'Indian women must come together to achieve gender equality'

Salma Ansari, wife of Vice President Hamid Ansari, Saturday said that gender equality could only be attained if Indian women, cutting across political, religious and linguistic barriers joined hands to fight for political, economic and social empowerment.

Delivering the keynote address at a workshop at Advanced Centre for Women's Studies at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Ansari contended that the political dispensations are hardly sensitive to the aspirations of women.

Recalling her student days at AMU, she said that the institution has always welcomed new ideas and provided equal opportunities to girl students.

AMU Vice Chancellor Lt. Gen. (retd) Zameer Uddin Shah said that the university will construct a new hall of residence to accommodate 1,500 girls while the I.G. Hall will be handed over to Women's College for accommodating undergraduate girls.

He said that university would provide a grant of Rs.5 lakh for purchase of books for the Women's College library. He asked the girls of Women's College to identify books available in the Maulana Azad Library and they will be delivered to them next day.

Gen. Shah said that he would not tolerate any any act in the varsity that lowered the dignity of the women.

Indu Agnihotri, secretary, Association of Women's Studies, said that Indian women are still facing many problems and equality and gender justice is a major issue today.

Prof. Zakia A. Siddiqui, founder director of the Centre for Women's Studies, recalled that it was set up during the time Hamid Ansari was AMU's vice chancellor.