Marya
Welcome back to this week’s top stories concerning women. Continuing the path of wins and struggles, this week’s news also highlights the main achievements and issues concerning women all across the globe. From the historic amended abortion law to Odisha women winning forest rights for 24 villages, let’s look at this week’s top stories.
1. The Indian Supreme Court says the amended Abortion law is to include single women too
According to the Supreme Court of India, all women, including unmarried ones, are permitted to have an abortion for up to 24 weeks. The court’s decision followed a request for clarification regarding the 2021 abortion law amendment, which identified many groups but did not include single women among them. The court ruled that every woman has the right to safe and legal abortion, regardless of her marital status. It stated that it would be “unconstitutional” to exclude unmarried women from consenting relationships. The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act (MTP) was changed by the government last year to permit many kinds of women to obtain abortions between 20 and 24 weeks. The list contained pregnant married women whose marital status had changed during the pregnancy, minors, women with mental disorders, women carrying seriously abnormal fetuses, and rape survivors.
2. Highlights from India Women vs. Sri Lanka Women, Asia Cup 2022: Indefatigable IND defeated SL by 41 runs
.@JemiRodrigues scored a superb 7⃣6⃣ & bagged the Player of the Match Award as #TeamIndia beat Sri Lanka. 👏 👏
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/AoLf8lTw5X#AsiaCup2022 | #INDvSL pic.twitter.com/mQEZ0u5xW8
— BCCI Women (@BCCIWomen) October 1, 2022
Sri Lanka was rarely able to seriously contend with India’s aim of 151 for them in Sylhet. After winning the toss, India was given the opportunity to bat first. Smriti Mandhana was the first wicket to fall for India. After Malsha Shehani made a sensational catch on the ropes, her opening partner quickly followed suit. Jemimah Rodrigues, though, has now given India the advantage with a brilliant 50-run performance. With her captain Harmanpreet Kaur playing second fiddle admirably, the two had India solidly in control going into the final four overs. Sri Lanka, on the other hand, did well to stem the tide, and India finished with a score of 150/6. Dayalan Hemalatha (3/15), Pooja Vastrakar (2/12), Deepti Sharma (2/15), and Radha Yadav (1/15) all took wickets as Sri Lanka was dismissed for 109 in 18.2 overs in response.
3. Shailaja opens the PSC union’s State Women’s Convention
On Friday, K.K. Shailaja, a member of the CPI (M) Central Committee, inaugurated the State Women’s Convention of the Kerala PSC Employees Union in the city. H. Sabitha Jasmin, vice president of Union State, presided over the event. President K. Sebastian, secretariat members R. B. Sindu and L. Sinduprabha, as well as union general secretary B. Jayakumar, all took the podium.
4. Fifa called on to ban Iran from World Cup over women’s rights
A rights organization has urged Fifa to disqualify Iran from this year’s World Cup after the country forbade women from attending matches there. The organization Open Stadiums questioned why Iran was permitted to compete when “Iranian women remain kept out of our ‘Beautiful Game,'” according to officials. The request was made a few weeks after female spectators were permitted to watch a domestic game for the first time since 1979. The rights organization, however, doubted that stadiums would continue to welcome women. According to Open Stadiums, in an available letter to Fifa President Gianni Infantino, “Iranian women trust neither the Islamic Republic’s authorities nor the Iranian Football Federation that the Azadi stadium will remain open to them after the Fifa World Cup 2022 concludes on December 18.”
5. Bharti Foundation wins recognition as the best workplace for women
Bharti Enterprises’ charitable arm, Bharti Foundation, has been recognized as one of India’s Best Workplaces for Women 2022 – big category winners. It was chosen for its consistent workplace experience, particularly for women, and its equitable people practices that are designed for its employees. The fundamental goal of the Bharti Foundation has been to educate children in rural India while fostering an environment that values positivism, harmony, and peace within the company.
6. “Shakti Squad” in Jharkhand to protect women during Durga Puja celebrations
The East Singhbhum district police have deployed the “Shakti Squad” women mobile police unit to maintain a watch on eve teasers in the steel city of Jamshedpur to instil confidence among women revellers during the Durga Puja festival, an officer said. The “Shakti Squad” was launched on Friday by Senior Superintendent of Police Prabhat Kumar and Additional District Magistrate (L&O), Nandkishore Lal. The group would patrol the city on 25 pink scooters throughout the festival. The goal, according to the SSP, was to assure women’s safety so they could freely go through puja pandals.
7. Odisha women are leading the fight for 24 villages’ rights to the forest.
The women of Odisha’s Nayagarh district spearhead the campaign for forest rights after 10 years of effort, and they succeed in securing the rights to the resources of the forests in 24 villages. The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers Act grants the villages community rights (CR) and community forest resource rights (CFRR) titles (Recognition of Forest Rights Act). “Women have been protecting and conserving these forests since 1984. People living in the villages had no idea about these rights. The women took charge and decided to hold awareness campaigns on Forest Rights Act”, according to Ranpur’s block-level women’s federation president Shashi Pradhan.
