Empowering Women

Slavery and Bondage - the Current State of Women in India

It would be incorrect to say that the Indian society is simply patriarchal (controlled by men). It is worse. In the twenty first century, women in India are enslaved and subjugated to roles that are demeaning.

Indian women have rights just as men. Even an assumed role such as that of a 'house-wife' has to be by choice. Women cannot be forced to doing household chores alone. It is a joint responsibility, that need to be shared by men. Unfortunately, for the vast majority of Indian women, there is no choice. Even when they are to select their life partner, there is a limited choice, and many a times no choice,, Furthermore, a woman has no choice when any major decision that concerns her life has to be taken. This patriarchal control happens at every stage of her life starting from preadolescence.

The Indian patriarchal society systematically breaks down a girl child at an early preadolescent stage. Girls are made to think that they belong to a weaker sex and are inferior to boys. The girls are systematically brought to a state where they lose their sense of individuality, independence and voice. They are made to think that a physically stronger individual can only dominate. This is a kind of abusive sexual behaviour that the girl child gets subjected to by the entire patriarchal society. It is a form of slavery, bondage, sexual abuse, and child molestation, each of seemingly mild nature that is perpetrated over the teenage years in such a manner that the girl slowly begins to accept the abnormal state. After a few years of such bondage, she begins to accept the abnormal state, adjusts herself to the 'new' normal state to meet the expectations of the patriarchal society. She is brain washed to thinking that she is an inferior individual simply because of her sex. In her 'new' normal state, she is willing to perform mediocre roles and she forgets her ambition, independence, freedom and a desire to advance in life. This is the state of over 99.6% of women in India. No. financial independence. Most of them are never paid for the work that they do - usually household chores. The few who work in the industries and commercial establishments are given subordinate job roles that pay lesser than and that are controlled by their male counterparts.

This kind of slavery, bondage, abuse and molestation is actually a criminal offence. Section 354 of the IPC, 1860 deals with force or assault to women with an intent to outrage her modesty. The Supreme court has clarified that the 'essence of a woman's modesty is her sex'. Whoever makes any gesture or any preparation intending or knowing it to be likely to outrage her modesty can be imprisoned for this offence for 1 to 5 years. Our entire patriarchal Indian society is guilty under this Section 354 of the IPC.

Institute for Computer and Communication Technology for Women

At Sankul, we are making sincere attempts to help restore the dignity and modesty of women by empowering them with an education that can make them achieve financial independence.

We realised, that to empower young women, it is necessary to impart education that would enable them to take up a professional that pays well. Two such professions that can be handled well by women are medical and engineering.

We saw an opportunity, in the year 2009, when a newly constructed engineering college was seeking approval from All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). Apparently, the financial body - Charotar Vidya Mandal (CVM)- governing the engineering institute was unable to put together 10 acres of land in a contiguous manner at one location, which was the requirement set out by AICTE for a co-ed institute. However, AICTE offered concessions for a women's institute so that it could be set up on a smaller area - 5 acres of land.

When CVM approached us to help them start the Women's Engineering Institute, realising that it is for a social cause, we readily agreed. I (Dr. Vithal Kamat) joined as a founding Principal of 'Institute of Computer and Communication Technology for Women' (ICCT) and served in that capacity for a period of five years (2009 - 2014). We recall, that that were over 1,500 girl students studying at the institute for the 4 year degree course, when the institute was running in good health.

Hoever, all this changed, when CVM increased the annual fees. Surprisingly this was with the approval of the Fee Regulatory Committee (FRC) set up by the State Government to monitor and keep a tab on excessive fee hikes by self-financed (private) institutes. ICCT was a self-financed institute (SFI). Though the FRC approved fees for ICCT that was lower than other sister co-ed institutes of CVM, both CVM and FRC failed to realise that the increased fees are no longer attractive to the girls eager to take up engineering education.