'Women Pioneering Change for Peace and Prosperity' round table discussion held in Srinagar

By: WE Staff | Thursday, 11 May 2023

At the State Guest House Srinagar, a round table discussion on "Women Pioneering Change for Peace and Prosperity" was held.

Rekha Mody, the founder of She Leads and Stree Shakti—The Parallel Force—organized the meeting with the assistance of Farzana (editor and creator of New Kashmir). The programme was attended by Safina Baig, Chairman DDC Baramulla and Haj Committee Jammu and Kashmir, Dr. Ovee Thorat, Professor Shafiya from Baramulla College, Javed Kamli, an educationist, Dr. Ritu Singh, a social entrepreneur, Dr. Rashmi Singh, the State Commissioner of Taxes, and Drs. Mushtaq Ul Haq Sikander and Sheikh Sameer.

Speaking at the event, Rekha Mody stated that the topic of reservation is extremely important because Jammu and Kashmir only had 2.2 percent female MLAs in the last legislature but Chattisgarh now has the most female legislators in India. She claimed that J&K has been without a state commission for women for a number of years. She continued by saying that the other half of Indians had been waiting for political party and legislative reservations for the past 30 years.

While Chairman DDC Baramulla believed that encouraging women's political engagement was important, Dr. Javed Kamili argued that financial empowerment of women was urgently needed. She expressed her belief that using an inclusive strategy is crucial.

"Self help groups are a game changer for women," she declared. Women who are pursuing financial opportunities through self-help groups are improving several areas.

In order for women to have the greatest possible representation in politics and other fields, Professor Shafiya noted that patriarchy-related barriers must be removed, whereas Mushtaq Ul Haq Sikander noted that women at the top of the political ladder have a crucial role to play in the political empowerment of women and urged political parties to allow adequate participation of women.

Ritu Singh, an educationist, referred to education as the basis for attaining women's empowerment in every sense. Sheikh Sameer advised people to become involved at the grassroots level and to recognise the unsung heroes among women in order to create a world that is kind to women.

Dr. Rashmi Singh stated that effective engagement of women in local administration is an essential to successful governance, while Madeena Mir from PHDCCI expressed her support for the cause of women's empowerment and the need for free travel on public transportation.

It was decided that the objective should be to promote women's involvement in the development process to the fullest extent possible. This may be accomplished by empowering women to assume leadership roles in all domains, including social, economic, and political.