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09 Mar 2022 ‘Samarth’ Initiative: International Women’s Day 2022

Posted at 16:24h in Daily current-affairs by khyati khare 0 Comments

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On the occasion of International Women’s Day 2022, the Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) launched a special entrepreneurship promotion campaign for women – “SAMARTH” (SAMARTH).

The following benefits will be available to the aspiring and existing women entrepreneurs under the Samarth initiative of the Ministry:

20 percent seats will be allotted for women in the free skill development programs organized under skill development schemes of the ministry.
Under the Schemes for Marketing Assistance implemented by the Ministry, 20 percent of the MSME business delegation to be sent to domestic and international exhibitions will be dedicated to women-owned MSMEs.
20% discount on annual processing fee for commercial schemes of National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC).
NSIC is a Government of India Enterprise under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
Special campaign for the registration of MSMEs owned by women under Udyam Registration.
Through this initiative, the Ministry of MSME is focusing on providing skill development and market development support to women.
More than 7500 women candidates from rural and sub-urban areas will be trained in FY 2022-23.
In addition, thousands of women will get opportunities to display and market their products at domestic and international exhibitions.
Also to increase the participation of women entrepreneurs in public procurement, a special discount of 20 percent on annual processing fee will be offered on the following commercial schemes of NSIC during the year 2022-23:
- Single Point Registration Scheme
- Raw material support and bill discounts
- Tender Marketing
- B2B Portal MSMEmart.com

Women’s Day was first celebrated in the year 1911 by Clara Zetkin, a German woman. The roots of this festival were rooted in the workers’ movement.
In the year 1913, it was decided to celebrate this day on 8th March and since then it is celebrated on this day.
International Women’s Day was first celebrated by the United Nations in the year 1975.
In December 1977, the General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring the United Nations Day for Women’s Rights and International Peace to be celebrated on any day of the year by member states according to their historical and national traditions.

According to the United Nations, legal sanctions have denied 2.7 billion women access to the same jobs as men.
Till the year 2019, the participation of women in Parliament was less than 25%.
One in three women experiences gender-based violence.
According to the International Labor Organization (ILO) estimate, in the year 2019 before the Covid pandemic, the female labor force participation in India was 20.5%, as compared to 76% for women in comparison.
According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index/Global Gender Gap Index (which measures progress towards gender equality), India is one of the worst performing countries in South Asia, out of 156 countries in 2021 Ranked 140th.
According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-5, 57% of women in the age group 15-49 were suffering from anemia in the year 2019-21 as compared to 53% in the year 2015-16.

Constitutional safeguards:

Fundamental Rights: Right to equality for all Indians (Article 14), no discrimination by the state on the basis of gender [Article 15(1)] and special provisions made by the state in favour of women guarantees [Article 15(3)].
Fundamental Duties: Constitution through Article 51 (A) (e) provides for fundamental duty for every citizen to give up practices degrading to the dignity of women.

Legal Remedies:

The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005: It provides for the means of practical remedies through prosecution to the victims of domestic violence.
Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961: It prohibits the request, payment or acceptance of dowry.
Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013: This legislative act seeks to protect women from sexual harassment at workplace.
Related Schemes: Mahila E-Haat, Mahila Technology Park, Gender Advancement for Transforming Institutions (GATI) etc.

The United Nations has organized 4 world conferences on women:

The Fourth World Conference on Women (WCW), held in Beijing, was one of the largest UN gatherings ever and was a turning point in drawing world attention to gender equality and women’s empowerment.
The Beijing Declaration is an agenda for women’s empowerment and is considered the leading global policy document on gender equality.
It sets out strategic objectives and actions for the achievement of gender equality in 12 important areas of concern such as women’s advancement, health and the established and decision-making women in power, the girl child and the environment.
Recently the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) has proposed a temporary basic income for poor women in developing countries, to help them cope with the effects of the corona pandemic and reduce the economic pressure they face every day.