India's G20 presidency underscores tectonic shift in perception about women's contribution to nation and societies: Smriti Irani
India's G20 presidency has brought to the fore a «tectonic shift» in how women are to be perceived as ones who stand shoulder to shoulder with men as contributors to their countries and societies, Union minister Smriti Irani said on Tuesday Addressing a gathering at the Mahatma Mandir convention centre here after inaugurating the G20 EMPOWER summit, Irani said what women today are ensuring is that their contribution to economies and social fabrics of nation-states is counted for and is on a par with men. The four-day event will also have G20 Ministerial Conference on Women Empowerment between August 2-4.
«As a proud Indian today not only do I complement India's presidency which has brought to the fore a tectonic shift in how women are to be perceived, that we are not those who seek the refuge of benevolence, that we stand shoulder to shoulder, head to head with men as contributors to our countries, to our societies,» she said. The Union Minister for Women and Child Development, and Minority Affairs said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has thus brought «the women-led agenda to the main stage of India's G20 presidency».
«Since we know what it feels like being disenfranchised, since we know what it feels like to be stripped of the so-called privileges, we would not like them (men) to suffer the same,» she said. Irani said it was Gujarat, the state hosting the event, was the first to witness how industry and self-help groups were brought together «so that women at the grassroots also had traction within the manufacturing part of the economy».
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