The Powerful Women in India - Coursework Example

Running Head: POWERFUL WOMEN IN INDIA Powerful women in India Name Course Instructor Date Abstract Globalization, renewed education systems and technological knowhow are factor that have contributed majorly to the liberalization of women in the world. In particular, India has witnessed the transformation of women’s role from the oppressive traditional ways into contemporary ways that have seen them take up top positions. Women are now actively involved in mainstream politics, business and management. It is however clear that these women, regarded as powerful women in India, have not been without their share of challenges and drawbacks in the aspirations to become leaders among male leaders of the nation. This paper is intended to provide evidence about the participation of Indian women in social and political matters. Its aim is to determine if the powerful women actually do attain the positions by their own efforts or if they are influenced by men. It is divided into three parts; the introductory part gives the general overview of the topic of choice, objectives and scope of the study; the second part is a review of literature which gives evidence of what authors have detailed in literature concerning the issue under question; and the third part is the methodology of the research that was conducted to investigate the research question. THE POWERFUL WOMEN IN INDIA Introduction In the contemporary India, women are becoming more and more prominent. Their conspicuous political and social participation has not gone unnoticed as India has occasionally produced World’s Most Powerful Women exemplified by Sonia Gandhi, the leader of National Congress Party. Besides, political and social affiliations, Indian women have a significant share in business and management. Indeed they have major strides in the corporate ladder giving their male counterparts enormous competition. However, attainment of these successes has not been without its share of challenges and drawbacks. It has been a longstanding fight against a lot of pressures and oppositions. India is considered as a traditional society where cultural value, norms and beliefs still control the lifestyles of its citizens. Traditionally, a woman’s role was in child baring, general house chores and generally assisting the man in making income. She was not in any case supposed to take up leadership roles. On the contrary, the woman’s role in the contemporary Indian society had been radically transformed as she contends with her male counterparts in leadership positions. Increasing globalization and intense technology has ultimately enlightened these women and majorities are totally opposed to gender oppression. It is however, noticeable that women liberation in India has not yet attained the full blown phase as barriers to full participation in social and political matters persist. It is for this reason therefore, that many people have questioned the driving force behind the success of powerful political and social women in India. It is still not clear if they have attained their positions all by themselves or they are controlled by other individuals. This is in light of the fact that women rights in India are still infringed (Menon and Kumar, 2001). Research Question Basu (2008) maintains that, with the status of women across India being subjected to various changes over the past few years, there is need to develop a research question that will give the full representation of Indian women both on political and social status. Therefore the research question is; Do Indian women in high political and social position play a major role within these positions or do other individuals control them thus placing women as images in these positions? Objectives To effectively discuss the research question, the following objectives will be of importance. These objectives are; To determine the current status of women in India To determine both the social and political representation of women across India To determine the role of Indian women in business and management To determine whether women position both socially and politically are influenced by external factors such as culture, history and socioeconomic background To identify factors that affect women political and social positions Rationale of the topic One of the most basic aspects of any given society is the assurance of fair treatment and personal safety for all citizens. Nevertheless, it is quite evident that protecting the rights of various disadvantaged groups such as women, population minorities as well as politically underrepresented citizen is still a challenge in many developing countries with main focus on India. According to Basu (2008), individuals from these groups are frequently subjected to injustices, abuse and discrimination. Many researchers have dealt with the overall representation of women across the society. It is for this reason I choose this research question so as to explore whether Indian women in high position play major role or other people influences the decision they make while in these position. Scope The paper will cover a wide range of issues involved in powerful women across India. Further, it is important to understand the political and social representation of Indian women not only in India but also across the globe. The paper will initialize by a brief introduction which will be followed by a literature review that will assume an in depth analysis of the objectives listed. The report will further illustrate a theoretical study that was conducted to support the research. At the end, recommendations and a brief conclusion will be issued to summarize the paper. Literature Review From equal status with their male counterparts during the ancient times through the low points defined in the medieval era, to the great promotion of equal civil liberties by modern reformers, the history of an Indian woman has been highly eventful. Today, modern Indian has allowed women to adorn high offices including that of a president, speaker of Lok Sabha, prime minister as well as leader of the opposition. Report indicates that as of 2011 the Indian president, leader of opposition and speaker of Lok Sabha are all women. Current status of women in India According to the current Indian constitution, women are considered to be legal citizens and should have equal rights with men. With a male dominated society, India women have and continue to suffer immeasurably. Basu (2008) maintains that, during ancient times, Indian women were responsible for baring children, doing all domestic work as well as being overwork in the field. Today, this is changing as women are taking high position both politically and socially. Women across India participate in activities such as media, art, education, leadership as well as science and technology (Basu, 2008). The constitution of India allows; women equality(Article 14), equal pay for equal work (Article 39(d)), no discrimination by state (Article 15(1)) and equal opportunities (Article 16). Further, the constitution allows various provisions to be made in favor children and women (Article 15(3)). In the 90s, grants from international donor agencies assisted in the creation of women oriented NGOs (Morgan et al, 1995). These NGOs and self help groups have empowered Indian women and also played key role in Indian women rights. In addition many women have emerged to become leaders of various local movements a good example being Medha Patkar of the Narmada Bachao Andolan. 