Marya
Welcome back to this week’s top stories concerning women. On the auspicious occasion of India’s 75th Independence Day, let’s celebrate women and support their voices and accomplishments.
While there’s an improvement, one cannot negate the atrocities women still face. A higher percentage of women pilots in India than US and UK, PV Sindhu’s Gold at CWG 2022, women’s IPL team and others constitute this week’s top news.
Without further delay let’s look at the top stories concerning women this week.
1. Taliban suppress a rare Afghan women’s demonstration in Kabul.
Nearly a year after the Taliban seized power, fighters in Kabul scattered scores of female protestors. The Taliban dispersed a march of about 40 women demanding rights through the Afghan capital by firing into the air. One of the first demonstrations by women in months was put to an end by the fighters seizing their cell phones. Women’s rights have been severely restricted since the Taliban took power. The demonstrators carried a banner that read, “August 15 is a black day,” making reference to the day the Taliban overran Kabul in 2021, and screamed for “food, work, and freedom.”
2. India women’s cricket team clinch a silver medal, a historic win at the CWG 2022
"Sath Mein Girenge
Sath Mein Uthenge
Hum Hai Team India
Hum Sath Mein Chalenge!" ❤️#CWG2022 pic.twitter.com/6ie5znGDQ8— Jemimah Rodrigues (@JemiRodrigues) August 8, 2022
In their first appearance at the Commonwealth Games, the Indian women’s cricket team put on a magnificent performance, winning their semi-final matches over the teams from Barbados, England, and Pakistan by a combined score of 9 runs, but ultimately fell short to Australia. They lost by a slim margin, earning them the silver medal at the inaugural Games.
3. Shaktimaan actor to be prosecuted for “misogynistic” remark, according to women’s panel
Following the viral success of a recent video in which he made offensive remarks about women, veteran actor Mukesh Khanna is currently dealing with a significant backlash on social media. The Delhi Cyber Cell has now received a notice from Swati Maliwal, the chair of the Delhi Commission for Women, requesting the filing of an FIR against Mukesh Khanna for his misogynistic remarks. In a 22-second snippet of the 7-minute-long video, which he published on his YouTube channel Bheeshm International, “Shaktimaan” actor could be heard stating in Hindi, “Those girls who ask for sex from a male are not girls, they are doing ‘Dhanda’ (business), because a girl from a good society will never do these type of shameless talks, and if she does then she is not from a good society, that’s her ‘Dhanda’ (business), you don’t participate in it.”
4. Women’s IPL will hold its debut season in March 2023.
According to a top BCCI official, the eagerly anticipated Women’s IPL will begin in March 2023 and last for one month. It will most likely have five teams, however, there may be as many as six due to strong investor interest. After much discussion, a date in March was chosen for the competition following the Women’s T20 World Cup in South Africa.
5. A post by an Indian CEO on his friendship with a Pakistani woman has gone viral.
Sneha Biswas, the founder and CEO of Steps Academy, recently posted on LinkedIn, and her real story of the friendship she formed with a woman from the other side of the border has gone viral. The unidentified woman, who was photographed with Biswas on Harvard’s flag day, revealed her memories of growing up in a conservative Pakistan with the backing of her parents, who gave her and her younger sister the confidence to defy expectations and pursue their dreams.
6. If elected to power, AAP will give Gujarat women a Rs 1,000 monthly allowance.
Arvind Kejriwal, the leader of the Aam Aadmi Party and the current mayor of Delhi, declared on Wednesday that if his party wins the election in Gujarat, he will offer all women above the age of 18 a monthly allowance of Rs 1,000 if they are prepared to take such a gift. In Gujarat, where Assembly elections are scheduled at the end of the year, this was the fifth “promise” Kejriwal has made to the populace. If the AAP wins the state election, Kejriwal had earlier pledged that every family will receive free energy for up to 300 units and that unemployed youth would receive Rs 3,000 per month.
7. Women over 60 in UP will receive free bus transportation
Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, announced on Twitter on Wednesday that women over 60 will be able to ride for free in government buses. One of the pledges made by the BJP in its campaign was the provision of free bus transportation for older women citizens. On the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, the chief minister has also declared free bus rides for women in the state for 48 hours.
8. At the CWG 2022, PV Sindhu wins the women’s singles badminton gold medal.
Happy to complete a hat-trick of CWG medals and top it up with the big one 🥇 for India 🇮🇳
A brilliant fortnight of a celebration of sports comes to a close. Kudos to everyone involved. To many more ⚡ #B2022 #CWG @badmintonphoto pic.twitter.com/EzXqlJqV3o
— Pvsindhu (@Pvsindhu1) August 8, 2022
A-list shuttler At the Commonwealth Games, P V Sindhu won the women’s singles gold medal match. The gold medal was won by the two-time Olympian who defeated Canadian Michelle Li. With a silver and a bronze from the 2018 and 2014 competitions, Sindhu, a former world champion, was unquestionably the better player on the show as she maintained a tight hold on the match.
9. Congress promised low-income women in Himachal Pradesh,300 free power units and Rs. 1,500 per month.
If elected to power in Himachal Pradesh, the Congress on Monday pledged to provide underprivileged women with cash help of Rs. 1,500 and 300 free units of energy to family consumers. Bhupesh Baghel, the chief minister of Chhattisgarh and the chief election observer for the Congress in Himachal Pradesh, also pledged to implement the old pension system within 10 days of taking office, just as the party had done in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
10. In the world, India has the largest proportion of female pilots.
According to statistics from the International Society of Women Airline Pilots, 12.4% of all pilots worldwide are women in India, compared to 5.5% in the US, the world’s largest aviation market, and 4.7% in the UK. According to several studies, female pilots experience fewer safety issues. Additionally, when the world recovers from the Covid epidemic and demand increases, hiring more women could assist airlines in addressing the staff shortages that are causing travel delays.
11. The Churu administration introduces “Computer Sakhi” for Rajasthani rural women.
The Churu district administration has started “Computer Sakhi” to teach about 70,000 people how to use basic programmes and the internet in an effort to empower rural women. In order to help the trained women find employment at the gramme panchayat level, the district administration has also written to the state government requesting that it grant RS-CIT (Rajasthan State Certificate course in Information Technology) as soon as possible. In the government school laboratories, about 6,500 women have already benefited from the instruction, and another group is scheduled to begin the following week.
