The changing status of women in West Bengal, 1970-2000 : the challenge ahead

265 Pages·2005·5.66 MB·English

by  Dutta Gupta

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Copyright © West Bengal Commission for Women, 2005
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by
any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
First published in 2005 by
Sage Publications India Pvt Ltd
B-42, Panchsheel Enclave
New Delhi 110017
Sage Publications Inc. Sage Publications Ltd
2455 Teller Road 1 Oliver’s Yard, 55 City Road
Thousand Oaks, California 91320 London EC1Y SP
Published by Tejeshwar Singh for Sage Publications India Pvt Ltd, phototypeset in 10 pt
Times New Roman by Star Compugraphics Private Limited and printed at Chaman
Enterprises, New Delhi.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
The changing status of women in West Bengal, 1970–2000: the challenge ahead/edited by
Jasodhara Bagchi.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Women—India—West Bengal. I. Bagchi, Jasodhara.
HQ1744.W47C42 305.4'0954'14—dc22 2004 2004017646
ISBN: 0–7619–3242–9 (HB) 81–7829–377–3 (India–HB)
Sage Production Team: Shweta Vachani, Sushanta Gayen and Santosh Rawat
(cid:5)(cid:14)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:3)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:13)
List of Tables 7
List of Charts 10
Foreword by Vina Mazumdar 11
Acknowledgements 12
Introduction by Jasodhara Bagchi 14
A. Sectoral Essays
Chapter 1 Demography 21
Nirmala Banerjee and Mukul Mukherjee
Chapter 2 Health and Nutrition 34
Maitreya Ghatak
Chapter 3 Education 49
Jasodhara Bagchi and Jaba Guha
Chapter 4 Economic Empowerment 71
Ishita Mukhopadhyay
Chapter 5 Political Participation 81
Vidya Munshi
Chapter 6 Culture 96
Malini Bhattacharya
Chapter 7 Law and Violence against Women 111
Manjari Gupta and Ratnabali Chattopadhyay
Chapter 8 Tribal Women 130
Anuradha Chanda
B. Appendices: Micro Studies and Statistics
Appendix A Tables on Demography 145
Appendix B Tables on Health and Nutrition 148
6 The Changing Status of Women in West Bengal, 1970–2000
Appendix C Education
C1: Micro Study on Participation of SC/ST Girls in Professional (Teachers’ Training) Education 159
Kamal Kumar Chattopadhyay and Dipali Nag
C2: Education of Muslim Women in West Bengal 166
Ratnabali Chattopadhyay
Appendix D Status of Women with Respect to Work: Report of Primary Surveys in Bankura and Hoogli 173
Ishita Mukhopadhyay
Appendix E Political Participation
E1: List of Women Lok Sabha MPs from West Bengal (1952–2000) 181
E2: List of Women Rajya Sabha MPs from West Bengal (1952–2000) 182
E3: List of Women MLAs in West Bengal (1952–2000) 183
Appendix F A Micro Survey of the Status of Women Rural Artists of West Bengal 186
Malini Bhattacharya
Appendix G A Report on Findings from a Study of Women’s Status in Birbhum District of West Bengal 193
Atis Dasgupta and Suraj Bandyopadhyay
Policy Recommendations 243
Select Bibliography 250
Index 259
About the Editor and Contributors 264
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1.1 Select Demographic Characteristics of West Bengal and India, 1971–2001 22
1.2 Percentage Distribution of Population by Age Group, 1981 and 1991 23
1.3 Relative Sex-ratios of West Bengal and India 25
1.4 Female–Male Ratio in the Total Population of West Bengal, 1971–2001 25
1.5 Sex-ratio by Community—West Bengal and All-India, 1991 26
1.6 Child Sex-ratio—India and States, 1971–2001 26
1.7 Life Expectation at Birth (years)—West Bengal and India 27
1.8 Vital Rates—West Bengal and India, 1981 and 1991 27
1.9 Infant and Child Mortality—West Bengal and India, 1991 and 1998–99 29
1.10 Distribution of Male and Female Population by Age Group and Marital Status, 29
India and West Bengal, 1981 and 1991
1.11 Mean Age at Marriage, West Bengal and India 1971 to 1998–99 30
1.12 Age-specific Fertility Rates, West Bengal and India 31
1.13 Literacy and Associated Indicators Relating to Ever-Married Women Aged 13–49 Years, 1992–93 32
2.1 Projected Values of Expectation of Life at Birth by Sex 35
2.2 Sex-ratio (Females per 1,000 Males) from 1901 to 2001 in India and 15 Major States 36
2.3 Sex-ratio (Females per 1,000 Males) of Population Aged 0 to 6 Years in India and 15 Major States,
1961 to 2001 37
2.4 Nutritional Status by Sex among Children in West Bengal and India and the Percentage Classified as
Under-nourished in NFHS-1 and 2 (1992–93 and 1998–99) 39
2.5 Nutritional Status (Weight for Age) of Children by Sex in West Bengal in September 2000 as Reported
by Anganwadi Centres 39
2.6 Retrospective Study of Pregnancies in a Subdivisional Hospital in West Bengal 41
2.7 Percentage Distribution of Women Practising ‘Modern Methods’ by Type 43
2.8 Awareness among Men between 20 and 54 Years and Women between 15 and 44 Years about RTI, STI
and HIV/AIDS in India and 15 States 45
2.9 Medical Termination of Pregnancies in West Bengal, 1972–73 to 1998–99 46
3.1 Literacy Rate in India and in 15 Major States by Sex 51
3.2 Literacy among Males and Females in Districts of West Bengal, 1991 Census 52