2001 was declared as the year of women empowerment by the Indian government which saw the national policy for the empowerment of women being passed (Basu, 2008). Political representation of women across India According to Deshpande (2004), with its commitment towards protection of individual rights by the Indian democratic state, closer look from other researches indicate that these rights are inaccessible in private and public sectors to all women in India. Deshpande (2004) maintain that, cultural, historical and social factors continue to limit women chances and capacity in exercising their freedom while participating in various political processes. Report indicate that the evolution of Indian democracy displayed in fourteen general elections held reflect a low representation of women in state legislatures, parliament, political parties as well as other decision making organizations. Deshpande (2004) maintain that, this low representation is linked to inferior and low status of women in India. With the gap between female and male literacy narrowing compared to the last decade, there is a large disparity in the representation of Indian women both socially and politically. Report indicates that the issue of women representation in politics was raised in 1917. In the year 1930, women gained the right to vote which originally benefited women from privileged families (Deshpande, 2004). The involvement of women in struggles for civil and political rights has enabled women to get high position both socially and politically. After achieving the right to vote by all Indian women, some women were able to head position as states legislatures, members of parliament as well as leaders of opposition. However, their political representation was considerably low as compared to their male counterparts. Ghatak and Ghatak (2002) maintain that, this was because of the gap which existed between meaningful use of power and the formal idea defined in women political participation. Since the Panchayat Raj institutions, over a million Indian women have actively entered Indian political life. Further, as per the 73rd and 74th India constitution Amendment Acts, all bodies elected need to reserve one third of their seats to Indian women. However, although the percentage of women in various levels of political activities has tremendously risen, women are greatly underrepresented in decision making and governance. July 25, 2007 the country's ever first woman president Pratibha Patil sworn in. This is an utmost achievement in the Indian history (Ghatak and Ghatak, 2002). Social representation of women across India According to Morgan et al (1995), social representation of women across India is defined through feminism. Feminism is a set of movement aimed at defending, establishing and defining equal opportunities and social rights of Indian women. It is in the pursuit of women life, which saw the rise of various women social movement in India. The social representation of women across in Indian is largely influenced by religion (Singh and Hoge, 2010). Hinduism calls for women to be faithful servants to their husbands and God. For instance, the term pativrata describes a wife who has largely accepted devotion and service to her family and husband as her ultimate duty and religion. Families and communities in India are divided into hierarchical systems that are broken down into sex, age and occupation. Usually, when hierarchies emerges based on economic need and social convention, women in poor families suffer more compared to those in richer families the impact of stability an vulnerability (Morgan et al, 1995). From childhood, girls were entitled to less play time, education, food. Girls were supposed to be burden by exhausting responsibility and strenuous work for the rest of their life. Report indicate that most of an average woman life is spent in marriage with girls being married before reaching eighteen which is the legal age. Childbearing as well as raising children are considered to be the key priorities of early adulthood for Indian girls (Singh and Hoge, 2010). Today, social representation of Indian women has change with many women involved in media, art, film making and videotaping. For instance, women in media and filmmaking work through the position allocated to them in pro-autonomy discourse which is relegated to domestic pattern as well as using the same position for resistance. Role of Indian women in business and management Singh and Hoge (2010) maintain that, the percentage of women in business and management in India is roughly 4% to 7% with an approximate percentage of 2% of Indian women manager in various Indian organizations. Nevertheless, about 96% of women workers are in the unorganized sectors with most statistics focus on labor in several organized sectors locking out employees in informal sectors. Deshpande (2004) maintain that, today, the number of girls enrolling for business and managerial courses has grown significantly. Evidently, with more Indian women in labor force, equal rights and various employment laws have enable women in India to engage in business as well as obtain managerial positions (Singh and Hoge, 2010). Deshpande (2004) maintain that, globalization has largely brought an influx of almost all multinational companies to India, with western HR concepts and practices such as gender equality and leadership roles. As management opportunities for women in India increases, women are engaging in professions which were seen to be male dominated faces discrimination and abuse. Regardless of both social and cultural taboos, women in India are able to reach high levels of management (Government of India, 2008). However, it is quite evident that women in management constantly face challenges that are brought about by stereotyping. Study carried out in 2002 on gender