Women Empowerment Initiatives Launched by Current Government: Shandil

Shimla, April 20 : The present government has initiated several schemes for the empowerment of women, including providing equal rights to daughters along with sons, stated senior Congress leader and Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Dhani Ram Shandil, in a press statement released here today.

Dr. Shandil mentioned that the current state government has launched numerous schemes aimed at empowering women and bringing them to the forefront of society, enabling them to lead dignified lives.

He stated that as part of fulfilling its electoral promises, the state government has initiated the “Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Sukh Samman Nidhi Yojana” for girls and women aged over 18 years. Under this scheme, each eligible individual is provided with a monthly pension of Rs. 1500. The process of filling out the forms for this scheme has commenced, and women have already started benefiting from it.

The Congress leader further highlighted that the previous BJP government had repeatedly approached the Election Commission to deprive women of their rights and had stalled pension disbursements. He mentioned that previously, around 2.42 lakh women were receiving a monthly social security pension of Rs. 1000 or Rs. 1150, which has now been increased to Rs. 1500 by the current state government, and the distribution of this amount has commenced.

Dr. Shandil also emphasized that the state government has increased the reservation for women in police recruitment from 25% to 30%. He added that previously, under the Himachal Pradesh Ceiling on Land Holding Act, 1972, daughters were considered separate entities within the family, leading to discrimination against them. However, the current government has amended this Act to treat daughters as separate units and eliminate discrimination against them.

Regarding educational empowerment, Dr. Shandil informed that the government is initiating the “Chief Minister Sukh-Shiksha Yojana,” under which the state government will bear the educational expenses of children up to the age of 27 years whose mothers are widows, destitute, divorced, or disabled. He mentioned that eligible children will receive Rs. 1000 per month deposited into their accounts until they reach the age of 18 years.

The Health Minister also announced that under the “Widow and Single Women Housing Scheme,” the amount for home construction has been increased from Rs. 1.5 lakh to Rs. 3 lakh. Additionally, the government has increased the honorarium for Anganwadi workers, Mini Anganwadi workers, Anganwadi assistants, ASHA workers, Mid-Day Meal workers, and sewing teachers.