Back in the past, the birth of a female child would bring itsshare of worries and apprehensions for the parents and family and the stereotypical sentiments would echo aloud. However,today in most of the families, the arrival of a female child brings as much joy as the birth of a male child. This is how it should have been and it should always be! Today, apart from being the queen of the house, women are making their mark in various fields such as scientific development, literature, finance, technology,defense, aviation, and the list goes on.
However, there is still a long road to cover.

According to research by one of the Indian recruitment portals, women in India earn 19% less than men, reflecting the wide gender pay gap in the country. Not just this, the survey also revealed thatmost of the working women feel that they are not considered for top management roles. This is further cemented by the data that suggests that only 3% of women are at the top positions in the Indian corporates. The political representation of women in Parliament is just about 14%. Female students spend lesser years in school as compared to male students.

What is the reason behind this?
It’s clear from the above data that the Indian women get fewer economic opportunities than men. India is predominantly rural and in rural areas, women are mostly responsible for the household workand are not provided with proper education or opportunities to work and earn.

Even in urban India, where there are many women who are educated and join the workforce, the growth opportunities are bleaker when compared to men. The major reason is that most of the women take a break in their careers during pregnancy or in the formative years of their kids. They often take more leaves than men for maternity and child care, and even the healthcare of other family members. Factors like these push them back in their careers, further widening the already existing pay gap. Also, society has expected them to be less ambitious than males.

Somebody once said that “A woman is like a tea bag, you never know how strong it is until it’s in hot water.”

As a society we took it way too seriously and we keep testing the strength and patience of women in our lives every day.

A Silver Lining!
A study by IMF estimated that equal participation of women in the workforce will increase India’s GDP by 27 percent.

It’s time we realize the importance of gender equality and start working towards providing equal opportunities to women. The encouraging fact is that more than ever before, today’s young women have more choices and control in their lives. The fostering of a woman’s self-worth and decision-making power is important so that she has complete control over her own life inside and outside the home. Education has played a major role in giving the women knowledge, skills and self-confidence necessary to become independent.

The young and energetic women of our society are leaving no stone unturned to prove themselves to the world and despite many hurdles are achieving more than their male counterparts.

Female millennials are becoming a larger part of the workforce as they are more career confident and career ambitious than the generations gone before them.

The Key to Social Transformation
Women since ages have been fighting to be socially and professionally charged recognized as equal to men.

Therefore, women empowerment is very important and can be achieved in the following ways:

• Establishing mechanisms for women’s equal participation and equitable representation at all levels of the political process
• Eliminating all practices that discriminate against women and address systemic inequalities that influence sexual violence
• Enabling women to achieve economic self-reliance and ensure their access to equal opportunities as men
• Bridging the gender leadership gap by driving efforts to prepare talented women for future leadership roles.

Through women empowerment, the male-dominated society can be changed into a just and fair society with equal opportunities for all regardless of their gender. Spreading awareness about the legal rights that women have can prove to be helpful to reduce the gap between the preference given to men and women. The participation of women in politics should be encouraged to further have laws and policies that do not discriminate based on gender.

8th March is International Women’s Day. The day that acts as a definite reminder to acknowledge and celebrate the achievements and very existence of the silent performers and the real multi-taskers. The studies have proved that the women are better multi-taskers than men as they continue to do the lion's share of household and childcare tasks, while also excelling at part- or full-time work.

Working women mostly work double shifts. It’s amazing to see working mothers who are juggling work and life in a very well-played symphony. This, however, does not belittle the importance of the homemakers. Homemakers have unfailingly proved to be better and bigger multi-taskers than anyone else.

Margaret Thatcher rightly said that “Any woman who understands the problems of running a home will be nearer to understanding the problems of running a country.”

This women’s day is the perfect time to realize and acknowledgethe efforts of all the beautiful women in our lives.