Chandigarh, (Samajweekly) The Punjab Vidhan Sabha on Monday unanimously passed a resolution saluting the “indomitable spirit of women in contributing to the progress of the nation”, with Chief Minister Amarinder Singh declaring his government’s strong and continued commitment to the empowerment of women and the girl child at every level.
Recognizing the immense contribution of the women in making this world a better place to live, the House resolved “to work with dedication towards providing them an ambience of equity, justice, and freedom to further empower them to be equal partners in the progress of Punjab and our country.”
The Akalis continued to remain suspended as per the Speaker’s directions.
Lauding the decisions of the state government to provide 50 per cent reservation for women in the Urban Local Bodies and the Panchayati Raj Institutions, and 33 per cent reservation in government employment, it noted that athis ensures better representation of women in decision-making and contributes to the furtherance of their interests.”
Earlier, placing the resolution before the House on the occasion of the International Women’s Day, the Chief Minister termed it an occasion “to realistically assess where we have reached and to rededicate ourselves to providing a life of equality and dignity to every woman in the state”.
Recalling the words of Guru Nanak Dev, who had said about women: “So kyun manda aakhiye jit jamme rajan (which loosely translates to ‘Why call ‘her’ inferior? From her, the Kings are born),” the Chief Minister stressed the importance of various measures to power the changing attitudes about women.
He expressed happiness over the fulfilment of his government’s promise to provide 50 per cent reservation in Panchayati Raj Institutions and Urban Local Bodies, asserting that “this increased political representation will provide political empowerment to women”.
Referring to the reservation of the women in 33 per cent of jobs in government and state government undertakings, Amarinder Singh hoped this economic empowerment would also lead to their social empowerment.
He also underlined the need to “commit ourselves to ensuring that every girl child is educated so that she is provided the right foundation to access her rights.”
The Chief Minister underscored the importance of ensuring an environment where women can be provided both safety and any offenders can be brought to justice, swiftly and surely.
He cited the recently launched Mata Tripta Mahila Yojana for the empowerment of women headed households as another step to strengthen thousands of women and their families in the state
Under this scheme, 105 sub-schemes are to be implemented by the various Departments, he said.
