The schemes would ensure that around 50% of the benefit of gender neutral schemes reaches women of the state.
Maharashtra government is set to introduce "gender budgeting" that will ensure 50% benefit of gender neutral schemes to reach women. The women and child development department is scheduled to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the UNICEF women and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for working out on the detailed budget plan.
As per sources, to begin with the government is expected to pick up five departments and three of their major schemes for implementation as pilot project. "We have not yet decided on departments and schemes. The main aim is to ensure that the benefits of schemes like scholarship, pension or other subsidies which are gender neutral should reach women in as many numbers as men," said a senior officer.
According to the union ministry for women and child development (MWCD), the rationale for gender budgeting arises from recognition of the fact that national budgets impact men and women differently through the pattern of resource allocation.
"Women, constitute 48% of India's population, but they lag behind men on many social indicators like health, education, economic opportunities, etc. Hence, they warrant special attention due to their vulnerability and lack of access to resources. The way government budgets allocate resources, has the potential to transform these gender inequalities. In view of this, gender budgeting, as a tool for achieving gender mainstreaming, has been propagated," claims the ministry's note on gender budgeting.
Maharashtra, however, is one of the last states to implement it. In 2013, the former UPA government had asked all the state governments and Union territories to implant the same. Taking this forward, in 2005 MWCD organised three regional workshops, in collaboration with UNDP, to share and discuss the strategy of the government on gender budgeting and gender mainstreaming.
Subsequently, many state governments like Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa, Kerala, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Tripura, Nagaland, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand have adopted for gender budgeting.
What is gender budgeting?
Gender budgeting is a powerful tool for achieving gender mainstreaming so as to ensure that benefits of development reach women as much as men. It is not an accounting exercise but an ongoing process of keeping a gender perspective in policy/programme formulation, its implementation and review. GB entails dissection of the government budgets to establish its gender differential impacts and to ensure that gender commitments are translated in to budgetary commitments. States that have implemented it already are Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa, Kerala, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Tripura, Nagaland, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Representational Image")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}