By The Editor
More women who are qualified are now working outside their homes either to supplement family income or to support their families in case their spouses are dead or separated. Earlier educated women were assigned office jobs as clerks, stenographers, typists or bookkeepers. Shops hire women to wait on customers and factories offer light and not heavy duties to them. In elementary schools and kindergarten classes one will find more women than men. In higher educational institutions, men are more than women though there are number of female teachers but women nurses are plentiful. There are more male doctors than females and so also in legal profession including politics. In earlier decades, men were paid more wages than women even though they performed their jobs equally and hence the struggle “equal pay for equal work”. At present the situation has changed much with exception of few countries and more women work outside their homes capable of undertaking any type of assignment.
With advancement of science and technology where manual works are mostly replaced by machines involving knowledge and skill, women have proved that they do not lag behind men and ready to share responsibilities in nation-building. Children are being looked after by specially trained personnel in community centers or crèches. At the height of women’s suffrage, many men too agreed that women would vote to make politics more moral and perhaps be able to influence for doing away with war and crime. Gradually the message spread globally and the result was that women can now take part in electoral politics and in which they have consequently proved their worth and efficiency. Needless to say no matter what women still have the primary responsibility for taking care of children and family. Interestingly, nowadays men do not hesitate in sharing household works alongside women at home.
Women have shown to the world that in matter of defence and security they are also competent and Meghalaya is not an exception either. It is now the second state in India to have an all-women commando unit of Special Force 10 (SF – 10), which all along was dominated by men only. On January 14 an induction ceremony was held at the 1st Meghalaya Police (MLP) Battalion in Mawiong, East Khasi Hills district in which Meghshakti Women Commando Warriors were inducted into SF10. Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma addressing the gathering termed the event as historic and the date as red-letter day for women in Meghalaya society. He encouraged women to sincerely execute their duties and prove to the outside world that they are second to none. Extending his full support he also reminded them of their responsibility in maintaining law and order in the state whenever required. Women commands hail from various communities in the state.