya fund, it started the one-stop centre initiative in 2015. So far, 704 of the 733 OSCs that have been sanctioned are operational, with intentions to establish 300 more. OSCs assist women in distress with emotional, legal, and medical assistance.

INDIA'S CATALYST FOR WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND SRILANKA'S SATYNMAG.COM ANNOUNCES A GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP

Satynmag.com Sri Lanka’s leading women’s magazine in print since 1998 and entirely online since 2013, has announced a global partnership with one of India’s most vibrant women entrepreneurship ecosystems, Catalyst for Women Entrepreneurship (CWE).

The alliance will allow Sri Lankan women-owned firms access to regional markets while also allowing Indian and Sri Lankan women entrepreneurs to network and collaborate on mutually beneficial ventures.

TENDERCUTS, A MEAT AND SEAFOOD COMPANY, OPENS ITS FIRST ALL-WOMEN STORE IN CHENNAI

TenderCuts, an omnichannel meat and seafood company, announced the opening of its first all-women store in the city, with plans to build more across the country. According to a press release, the store is a continuation of TenderCuts' aim to allow all buyers, especially women, to step into the meat or fish buying experience.

INDIAN WOMEN TRIO CLINCH GOLD MEDAL IN ISSF WORLD CUP WOMEN'S 10M AIR PISTOL TEAM EVENT

The Indian trio of Shri Nivetha, Esha Singh, and Ruchita Vinerkar won the gold medal in the ISSF World Cup women's 10m air pistol team event. The Indians shot 16 in the gold medal match to earn the country's third medal, and second gold, in the year's first World Cup. India is in first place with three medals, two gold and one silver.

Sandra Reitz, Andrea Katharina Heckner, and Carina Wimmer of Germany were awarded silver after finishing sixth in the competition. On their journey to the gold medal match, the three Indian ladies won qualification stage 2 with a total score of 574.