Women’s empowerment has powered Sikkim’s development: CM

GANGTOK, 14 Mar: “To move forward, first accept your responsibilities and then learn from history so that your future is bright because the misfortunes of history should not repeat and only you can ensure that by becoming more responsible citizens,” said Chief Minister Pawan Chamling. He was speaking at the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association [CPA] Centennial Celebration observed on the theme, ‘Women as agents of change’ organized by the Sikkim Legislative Assembly Secretariat [CPA Sikkim Branch] at Chintan Bhawan today.

Speaking on the theme, he commented that even though it is women who have brought and nurtured all great personalities, they have never received due recognition because the male-dominated society has kept them oppressed and denied.
It was women who brought man home from the jungle with their love and affection, he said and added that had women not brought man home, then manking would have vanished from earth just like the dinosaurs.
Speaking in relation to the State, he said that he has consciously persevered to deliver policy interventions to empower women here even when no specific demands had been made. Women’s empowered, he stressed, does not always flow unhindered, admitting that it took substantial political will and commitment to see through the policy course corrections effected by his government to ensure that women received their due in Sikkim.
“Through the 17 years of running the government, our main focus has been on women’s empowerment and women-related issues have been prioritized in programme-implementation and policy-framing,” the CM said.
“We have brought social justice to everyone in Sikkim and because of this, over the past few years, Sikkim has become a model state for the country,” he added.
“There has been an overall development along with empowerment of women in Sikkim and after our party came to power, the women have been provided an environment where they can live without fear,” he said.
“We have also established women courts, women commissions, started small family scheme, made it legal for daughters to have a right to claim property, have given 30 per cent reservation to women in jobs and for higher studies and from this year we will be giving 50 per cent reservation to women to stand for Panchayats,” he shared further and added that all this has been done so that women in Sikkim can live with dignity and honour as equals.
Concluding his address, he stressed that for inclusive and overall development of Sikkim, everyone has to work hard and united.
“We fall behind not because someone is conspiring against us, but often because we cannot change ourselves for the better and for the new challenges ahead,” he said.
Also to address the gathering were Speaker KT Gyaltsen, Minister Neeru Sewa, Depuy Speaker MB Dahal and also present on the dais were Advisors SM Limboo and BB Gooroong, Chief Secretary TT Dorjee and Secretary, SLA, D Rinchen.