CHANGING ROLE OF WOMEN IN THE PAST 25 YEARS

INTRODUCTION
“A woman is the full Circle. Within her is the power to create, nurture and
transform” says Diane Mariechild.
Despite some basic changes in the status and role of women in the society, no
society treats its women as well as its men. Consequently, women continue to
suffer from diverse deprivations from kitchens to key-boards, from the cradle
to the grave across nations. But, as Kofi Annan stressed, no development
strategy is more beneficial to society as a whole than “treating men and
women alike”. Besides, their entrepreneurial role in cities, Indian women
contribute significantly to agricultural activities, handicrafts, village art and
crafts.
Factors impeding the advancement of women include lack of access to housing
and basic services, inadequate support services and technologies for reducing
drudgery and occupational health hazards and for enhancing their productivity.
This necessitates devising of a broad-based strategic action plan for the
realisation of equal partnership of men and women in all spheres of life and
economic activity.
Hillary Clinton, former First Lady of the United States correctly observed: “In
country after country women have demonstrated that when given the tools of
opportunity – education, health care, access to credit, political participation
and legal rights – they can lift themselves out of poverty, and as women realise
their potential, they lift their families, communities and nations as well”.
Investing in women’s capabilities and empowering them is the best way to
advance economic growth and overall development.
The national policy for empowerment of women stresses policies, programmes
and systems to ensure mainstreaming of women’s perspectives in all
developmental processes, both as agents and beneficiaries. Hence, attempts to
provide equality to women must be carried to their logical conclusion. This
requires tougher laws, stricter enforcement and exemplary punishment.
HOW WOMEN HAVE CHANGED OVER THE YEARS
Historically women in India were revered and the birth of a girl was widely
believed to mark the arrival of Lakshmi – the Goddess of wealth and riches.
Women have been considered ‘janani’, i.e., the progenitor and ‘ardhanigini’
i.e., half of the body. Women are also considered to be an embodiment of
Goddess Durga.
Women traditionally ran the household, bore and reared the children,
were nurses, mothers, wives, neighbours, friends, and teachers. During periods
of war, women were drafted into the labor market to undertake work that had
been traditionally restricted to men. From once worshiped as divine and pure
creatures, to the medieval roles of child bearing and rearing, and now to the
contemporary portrayal of power and resistance, the women in India have
changed myriad social roles over the past.

Traditionally, women were considered to be full-time homemakers. Their

responsibilities were to take care of their children and family. They didn’t
have any role in the household earning. Over the years, the roles of
women have changed. Here we are going to discuss it.
Child-bearing role
Women now bear less number of children than they used to before.
Most families now have one or two children. They even give birth to a
child at a more matured age. Women now have children even without
marriage.

Education
More women are now getting literate and they are also pursuing higher
education. This is creating an opportunity for them to work. They are
also playing role in family decision making.

Outside activities
Women are no longer staying home full-time. They are going to the
market for doing grocery shopping, paying bills and doing all the works
that only men used to do before. They are getting more involved in the
outside works.
Workplace

Women have entered the workplace. They also earn for their family just
like men. However, the percentage of women in the workplace is still less
than that of men as women have to take the major household
responsibilities. The percentage of the part-time job is more in case of
women. Women are still often seen in the caring or teaching sector. But
now more women are entering the male-dominated sectors like politics,
the legal system, etc. as well. More women are occupying senior
management positions.
Fighting for rights

Women now have a voice, unlike before. Families are no more male-
dominated. Like men, women also make major life decisions. Women
have stood against dowry and domestic violence. Even in the workplace,
they fight against sexual abuse and equality. Child marriage is being
stopped in many communities.

Men now play a role in child raising and household activities just like
women. Both men and women now share their responsibilities both
home and outside. Women now stand against any discrimination and
torture. There have been lots of gender-issue related movements and
many social organizations now fight for women’s rights. Women are now
getting power even in rural areas. In many countries now women are the
head of the state. Education has made women independent and they are
no longer dependent on men to lead their lives.

Business laws have changed to allow more women in the workplace and
giving them a comfortable environment to work in. Women can now
stand tall like men and get equal opportunities in everything.
REASONS RESPONSIBLE FOR THESE CHANGES WITH REGARD
TO JOINT AND NUCLEAR FAMILIES
The biggest elements that are responsible for the changing role of women in
the past 25 years have been education and the literacy rate. From these
elements, more factors arise such as women empowerment, independence,
employment of women, the ability to make their own decisions with no
intervention of male family members.

In villages :
Joint families: Lot of women are occupied to their houses and doing
household works. Only few women will attend to government school
that is upto 10 th class. They can't pursue for their higher studies.
Because of relationships like brother in laws and uncles make them to
get married early in 18's. So they stick to their homes. Some women help
their husbands in agriculture and some do lot of house hold work. They
don't have much freedom.

