status of Women in India and in Arunachal Pradesh: A Comparative study

The right to equality between men and women is a fundamental right in Indian Constitution. Respect for the dignity of women has been made a fundamental duty of Indian citizens and all actions derogatory to such dignity are liable to be stuck down. Conversely, the social institutions and customs are more resistant to change, because they are more rooted in history and more dependent on mind-sets. Gender equality is relatively recent concept and most patriarchal societies have ordained rampant injustices and discrimination against women in the family and outside in everyday life. It is indeed bad that women’s status is undermined and subordinated but worst of all is that they have accepted their position as their destiny and in many cases they are found to be an instrument of exploitation. Governance can be efficient and effective only if it articulates women issues and interests and can only be gender-fair if it is gender responsive at political, administrative and economic spheres as women have perspectives, which enhance the quality of governance.

The right to equality between men and women is a fundamental right in Indian Constitution. State is spe¬cifically permitted to make laws in favour of women as a deliberate affirmative action so as to enable them to over¬come traditional handicaps. Further, respect for the dig¬nity of women has been made a fundamental duty of Indian citizens and all actions derogatory to such dig¬nity are liable to be stuck down. Conversely, the social institutions and customs are more resistant to change, because they are more rooted in history and more de¬pendent on mind-sets. Gender equality is relatively re¬cent concept and most patriarchal societies have or¬dained rampant injustices and discrimination against women in the family and outside in everyday life. It is indeed bad that women's status is undermined and subordinated but worst of all is that they have accepted their position as their destiny and in many cases they are found to be an instrument of exploitation The discrimination from one to another depends on their socio-cultural background. Phenomenon of gender discrimination is not caused by a single factor. It has multiple causes and therefore need a multiple strategy to tackle the problem. The problem of gender discrimination may be viewed from the various angles like the roles they assume -who does what, the responsibilities they share -who is responsible for what, the resources they enjoy -who owns what, the constraints they face -who has access to what, the regards they are entitled to -who deserves what, the recognition they need -who gets recognized for what, the remuneration that is due -who gets how much for the work, the representation they make -who represents where, the regulations they make -who decides what, the restrictions imposed on them -who submits to whom or what; Man or Woman! This is very much established in Indian society especially in rural communities in general and Tribal society in particular.
The tribal population of India constitutes about 67.6 million and women in the tribal community constitute half of the tribal population. In Arunachal Pradesh, major portion of population is tribal. They were 88.76% in 1961, 79.02% in 1971, 69.82% in 1981, 63.65% in 1991, 64.22% in 2001 and 68.78 in 2011 census. The sex ratios in the state were 1013 in 1961, 1007 in 1971, 1004 in1981, 998 in1991, 1003 in 2001 and 920 in 2011 census.The well being of tribal community depends very much on the women. Status and condition of tribal women relating to their socio-cultural locale, their economic rights, their participation in management, their access to employment, food, health, and resources etc. have not been properly focused. Nutritional status of tribal girls is compromised and overlooked by unequal access to food, by heavy work demands, and by special nutritional needs (such as for iron), which makes females particularly susceptible to illness, such as anemia, trapped in a cycle of ill health exacerbated by childbearing and hard physical labour. There are many taboos and myths which are barriers to health practices and growing body of adolescence tribal girls.
Adolescence is a period of dynamic changes in physical, sexual growth and psychological development, influenced by both nutrition and ecological factors. If the nutrient intake is not adequate it will adversely affect their growth and will lead to poor performance in later part of their life. In Arunachal Pradesh with varying social customs and common beliefs against females there is a high prevalence of malnutrition amongst girls. The problems of tribal women differ from a particular area to another area owing to their geographical location, historical background and the process of social change in the phase of transition in development process. The tribal women should be brought into main stream, if they are to be benefited from the progress on the development front. Thus, like other women in different tribal societies, the tribal women are also not recognized by their social system regarding their freedom and rights. Women's empowerment and their full participation on the basis of equality in all spheres of society are fundamental for the achievement of equality, development and peace (IV World Conference on Women, Beijing, 1995).

