NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has expressed concern over low representation of women in many fields, including police where it is less than 10 percent.
Speaking at the 20th foundation day celebrations of the Indian Women's Press Corps; Singh recalled that one of the first things he did after becoming Home Minister was to issue an advisory to Delhi Police and other states to fill 33 percent posts with women.
In order to make women feel more secure in public spaces, he said police forces needed to be more "women friendly." According to a statement released by IWPC, Singh said that the media had a role to play in the development agenda of the nation, underscoring the importance of greater sensitivity towards human development issues and indicators.
He said that more than GDP and industrial development, real development could be measured in the quality of human development indicators. He expressed concern over the trend of growing sensationalism in the media.
The Home Minister also expressed concern over "trolling" of women in the online media where as compared to men, character assassination of women was much more virulent. He said all departments in the central government were conscious that it was necessary to create an environment that was progressive and safe for women.
The minister said that real empowerment of women could be achieved only by a prolonged struggle. He also mentioned challenges of harassment of women at the work place. At the same time, Singh lauded the fact that women were taking great strides in every field and were consistent performers. The minister released a special souvenir with the theme "Women and the National Agenda". The function was jointly organized by the IWPC and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations.
In his speech, Singh also pointed out to the dual responsibilities faced by women, at home and the work-place. He said that he had realized that the perspective of women journalists of looking at the world was slightly different as compared to their male counterparts. They had to face a great amount of uncertainty and challenge at their workplaces.
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