stereotype at work indicate that perception of Indian women and stereotyping in work places have significant negative impact on the various positions held by women managers. Singh and Hoge (2010) maintain that, Indian male managers are viewed stereotypically when working in the marketing and production as well as sales departments. In another study carried out in 2005 about women management in new era of economic environment (Indian case), Indian women constantly look for work for personal goals and economic necessity. Women in middle and low socioeconomic status seek for business and management position for income whereas upper class pursues a career for their professional ambition. In India, women with higher education are more careers oriented and are more interested in quickly moving up the organizational leadership ladder (Singh and Hoge, 2010). Factors that affect women political and social positions Government of India (2008) maintains that, the key challenges or factors faced by Indian women in powerful positions are managing both their careers and traditions. Stereotyping is another factor that powerful women face which is largely generated by their female counterparts. Deshpande (2004) maintain that, Indian professional women often receive different treatment thus reinforcing the stereotypical view that they are less important and inferior as compared to male managers (Government of India, 2008). Reports indicate that there exist gender stereotypes in commercial India. Most managerial success is associated with men as compared to women. Indian organizations are noted to lack sensitivity about gender stereotyping through under appreciating women talents and capabilities. Examining on leadership and management skills, men want women to act like then where most men are not contented working for a lady manager (Government of India, 2008). Deshpande (2004) maintain that, changes within Indian economic environment are assisting to shift traditional attitudes about women in business and managerial positions. The need to improve India economic environment have greatly seen the good evolvement on the role of women in India workforce. As a result, it is quite evident that economic changes have increased the importance as well as earning potential of Indian women. With Indian economy growing fast, more individuals are moving from into the middle class thus the need for both husband and wife work to maintain good quality of life (Government of India, 2008). Women are viewed to be best managers and are often pursued strongly by various search organizations. In addition, social changes have opened the possibility of women to enter the workforce. According to Singh and Hoge (2010), these social changes are considered to be in dramatic contrast compared to Indian traditional culture women were expected to raise children and take care of the family. Women social movement across Indian have played major roles in ensuring that women are able to obtain political, business and managerial positions. Methodology Participants Respondents chosen for this particular research were Indian women who acted as managers, pioneers or leaders in political parties, international companies, and non-governmental organizations as well as successful business women. The study was specifically conducted on the Northern region of India which shelters the capital city, New Delhi. The purpose of selecting New Delhi and its environs is because it houses the parliament and headquarters majority of the political parties. Also, being a metropolitan, New Delhi harbors many organizations and companies. Political parties, organizations and companies were selected randomly from all parts of the region. The study was intended to survey at least 100 participants (Vina, 1998). Instruments A comprehensive survey, designed as par recommended practices and procedures of survey’s, was developed to facilitate the study. It comprised of three main parts which utilized the forced-choice and open-ended question formats. The first part was simply a demographic study whose purpose was to provide participants details. Questions formulated for this section gave details concerning age, occupation, years of experience, education background and marital status. The second section of the survey asked participants on their social and political participations in the economy of India. This part asked respondents to identify some of the leadership positions they ever acquired and challenges they faced in attaining the positions. In this section also, a 6-point Likert scale was provided for respondents to rate the extent of women empowerment in India. The third and last part of the survey asked respondents of their motivations towards leadership. This part required that participants identify the reasons why they decided to take up leadership roles amidst massive opposition. In addition, respondents were asked if their success in leadership was self motivated or it was controlled by other people who only used them to pose as mere images. Open ended questions were used and enough space was provided to answer the questions. Pilot study After the survey was fully developed, a pilot study was conducted on 7 women in top political positions and those who headed political parties in the past. Seven top business women and managers and seven executive’s directors of well known social movements and organizations were also included in the pilot study. A copy of the survey, directions and feedback form and a pilot study description letter were sent to each of these participants. The directions and feedback form was aimed at getting the exact time taken for the forms to reach the respondents. It provided space for respondents to give recommendations and comments on areas of the survey that needed improvement. In the letter, respondents were informed that the information collected in the forms would be used to design the final survey and it was completely confidential. All the pilot study surveys were returned well on time implying 100% feedback. Responses thereof were used to develop a new and final survey which was ready for use in the actual survey. Procedure The most appropriate method of conducting this particular study would be mailing as revealed by the pilot study. Thus, postal addresses of all participants were obtained and two copies of the survey mailed to each of them. The survey contained a cover letter with a persuasive statement and was meant to encourage the participants to fill in the survey and a website where participants could view results of the study after completion. Data analysis Serial numbers were assigned to all surveys for easy tracking of returned surveys. Returned surveys were also assigned codes which then entered in a database for data analysis. Double-data entry was done to ensure accuracy. The SPSS software was used for descriptive and inferential analyses. Frequencies, means, percentages and standard deviations were represented in bar graphs and tables. Answers in the open-ended questions were assessed summarized and reported. Results Out of the 100 surveys distributed, 40 were returned. This was a response level of 40% in terms of percentages. Majority of the responses was collected form influential business women and CEO’s of big companies who represented 60% of the return while the remaining 39% was obtained from women in top political positions. 