Women in far-flung areas deserve attention

MUBAIRAH JAN

It’s always said that a woman is
the main pillar of a family. She is
always considered as the main in
gredient in the dish called home.

An African proverb reads; “If we educate a man we only educate a person, but if we educate a woman, we educate a whole nation.” We see so many of us working in NGO’S for Women Empowerment.

There are hundreds of institutions running for women empowerment with the number only increasing with the
passage of time. We also know that by all these efforts women have achieved a good position in society by such initiatives. And nowadays women are no less
than men in any field and are playing
their roles in a better way, however in contemporary times recognized for hightech and digitization, do we bother about the women in remote and far-flung areas, where there is scarcity of every ease that
is enjoyed by the people of forward areas.

For me a far-flung woman should enjoy the same comforts as are enjoyed by any
other woman in the modern world. While visiting a remote village of Rajwar in frontier Kupwara district, I witnessed a lot of problems the women
face. Everyone on a humanitarian basis should take steps to change their lives,
be in education, health, lifestyle and such other things.
While I was trekking, I met a beautiful soul namely Rehana, a girl about
22-years-old. On talking to her I came to
know about many miseries that they are going through, of which I am going to share some.They don’t have basic facilities like schooling in their early age, they lack hygienic environment, health facilities. Trust me she, at the age of 22, didn’t knew of sanitary pads. On listening to
her I was like, ‘in this modern era how someone can be so unaware about the basic things.’ I felt so bad as how people are
oblivious of the plight faced by the people living in such far-flung and remote areas! No doubt the Government has taken many steps to benefit the female gender including the ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Pad
hao’ scheme, even as Rajouri district administration, having organised ‘Mahila Shakti Kendra’ awareness programme
for tribal women and SHGs and such other steps to reach out to the women, however it takes something more and big
to redress the needs of these vulnerable souls. In such areas girls are deprived of education rather to say this thing is not
even remotely discussed. For the majority like me, girl education is of utmost
importance to set the wheels of a nation into motion.
People from far flung areas believe in early marriages even as patriarchy is something seen too common. There are
many more things that are socially misconstrued in such places. We as the people from fairly advanced areas need to
rise upto the occasion to generate awareness as to see an end to the problems
faced by these people especially women.
Awareness camps about girl education, no early marriages, more power to women folk must be prioritized in order to change the minds of these for a better
tomorrow.
I must reiterate, women empowerment is a must! The need to accept women’s viewpoints or make an effort to seek them, raise the status of women through education, amplify women’s voices and
ideas, mentor girls and women, give women opportunities, remove gender bias, help bridge the wage gap are issues that need immediate attention.
One would say women empowerment in not only required in far flung areas but it has to be inclusive for the
development and advancement of family system, for community and the nation in general. Hence it must be a leading concern of the Government to bring women into the force of the development strategy by empowering them via numerous development oriented schemes.