Science is a field that is always expected to be something meant only for the meritorious people who have a different bent of intellect and even Indians think in the same way and consider it to be subject for men. However, in recent times, it has witnessed a great reformation and we see that many Indian women have contributed towards the field of science and technology. Indian women have achieved a lot in every aspect and have reached the heights of success and glory and even in the field of science. There are several Indian women who have touched the zenith of success in the field of science. Nevertheless, we are still not at par with the western countries but have progressed remarkably. The only problem because of which Indian women are lagging behind is the gender inequality that still continues to exist in our society and women are still not considered at par with men. Conventionally, women are considered as homemakers and not the one to work outside homes and have a professional career, especially in the field of science. In India, science is still considered as a subject to be pursued by men and women are still repressed by the society. There are till today no women president in the National science academy. Even more, women are also deprived of awards and fellowships related to the field of science and only 8 women have received the Indian science award since 1958. Isn’t this gender discrimination as well an example of male favoritism? Women are considered to be more capable than men in every aspects and these discrimination is the reason why women scientists of India are lagging behind their western counterparts. In my opinion, unless and until the society is changed and gender discrimination is uprooted, our women will always lag behind, despite of having more potential than their western counterparts. Mere talking about women empowerment will not make women empowered. We need to work towards making women empowered and encourage them as they have the potential to do wonders and fetch in glory to our nation. It was only just a few years back, a woman was appointed as the head of a physics laboratory, nevertheless, more and more women should be encouraged to take up science and help them give their best if we really want Indian women to progress. Science and technology should not be just a subject for men; women should be given opportunities to prove themselves as better scientists. More and more awards and fellowships should be awarded to women scientists as this will encourage them to work more in this field and help our nation progress. They should also be given better facilities so that they can compete with their western counterparts and prove their potential. National science academies of India should also appoint women as Presidents so that they can encourage more women to become great scientist as this will also bring about women empowerment and help in changing our society and the nation as a whole.
I agree that gender discrimination still exist in our society although we talk a lot about India having a modern society. Nevertheless, Indian women have reached the zenith of success in every field and many women scientists are coming up. I am sure that Indian women scientists will definitely come in par with their Western counterparts in coming time. However, with a little more encouragement and initiative by the Government, Indian women can become more capable of leaving their mark in the field of science.
