It's been more than six decades since we got freedom from the British rule. The largest democracy in the world, India is unparalleled in its diversity. The country is home to one billion people who belong to different cultural, religious, linguistic, social and economic background. But what has India achieved all these years?
It's time to reflect now. We can cite hundreds of achievements that have made us proud of our country. Science, technology, space, sports, transport, communication, literature, entertainment, medicines - in every field, we have seen Indians making a remarkable name at the global level. India is no doubt one of the fastest developing countries of the world. But, these achievements are not enough to give us a true picture of our country. It is sad, but true, that even after so many years of Independence, India has to confront many social issues that are obstructing the development of the country.
Rape
Nirbhaya gang rape; a six-year-old schoolgirl allegedly raped by school staff in Bangalore; two dalit girls in Lucknow raped and hanged; a 14-year-old dalit girl gang-raped in a moving bus in Madhya Pradesh.... the list is endless. Rape is one of the most common crimes against women in India.
According to a recent report of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), the total number of reported rape cases in 29 states in the period 2001 to 2013 rose to 2, 64,130. According to this report, on an average there are almost 56 rapes in one day in India.
National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) reported that the number of rapes in India increased from 24, 923 in 2012 to 33,707 in 2013. According to this report, among the states, Madhya Pradesh has recorded the maximum rapes in 2013, followed by Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh. Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur and Pune are the top unsafe cities in the country.
It has also been mentioned in NCRB that in most cases, the victim knows the rapist, which include neighbours, other known persons, relatives, and also parents. The victims are usually 14 to 30 years of age, though there is no dearth of news reporting the rape of children as well as old women.
A new case of rape is reported every 20 to 30 minutes in India. The actual numbers will be much more than these as many don't report such matters due to societal pressures, family, embarrassment and fear.
There has been constant public outrage for such a heinous crime against women and lots of changes in the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for rape are underway. But unless and until the social attitudes on women change, the focus in rape prevention shifts from the victim to the attacker, severe punishment is given to the rapist immediately, all efforts to prevent rape will remain futile.
Domestic Violence
Around 70 per cent of women in India are victims of domestic violence, which can be physical, emotional and mental. Domestic violence is not only the violence against women in matrimonial homes but also in their maternal homes. According to the report of "United Nation Population Fund" in 2012, nearly two-thirds of married Indian women are domestic violence victims and most of them are in the age group of 15 and 49 years. Some of the most common forms of domestic violence on women, which are recognised by Indian law are as follows:
- Marital rape
- Keeping a woman locked in the house
- Causing mental torture by not letting her see or meet her children
- Physical violence (beating, punching, kicking, slapping, twisting, burning or attack using a weapon) by husband and other family members
- Taunting and demoralising the woman
- Name calling, blaming, stalking and isolation
- Not allowing the woman normal sexual intercourse
- Unwanted kissing, touching, or fondling
- Abusing children in front of her
- Threatening divorce
- Asking for dowry
- Denial of food and clothing etc.
To prevent violence against women and to protect the women rights, Parliament passed "The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005". According to this Act, every woman who has been a victim of domestic violence as per the reasons given above can file a complaint to the police officer, protection officer, or magistrate. In such a case, the Protection Office must ensure the victim gets complete protection, custody and monetary relief by passing some legal orders. The government must come up with more stringent laws and preventive measures to protect women rights.
However, strict law should also be enforced against a woman who falsely implicates her husband and relatives thereby misusing the Domestic Violence Act.
Child Abuse
The National Crime Records Bureau June 2014 Report has stated that in the year 2013, a total of 58,224 child abuse cases were registered which showed an increase of 52.5 per cent compared to 2012. The number of crimes per 1 lakh children showed a rise of 13.2 per cent. According to UNICEF, child abuse means violence against children and this violence can be of any forms like as physical and mental abuse, neglect, negligent treatment, injury, sexual abuse, rape, child prostitution, exploitation, including child labour. In India, child abuse is a very common crime and it takes place in schools, orphanages, workplaces, on the streets, in places of detention, in prisons as well as at homes. Any kind of abuse inflicted on the child can affect him or her physically and mentally and in extreme cases, result in death.
The states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Assam and Delhi have reported the highest incidence of child abuse in our country.
