Law and order has improved in UP but not 100% safe for women yet: Guv Patel

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The Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel on Thursday said that the law and order situation has improved in the state but there was still time before it could be termed as "100 per cent safe for women".

She said that she hoped a day would come when women would debate in the Parliament while their husbands would wait for them at home after preparing a meal.

"We must check within our families if we are ready to give rights to women. In Panchayats, despite women becoming gram pradhans, the decisions are still being made by the men in their families," the governor said.

"During functions, I always ensure that women pradhans sit on their designated seats. There are many women pradhans who are aware and are taking decisions independently, the Governor said during an interaction with reporters at the Lucknow Raj Bhavan on Thursday.

The Governor's remarks came in response to a query if the society and political parties were willing to change their approach towards women especially after the women reservation bill was passed.

"The fact is that before the BJP government came to power in UP, it was difficult for women to venture out after 5 pm. This situation was in stark contrast to Gujarat where women move freely even at midnight. Now the situation in UP has much improved on the law and order front too. But if you ask if the state is 100% safe, then I will say that there is still some work to do," she said.

The governor refused to comment on a query seeking her take on growing temple-mosque' disputes in the state.

During the interaction, she defended her speech at a convocation event in Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti Language University in Lucknow when she credited Vedic-era sage Bharadwaj and not Wright Brothers for having conceptualized the idea of an aircraft.

She said, "Yes, that's true. Our scriptures do tell us about Maharishi Bharadwaj and the fact that sages and scholars of ancient India made remarkable discoveries. We need to study those."  She referred to a research paper presented at the 102nd Indian Science Congress in 2015 that claimed that Shivkar Bapuji Talpade had flown a flying machine over Chowpatty in 1895, eight years before the Wright Brothers.

The paper, Governor referred to, also claimed that aeroplanes existed in India 7,000 years ago and were capable of travelling between countries and even planets.

When asked about the higher education scenario and the issue of meritorious students migrating out of UP to states like Maharashtra and Karnataka, she said, Things have improved but it would take five years for a complete turnaround. Seven UP universities have now got A++ in NAAC ratings, four have got A+ and one university has got A grade. As many as 16 universities from the state are now ranked higher in National Institute of Ranking Framework 2024."  She further added that she continues to share the concerns faced by people with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and they are resolved promptly.