equality among Men and Women:
There is a need to have equality for both men and women in Choices, in Opportunities and in Rights. Equality in the family can be ensured by participatory decision making; sharing the responsibilities; trusting, loving and serving each other; respecting one another and economic independence for both men and women.
In a world where equality is often misunderstood, misinterpreted and exploited for political gains, it is imperative that "equality" should be redefined. Equality, irrespective of the sex of the individual should promise a life of freedom, choice, opportunities and dignity. The low value for female life is the biggest problem. The desire to have male issues has reduced the chance for girls to be born and thus female infanticide is on the rise. Economic conditions and cultural ethos of India have forged an invisible combination that threatens even the female embryo. Even if a female child is born against such heavy odds, she is not given a chance to survive. She suffers malnutrition, lack of medical attention, early marriage and frequent child births. The crude death rates fostered by abortions and child birth without proper medical care indicate the reduced life span of women. Another major problem is that of illiteracy. Despite a significant increase in the gross enrolment rate of girls in primary schools from 25 per cent in 1950 to 66 per cent in 1980 and 70 per cent in 1982, a large number of girls are still not receiving primary education, while 95 to 100 per cent boys are now enrolled in elementary schools.

Discrimination in educational opportunities in India:
Only a few girls take up higher education in Arunachal Pradesh. Every year only about 10 percent of the total girls who appear for plus two examinations take up higher studies. The remaining discontinues their academic pursuits due to myriad of reasons. The considerable reasons observed are; due to gender discrimination, such as traditional family decisions -not to invest in their daughter's future as there will be no financial returns, etc. In case of higher education the tendency is very much same with a greater decline. The proportion of the girl student which pursue higher education is too less when compared with the two plus level. When we look at the overall educational status there is a huge decline or variation in the proportion of education of girls from primary to higher education..

Phenomenal progress since independence:
Importance of education of women has been recognized since the achievement of independence. Accordingly strenuous efforts have been made in this area. The following figures reveal that literacy among women has increased proportionately as compared with men. Yet much more is needed to bring it at pat with men. This is shown in Table-1, Table-2    Concerted efforts were made only after independence to advance the education of girls and women. The concept of women empowerment was introduced at the International Women's Conference at Nairobi in 1985. The term empowerment was defined as "a distribution of social power and central of resources in favour of women". Education is the milestone for women empowerment because it enables them to challenges, to confront their traditional roles and to change their lives. Similar ideas were supported in international conference-1994. It claimed that education is one of the most important means of empowering women with the knowledge, skills and self-confidence necessary to participate fully in the development process. Educating women benefits the whole society. It has a more significant impact on poverty and development and even on men's education. Male-female disparity is highest in 1981 and after that it is decreasing. It is good sign for the educational progress and empowerment of women in India.

Position of Women in Arunachal Pradesh
In the tribal world of Arunachal Pradesh, various tribal communities are at different stages of develop¬ment. Necessarily the status of women differs from com¬munity to community. Tribal women's right is customary in nature rooted in their tradition and mythology. Heritage status of women, it may be tribal or non tribal, largely de¬pends upon the kind of economic and political rights they enjoy. The position of women in Arunachal Pradesh is respectable but not very high. The prevalence of po¬lygamy, bride price has no doubt lowered their position. Till recently child marriage was quite common. Victim of "bride-price", "sex-abuse" and "child marriage" in tribal society are generally devoid of equal political and property rights. Tribal women have a busy life, helping men folk in almost every walk of life. From cooking to cultiva-tion and from hard work to dance, they are al¬ways busy, in fact; they are the backbone of tribal pasto¬ral economy. But economically they remain dependent on their male counterpart and thus they virtually hold a subordinate position. In Rousseau's modified language "Arunachalee woman is born free but every where she is in chains." Every society accords social status to women members as per its own perspective. The status and role of women in tribal society is also governed by their own norms and values. The tribal family is patriarchal. Kinship is recognized on the side of men. The tribal women's status in Arunachal Pradesh is lower than that of men. She faces many problems in all walks of her life simply because of being a female. In this male dominated society a women is considered inferior to a man. She is meant to depend on and under subjugation of man. The family in which she was born as a daughter does not consider her as a permanent abode. She is looked upon as a transient member to be handed over on marriage to her in-law's family. She cannot have a share in the immovable property at all. Decision making and exercise of authority go under power of men.

