Women Empowerment and Socio-Economic Development

Empowerment of women through gainful employment is a constituent – as well as instrument – of development in any country. No country can be deemed developed if half of its population is severely disadvantaged in terms of basic needs, livelihood options, access to knowledge and political voice. A natural corollary of ensuring gender equality is the elimination of gender discrimination. Women’s lack of economic empowerment not only impedes growth and poverty reduction, but also has a host of other negative impacts including less favourable education and health outcomes for children. Thus, it is extremely important to ensure that women are economically, socially and politically empowered. Effective and coordinated plans and programmes for the full implementation of women-oriented policies require a clear research-based knowledge of ground realities of the socio-economic status of women, particularly rural women. This volume is the outcome of the findings of academicians and researchers from different disciplines. The 11 papers included in this work throw light on various dimensions of women empowerment in India.