50 pc seats for women in MP local bodies

After introducing gender-based budgeting last month, Madhya Pradesh today took yet another step in empowering women by announcing that 50 per cent seats will be reserved for women at all levels of panchayati raj bodies. Bihar is the only state to have already reserved 50 per cent seats for women in institutions of local governance.

The BJP government in MP had long made up its mind, but the decision was formally taken at the Cabinet meeting headed by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. There are 22,958 gram panchayats, 313 janpad panchayats and 48 district panchayats in Madhya Pradesh. The Assembly is in session, but it’s not clear when the amendment bills would be introduced.

Incidentally, MP was the first state to hold elections for local bodies after the 73rd amendment in 1993 reserving 33 per cent seats for women in all tiers of grassroots governance.

Having already seen three elections since the last constitutional amendment, women in MP are better placed to benefit from more reservation. According to Samarathan, an NGO active at the grassroots level, nearly 35 per cent women have been elected to panchayati bodies in MP and the percentage goes up to 40 if the posts of chairperson of panpad panchayat and district panchayat are also counted.

Nirmala Buch, who retired as chief secretary and started Mahila Chetna Manch, an organisation for women, said though the decision could have been taken earlier it was still a welcome step. “It’s a good beginning, women’s groups have been demanding it for a long time because the seats were not reserved in proportion,” she said. MP has already done away with two-child norm for contesting elections. Women’s groups had argued that the provision was used mainly against women to disqualify them.

Meanwhile, state Women and Child Development Minister Kusum Mehdele announced in the Assembly today that women special zone would be created in all major cities of MP to provide them self-employment training. She also informed the Assembly that Matru-Shishu Raksha cards have been distributed to 50 lakh pregnant women to allow the government monitor the health of pregnant women.