The Telugu-speaking States of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have the lowest gender parity index among the southern States, says social activist P.A. Devi.
Speaking at a seminar organised by NGO Step Ahead for Equality (SAFE) at Nalanda Degree College on November 24 (Friday) to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, which falls on November 25, Ms. Devi said with 28 % of under-age marriages of girls and 23 % girl student drop-out rate in the educational institutions in Andhra Pradesh, the State cannot afford to boast about gender parity.
She said despite stringent laws put in place, women remain extremely vulnerable to violence—at home (domestic violence), at the workplace and in public spaces. “Who is to be blamed? Those in the government try to pass the buck to the people in general, saying that their mindset should change,” she said.
Citing an increase in the number of cyberbullying cases involving women, she said the practice was rampant on social media platforms. “Trolling is equally dangerous,” she warns, stating that failure to implement the existing laws effectively had emboldened the perpetrators.
Silence towards violence is unacceptable, she reiterated and said it was important to stand up and raise one’s voice against such incidents.
She said there was no truth in the claims made by the governments that crimes against women were on the decline. “It is just that FIRs are not being filed in many cases,” she maintained.
Ms. Devi slammed Mahila Commissions at the Centre and in the State, saying that these autonomous bodies were reduced to “puppets in the hands of the ruling parties,” she said, demanding to know what had the National Women’s Commission done on the issue of grave atrocities against women in Manipur State.
Raising serious concern over the growing menace of drugs and porn-watching among youth, she said the government should initiate concrete measures to curb the degenerating trend. Stating that one of the aims of this important day was to highlight the scale and serious nature of the issue, she said governments should kick off an active fortnight-long campaign on the issue to spread awareness.
DSS campaign
The Dalit Sthree Sakthi, meanwhile, plans a fortnight-long campaign against violence against women from November 25 to December 10. Principal Secretary, Handlooms and Textiles K. Suneetha and NTR district Joint Collector P. Sampath Kumar will inaugurate the campaign on November 25, said the organisation’s national convenor Jhansi Geddam
