While there have been some small announcements for women in the budget, women’s core concerns over food and nutrition, employment and livelihoods, and prevention of violence and safety after a year of unprecedented hardship need a further boost.
A continued focus on land and property rights is important — these cross-cutting issues not only impact the growth of India’s economy but play an important role in the lives of all Indians.
To make substantial strides in women’s economic empowerment, it is clear that a gender lens needs to be incorporated at every stage—from policy design to data collection for monitoring and evaluation.
While the need for a centrally administered UEGS has been acknowledged by the central Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, funds availability remains a constraint.
More women are voting than before, and this rise in political agency could mean that their rights and issues are no longer an afterthought for policymakers.
The rationale for government intervention seems unclear. Even if there are positive externalities to data, the proposed NPD framework may impose significant costs on the whole digital economy
India’s privacy law must balance the rights of children with online safety.
India does not spend enough on its young people. If anything, the pandemic has highlighted the need to build the resilience of the youth and place their concerns at the centre stage of policy discussions.
Mandating scrutiny for every bill is not a big ask. It is necessary to uphold the quality of legislation. A strong committee system is probably the only way to ensure Parliament’s relevance in the law-making process.
By providing a Record of Rights (RoRs) to household owners in rural areas, the scheme attempts to create accurate land and property records, which can be pivotal in reducing property-related disputes and facilitating monetisation of assets.
Placing undue financial costs on women’s employers is unlikely to contribute to labour market equality. The state must play a bigger role towards social security for women gig workers.
The Ministry of Health of Family Welfare, Government of India circulated the ‘Health Data Management Policy’ (Policy Proposal hereafter) for feedback and consultation on 26th August 2020. This Policy Proposal will serve as the fulcrum for the National Digital Health Blueprint.