Nuclear family: they start to send their child to school, pursue higher
education. Let's say undergraduate. After that they look for a
bridegroom for marrying. They don't care about her interests. Later it
depends upon her husband interest to work or not.
Some don't send their girls to higher education. They will engage her
sooner of later when she is 18. Some parents encourage their children to
work like as teacher,engineer,doctor etc. It all depends upon her parents
and her interest.
Towns and cities:

Joint families: lot women gets well education if they are from rich
family. Else they get education upto certain stage. Here money is the
important factor. People living in joint families may have money
problems. I saw every girl gets education if she is lives in urban areas. It
doesn't matter.

Nuclear families: The case here is also the same. A girl gets education
and parents encourage her employment to be independent.

They motivate them for higher education.

In our country growth of women in all areas are increasing by observing
from past 25 years. Those above cases tell you that due to lack of
awareness in remote areas are the major reasons why growth of women
development is not done. Although government is providing them
everything. Not everything, say some. The superstitious beliefs and their
ideals which are coming from fore fathers makes the women in remote
areas to stick to their home in joint as well as in nuclear.
This difference between the nuclear and joint families in towns and villages is
because of the literacy and education factor.
Earlier, families in India consisted of a set of grandparents and their children,
their spouses and their grandchildren. In other words three generations of one
family lived under the same roof. Women played a sub-ordinate role. As a
homemaker, she was expected to do the duties assigned to her. She cannot
have a say in family matters.
Joint family system was best suited in an agrarian society where mobility was
limited, specialisation was simple and custom immutable. But following a
process of changes with the ushering in of the age of technological
advancement, changing gender role and better Employment opportunities,
interdependence in large families have given a way to independent living and
an attitude of self sufficiency. This has led to a decline in the joint family
system.
With this there was a change in the role of women. Nuclear setup allows for no
demarcation, the man is no longer the sole bread earner and women no longer
a mere caretaker of the house. The financial security which was provided by
the joint family was no longer available and the cost of living was increasing.
Hence the need for extra earning member to supplement the income of the
family was felt.
The woman expanded her domain from social and domestic front to
professional fields. This transformation was mainly because of education. The
enlightened and educated women are no longer working just for the financial
constraints of their families but also to establish their own identity and to excel
in their work areas by taking on the challenges vis a vis their male
counterparts.

Changes in the requirement trend of mixers, washing

machines, Microwave and Standard of Living

In any country, women represent half of its population but no one has realised
their development potential if half of its people lag behind. Women have
traditionally played an important part in rural life, its economy and politics.
Technology has been introduced in a rural society due to which political,
economic and social structure have become complex and affected woman's life
directly or indirectly. Technology has brought a major change in women's life
as far as their workload is concerned especially in household chores. They have
started using electric motors, juicers and grinders etc. , to speed up their work
in a shorter time. Changes in women's work can be measured by the time is
spent in a particular task by using home appliances. Mechanization has great
influence on women's life, they have enough time to spend after finishing their
household chores. Some of them help their husbands in earning livelihood
through different means, some pay more attention to the children and
families.
During the course of the 20th century labour saving technologies, from running
water to modern appliances, have transformed home production. In India,
rural women cover about half of the total population and an enormous
proportion of agricultural labour force in the rural part. About 70% of the
female labour force is engaged in agriculture sector but the contribution goes
disregarded and undocumented. Indian women play a vital role in agriculture
and contribute in all operations related to crop production such as sowing,
transplanting ,weeding and harvesting, threshing, winnowing, drying etc. In
addition to look after the life they keep.
They handle the animals arranging for fodder and milking them at two times a
day. The rural women have also to look after the household chores including
cooking, taking care of children, elderly and disabled, fetching water and fuel,
cleaning and maintaining the house. Women participate 25 to 45% of labour
input in rural economy. Nearly in 36 to 38 percent of economies women work
on their own family farms. The women of rural areas is absolutely dependent
on man or an elderly woman of the family who are mostly mothers or
grandmothers. They do not take decision independently but without the
consent of their males, they maintain the livestock, its handling and milking is
their responsibility but the sale of the animal or meat is the right of man. The
work of women which performs inside the household is always unpaid, but it is
essential for the survival of the society and maintenance of the family in the
village.

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES WHEN WOMEN

WORK:
In today’s world, women take active roles in employment, unlike during the
olden days when they stayed at home and took care of their families. Women
taking active roles in job have advantages and disadvantages. In
contemporary society, women and men have equal opportunities for
employment.

