Though it may sound incredible, but a staggering 42 per cent women in the age group of 15-49 years are subjected to either physical or sexual violence in Odisha. This alarming statistics is reflected in the Draft of Odisha State Policy for Girls and Women, 2014.
Analysing the situation of women in the State, it is stated in the draft policy that so far as physical and sexual violence is concerned the crime percentage in Odisha is much above the national average.
With respect to crimes against women, Odisha stands in the 10th position while it occupies the seventh for dowry murder and eighth position in terms of rape cases. On the whole, in above categories Odisha is placed in the 10th position.
The draft policy report also presents an alarming situation with respect to child marriage.
On a study carried on married women of the 20-24 age group, it came to notice that about one-third of them were married before the legal marriageable age of 18. In the tribals-dominated districts like Koraput, Malkangiri and Nabarangpur, more than 50 per cent of girls were married before they reached 18 years.
The infant mortality rate per 1,000 live birth in Odisha is still higher than in many other States. The mortality rate still remains higher for girls as compared to boys. More than two-thirds of girls (67%) in the age group of 5-59 months are anaemic. At least six out of 10 women (61.2%) in the reproductive age are also anaemic. Most of the girls and women are suffering from malnutrition though the percentage is receding.
The maternal mortality ratio in the State stands at 235 per one lakh live births, which is the fourth highest in the country.
With respect to the sex ratio too, women are on a negative side in the State. The ratio of men and women is 1,000: 979 whereas the ratio of girl child stands at 941. Interestingly, the sex ratio in the ST community is encouraging. On an average, per 1,000 men there are 1029 women in this community.
As regards literacy, though the official State average is 72.9 per cent, women literacy is much behind at 64 per cent. In tribal areas, the percentage of women literacy is at a low key. In Nabarangpur district, as per official report, women literacy stands at 35.8 per cent whereas the average ST women literacy in the State is 41.2 per cent.
The dropout rate of girls in high school is recorded at 51.8 per cent whereas among ST and SC girls it is 62.7 per cent and 61.8 per cent, respectively.
The share of women workforce in the organised sector in the State is at low key of 16.8 per cent, but more than 75 per cent of the workforce in the agriculture sector is women. A whopping 66 per cent of the marginal workers are women in the State, indicates the draft policy.
Keeping all these data in view, the draft policy is focusing on health, education, livelihood, asset ownership, political representation, participation in decision-making and, more particularly, safety, security and protection of girls and women as they are unsafe in both public and private spaces.