Education a potent tool to end women�s social and economic woes: Srimanti Sen

Jamshedpur, March 12: Role of education in women�s emancipation took centre stage on the first day of `Mahila Sammelan�, a two-day meet organised by Tata Steel Rural Development Society at Tribal Culture Centre, Sonari.

Nearly 1,000 women from both urban and rural areas engaged in self-help groups, adult literacy intervention have converged to attend the meet which�aims at empowering women through discussions on social issues and knowledge sharing.

Speaking on the occasion, Chief Guest Mrs. Srimanti Sen, President, AIWC talked about how women should use education as a potent tool to end their social and economic woes. She said, �Realise the power of education.

By getting educated you can attain self-reliance, economic independence and improve your living standards.� Underlining the need of education, she further added, �Besides providing you jobs, education holds the power to change your entire thought process.

It gives you the much-needed confidence to face the world so that you can speak up on issues and problems you face.�

Echoing similar sentiments, Mrs. Meeta Singhal, a noted social worker, asked the 1000-odd women to take a pledge to promote education. She said, �You should vow to yourself that I will ensure my children -irrespective of the gender – complete their school education at least. Women�s self-respect and social respect are linked to education only. Go for it. Women�s emancipation in the truest sense can be achieved only through education�.

Social activists gave a clarion call to women to take on the gender issues and get united to fight for their rights. �General perception is that only rural women or those from poor families are subjected to physical abuse and domestic violence. It�s wrong.

We have witnessed cases where women from affluent families were targeted as part of domestic violence,� said Anjali Bose, a social worker who has been taking up women issues for the last several decades. There�s an urgent need to make women aware about the laws meant for effective protection of their rights.

Mrs. Madhulika Sharma, Chief Infrastructure Planning and Development, Tata Steel, asked women to become �harbingers of change� for society. She said, �Educated and self-reliant women should encourage other women to follow them.

Ours is a male-dominated society in which women are still deemed as the responsibility of men. We all women need to struggle to sweep the feudal and medieval mentality. The mission is difficult, but not impossible. Gear up and spearhead campaigns at different level to achieve this mission�.

Mrs. Mukta Iyer, Legal Services, Tata Steel conducted a session on legal issues concerning women. Two women entrepreneurs from Manoharpur supported by Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society also shared their experiences.

Mrs. Ranjana Mishra, Mrs. Chanchal Kumari, Mrs. Smita Parikh, Mrs. Swastika Basu, Mrs Dilith Castleton and Women Empowerment Team from Tata Steel�s CSR department were also present during the event.