1% of the returns was treated as rejects since the respondents to such returns were deemed unqualified for the survey. That is, they were not among the category of powerful women in India by the fact that they were not popular enough. The entire Northern region was adequately represented. Demographics indicated that the survey was generally conducted on women in their mid age and those in early years of old age. Most of those in mid age were the business category at the range of 40 to 45 years. On the other hand political women and company owners were mostly in their late 50’s. All had attained upper levels of educations with majority having attained doctorate degrees and several honorary degrees. The survey also revealed that most of these powerful women were single or divorcees. Findings In response to the first objective of the study, that is to determine the status of women in India, 70% portrayed a negative impression about the way women are viewed in India. They said that gender oppression and segregation was a major barrier towards women empowerment. Besides, they blamed the situation to religion and culture that continually barred women from taking up powerful positions in the society. 30% on the hand agreed that women were equally treated as men. This was with reference to the communities they came from. In the second, third and fourth objective, to determine if women are appropriately represented in politics, social matters, management and business, 98% declared that there was disproportionate representation of women in these areas. 2% were comfortable with the current representation of women stating that over representation would trigger disputes and conflicts in the nation. In the fourth objective, that is, to determine if social and political representation of women is self influenced or externally influenced, 99% of the women stated that their positions were personally inspired, motivated and controlled. The remaining 1% revealed that they had acquired their positions through the influence of external parties or they were doing so on behalf of others. Discussion Findings of the survey clearly indicates that the role of Indian women in society is greatly undermined which has adversely affected their participation in political, social and business frameworks (Nussbaum, 2003). In fact, powerful women who headed social organizations revealed disturbing statistics that showed that women in India barely take up leadership positions except those with exceptionally outstanding qualities. Clearly, the education system, religion and culture have played a major part in deterring success of women (Sheth et al, 2000). The study explicitly showed that character and attitude has played a key role in the success of the powerful women used in the study. They all demonstrated dynastic, courageous and optimistic attitudes which acted the vehicle to their current status. Self motivation in this depicted by the fact that some of them were single or divorced which implying that they did not rely on male assistance. High education backgrounds also boosted their desires for top positions and gave them confidence to contend with their male counterparts who were also possessed high education qualifications. Results from the likert scale showed that women empowerment in India is still wanting and the government had a lot to do to ensure that women received the same share as men (Bahree, 2006). Conclusion In a bid to equalize men and women rights, women in India are taking up top ranked positions in politics and social matters. India has actually produced World’s Most Powerful Women including the current president of the state. The evidence based research conducted revealed that these women have attained their positions independent from assistance from the male figures. They attribute the success to inner driven motivation and aspirations. Besides that, they have strived to acquire high education certifications and they actually link their successes to this education. However, the research has clearly shown that the India is lagging behind in women empowerment as compared to other developed countries in the world. This is therefore, the reason why the constitution should be revised in order to encourage more women to take up leadership positions. References Menon, S. and Kumar, A.(2001), Women in India:How Free? How Equal?,. Report commissioned by the Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator in India, New Delhi. Vina, M. (1998). Women: From Equality to Empowerment, in Karlekar, Hiranmay, Ed. Independent India, The First Fifty Years. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Nussbaum, M. (2003). Gender and Governance: An Introduction, in Essays on Gender and Governance. New Delhi: Human Development Research Centre (UNDP). Sheth, L., Yadav, Y., Madhu, K. (2000) ‘Enhancing Women’s Representation in Legislatures: an Alternative to the Government Bill for Women’s Reservation’, Manushi, volume 1, Issue 116, p. 435-654. Bahree, M. (2006). India’s most powerful businesswomen. Retrieved on 13th February 2012 from http://www.forbes.com/2006/08/30/power-women-india_cz_mb_06women_0831india.html. Basu, S. (2008). Gender stereotypes in Corporate India: A glimpse. New Delhi: Response Books Deshpande, R. (2004), How Gendered Was Women’s Participation in Election 2004? Economic & Political Weekly, Vol. xxxix No. 51, December 18, P.5431-5436 Ghatak, M and Ghatak, M. (2002). “Recent Reforms in the Panchayat System in West Bengal: Toward Greater Participatory Governance?” Economic and Political Weekly of India 37(1). Government of India. (2008). Study on Elected Women Representatives in Panchayati Raj Institutions. New Delhi :Ministry of Panchayati Raj. Morgan, S. et al. (1995). “Gender inequality and fertility in two Nepali villages,” Population and Development Review 21(3): 541–561. Singh, S and Hoge, G. (2010). Debating Outcomes for ‘Working’ Women – Illustration from India, The Journal of Poverty, 14 (2), 197-215 Read More

