Despite various measures taken, the status of women continues to remain relatively backward. With gradual spread of education and empowerment, the position of women has begun to change. It is the policy of Government to bring them fully into the mainstream. Education for girls, from primary to post graduate level, has been made free. ITIs for women have been opened to provide professional training to them.
Women constitute an important segment of the labour force.
Women play an important role in agriculture, animal husbandry and other related activities, which include marketing of produce, food processing and the like. Women as agricultural workers generally participate in all operations except ploughing. They are engaged in transplanting, weeding, applying fertilisers, and also in harvesting the produce. A large number of female workers are also engaged in marginal occupations such as collection of fish, firewood, cowdung, fetching of drinking water, maintenance of kitchen gardens, tailoring, weaving etc., in order to supplement the family income. 19.05 Table 19.1 presents the employment position of women in the organised sector of the State.