Life without male or female cannot be thought of. Therefore they are considered as the two sides of the same coin. But surprisingly in many great traditions of the world, they are not considered as equal and in a poor and tradition-bound country, like India, gender inequality has been a major inherent social problem since the hoary past. In patrilineal societies they are treated as subservient to their male counterparts and are discriminated in many fronts in various manners. However, the degree of discrimination varies from one community to another depending upon their socio-cultural base. However, educational advancement, development in awareness level, operation of empowerment measures and other such related factors result in enhancement of status of the girl child and that of the woman in different societies. In the above context, this book unfolds the social status of the girl children and women in four patrilineal societies belonging to different social strata of the Indian society. Especially the book unfolds educational and socio-cultural deprivation of the girl children and the women with special reference to culture and notion of sex preference in birth, educational deprivation of the girl child, culture of dining and the women, health, diseases, and the process of preferential treatment of diseases, occupation, utilization of income and the level of labour exploitation etc. Apart from all these, the book also vividly discusses on the available legislative measures on the empowerment of the girl children and women and in a special section, the awareness level of the people on matters, like maternity and age at marriage, selection of mate and right to divorce, widow remarriage and right to adopt children, dowry prohibition and its effect, medical termination of pregnancy, equal wage for equal work, inheritance of paternal properties etc. have been discussed.
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