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Participation of Women in
Panchayati Raj System
Background
For sustainable economic and social development to take place in any
country, it is necessary that people participate in the political
process. Panchayati Raj is not a new phenomenon in India. Its
illustration in history goes back to more than 1000 years. The British
almost destroyed these ancient republics, as well as the involvement of
women in politics. From 2 October 1959 when the first Panchayati Raj
Institution (PRI) was inaugurated in 24 April, 1993 when the 73rd
Amendment Act came into force, it has been an uncertain and undulating
journey for Panchayats (Sahni, S. and Kaul, S., 2009).
In a country like India, where social orientation is based on class,
caste and gender, the picture of deprivation and inequality is
appalling. The women are not considered as a social group. They are
either included with men or totally ignored. In post-independent India,
the Sarada Act provided an impetus to the battle for the rights of
Women. The passing of the Hindu Code Bill, 1955 and the provision of
equal rights for women in the Constitution of India improved the status
of the women. In June 1954, the first post-war all-India organisation of
Women, the National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) was formed in view
of impending socio-political issues. Later, the 73rd constitutional
Amendment Act (1992) created space for women in political participation
and decision-making at the grass root level by providing that 1/3rd of
the seats would be reserved for women all over the country. The 73rd
Constitutional Amendment Act (CAA), 1992 says- “It provides reservations
for women in PRIs set up in two ways; for the office of the members and
for that of the chairpersons”. As per the clause (2) and (3) of article
243(d), not less than one third of the seats meant for direct election
of members at each tier of the Panchayats are to be reserved for the
women.
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Good performance by the elected representatives delivers positive
results, benefiting both the providers (representatives) and the
beneficiaries (the community). The process of getting elected to
institutions of local governance enhances one's self-esteem and steels
the confidence, leading to heightened effectiveness. Greater
participation of women in politics was viewed as dependent not just on
fulfilling the law, but on assuring principles, democratic and
meaningful administration of government. Women needed to know where and
how to direct their concerns so that solutions were found to the
problems women faced.
The article has been organised in two sections. Section II would throw
light in the current status of the women in Panchayati Raj Institution
(PRI) System. Section III would deal with the challenges involved in
women participation in PRI system.
Figure 1:
Interactive Role of Elected Representatives (Yes %)
Status and Quality of Women participation in Panchayati Raj
System
According to the Ministry of Panchayati Raj’s mid-term appraisal of the
‘State of the Panchayats 2006-07’, “No less than 10 lakh women are in
our Panchayati Raj institutions, comprising 37 per cent of all those
elected and rising to as high as 54 per cent in Bihar, which has 50 per
cent reservation for women.”
Increased political accountability to women comes out only from
increasing their numbers amongst decision-makers, although this is
necessary and important. It must also be linked to improved democratic
governance overall, understood as inclusive, responsive and accountable
management of public affairs.
The benchmark generally selected for evaluating women's participation in
politics is their representation in term of numbers or percentages. This
does not facilitate adequate understanding, because representation does
not, in itself, constitute evidence of participation. Thus, several
indicators have been identified for determining the status and quality
of women participation in the local political process.
1. Participation in the Gram Sabha
Participation has been taken as a vital index for the women members to
assess their empowerment in Panchayati Raj Institutions. According to
the 73rd Amendment (Part IX), a Gram Sabha may exercise powers and
perform functions at the village level as provided by laws enacted by
its state legislature.
A large proportion of female is organising and attending the gram sabha
meetings. A study conducted during 2008-2009 by Ministry of Panchayati
Raj showed that a sizeable 93 per cent of male Pradhans reported
performing their primary role of organising and attending the Gram Sabha
meetings. However, smaller in numbers than male Pradhans, a
significantly large proportion of female Pradhans (86 per cent) also
reported executing this important role of being a local Panchayati Raj
functionary.
2. Encouraging Community Participation in Gram Sabha
Elected representatives are expected to create an enabling environment
for the local community, and especially women, to participate in Gram
Sabha meetings, raise questions, interact and present their opinions. In
a study, conducted by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, showed the
attendance in Gram Sabha meetings, which is an important indicator of
the quality of women representatives' participation. The study showed a
low participation of women citizens in Gram Sabha meetings, suggesting
low levels of mobilisation by elected women representatives. About 63
per cent of elected representatives themselves indicated that less than
25 per cent of women participate in the Gram Sabha meetings. This
participation was particularly low in Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Madhya
Pradesh and Goa, but high in Kerala, West Bengal, Karnataka, Assam and
Tripura. The latter category of states has higher levels of political
mobilisation.
