CSR ‘Best Practices’ Meet provides some practical answers to the huge gender challenges in Northern states
It would be no surprise to anyone that the states of Punjab, Haryana and HP face huge gender-related challenges. However, what is surprising is that not enough positive action has been witnessed; in fact, the reality is that this issue is usually brushed under the carpet.
Based on the strong hypothesis that gender discrimination can hinder the pace of development, Growth-For-All worked with CII to assemble a strong panel of speakers to focus on finding practical answers that could be supported and endorsed by CII members. Prof. Pam Rajput( Executive Director, Women’s Resource & Advocacy Center) anchored a spiritied discussion that went way beyond normal expectations. While Mr Anurag Agrawal( IAS; and author of a path-breaking book on the ‘missing girl child) emphasised the need to capture data and build case histories in order to sensitise people, Mr Subhash Mendhapurkar of NGO, Sutra, provided fascinating insights from HP. Dr Ashish Banerjee(Director, Fortis Hospital) & Mr Rajat Ray( UNFP) spoke about successful experiences with women in work-force, and the need for effective communication strategies.
What can corporates do to start making a difference?
The Panel came up with simple, elegant, and practical suggestions that corporates can start with. That corporates should hire more women, and focus on gender diversity was one clear answer.( In fact, Dr Banerjee provide a ringing endorsement when he said quite simply, ” women work better”). The other, equally-simple answer was that corporates should track the health and nutrition standards of their workers’ spouses as a routine practice, thereby driving widespread sensitization and awareness. Likewise, corporates are in a position to monitor incidences of domestic violence as well. Finally, corporates -especially those running factories - can create awareness about gender issues in their immediate neighbourhoods.
