Importance of International Women’s Day
In our latest video learn about the importance of International Women's Day about the multiple women, across the world who are breaking the glass ceiling and making strides in various fields.
International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on 8 March around the world. Women's Day is not specific to any country, group or organisation. The day belongs to women everywhere. This year, the goal is to create a gender equal world. The debate for women’s equality started in 1908. Since then there have been protests highlighting women’s issues and advocacy for women’s rights. Because of such advocacy, women around the world have been secure human rights. Women are now able to work, they can vote and many other things. But we still have a long way to go. Not all women are treated equally. This is why today is an important day.
The aim of women’s day is to:
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Celebrate women's achievements
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Raise awareness about women's equality and to show that men and women are equal. Equality is a human right that all women must be given.
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Advocate for accelerated gender parity.
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Fundraise for female-focused charities.
Let me tell you about some of the strong Indian women who have shown the woman that women can achieve anything.
Mallika Handa: She is the first Indian girl to win a gold medal in the International Deaf Chess Championship at Mongolia in 2015.
Vidisha Baliyan: Won the Miss Deaf World Contest and became the first ever Indian to be crowned as a Miss Deaf World.
Archana Timmaraju: She is an art teacher and is India’s first woman deaf biker. She is planning a world tour across to more than 80 countries, to raise awareness about sign language and deaf women’s empowerment.
Gita Gopinath : She is the first female chief economist of the IMF - International Monetary Fund.
Dr Swati Mohan: She was the person who landed NASA’s Perseverance rover.
Ritu Karidhal: She is known as the rocket woman of India and was the mission director of Chandrayaan 2.
Sudha Balakrishnan: She is RBI’s first Chief Financial Officer.
Nirmala Sitharaman: India’s first female finance minister.
Kamala Harris: First female & Indian-American Vice President of the USA.
Avani Chaturvedu, Bhawana Kant & Mohanna Singh: They are India’s first Female Combat pilots.
Dr Usha Punjabi (with her husband Rajkumar Punjabi) is founder of Indore Deaf Bilingual Academy, run by Mook Badhir Sangathan, Indore.
Wasn’t that inspiring? Now women are working in all fields. From sports, politics and even space. This proves that a woman can do anything. To all the women who are working hard despite barriers, we would like to wish you all a happy women’s day. Keep working towards your dreams and don’t let anyone convince you that you are not capable. You can achieve anything you want.