3. Interaction with Government Officials
According to the statistics and data (Ministry of Panchayati Raj) the
womenfolk participate in the gram sabha meetings; however, there
persists hesitation when it comes to interaction with the officials
about there problems or developmental works. Sometimes gender disparity
becomes a hindrance towards putting forward their view point. The
all-India figure shows that more than half the total Pradhans maintained
good relations with the local police. By contrast, only 31 per cent of
Ward Members reported interaction with the local police. Among the
elected women representatives, nearly 32 per cent reported regular
interaction with the police, in comparison to 45 per cent of the men
(study conducted by Ministry of Panchayati Raj).
4. Participation in Community Mobilisation
Effective participation is not adequately reflected in statistics on
meeting attendance, but may also be tested by evaluating the elected
representatives in terms of their articulation, openness to discussions,
adopting issues and generally solving problems of the community. They
are more effective when they succeed in mobilising the community about
various developmental issues and thus, create awareness among the
people. A study on the all-India level on community mobilisation on
health-related issues showed that the total of 43 per cent of women
representatives and about 47 per cent of men reported taking part in
health-related campaigns.
Challenges Involved
• Non-cooperation of the male members that they primarily face on the
basis of gender discrimination
• Often, the men of the village do not accord them the respect and
regard that is their due. Officials take advantage of their inexperience
and poor education.
• Effective devolution is so uneven and inadequate that oftentimes, even
the most able women are crippled for want of the rightful allocation of
functions, finances and functionaries without which effective Panchayati
Raj is rendered impossible.
• Elected women members are sometimes used as dolls behind their
husbands or men in the family. In many parts of India, especially in
northern states the husband performs the duties of the women pradhans
and gram sabha members in lieu of the women themselves.
Conclusion
The 73rd Constitution Amendment Act in India focused on political
structures and processes of rural India and vulnerable populations.
Earlier, participation of women in Panchayati Raj Institutions was
questioned in terms of the substance and effectiveness of
representation. Local committees insufficiently represented women. Women
were rarely heads of Panchayats and needed the lower positions to
advance within the system. Thus, the act has been passed to assure
women's representation in Indian Panchayati Raj System. However, women
members of Panchayats needed to be educated and informed about politics:
their rights, the nature of Indian democracy, policies and programmes
for women and the underprivileged and voting rights. Women's centres and
other organisations can serve as catalysts to mobilise women and help
solve political dilemmas.
There are several challenges still that the women are facing in the
local governance system. Rural women were particularly vulnerable as a
group because of strong traditional values maintained in rural areas,
patriarchal families, lack of women's education and access to
information, poor exposure to the "outside" world and lack of power.
A combination of constitutional provisions, government policies, social
action and self awareness among rural women will eventually result in
Indian women becoming part of the mainstream political power sharing and
decision-making. q
References:
Ministry of Panchayati Raj, 2009.Study on EWRs in Panchayati Raj
Institution [PDF]. New Delhi: Ministry of Panchayati Raj. Available at:
http://www.pri.net.in/ver-05/dm-documentsMoPR%20Study
%20on%20EWRs%20in%20 Panchaya ti%20Raj%20Institutions.pdf [Accessed 10th
June 2010]
Kaul, Shashi and Sahni, Shradha,2009. Study on the Participation of
Women in
Panchayati Raj Institution, [online] Available at: <http://www.krepublishers.com/02-
Journals/S-HCS/HCS-03-0-000-09-Web/HCS-03-1-000-09-Abst-PDF/HCS-03-1-029-09-071-Sahni-S/HCS-03-1-029-09-071-Sahni-S-Tt.pdf>[Accessed
10th June 2010]
Polanki, P., 2008. India has most elected women representatives.
Hindustan Times, March 24
Sharma, K, 2009. Reservation works. The Hindu, September 26. Available
at: http://www.hindu.com/mag/2009/09/06/stories/2009090650080300.htm
[Accessed 12th June 2010]
Anuradha Roy
aroy@devalt.org
Footnotes
1 Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929 is popularly known as the Sarda Act,
after its sponsor Rai Sahib Harbilas Sarda to the British India
Legislature in India. The act was passed on 28th September 1929 and it
fixed the age of marriage for girls at 14 years.
2 There are four Hindu code bills passed during 1955-56. As part of the
Hindu Code Bill, the Hindu Marriage Act was enacted by parliament in
1955. The bill fixed the eligibility age of marriage to 21 for
bridegrooms and 18 years for brides.
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