Child Labour
Child Labour is a serious form of child abuse in our country. It is estimated that India is one of the leading countries to have the maximum number of child labourers, due to a large chunk of population below the poverty line. Hence, to increase the earnings of a family, parents do not hesitate to make their children work. It has been found that in India, the maximum number of children are employed in textile, firecracker, carpet making, match stick factories, roadside restaurants and dhabas, or as domestic workers. Most of these works are hazardous for children and the working conditions are also not good. Rural children are more into child labour. According to a report, there were 17 million child labourers in 2012. It has also been estimated that there are more than 2 million children between the age of 5 and 15 years who act as commercial sex workers. Sad but true, every year around 5 lakh children are forced into this trade.
The Government of India has come up with many laws and policies to protect the rights of children. The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act of 1986 was introduced to stop children below the age of 14 years to work. The Act was further modified in 2006, and again in 2008. But, then 2 years after the ban, the Labour Ministry had carried out 12,000 child labour operations out of which prosecution took place only in 211 cases.
Female Foeticide
Another social issue, rather a social evil, prevalent in our country is female foeticide - the practice of killing female foetus in the womb itself. Preference for son over daughter, illiteracy, patriarchal social structure where men are superior to women, are some of the reasons of female foeticide. The result is that in India, the number of girls per 100 boys is going down with every passing decade. Leaving aside few states in South India and North East India and the two Union Territories of Lakshwadeep and Pondicherry, in almost all the states of India, the sex ratio is going down. As a result of female foeticide, we have seen a decrease in the number of females, adverse effects on women's health, increase in women trafficking, forceful marriage and low stature of women.
The Union government has come up with laws and acts that prohibit pre-natal sex-selection tests and sex-selective abortions in India. This is why the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act 1994 (PCPNDT) was introduced to prevent female foeticide in India. Still, female foeticide is a major social issue in the country.
Dowry
Some parents give dowry willingly to the groom's family as per their convenience and to help their daughter maintain her dignity after marriage. Some give dowry due to social pressure or due to demands by the groom's family. In such cases, some parents agree while some fail due to monetary constraints. The result is increase in dowry abuse, dowry deaths, bride burning, suicides and violence against women. The violence can be physical, emotional or sexual.
In 1961, Dowry Prohibition Act was passed to ban taking dowry and punish any person involved in it with imprisonment. National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) stated that there were 8,233 dowry deaths reported in 2012 from various states. However, most cases of dowry violence go unreported.
Gender Inequality
Despite more than six decades of independence, gender inequality is still prevalent in India. Women are always considered as the weaker sex. No doubt, women have made their presence felt in various walks of life, but Indian society still has a long way to go. So long as the perception of men towards women and traditions and old views do not change, gender discrimination will continue.
Illiteracy, Poverty, Unemployment
The major cause of all social problems in our country is illiteracy. Despite several government programmes like Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, National Literacy Mission and others, the illiteracy rate is still high. It is a shame that other small countries like Myanmar, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Thailand and the likes have acquired a much better level of literacy within a short span of time. But India is still lagging behind. Illiteracy gives rise to problems like unemployment, child labour, poverty, female foeticide, population explosion and many others in our country.
Corruption
There is widespread corruption in our country. Out of 176 countries in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index, India's rank was 94th in 2012. The Anti-Corruption Movement "India Against Corruption" started by Team Anna needs to be taken to its logical conclusion with the support of political leaders to make India a corruption-free country.
a href="https://www.mapsofindia.com/my-india/india/overpopulation-in-india-causes-effects-and-how-to-control-it">Overpopulation in India
- Anaemia in Urban India
- Paediatric HIV/AIDS in India and their solution
- HIV in India
- Drug Abuse in India
- Gender Bias in Health Concerns in India
- Crimes by Juveniles in India
- Plight of women in India
- Caesarean Births in India
- Infant Mortality in India
- Smoking among women in India
- Honour Killings in India
- Problems faced by working women
- Malnutrition Deaths
- Female Foeticide in India
- Sex Workers
- Prostitution in India
- Child Malnutrition in India
- Tuberculosis in India
- Beggary in India
- Flood Management in India
- Gender Gap in India
- Birth Registration in India
- Corruption in Education system in India
- Girl and Women Trafficking in India
- Gender Inequality in India
- Status of Dalits in India
- Crime against Children
- Migration in India
- Colonial Police of Free India!
- Bonded Labour/Bonded Child Labour in India
WBRP06.08.2014
Last Updated on : August 6, 2014