educational scenario:
In Arunachal Pradesh, till independence literacy rate was only less than 1%. In the succeeding five years plans, an increasing percentage of expenditure on education has given good results despite of formidable constraints like inaccessibility of territory, people's unawareness of the need of education and traditional dependence on children for domestic and field work. Thus, with increasing emphasis through successive plans the State has achieved commendable progress in the field of education. The literacy rate census wise from 1961 to 2011 in Arunachal Pradesh is shown in Table-3 as census started first in the state from 1961. Male-Female Disparity is also shown in Table-  From Table-3 and Fig.-2, it is observed that the good fruit of education in the State is achieved though the females are lagging behind the males. Higher education in Arunachal Pradesh needs a far-reaching structural reconstruction. We get more or less same picture in case of Arunachal Pradesh. Male-female disparity is highest in 1991 and after that it is decreasing. It is good sign for the educational progress and empowerment of women in the state.
Higher education in Arunachal Pradesh needs a far-reaching structural reconstruction. The enrolment of students in the higher education of Arunachal Pradesh during academic session 2015-16 is shown in Table-4.  Fig.-3, it is observed that the girls in higher education including university education are little less than the boys in case of APST and Non-APST i.e., they are not lagging behind so much. In Fig.-4, enrolment of Boys and Girls in Higher Education is shown where girls are 47% while boys are 53%. There is minor difference in their enrolment. It means that the entry of girls in education is increasing very fast. But still there is slow progress in overall.
Causes of slow Progres a. Economic and social backwardness of the rural community. b. Lack of proper social attitudes in the rural areas for the education of girls. c. Lack of educational facilities and infrastructure in rural areas. d. Lack of women teachers. e. Lack of proper supervision and guidance due to inadequate women personnel in the Inspectorate. f. Lack of proper incentives to parents and children. g. Lack of adequate incentives. h. Lack of suitable curriculum. i. Co-educational aspects.

Significance of Women Education:
Dr. Radhakrishnan has very emphatically stated, "Women are human beings and have as much right to full development as men have. The position of women in any society is a true index of its cultural and spiritual level." The resolution on the National Policy on Education (1968) stressed the importance of women education in these words, "The education of girls should receive emphasis not only on grounds of social justice but also because it accelerates social transformation".
The United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (1967) took note of the great contribution made by women to social, political, economic and cultural life and the part they play in the family and particularly in the rearing of children and recommended the following in Article 9 of the Declaration: "All appropriate measures shall be taken to ensure to girls and women, married or unmarried, equal rights with men in education at all levels and in particular.

Discrimination in Power:
The concept of leadership has not been examined seriously from a feminine angle. Most of the researches have made an attempt to compare women's managerial capability with that of men, taking the latter as paragons of leadership. Such approaches are not loyal to the facts and there is a need to break new grounds to understand women's leadership potential. Being relatively more patient and considerate, women would be more sympathetic to public grievances, and beings dedicated to the task, they could take bold step to implement welfare programmes. If women constitute half of the population of the country, it is natural that their special aptitudes, talent and expertise are captured for doing well in different sectors (Goretti, 2002). Therefore, we need to deliberate on how to ensure adequate representation of women positions of leadership? What changes in policies and professional training may be required to attract and retain women in leadership positions should be the action agenda of today.
Amendment in constitution in 1972 to strengthen the sharing of power by women at local level has opened a new chapter in the history of women's struggle for empowerment. The enactment of the 73rd constitutional amendment i.e., Panchayati Raj, in India is, no doubt a landmark event in this regard. It is important because of revolutionary measure by reserving 33 per cent seats for women at all levels in the local governance. Local governance interpreted as the active involvement of the local population within the territorial boundaries in local government is ensuring improved quality of service and leadership at the local government level. This is a significant shift in the approach towards the well being of women from 'Welfare during Fifties' to 'Development during Seventies' and to "Empowerment during Nineties'.
Political empowerment at local level i.e., Panchayati Raj assumes particular importance as a means of producing democratic functioning and decision making decentralized governmental power, thereby restructuring political institutions. This development i.e., amendment in the constitution has brought the question of competitiveness of Indian women to the center stage of controversy. In view of the majority of Indian rural women being illiterate and new in this role, this question has attracted the attention of the large number of commentators and researchers.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)'s Human Development Report (1995) opines "inverting in women's capabilities and empowering them to exercise their choices is not only valuable in itself but is also the surest way to contribute to economic growth and development". The report reaffirms that "Human development is impossible without gender equality. As long as women are excluded from the development process, development will remain lopsided. Sustainable human development implies engendering the development paradigm.

