Participation of Women for the Development of Civil Society: A Study among Women Representatives in Local Governance

Abstract

Political Participation and grass root democracy have been strengthened considerably by the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments that have created new democratic institutions for local governance by giving the opportunity to women in the local administration. Indian Government raised reservation for women in all tiers of the panchayat raj system from 33 to 50 percent. An elected women representative needs the requisite social space in order to effect and experience the changes that she desires. The involvement of women in the development process is not merely a matter of equality but a necessity too. This study attempted to assess the involvement of women representatives to the development of weaker sections of society, especially women and children. This study was conducted in village panchayats under Cherpu and Ollukkara blocks in Thrissur district. Simple random sampling technique was adopted for selecting the sample of fifty elected women representatives and data collected through structured Questionnaire Method.