Page 15 - NIS English 01-15 March, 2025

COVER STORY

ur Vedas have referred to women as out of the old way of thinking and carrying the mantra
‘पुुरन्धि��: योोषाा’ (‘Purandhi: Yosha’). In other words, of women-led development.
Owomen should be able to take responsibility for In fact, as India moves towards its swarnim varsha,
their city and their society; women should lead the it has, in a sense, handed over the reins of development
country. Women reflect leadership with ethics, to half the population- “Aadhi Abadi”. Special focus
integrity, and dicision -making power. That is why our has been laid on advancing women at all levels,
Vedas, our traditions, have called for women to be ensuring their bigger roles and contributions.
competent, capable, and give direction to the nation. According to an International Monetary Fund report,
With this vision, India made women-led development women’s workforce participation on par with men
the global agenda while chairing the G-20, and this could boost India’s GDP by 27 per cent. If 50 per cent
has become the motto of today’s India. It is the result of skilled women join the workforce, the growth rate
of the efforts of the past decade with this mindset could rise 1.5 per cent to 9 per cent per year. That is
that today, be it the army or startups, sports or why women empowerment has been at the heart of
research, daughters in the new India are making their all the welfare schemes launched by the central
mark in every field. Whether it is the increasing government to make life easier for women and provide
participation of women in Parliament or the historically new opportunities for employment and self-
high number of women compared to men in the sex employment to women.
ratio, this shift is an indication of how potent the new The government has not backed down from the
India of the Amrit kaal will be. Today, India is moving uplifting women where old notions and old beliefs had

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