Issues and Challenges in Empowerment of Women: A Study with Reference to Diary Industry in Dakshina Kannada District

Abstract

Women empowerment implies the ability in women to take decisions with regard to their life and work and giving equal rights to them in all spheres like: personal, social, economic, political, legal and so on. Women empowerment is the much-talked about issue today. Women are increasingly getting empowered to decide the course of their life and professions and realize their fullest potential.

There are two levels of empowerment- Individual and Group Level.

On an individual level we see empowerment as building confidence, insight and understanding, and developing personal skills, for example, being able to analyze situations and communicate more effectively with others. Being empowered presupposes some level of common sense and emotional maturity and access to appropriate information and know how; it also implies someone who cares about others and is tolerant of other's views and behavior.

Within a group or community, empowerment can be taken to involve building trust, co-operation and communication between members, and a prerequisite for this is that there are appropriate structures, protocols and procedures in place, with effective sanctions against those who default or abuse the system. There must be opportunities for people to meet and exchange views and opinions, and ways of recording what is agreed and done; and there must be scope for having fun and celebrating achievement.