The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Need for women's empowerment stressed

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jun 10, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Need for women's empowerment stressed

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, JUNE 9. The need to encourage empowerment, specially of women and youth in the rural areas, was underscored by speakers at the inaugural of a State-level programme on Women Empowerment and Leadership Development at the Institute of Cooperative Management (ICM) here on Wednesday.

The Governor, Surjit Singh Barnala, who was the chief guest, said that empowerment is an active process.

While power was not a commodity for transaction and could not be given away as alms, it was to be acquired, exercised, sustained and preserved, he said.

Recalling Mahatma Gandhi, he said that so long as women in India do not take part in public life, there could be no salvation. He quoted the former President Zakir Hussain and said "Cooperation is spelled with two letters - WE."

The Minister for Mines and Geology, P. Sabita Indra Reddy, said the State Government is doing everything to increase awareness among people and empower them. Specifically, the Government is focusing its energies on helping farmers, women and youth - in general, the working classes, she said.

The Minister for Information, Mohammed Ali Shabbir, said the Congress Government is strictly adhering to the norm of 33 per cent reservation for women.

Also, in tune with its promise, it had even reduced interest rates for lending, he said.

Both the Ministers reiterated that the Congress Government in the State is doing everything to provide succour to the suffering farmers.

They appealed for all concerned to do their best to infuse confidence in the farmers and strengthen their resolve.

The president, National Cooperative Union of India, S.S. Sisodia, who presided over the inaugural function, said that the need for greater empowerment and leadership development of women members in various cooperative societies was being universally recognised.

The focus and vision should be on helping women members become educationally competitive and economically independent through cooperative development activities.

The ICM chairman, T.D. Janardhan Rao, said the order of the day was reforms in the cooperative movement, one that was slowly on the path of flourishing, in a liberalised economy.

He urged the Government to strengthen the movement and help improve the living standard of people, especially those in the rural areas.

The Principal of ICM, H.S.K. Tangirala, presented a paper titled `What is women empowerment?'

He started by quoting Jawaharlal Nehru, who said "You can tell the condition of a nation by looking at the status of its women."

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