Issues in Women's Development - Hardcover

In a developing country like India, women are the most important national resource, as half of the population constitutes women. Despite successive decades of activism and a large number of movements and legislation in the country, the efforts at improving the status of women have not been successful and women continue to suffer social and physical stigmas. This book contains research conducted among the Maharashtrian women in India's city of Pune. It examines issues - sociocultural, educational, economic, and political - and the role of mass media in women's development. Women who attain an education and better economic status are found to be developing new and modern outlooks and opinions. They have started to question the traditional image of a submissive Indian woman, moving away from this image by asserting their rights through participation in the decision-making process within the family - opposing many traditional customs, beliefs, and practices; having a positive attitude towards role fluidity between husband and wife; and striving for education, employment, economic independence, political participation, etc.