Often referred to as ‘madam’ or ‘aapa’ by her party workers and candidates, Nowhera Shaik has been in the news ever since she floated her own political party . The All India Mahila Empowerment Party, better known as MEP, announced that it would contest the upcoming assembly elections in Rajasthan along with Mizoram, chhattisgarh , Madhya Pradesh , Telangana . Also Promised to solve the major problems of Rajasthan
Major Problems in Rajasthan – At glance:
Unemployment:
Unemployment is certainly the biggest issue in the RajasthanLack of innovation and entrepreneurship skills though Rajasthan known to be famous for marwari business familles but they are involved in traditional business which needs to be changed according to the changing times.A Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report tabled in the Rajasthan Assembly in September had pointed that just 37.45 per cent of the placements provided by the Rajasthan Skill and Livelihoods Development Corporation RSLDC) between 2014 and 2017 were genuine.
Farmer distress:
Around 60 per cent of workers in Rajasthan depend on agriculture for a livelihoodFalling prices and weak government procurement are adding to the woes of the farmers. Low minimum support price for some crops further puts them in financial distress. In May 2018, five farmers in the Hadoti region in the state had committed suicide after garlic prices hit a record low because of a bumper crop
Law and order:
Rajasthan is not ignorant to mob lynching in the name of cow vigilantismAlbell Rajasthan became the second state after Madhya Pradesh in the country earlier this year to have promulgated a law to hand out the death penalty to child rapists, the state has been drawing criticism over the rising sexual crimes targeting minors. Law and order has collapsedThere is social disharmony with cases of mob lynching cow vigilantism and social unrest on the rise. The kind of negativity that is being spread in society
Drinking water:
Yes, scarcity of water is one of the most serious problems in RajasthanIn June this year, Rajasthan had ranked low in a Niti Aayog report. As per the report, just 44 per cent of Rajasthan’s rural habitations were “fully covered” by drinking water supplyOn the basis of the report, Rajasthan was urged to improve the access rate and the quality of drinking water in rural habitations. Rajasthan is a largest state of India by area. It is also the driest state. So eventually when there is scarcity of water there is less progress. You can also see it as water is directly propotional to economical progress or growth. Without water there is no agriculture and without agriculture the lands are becoming barren. Hence scarcity of water is one of the most common problem faced by rajasthan
Child Marriage:
Prevalence of girl child marriage is found more common in rural areas than urban areas, Education and wealth index of the households are significantly related to child marriage amongst girls in IndiaPoorer the households, higher the chance of girls getting married early, the report analyses. In Rajasthan child marriage in rural areas is 89.4% while in urban areas it is 10.6%.
Silicosis problem in Rajasthan:
Silicosis has emerged at epidemic level in Rajasthan due to exponential growth in the mining sectorinadequate Governmental policies, and poor implementation of the laws of the landA study in 1992-94 carried out by the DMRCJodhpur reported that 9.95% sandstone workers. have silicosisAs many as 7,959 silicosis cases were detected in Rajasthan between January 2015 and February 2017and in the same period, 449 people died of the disease in five districts.
Female Foeticide in Rajasthan: Social Issue
Female foeticide is the abortion of a female foetus, after sex determination test, outside of legal methods. Female foeticide has been linked to the arrival, in the early 1990sof affordable ultrasound technology and its widespread adoption in India. By one of the estimate since 1990, more than 10 million female fetuses may have been illegally aborted in India and 500,000 girls were being lost annually due to female foeticide .
Female Foeticide in Rajasthan
Female foeticide is commonly practiced across the Rajasthan and female infanticide is also common especially in districts like JaisalmerThe archaic social structure has always given preference to males over females in the state: Unit recent times, the state had high maternal mortality rate of 445 per 100,000 live births. The birth of a girl child meant bad news, this was mainly due to the hefty dowry system prevalent in the state
A countrywide study conducted by Sabu MGeorge, revealed that the ultrasound machines were luring even the tribal population in the States like Rajasthan. As a result of that a steep decline of over 75 points in sex ratio at birth has been reported during a period from 1991-2001 in urban areas of GanganagarBanswara and Sirohi in Rajasthan
Child-Sex Ratio in Rajasthan.
