Emergency Number
Every year we celebrate mother’s day and women’s day. We show our love and respect to important women in our lives and celebrate them. Obviously, this is a good sign but that’s only one side of the story. Even today there is a major chunk of women in India who are deprived of their basic rights like education, are forced into marriage early on, are not allowed to work, but to name a few of the hardships they face for being a woman. The picture is the same not only in India but in many other developing countries.
There are some startling facts about women’s health in India that can give you a clear idea of how women in India are deprived of their basic rights, needs, and health scenario. India tops the list of countries that are said to have the highest mortality rates during delivery and even the highest number of non-school-going girls. 25% of the total number of girls born in India don’t even live to see their 15th Birthday. 40% of the HIV cases in India in 2005 are said to be that of women. While there is much more to the story, looking at these statistics, you can easily derive that the state of women’s health in India is bad or rather worse.
While the primary answer to issues with women’s health is the gender inequality issue but then there are others which also include the poor healthcare system of the country. Factors are malnutrition, which not only affects the health of the women but also the infants they give birth to.
Having said that, the current situation can be certainly worked upon, improved, and brought under control. But, it requires an immense amount of dedication and reforms in the Indian Healthcare system that needs to be implemented as well as monitored consistently. Simultaneously, there is also a need to work on bringing awareness amongst the society about gender equality and equal opportunity in terms of education, health, and work for women.
There’s this saying that aptly conveys a message that could help eradicate this issue by focusing on its root cause and it says – ‘When you educate a boy, you educate an individual. When you educate a girl, you educate a family’. It is like empowering women through education thus helping them empower themselves and in an indirect sense even the whole family.
