07 March,2011 09:02 AM IST | | Team MiD DAY
Having made a mark in male-dominated professions, Chavan, Nag and Bal talk about attitudes of men at work and positive changes that help women face tough situations
Asu00a0the 100th International Women's Day will be celebrated tomorrow all over the world, MiD DAY invited three women who have left a mark on the society through their public service and touched many lives.
In an interview with the MiD DAY team, these women discussed the problems that plague our society, women rights and the lacunae in our support systems, attitudes of men, positive changes that empower women to take on tough situations at the workplace and a list of all that is yet to be achieved. We bring you excerpts from our conversation with them.
Woman Power: Dr Shona Nag, Vidya Bal and Senior Police
Inspector Sushma Chavan share their views on women and
Women's Day at the MiD DAY office. Pics/Jignesh Mistry
We are celebrating the 100th International Women's Day this year. Do you think this day is significant anymore?
PI Sushma Chavan: I don't think the educated class or upwardly mobile women really require a Women's Day.
But I think this day is especially important for those women who are housewives or those who belong to backward sections of society. The reason being, these women are not treated well at home by their men folk, and they are also not aware about their rights. Hence, I think, there should be one such day to hammer into people's heads, especially men, through articles in mass media and programmes about the rights of women and the respect that they deserve.
Women in workplaces have always been at the centre of debate about being treated on par with men. Have you gone through a moment where you felt being a woman was a disadvantage?
Shona Nag: In professional setups, it is easier to deal with juniors but when it comes to colleagues who are equals and male, there is certainly a problem. Firstly, they try to dominate you and can't digest the fact that you could actually be better than them at certain jobs. Also, they try to tell us we can only progress this much or that much because we have commitments at home and children so our job isn't our top priority.
Chavan: I haven't faced any harassment except for over-protectiveness of male colleagues. For example, my seniors would take us out for policing, but if there was a mob, they didn't think I could handle it. They didn't think I could interrogate a man or hit him if the need arised or handle hard crime. It took many years to prove that I could be as good as a male officer.
A lot has been happening to make workplaces women-friendly. Some corporate houses have introduced fixed working hours for women employees; others have started cr ches for children. Do you think we are seeing a shift in attitude?
Vidya Bal: This is just a small beginning and though this isn't a revolution, there is at least a path now. Many laws have come up in last few years that have enabled women to have an equal footing in the workplace. I think now corporates are taking a different view and have realised the power of their women workforce and are coming up with ways to tap their talent.
Nag: I have a different view because I think this is one area where we lag behind the West. When my daughter was three, I had gone abroad to study and yet I could give her more time than what I could give my son when I was in India. That was because of their policies that are conducive to working women. I had a cr che where I could drop my daughter off. It was barely 100m, so I could check on her whenever I wanted. My timings were fixed; I had weekends off as I had a small baby. I think we desperately need this in India.
Is sexual harassment at work still prominent?
Bal: We have a landmark law protecting women from this evil which recognises not just direct but indirect harassment as well. But the other side is that women don't report these cases because of lack of support from families. If a woman tells her husband, then he asks her why does your boss harass only you? Also the law says every office must have a complaints' committee, whose head should be a woman and all employees must be made aware but it is yet to be implemented.
Do you have a wish list for Women's Day?
Chavan: I wish there was no need for a special Women's Day. The society should come to such a point that all women are treated with respect and as equals, so that there is no need to make people aware of our rights or be told that we can be successful or talented too.
Vidya Bal is a veteran social activist specially known in the area of equalisation of the social status of women vis- -vis men in the state. She is known as a feminist thinker and is a former editor of Stree and Miloon Sarya Jani. The magazines are devoted to women's problems. She was also a founder member of Nari Samata Manch in 1982, Sath Sath, a marriage counselling centre, and Akshar Sparsh, a library for women.
Senior Police Inspector Sushma Chavan was the first woman to be selected as In charge of Cantonment police station last year. PI Chavan is known for her dedication and investigating skills. She brought to book 20 absconding culprits who had sexually exploited a minor. She received many awards for her meritorious service including Director General of Police's Insignia award in 2008 and President's medal in 2010.
An eminent oncologist, Dr Shona Nag, is one of the country's leading names when it comes to breast cancer treatment and research. A practicing cancer specialist from the 1993, Nag has worked with practically every major hospital in the city, both private and public, and helped set up cancer units in many. She won an award for her study on Indian women and their risk to breast cancer because of their ethnic origin. She has set up an all-women's breast cancer clinic at Sahyadri hospital and also runs a website for the same cause.