Reservation of seats for women in Panchayati Bodies:
Under the framework of the 73rd Constitution Amendment Act, the one-third of the seats in Panchayat bodies is being reserved for the women for the first time in India. This was a new message for the rural population. Though the Galo society accords high status to the women in the society, the women never enjoyed such status in the corporate decision-making forum. Thus, the message of reservation was received with mixed response.
The tribal communities of Arunachal Pradesh had their own system of local self governance. "Age old traditional system of self governance in Arunachal Pradesh was replaced by Panchayati Raj Institutions in 1968". With the coming into force of the Constitution (Seventy Third Amendment) Act 1992 with effect from 24th April 1993, it was incumbent upon the state government to enact the Arunachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj legislation. Reservation for women in the Panchayati institution have a stronger case because they can lead to empowerment at the level of local society. Through such empowerment social change is possible on broad scale.
The system ordained though the NEFA Panchayati Raj Regulation 1967 continued with regular elections till 1992. The Constitution (73rd Amendment Act) 1992 paved the way for restoring Panchayati Raj System in the state. It would suffice to mention here that several interactions across various levels were held to ensure to maintain the relevance and applicability of the act in the context of Arunachal Pradesh. The present strength of PRIs in the state is depicted below in Table-5

Anchal Samit and 25 Zila Parishad increased in Arunachal Pradesh Panchayat election, 2008. But there are no changes of percentage of female Panchayat member though number of female member increased in different Panchayat bodies
In the above Table-5 and Fig.-5 and Table-6 and Fig.-6, it has been observed that the overall participation of women in PRIs is 38.5% only. The Panchayati Raj Institutions also played a very important role in bringing about a major socio-political change in the traditional tribal society of Arunachal Pradesh with the increasing growth in education and political awareness at rural people and their increasing interface with the outside world due to greater mobility.
The Panchayati Raj Institutions serve as a training ground for rural people and equip them with both knowledge and experience about the democratic system of government in the country thereby enabling them to play more important and useful role in the state and as well as in the nation. The State government is firmly committed to the reservation; development and strengthening of the Panchayati Raj Institutions throughout the state, democracy and women empowerment of the state have been the guiding policy for the state government. With the introduction of Panchayati Raj System in the state, a large number of elected Panchayat members would be involved in all development initiatives in rural areas in accordance with their levels (Srivastava, 2006).Change in the traditional concept of rural leadership based on the age factor. Thus, age is no longer a criterion for the emerging leadership.
Leadership of fair sex is altogether absent in Arunachal tribal world. Women, rarely contest elections. For this, some of the reasons may be: (i) mass illiteracy among women, (ii) low social statuses, in some cases where the more women a man has the greater social status he enjoys, (iii) lack of political training in leadership or political affairs. In most village councils, women are not allowed to participate or they do not participate whatever case may be, (iii) in many other aspects of life, women are subject to unequal treatment in a majority of the tribes. Devoid of property rights or rights over land or debarred from inheritance of father's property as case may be, and also their economic dependence on men are a great issue for debate. Jawaharlal Nehru once said, "To awaken the people, it is women who is meant to be awakened, once she is on the move, the family moves, village moves and the nation moves". Swami Vivekananda also once said, "There is no chance for the welfare of the world unless the condition of women is improved. It is not possible for a bird to fly on one wing". Likewise no nation can flourish keeping half of its population in negligence and ignorance, as women constitute half of its human capital. A modern society cannot bring all round development without utilizing the talent of its women.
Dr. Radhakrishnan has very emphatically stated, "Women are human beings and have as much right to full development as men have. The position of women in any society is a true index of its cultural and spiritual level."

