GUWAHATI: Nagaland, which does not have a single woman MLA and where successive governments have been opposed to the reservation in elected bodies, has reserved 33 per cent jobs for women in the police department.
Welcoming the move, women activists across the state insisted on the reservation in elected bodies.
Academician Rosemary Dzuvichu described the move as a positive step. “We have many educated and young unemployed girls. I am sure many of them will be very happy,” she told this newspaper. At the same time, she insisted on reservation for women as per the law in the municipalities and the town councils.
“We have a Mahila Battalion of the police. Many active women commandos are doing very well and some of them are posted in other parts of India including Delhi. Sikkim has 33 per cent reservation of jobs for women in different offices. I wish we could move for that,” Dzuvichu, a professor of Nagaland University, said.
She said the government’s initiative should encourage the political parties to seriously identify women and groom them.
“The problem in Nagaland is that they need to prepare women to stand for elections. For this, we need a lot of support system in terms of finance, building home ground etc. Most political parties approach the women in the last minute. Hopefully, after the next elections, we will see a good number of women sitting in the Assembly,” she added.
Writer Monalisa Changkija said the quota for the eves should have been in place a long time ago.
“They should have done this a long time back. As far as I am concerned, why only 33 per cent, they should give 50 per cent? Let them give 33 per cent reservation in the elected bodies. Why is it only in the police department?” she asked.
She alleged that by reserving employment in the police department, the political class was trying to get away from giving reservation to women in the Assembly.
“The political parties are trying to distract and digress from the real issue,” she alleged.
Compared to other states, Nagaland has a high rate of women employment in government services without reservation. But the state has not seen a single woman representative in the Assembly since its creation 56 years ago. The late Rano M Shaiza was its first and only MP.