3.3 Enrolment by Stages: Percentage and Rank of Girls in India and Four Major States 53
3.4 For Every 100 Boys and 100 Girls Enrolled in Class I, the Number Enrolled in Classes V and VIII 54
3.5 Proportion (per 1,000) of Never Enrolled Persons (5–24 Years) and Their per 1,000 Distribution
by Reason for Non-enrolment (Rural) 56
8 The Changing Status of Women in West Bengal, 1970–2000
3.6 Average Expenditure (in rupees) per Male and Female Student of Age 5–24 Years Pursuing General
Education by Board Level of Education in India and 15 Major States (Urban) 57
3.7 Average Expenditure (in rupees) per Male and Female Student of Age 5–24 Years Pursuing General
Education by Board Level of Education in India and 15 Major States (Rural) 57
3.8 Level of Education Completed as Proportion of Relevant Population in West Bengal 59
3.9 Jadavpur University Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) Admissions (1970–71 to 1999–2000) 60
3.10 Jadavpur University Master of Arts (M.A.) Admissions (1970–71 to 1999–2000) 61
3.11 Jadavpur University Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) Admissions (1970–71 to 1999–2000) 61
3.12 Jadavpur University Master of Sceince (M.Sc.) Admissions (1970–71 to 1999–2000) 62
3.13 Jadavpur University Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.) Admissions (1970–71 to 1999–2000) 62
3.14 Jadavpur University Master of Engineering (M.E.) Admissions (1970–71 to 1999–2000) 63
3.15 Examination Results in Higher Studies, West Bengal (1999–2000) 64
3.16 Admission to Polytechnics, West Bengal (1999–2000) 64
3.17 Admissions in ITIs in West Bengal (1999–2000), One-Year Engineering Trades 66
3.18 Admissions to ITIs in West Bengal (1999–2000), Two-Year Engineering Trades 68
4.1 Economic Participation and Decision Making Index in West Bengal 73
4.2 Marginalization of Female Labour from 1981–2001 73
4.3 Female Work Participation Rates from 1991–2001 74
4.4 Per 1,000 Distribution of Usually Working Persons in the Usual Category taken together
by Board Industry Division 75
4.5 Occupational Sex-ratios in the Districts 76
4.6 Rural–Urban Female Participation in Household Activities 77
4.7 Proportion of Informal Sector Female Workers 78
4.8 Increase in Number of Female Non-agricultural Sector Workers (1991–2001) 78
4.9 Daily Wages for Casual Workers in Public Works (1999–2000) 79
4.10 Daily Wages for Casual Workers Not in Public Works (1999–2000) 79
5.1 Zilla Parishad Election, 1993 84
5.2 Panchayat Samiti Election, 1993 84
5.3 Gram Panchayat Election, 1993 85
5.4 Reservation Pattern of Office-bearers in Three-tier Panchayats, 1998 85
5.5 Scheduled Caste Women in Panchayat Bodies Members 86
5.6 Representation of Women Members from First to Thirteenth Lok Sabha 87
5.7 Women MLAs from West Bengal, 1971–96 88
5.8 Women Ministers in West Bengal Government 88
5.9 Participation of Women in Eight Leading Political Parties 89
5.10 Membership of Women’s Organizations of Eight Leading Parties 89
6.1 Productions that have Increased Women’s Visibility in Theatre, 1975–99 100
6.2 Representation of Women’s Issues in Bengali Films, 1975–2000 102
6.3 Enrolment in the Government Art College, Calcutta (1981–2000) 108
6.4 Record of Exhibitions Held at the Academy of Fine Arts (1975–99) 109
6.5 Record of Exhibitions Held at the Birla Academy (1975–99) 109
7.1 Laws Relating to Women Enacted since 1947 113
7.2 Types of Violence against Women 115
7.3 Ranking of Districts According to Incidence of Crimes against Women in 1999 116
7.4 Crimes against Women in West Bengal (Excluding Kolkata) 117
7.5 Crimes against Women in Kolkata 117
List of Tables 9
7.6 Percentage of Women Who Agree with the Reasons Given for Justifying a Husband Beating
His Wife in West Bengal, 1998–99 120
7.7 Percentage of Ever-married Women Who Have Been Beaten or Physically Mistreated by Their Husbands,
In-Laws, or Other Persons since Age 15 in West Bengal, 1998–99 121
7.8 District-wise Incidence and Rate of Sexual Assaults against Women in West Bengal in 2000 122
7.9 Introduction of the Respondents 125
7.10 Occupation/Role in Decision Making/Assistance in Household Work 125
7.11 Exposure to Violence 126
7.12 Working Outside Home—Wages and Other Facilities 126
7.13 Marital Status and Family Planning 127
7.14 Litigation Arising Out of Marriage 127
7.15 On Maintenance and on Maintaining Others 127
7.16 Property Laws 127
7.17a Awareness of Laws on Child Marriage and Dowry Prohibition 128
7.17b Awareness of Land Laws 128
7.17c Awareness of Law—on Panchayat and Other Activities 128
8.1 District-wise Distribution Pattern of the Tribes of West Bengal 131
8.2 Distribution of Families and Population in 1978 and 1993 133
8.3 Distribution of Tribal Families and Population 133
8.4 Percentage of ST Girl Students Enrolled in Different Stages of School (1973–93) 134
8.5 Sex-wise Enrolment to Total Enrolment in West Bengal 134
8.6 State-wise Percentage of ST Girls Enrolled at Various School Stages in West Bengal 134
8.7 District-wise Percentage of ST Females in Total ST Population according to Different 136
Workgroups (1981–91)
8.8 Sex-wise Percentage Distribution of Scheduled Tribe Workers 137