Disparity in sex Ratio:
One of the important indicators of gender disparity is sex ratio. According to the Cen-sus of 1991 the sex ratio of our country was that for every 1000 males there were 972 female. It is decreased to 933 per 1000 in 2001. Male child is more favoured and celebrated for by the family. Mothers are more emotionally attached towards their sons and they want to marry their daughters at the early age (Thangamuthu and Rasi, 2003). Hospital records show that more male take admission to the hospitals for treatment than female. Several studies reveal that most of the boys are taken to more qualified doctors and more money is spent on their treatment. The girls receive less immunizing vaccines against childhood disease even though such facilities are available free of cost.
Pattern of Sex Ratio in Arunachal Pradesh: -The findings of the study are elaborated below. The findings are deducted on the basis of sex ratio analysis based on secondary data from the census. Though all the aspects of the study do not provide a very clear picture about why female population in the State are lower than that of male population but certain inferences have opened a new vista to go for further studies on the lines of population genetics. The overall trend of general sex ratio in the State as well as for the country as a whole shows a continuous decline, except for a marginal improvement in 1981. In 2001, there is an improvement in the proportion of females to 893 in the State and to 933 for India as compared to 1991 Census. If we look at the change in sex ratio for India as a whole in the period flanked by 1991-2001, then it is observed that there is an addition of +6 for all India in contrast to the substantial addition in case of the State to +34. In 2011 Census the State as well as the country as a whole maintained almost the same trend. We find there is an addition of +27 and that of +7 for the State and India respectively. It is a good sign for both the State and the Country. The comparison of sex ratio in context of General population and ST population in the State and the Country has been represented in Table-7  It is interesting to find that the female population of scheduled tribes has always been higher than that of males. While the generality in this case needs to be answered through systemic study of population genetics, this might be worthwhile to mention here that female sex is generally stronger than that of males. Thus, there is all likelihood of the female to live longer than male (as the gentler sex is biologically stronger) and hence more males die than the females not only at birth but also at all ages.
Women in tribal society, lead a very busy life helping the men folk in all walks of life. Tribal society enjoys an egalitarian status and women are considered as assets as the bride price is paid by the groom's family at the time of marriage. This is one of the valid reasons why females are better off in tribal society in contrast to the general population in the country as a whole. A large number of women are living below poverty line; they suffer also from nutritional deficiency. Lack of alertness and access to balanced diet and right foods during pregnancy, insufficient intake of irons, proteins and micro nutrients such as iodine and vitamins is the principal cause of very high incidence of nutritional deficiency diseases like anemia, diarrhea, night blindness, goiter, etc. Low body resistance due to malnutrition farther may complicate minor ailments and make it a health hazard. As a result, females' death rates in villages of the State are much more than males.

Conclusion:
A key policy intervention is the comprehensive promotion of the empowerment and rights of women and girls, including rights of descent ownership and inheritance as well as full social and legal status as human persons. The platform for action that has emerged from the series of conferences all over the world on Women must be taken seriously as a charter for action because the fate of today's women directly affects the fate of today's girls who may or may not become tomorrow's women. To do this in earnest, we need greater commitment, accountability and resources from government and society at large. The challenges are to implement the recommendations that have been agreed upon by the international community so that they will actually improve the life changes and realities of women and girls everywhere.
Women's empowerment is also children's empowerment. The promotion of women's reproductive health and reproductive rights would help ensure that every child is wanted and healthy; woman can exercise their reproductive rights only when they are empowered to do so. The control of women's fertility is also related to the control of their sexuality. Female genital mutilation continues to be inflicted on women and girl children as a customary means of controlling their sexuality and therefore their fertility. Women's rights over their own bodies thus constitute the foundation of their rights to economic and political resources (Dharagi, Malipatil & Basavaraj, 2007)