mid-day opinion: India’s women are safer and stronger than ever

I wasnrsquot too fussed about the Womenrsquos Reservation Bill being defeated in the Lok Sabha after failing to secure a twothirds majority For the few who missed the Prime Ministerrsquos passionate erudite performance explaining why it failed to pass the bill was aimed at providing 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament and state assemblies I wasnrsquot worried because this is a debate that has been going on for almost three decades now It just felt like a temporary setback that would eventually be resolved within the next 30 yearsAnother reason for my nonchalance was the belief that life has never been better for women in India Everywhere one looks there are signs of empowerment and success Women smile wherever they go They are calm collected safe and happy to be in India I donrsquot go by any official statistics while making these claims but Irsquom sure they would concur with my observations Statistics mean little in todayrsquos India anyway and I think of them as distractions that get in the way of a more optimistic picture I believe that is also official government policyDonrsquot take my word for it though Ask most Indian men if things are going well for Indian women and they will agree Consider the corporate space for example where almost every major firm has at least one woman in middle management A month ago a report by a provider of data on the capital markets stated that women now made up around 5 per cent of managing directors or chief executive officers This may sound like a dismal figure until one realises that this is pretty much the norm in Europe as well as the Americas which means India is starting to look a lot like the West In my view that makes it a statistic worth celebratingThen therersquos education It may seem as if therersquos a significant gender gap here too but according to the last report published by the World Economic Forum in 2024 Indiarsquos ranking in the Global Index had slipped by just two positions to 129 out of 146 countries This means that Indian women have it better than 17 other countries which also counts as a win in my book If we continue to make progress at this astonishing rate who is to say we wonrsquot have an educated woman in charge of Indiarsquos education ministry If that happens it will only be the second such occurrence since the late Sheila Kaul occupied that positionWomen also arguably feel safer than ever in todayrsquos India despite what data from the National Crime Records Bureau may say According to its latest report on crime against women there were just 448211 cases registered nationwide in 2023 up marginally from the previous two years That may sound like a lot but the figure is probably a lot lower than crimes registered in Afghanistan Syria the Democratic Republic of Congo or SomaliaReservations imply the need for some perceived gap to be filled the righting of what appears to be wrong That doesnrsquot seem to be the case in Parliament despite an overwhelming majority of men because a lot of these men have been accused of crimes against women One of the smartest things that one of our major political parties does is habilitate these alleged criminals keeping them off the streets and making life easier for women outside Bringing in more women means fewer seats for these troubled men which doesnrsquot seem like a smart decisionWe need to do more to change how people look at women in India for which we need to start rewriting the popular narrative We need to stop focusing on minor issues such as gender inequality economic dependence wage disparities patriarchal norms domestic abuse sexual harassment a strong preference for male children workplace harassment poor healthcare digital misogyny social stigma or societal expectations and start talking about the bigger pictureA country thatrsquos growing as fast as India should be worried about things like hosting a World Cup not debating bills about whether we need more women in Parliament Itrsquos why I think women should start playing a more active role in helping us all propagate this message They may not be represented in Parliament but nothing stops them from broadcasting positive messages on social media even if they arenrsquot necessarily true Perception is all and if the Prime Minister can spend every waking hour doing this I donrsquot see why ordinary Indians canrsquotWhen he isnrsquot ranting about all things Mumbai Lindsay Pereira can be almost sweet He can be contacted at wwwlindsaypereiracomSend your feedback to mailbagmiddaycomThe views expressed in this column are the individualrsquos and donrsquot represent those of the paper