Advantages

Advantages of women working include more income for their families, the
opportunity to explore their talents, and the promotion of economic growth.
When women work, they make money that adds to their families’ financial
well-being. This helps pay bills, buy food, and educate children. Women have
goals and objectives to achieve in their lives. Working allows them pursue
their dreams and talents, as well as work on their goals by pursuing careers of
their choice. Finally, women who work contribute towards economic growth
through their jobs.

Disadvantages

Disadvantages for working women include the absence of enough time for
their families, pressure from work-related stress, and conflicts of interest.
Working women have little time to take care of their families because their
jobs are very demanding and time-consuming. Many jobs are very stressful,
and many women cannot handle high levels of work-related stress. Their
nature predisposes them to anxiety and depression more than when
compared to men. Finally, there is a conflict of interests. Their roles as
mothers compromise their performance at work. They use working hours to
take care of their children at the expense of their jobs.

TOP 5 WOMEN ENTERPRENEURS IN INDIA

In the past couple of decades, the status of women in Indian society has
changed drastically. Today, Women have been playing a vital role in the
growth of the Indian economy and have made a big impact and got success in
almost every sector. Here I have listed the top 5 famous Women
Entrepreneurs, who have done something different to boost the Indian
economy and inspired other women.

#1 Vandana Luthra – The founder of VLCC

Vandana Luthra is an Indian businesswoman, philanthropy and
chairperson of the beauty & Wellness sector skill council (B&WSSC). In
1989, she stared the company called VLCC as a beauty and slimming
service centre. Later, she added more services such as hair build, full-
body laser, grooming and Dermat services. In April 2013, she awarded
with Padma Shree award by Indian President Pranab Mukherjee.
Vandana Luthra has been running NGO called Khushii, which offers a
scholarship for free education to those who are underprivileged and
physically challenged.
#2 Kiran Mazumdar Shaw – The founder of Biocon Limited
Kiran Mazumdar Shaw is known as India’s wealthiest self-made women
entrepreneur who found a biopharmaceutical firm in 1978. This firm has
entered in US biosimilars market and is getting the attention of investors. As
per Forbes, it is the first company to get approval from the USFDA. She has put
big fortune to build deep R&D- Based biotech firm. In 2019 she held the title
called Indian’s 54th richest person and world’s 65th powerful woman. As far as
her qualification is concerned, she did a bachelor’s and master’s degree from
Bangalore University and Melbourne University respectively.
#3 Priya Paul– The chairperson of Park Hotel
Priya Paul is an Indian woman Entrepreneur who is chairperson of Apeejay
Surrendra park hotels. After finishing her studies from Wellesley College (US),
she started working under her father as a marketing manager. At age 51, she is
considered one of the most influential women. According to Wikipedia, in
2012, Paul revised India’s most honorable award called Padma Shree Award by
Pratibha Shing Patil (Former Indian president).

#4 Ritu Kumar – The Fashion designer

Ritu Kumar is an Indian fashion designer who began her Fashion career in
Kolkata. Initially, she was making bridal wear and evening clothes. After
decades, she entered an international market. She has been operating her
business in several different forging cities France and New York. In 2013, She
awarded Padma Shree by the government of India. About her education, she
completed schooling at Loreto Convent and have done college from lady Irwin
College. Later she got a scholarship at Briarcliff College in New York, where she
pursued Art History.
#5 Indra Nooyi – The board member of Amazon

