IGNOU celebrates International Women's Day

School of Gender & Development Studies (SOGDS) and COMMITTEE AGAINST SEXUAL HARASSMENT (CASH), IGNOU commemorated International Women’s Day by organizing dramatic reading of Krishna Sobti’s work- Ae Ladki performed by Fouzia Dastango and Saneya, a evocative conversation between a dying old woman and her unmarried daughter depicting different hought processes of two women in terms of choices in their lives.

Giving details about the origin of International Women's Day (IWD), Prof. Savita Singh, SOGDS in her introduction said that after the Socialist Party of America organized a Women's Day on February 28, 1909 in New York, the 1910 International Socialist Woman's Conference suggested a Women's Day be held annually. And after women gained suffrage in Soviet Russia in 1917, March 8, the day was being celebrated by the socialist movement and communist countries until it was adopted in 1975 by the United Nations.

Prof. Nilima Srivastava, Director, SOGDS in her welcome address along with Prof. Madhu Parhar, Chairperson ICASH said that the IWD 2019 initiative is aimed at bridging gap in gender equality, creating greater awareness towards discrimination and a celebration of women's achievements including initiatives to reduce the global pay gap between men and women and making sure, all are equal in boardrooms and beyond.

Sharing this year’s theme as per the UN Women “Think Equal, Build Smart, and Innovate for Change”, Prof. Nilima Srivastava said that IGNOU has been a pioneer in Higher Education by establishing a School for Gender Studies. While talking about the initiatives of the school, she said that University through academic scholarship prepare students as agents for social change to bring about gender equality for all sections of the society.

Prof. Nageshwar Rao, Vice-Chancellor IGNOU in his address said that International Women Day highlights the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. He underlined the role of women as Administrative Heads, Faculty and about day to day functioning of the University which has important contribution in the growth of the university. While commending their contribution in various capacities in the University, Prof Rao said that women possess special qualities, like creativity, resilience etc., which make them better at managing work and doing certain tasks better than the male counterparts, bringing in gender diversity and inclusiveness. Prof. Nageshwar Rao also drew attention to the Indian ethos which considers woman as “Shakti” and reminded everyone of the role played by her in our culture.

Pro-Vice Chancellor, Prof Prof Ravindra Ramachandra Kanhere, in his speech stressed on the need of treating women as equals and said that today women are working in every field and have excelled and proved themselves including areas like military which earlier was considered to be strictly male domain.

The function was webcast live to all the Regional Centers of IGNOU.