Boys to study home science? That’s what the women and child development ministry wants
The draft National Policy for Women, 2017 proposes that the HRD ministry redesign school curriculum to promote gender sensitivity as well as make home science and physical education compulsory for both girls and boys.
Boys may have to compulsorily study home science at schools if a draft proposal prepared by the Women and Child Development Ministry is approved by the Union Cabinet.
The draft National Policy for Women, 2017, approved recently by a group of ministers has been sent to the Cabinet, according to a ministry spokesperson.
The draft makes several recommendations seemingly aimed at redefining gender roles starting at a young age, creating new employment opportunities for women as well as providing tax relief to them.
The draft policy proposes that the HRD Ministry redesign school curriculum to promote gender sensitivity as well as make home science and physical education compulsory for both girls and boys.
It also seeks to encourage working women and proposes pay parity, tax exemption for women-only organisations, mandatory daycare centres in corporates and commercial zones as well as housing complexes.
The proposal also offers tax relief to widows and divorced women.
The draft policy also recommends promoting women drivers for school buses, a move that is not only likely to generate employment opportunities for women but also expected to curb sexual crimes against school students.
The policy is being revised after a gap of more than 15 years. The last policy came in 2001.
An initial draft was first issued in May 2016 following which the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) constituted a group of ministers, which suggested some changes.
Making the initial draft public last year, WCD Minister Maneka Gandhi had said the aim of the government was to shift from entitlements to rights and from empowerment to creating an enabling environment for women.
