Dussehra is the festival about worshiping the great women goddesses like Durga , Kali , Parvati, Annapurna and Shakti. This festival holds a great significance for women and their strength. As women today express the courage to fight against injustice and are transforming themselves to better the society. They play multifaceted roles of being a nurturing mother, a loving wife , a caring sister and an encouraging friend. They strike the balance between their families and work life beautifully. We have women venturing into every space today and there is no field untouched by women achievers. We all are proud of the women like Bhakti Sharma , Aurunima Sinha, Saina Nehwal, Anshu Jamsepne , Dr. Neeru Chadha , Chanda Kochar and Manushi Chillar to name a few . These women have paved the way for a brighter future, they inspire and empower women across the world to perform and reach greater heights.

As we celebrate their success we are reminded of the dark side that still lurks our society and threatens the existence of many women. Women are being killed for dowry issues, girls are deprived the right to education the right to be independent to face the challenges that life throws at them. Even today we see parents weeping when they have a girl child because a girl is not an asset for them but a liability. Many women face shaming and detrimental remarks on social media. The newspapers have cases of rape and sexual harassment reported daily and the culprits get away without the punishment they deserve for their ruthless acts.

In such times where we speak of women empowerment we face two diametrically opposite scenarios. A lot has been achieved by women and they will continue to do so. But the core issues that restrict a major percentage of women from getting an identity for themselves have to be tackled. It is not just about propagating gender equality and women empowerment through events and writes ups on the same. It is about ensuring that women all over the world feel safe secure healthy and privileged. That is when women will be truly empowered. As it is rightly said “The measure of any society is how it treats its women and girls”. We often think there isn’t much we can do, how can we change things? Each one of us can make a difference …it is just the matter of trying, trying to make a difference in our own little way. Let the beautiful colours this Dussehra wipe out this darkness and fill the atmosphere with brightness and blissful light that is here to stay where goodness triumphs over evil .

Written By,

Dr. Farhana  Mohammed Irfan,

JIMS Hospital.