Indra Nooyi is a former CEO of PepsiCo who has joined Amazon’s board of
directors. After completing a master’s degree from Yale School of
Management, she worked as a product manager at Johnson & Johnson. Later
she joined the Boston Consulting Group as a strategy consultant. In 1994, she
started working at PepsiCo, later she led the company as CEO from 2006 to
2018. In Feb 2019, she elected a member of Amazon’s board of directors. In
2017, She held title world’s 11th powerful woman as per Forbes.
CONTRIBUTION MADE BY WOMEN TOWARDS THE
DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIETY WITH REFERENCE TO ALIGARH:
Here is a trace of information of the genesis and trajectory of women’s
educational reform in Aligarh through the profile of a woman reformer -
Waheed Jahan (1886-1939), wife of Shaikh Abdullah (1874-1965), and the co-
founder of Aligarh’s first girls’ school.
The educational reforms among Indian women were mostly started by men.
Such men started with writings advocating women’s education. Apart from
literary activism, others tried more practical measures, like opening schools for
girls. As the Aligarh movement intensified, so did the opposition against it. In
such an atmosphere, even the talk of women’s education by a woman herself
was quite a chivalry. Yet, unexpectedly, there were women who defied the
odds and broke the ground. One such icon of women’s education at Aligarh
was Waheed Jahan.
Waheed was born in 1886 in a landholding family in Delhi. As was the custom,
Waheed received no formal schooling. She learnt Urdu and Persian from her
father and arithmetic and elementary English from a visiting English tutoress.
Ismat Chughtai, in her autobiography, Kagazi hai Pairahan, records, how
Waheed Jahan, before her marriage, had dreamt of establishing a school for
the girls. She would gather the servants’ children and teach them, and soon
the rudimentary school became popular among her neighbours. [5] It is
noteworthy that, at a time when others (mostly men) were still imagining a
school for girls (that too only in their writings), Waheed, in her own limited
capacity, was practically making a difference. Luckily, Waheed’s marriage to a
reformist like Abdullah helped her materialize her dream. The paucity of funds
made it impossible to start a Normal School. Waheed Jahan advised her
husband to start a primary school for the elite girls. In 1904, the Mohammadan
Educational Conference passed a resolution to start a girls’ school in Aligarh.
Waheed proved to be an efficient manager and fund-raiser for the cause. Her
capacities as a fund-raiser and organizer were displayed in 1905, when she
organized a meeting of Muslim women in Aligarh, with participants from far
corners of Lahore and Bombay. Aware of women education in Turkey and
Egypt and its benefits to society, she tried to convince other women; she said:
 “When women meet among themselves, there will be more solidarity. . . Now
there is a division between educated and uneducated women. Uneducated
women, who do not go out, think that respectability is confined to the four walls
of their houses. They think that people who live beyond those walls are not
respectable and not worthy of meeting. But God has ordained education for
both men and women, so that such useless ideas can be dispensed with. . .”

The meeting was a success, the exhibition of women’s craft secured good
funds; finally, the women passed a resolution favouring a girls’ school in
Aligarh. Leaving her own children in servants’ care, Waheed took the
responsibility of supervising the school. The girls’ school became an
intermediate college in 1925 and started degree classes in 1937 (with 250
students). Waheed passed away in 1939, only after seeing her school
becoming a degree college.
The Aligarh Women’s College produced many women of substance, who made
sure to shine above. These ladies excelled in various fields, from teaching to
medicine to writing.
 QUESTIONNAIRE
The Changing role of women

• What is your name?

• What is your age?

• What is your occupation?

• Specify your address.

• Your highest level of formal education?

a) No formal education
b) Mid school
c) High school
d) Bachelor degree

• Do you support the idea of a “WORKING WOMAN”?

a) Yes
 b) No
c) Can’t say

• In your household who normally takes all the important decisions?

a) My husband
b) Me alone
c) Me and my husband
d) Some other family member

• Is man the only bread earner in your family?

a) Yes
b) No
c) Can’t say

• Answer the following:

In your opinion, does a husband YES/NO
have the right to hit his wife if:
a) She spends money on
things he does not
approve of
b) She talks back to him
c) She goes outside of the
home without his
permission
d) For any reason at all, if
he wants to

• Answer the following:

Now, think about the rest of your HOURS MINUTES
day. I want you to tell me how much
time you spent on the following
activities during a typical day:
a) Care for others (younger children, ill
household members, elderly)
b) Grocery shopping
c) Cooking
d) Cleaning
 • Answer the following:
To what extent do you agree with 1 = Strongly disagree 2 = Disagree
the following statements? 3 = Agree 4 = Strongly agree
A wife should obey her husband, even if
she disagrees with him
A woman in your community has little
voice in public discussions about
development opportunities
Women are just as capable as men of
contributing to household income
A wife should never question the
decisions made by her husband
Men are more important than women
in ensuring that the food and income
needs of the family are met.

• Do you think men and women should have equal role in the society?
a) Yes
b) No
c) Can’t say

THANKS FOR YOUR PRECIOUS TIME TO FILL THIS FORM.

CONCLUSION
Women play a pivotal role in the process of development of the society and a nation as a whole.
They deserve equal status as that of men in a society. A woman is mainly responsible for the uplift of
their family. She has the right to take decisions about their family, children education, etc. A family
cannot entirely run on the earning of a male member. A woman should come out and share the
responsibilities of her husband. Women plays significant role in uplifting socio-economic condition of
their family by engaging themselves in Income Generating Activities in rural areas of Aligarh District,
Uttar Pradesh. Dairy farming, weaving, embroidery work, cultivation and shop-keeping are the main
activities of women workers through which they earn their livelihood. Most of them raised their
family welfare by reducing the level of poverty. But the methods and techniques used to carry out
these activities are obsolete. It has also found that, majority of women workers are illiterate. So
steps should be taken by government organizations, ministries and official agencies to impart
technical education and vocational training to them. It will help them to acquire knowledge
regarding techniques; increase their efficiency, confidence and skill development.
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Women-in-the-Past-25-Years
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disadvantages/
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india/
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