Tura, April 28: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Friday said his government has been able to not only ensure the well-being but also financially empower the women in the state through two interventions – Self-Help Groups and Safe Motherhood Programme.
Addressing the National Seminar on “Representation of Women of North East India in Multi – Disciplinary Discourse” at Don Bosco College, Tura, he said the government has conceptualized different economic activities to empower the women. Through the SHG movement, he said the government is ensuring that the women are made financially independent.
Insightful discussions in the National Seminar on ‘Representation of Women of North East India in Multi-Disciplinary Discourse’ organised by Don Bosco College, Tura.
Gender diversity & the representation of women in different fields is a subject matter that must take center… pic.twitter.com/Tj2PfSeqlz
— Conrad K Sangma (@SangmaConrad) April 28, 2023
He also informed that Meghalaya is one of the few states in the country where 95 percent of the women from rural areas are part of the Self Help Group movement. He highlighted that there are over 4 lakh women under the SHG movement in the State, which was around 35,000 thousand prior to 2018.
He also brought to the notice of the gathering that the state had instances where young women were at high risk due to child birth without spacing of three years, and some young women even giving birth to more than five children by the age of 23 years. To address this issue, the government came up with the Safe Motherhood Programme.
“So, we had to come up with a solution which is long lasting that ensures the health and well-being of a mother. The Safe Motherhood Programme addresses the concern of the women. We have also introduced intervention that empowers women financially through income generating activities initiated through Self Help Group,” he said while asserting that economic empowerment of women is of paramount concern of the government.
He said the government is working with a positive mindset to provide different opportunities to enable economic empowerment of women. He said that there are different problems confronting women but the government is working with an approach to provide effective solutions to those problems.
“Having a positive mindset does not mean that we overlook the problem. However, we come up with a perspective to address the concern and improve things. It is a challenge but we have to come up with an approach to ensure real change,” he stressed.
The seminar was attended by scholars from different parts of the country, and papers were presented. The seminar saw participation of Education Minister Rakkam A Sangma as well. The keynote address was delivered by Prof Sukalpa Bhattacharjee of NEHU Shillong campus.
Education Minister Rakkam A Sangma, spoke at length on the contribution of women in different fields. He also urged the women to continue to overcome challenges and stand tall in making their contribution to society. He also said that women have better convincing power and their active participation is very important in different sectors.