The child sex ratio is an important indicator of discrimination against the girl child, whereas the sex ratio in the entire population is a key indicator of serious societal problems at large, especially gender discrimination over the life cycle of an infant girl, the girl child, the adolescent girl and the woman. Since, for biological reasons, women in all societies live longer than mere the natural expectation is that the share of women in the population will be larger than 50%. However, the child sex ratio (number of females for every 1,000 male children in 0-6 age group) dropped from
Child Marriage in Rajasthan :
India continues to struggle when it comes to social evil of child marriageOur country is home to the largest number of child brides, accounting for one-third of the global distribution of child brides. A new report Factsheet Child Mamages 2019 released by the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (Unicef) state that although child marriages in India have declined, a few states like Bihar, West Bengal and Rajasthan continue to carry on with the harmful practice with nearly 40 per cent prevalence of child marnages. This post looks at this social issue with focus on Rajasthan
What is Child Marriage?
The Prohibition of Child MarriageAct of 2006which applies to all Indians except the state of Jammu and Kashmir and the renoucants of the union territory of Puducherry defines child marriage as a marriage to which either of the contracting parties is a child and and child for purposes of marriage is defined based on gender of the person Le
- If a male, it is 21 years of age,
- If a female, 18 years of age
UNICEE defines child marriage as any formal marriage or informal union between a child under the age of 18 and an adult or another child
State of Child Marriages in Rajasthan
According to National Family Health Survey 2015-16, there has been a decline in prevalence of child marriage from 47 per cent (2005-06) to 27 per cent (2015-16)Despite a decline in number of girls getting married in India before the age of 18, nearly 1.5 million girls in India are child brides.
In 2018,National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) released a report on India Child Marriage & Teenage Pregnancy, based on NFHS-4 (2015-15)Important Facts regarding Child Marriages in Rajasthan from report are :
- Prevalence: Rajasthan has 16.2% prevalence of child marriage which is very high compared to the national average of 11.9%
- Trend: Although, State has recorded more than 20% reduction in child marriages, but it still ranks among the top 12 states(NFHS 4VS3)
- Rural vs Urban: Prevalence of girl child marriage is found more common in rural areas than urban areas. In Rajasthan child marriage in rural areas is 89.4% while in urban areas it is106
- Caste: In Rajasthan the other backward classes (OBC) leads with 55% followed by SC at 22% and ST at 15% while other castes 7%
- Wealth: Wealth index of the households is significantly related to child marriage amongst girls in India. Poorer the households, higher the chance of girls getting married early
- Education: There is a correlation between early child marriage and the educational attainment of girls with higher education delaying marriage
- Secondary Education: Rajasthan comes at the third position in the lowest secondary completion rate by states amongst married girls in the age group of 15-19 years.
- Districts: Rajasthan’s 10 disctricts rank in the top 100 districts in country with high prevalance of child marriages. These are
1. Bhilwara – 36.4%
2. Chittorgarh – 33.1%
3. Rajsamand
4. Sawai madhopur
5. Bundi
6. Tonk
7. Karauli
8. Ajmer
9. Alwar
10. Jodhpur
Reasons of Child Marriage :
While the roots of the practice vary across socities and culturespoverty, lack of educational opportunities and limited access to health care perpetuate it .
- Some families marry their daughters off early to reduce their economic burden or earn income
- Some believe that it will secure their daughters’ futures or protect them.
- Safety of the girl child from sexual violence and the inability of parents to guarantee such safety. There is a belief that marriage is a protection for girls against unwanted male attention and promiscuity. Early marriage is a way to ensure chastity and virginity of the bride.
- Lack of education and awareness about the consequences of child marriage.
- Poor implementation of the law and lack of will and action on the part of the administration.
Consequences of Child Marriage
High maternal deaths: Girls who marry earlier in life are less likely to be informed about reproductive issues and because of this, pregnancy-related deaths are known to be the leading cause of mortality among married girls between 15 and 19 years of age.
Infant Mortality: Early marriage resulting in early motherhood means placing both the young mother and her baby at risk. It lead to increase in the rate of infant mortality and birth of babies who have low birth weight, malnutrition and anaemia.
Violence: Young girls in a child marriage are more likely to experience domestic violence in their marriages as opposed to older women.
Trafficking: Marriage is also often used as the first step to trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation, forced labour or any other purpose. Continued preference for son leads to female foeticide resulting in fall in the number of girls, available for marriage and hence buying of young brides, particularly in states with a skewed sex ratio.
Education: Early child marriage violates the child’s right to education Children remain illiterate and unskilled, which in turn limits their opportunities for economic employment and economic independence as an adult.
Child marriage denies children their basic rights to good health, nutrition, education, and freedom from violence, abuse and exploitation