India is still far from achieving gender equality and its asymmetric sex ratio of 940 women per 1000 men testifies to this. A little girl in India is often considered a handicap, a “burden” to be passed on. Given the dominant influence of patriarchal values, from birth many girls bear the brunt of gender inequality, gender stereotypes and are treated inferior to boys.
No matter how talented and ambitious she is, the little girl is often given the shorter end of the stick. For fear of being exploited and abused, many girls are not sent to school and stay at home only to be married off early. And even if she is not married, the girl is still denied a meritorious education, quality health care, job opportunities and equal rights that a boy easily obtains. While some girls manage to “escape” the chains and try to build a bright future for themselves, most resign themselves to their bad luck.
How can we expect India to progress while half of our society remains in the shadow of discrimination? To find answers, we must first understand the main difficulties a girl faces and why a girl’s education is important in society.
Challenges in achieving maximum girls’ education
While the importance of girls’ education is now known to almost everyone, it is also essential not to ignore the challenges a girl faces in her education.
1. Survival as the first challenge
Although there are laws that prohibit sex determination of a fetus and sex-selective abortion, this practice continues in the shadows. This not only negatively impacts the number of girls born, but also affects the health and safety of the mother. Consecutive pregnancies with the expectation of a boy are detrimental to physical and mental health because it is the woman who is blamed for the sex of the baby. Stricter implementation and monitoring of laws, as well as better awareness, are key to helping girls survive.
2. Barriers to receiving a quality education
Recent national data reveals that the dropout rate for girls at elementary level is 4.10% and increases to 16.88% at secondary level, with the figures being significantly higher for girls from vulnerable groups (19.05% for SC groups and 24.4% for ST groups) (U-DISE 2015-16). The retention rate for girls at elementary level is 70.6% which drops to secondary level is 55.5% (U-DISE 2016-17). Due to existing attitudes regarding girls’ education, safety concerns, distance between home and school, lack of affordable sanitary pads, lack of separate and functioning toilets, and poor school infrastructure, many adolescent girls tend to become irregular in their school attendance or drop out before completing their education. Only one in three girls in India completes their education based on their age (U-DISE 2016-17).
3. Child marriage
Of the 12.15 million child brides in India, 8.9 million are girls, and married girls outnumber boys by three times. According to the 2011 census, about 3 million children under the age of 14 are married. Rural girls constitute 55% of married children. Child marriage robs girls of their childhood as they step into adult roles for which they are unprepared – whether it be running households, bearing children, making decisions, etc. This not only hinders her schooling, but also pushes young girls into early pregnancy, which harms the health and nutrition of the teenage mother as well as that of her child.
4. Abuse and violence/security issues
A girl child is an easy target and is usually the victim of abuse and domestic violence, which often goes unreported. In rural areas, parents are reluctant to send their daughters to school, fearing for their safety. The latest data released by the National Crime Records Bureau also reveals that kidnapping, abduction and sexual offenses against children were among the top two crimes committed against children. 28% of all rape victims were girls under the age of 18 and of the total number of children reported missing in 2018, 70% were girls.
5. Ill-equipped schools
EExtreme taboos, lack of affordable sanitary napkins, lack of functioning toilets and poor school infrastructure are some of the reasons that prevent girls from going to school. In many schools in India. There are no separate toilets for boys and girls. In such cases, girls are embarrassed to use the toilet and therefore may drop out of school. Also, education about menstruation is often not provided, causing many girls to fall into the trap of social superstitions and make the decision to drop out of school just because they have started menstruating.
Benefits of Girls Education in India
In our country, many people are unaware of how educating girls can transform lives for the better. It is a sad situation when people from all socio-economic strata believe that investing in a girl’s education is a waste of money. Even more discouraging is the fact that they prefer to justify spending on wedding expenses or their daughter’s dowry instead of their education. It is essential that society understands and values the benefits of girls’ education.
1. Social reform
Early education can help shape society towards progress. When a girl is educated, she is independent. She can make decisions for herself, raise the standard of living for her family and children, generate more job options, and reform society as a whole. Therefore, a change of mindset towards girls’ education in India is the need of the hour. Every girl should be treated equally with love and respect.
2. Improved health conditions
There are still many places in India where topics like menstruation are considered a bad omen and menstruating girls are separated from the usual facilities for those 5-7 days. This often leads to poor hygiene which can cause several health issues. When these girls are educated, such ideas and the taboos of measurement must be spoken openly and gradually eradicate and make society a better place for girls to live.
3. Gender equality
Education not only makes a girl knowledgeable and confident, but also makes her capable of being financially independent. The power of education is the only way to achieve equality in society and also to increase the GDP of the country. It was found in McKinsey Gender Study that educated girls can join the professional workforce and can help increase the country’s GDP by an estimated $770 billion by 2025.
The government has made persistent efforts to elevate the status of the girl child in society and encourage her education through various schemes and programs aimed at eliminating the gender inequality. These have certainly contributed to the education of girls to some extent, but there is still a long way to go before girls are truly treated on an equal footing with boys.
Why is girls’ education important?
In our country, many people are unaware of how educating girls can transform lives for the better. It is a sad situation when people from all socio-economic strata believe that investing in a girl’s education is a waste of money. Even more discouraging is the fact that they prefer to justify spending on wedding expenses or their daughter’s dowry instead of their education. Early education can help shape society towards progress. When a girl is educated, she is independent. She can make decisions for herself, raise the standard of living for her family and children, generate more job options, and reform society as a whole. Therefore, a change of mindset towards girls’ education in India is the need of the hour. Every girl should be treated equally with love and respect.
The government has made persistent efforts to elevate the status of the girl child in society and encourage her education through various schemes and programs. These have certainly contributed to the education of girls to some extent, but there is still a long way to go before girls are truly treated on an equal footing with boys.
How does CRY make the difference?
CRY is committed to empowering girls through its various projects. About 1,74,163 children between the ages of 6 and 18 have been enrolled in schools through concentrated efforts. Donate today and assist CRY’s efforts to ensure that every girl child in India receives a deserving education.
