Dhami government of Uttarakhand approved the first women policy. Now women will play a bigger role in village power, jobs, business and leadership. 30% reservation, women’s meetings and self-employment schemes will give new direction.
Dehradun: There has been such a historic earthquake in the politics and society of Devbhoomi Uttarakhand, which has changed the age-old system forever. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami government has created a new history by approving the state’s first dedicated ‘Women Policy’. This is not just a government paper or an election promise, but a masterplan that is going to take the women of Uttarakhand out of the realm of mere beneficiaries of government welfare schemes and place them at the highest pinnacle of employment, leadership, and governance. With the advent of this policy, a new debate has erupted across the country on the model of women-led development.
The spine of the mountains got the real ‘protective shield’ of power.
Women have always been considered the lifeline and backbone of the society and inaccessible hilly areas of Uttarakhand. But the irony was that they were confined to the fields and the four walls of the house. CM Dhami has made up his mind to change this bitter truth. CM Dhami’s strong resolve: “Women are the real backbone of the society of Uttarakhand. Our government clearly believes that until half of the state’s population is not made completely independent economically and socially, the dream of progress of Devbhoomi is incomplete.” To implement this resolution, the government has created such an impenetrable and strong security shield of reservation, which has shocked even the opponents.
That ‘magical figure’ of 30% in jobs and 33% in cooperatives
Under this new policy, the Dhami government has implemented two big and shocking decisions to directly hand over economic power to women:
- 30% Horizontal Reservation in Government Jobs: With this historic step, the threat of daughters of Uttarakhand in government offices and administrative services has become clearly visible. It has given a solid and secure economic backbone to thousands of middle class families.
- 33% reservation in cooperative societies: Apart from jobs, 33 percent seats have also been fixed for women in the cooperative sector (cooperative societies), which is the lifeblood of the rural economy. Now the keys to major decisions related to money transactions, loan distribution and cooperative business in villages will be directly in the hands of women.
‘Secret entry’ in village government: Now half the population will not remain unheard!
The most revolutionary and suspenseful part of this policy is the one which is going to change the face of rural politics at the grassroots level. Till now, the budget and planning of village development was dominated by men and the basic needs of women remained buried in the files. But now its permanent treatment has been done. Now the formation of special ‘Mahila Sabhas’ has been made mandatory at every Gram Panchayat level. These assemblies will work directly parallel to the local government and will have their say in decisions related to the budget and development of the village. This simply means that whenever a village development blueprint is prepared, serious issues like women’s safety, health, motherhood and education will be given priority.
New ecosystem from auto steering to flying drones in the sky
Dhami government has created such a high-tech ecosystem for women in Uttarakhand, which was impossible to imagine till a few years ago. Under the ‘Mahila Sarathi Yojana’ started from the capital Dehradun, women are now writing their own destiny by driving auto-rickshaws and two-wheeler taxis on the roads. But the story is not limited to roads only, the government is taking them to sky-high heights.
- Drone Didi Scheme: Under this, village women are being given high-tech training in flying and maintaining drones for modern farming and spraying pesticides.
- Lakhpati Didi Scheme: Women self-help groups are being strengthened so much that rural women can earn more than Rs 1 lakh annually.
Chief Minister Sashakt Bahana Utsav Yojana and Single Women Self-Employment Scheme
These schemes have emerged as a strong support for those women who want to set up a cottage industry or business on their own, without any family support. Overall, Uttarakhand has presented such a fearless model to the country, where women are no longer sitting behind in the vehicle of development, rather they themselves are taking the steering wheel and taking the state in a new direction of progress.
Will Uttarakhand become a new model of women development?
The new women policy of Uttarakhand is being seen as the beginning of a women-led development model in the state. Its impact will not be limited to just the schemes, but will also try to bring about a change in social thinking. The challenge now will be how effectively the policy is implemented on the ground and how many women are able to actually benefit from it. If this initiative is successful, then Uttarakhand can be included among those states of the country, where women will not just be a part of development plans but will emerge as the main force of development.