Vice Prez Naidu pitches for greater representation of women in

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Friday pitched for greater representation of women in Parliament and state legislatures.

Ahead of International Women's Day on March 8, Naidu lamented that gender equality and women safety remained elusive despite women achieving remarkable feat, and advocated for a change in mindset of the society, supplemented by educational and employment avenues for women.

"Women should be provided with enough opportunities to serve as legislators in the state legislatures and Parliament. They also need to be included and consulted in every fora for policy formulation and implementation," Naidu said in Rajya Sabha.

Naidu emphasised that the founding fathers had enshrined in the Constitution the ideals of gender equality and women empowerment as fundamental to achieving equal rights and dignity for all.

As soon as the House assembled for the day, Naidu said greater participation of women in legislatures will ensure outcomes which are sensitive to their needs and provide ample opportunities for them to prosper and contribute to nation building.

"Today, despite women registering remarkable progress on all fronts, gender equality and women safety still remain elusive. Crime against women are on the rise, the panacea for which lies not only in increasing the quality of policing and tweaking the criminal justice system but also challenging the deep-seated mindset prevalent in our society," he said.

Change in the mindset of the society needs to be supplemented by better healthcare, educational and employment avenues for women, he added.

Naidu, who is also the chairman of the Upper House of Parliament, said women in the country have come a long way to make their presence felt at national and international levels.

"From being an affectionate and caring mother to a fighter jet pilot; from heading an MNC to scaling insurmountable mountain peaks, women can be seen challenging the prevalent prejudices and stereotypes and successfully overcoming them," he said.

Underlining that women have excelled be it politics, poetry, sports or business, Naidu said, "It is our duty to keep up this momentum and continue building upon the progress achieved by women."