On the contrary, the woman’s role in the contemporary Indian society had been radically transformed as she contends with her male counterparts in leadership positions. Increasing globalization and intense technology has ultimately enlightened these women and majorities are totally opposed to gender oppression. It is however, noticeable that women liberation in India has not yet attained the full blown phase as barriers to full participation in social and political matters persist. It is for this reason therefore, that many people have questioned the driving force behind the success of powerful political and social women in India.

It is still not clear if they have attained their positions all by themselves or they are controlled by other individuals. This is in light of the fact that women rights in India are still infringed (Menon and Kumar, 2001). Research Question Basu (2008) maintains that, with the status of women across India being subjected to various changes over the past few years, there is need to develop a research question that will give the full representation of Indian women both on political and social status.

Therefore the research question is; Do Indian women in high political and social position play a major role within these positions or do other individuals control them thus placing women as images in these positions? Objectives To effectively discuss the research question, the following objectives will be of importance. These objectives are; To determine the current status of women in India To determine both the social and political representation of women across India To determine the role of Indian women in business and management To determine whether women position both socially and politically are influenced by external factors such as culture, history and socioeconomic background To identify factors that affect women political and social positions Rationale of the topic One of the most basic aspects of any given society is the assurance of fair treatment and personal safety for all citizens.

Nevertheless, it is quite evident that protecting the rights of various disadvantaged groups such as women, population minorities as well as politically underrepresented citizen is still a challenge in many developing countries with main focus on India. According to Basu (2008), individuals from these groups are frequently subjected to injustices, abuse and discrimination. Many researchers have dealt with the overall representation of women across the society. It is for this reason I choose this research question so as to explore whether Indian women in high position play major role or other people influences the decision they make while in these position.

Scope The paper will cover a wide range of issues involved in powerful women across India. Further, it is important to understand the political and social representation of Indian women not only in India but also across the globe. The paper will initialize by a brief introduction which will be followed by a literature review that will assume an in depth analysis of the objectives listed. The report will further illustrate a theoretical study that was conducted to support the research. At the end, recommendations and a brief conclusion will be issued to summarize the paper.

Literature Review From equal status with their male counterparts during the ancient times through the low points defined in the medieval era, to the great promotion of equal civil liberties by modern reformers, the history of an Indian woman has been highly eventful. Today, modern Indian has allowed women to adorn high offices including that of a president, speaker of Lok Sabha, prime minister as well as leader of the opposition. Report indicates that as of 2011 the Indian president, leader of opposition and speaker of Lok Sabha are all women.

Current status of women in India According to the current Indian constitution, women are considered to be legal citizens and should have equal rights with men.

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