Mission Shakti

• Mission Shakti is a comprehensive program for the safety, security, and empowerment of women, and the Supreme Court has requested further detail information from the government regarding it.
• This follows worries expressed on a potential scarcity of protection officers to deal with domestic abuse cases.

About Mission Shakti:

• Mission Shakti is a program in mission mode that aims to improve interventions for women's empowerment, safety, and security.
• By tackling challenges affecting women across the life cycle continuum and transforming them into equal partners in nation-building through convergence and citizen-ownership, it aims to fulfil the government's commitment to women-led development.

Data regarding Domestic violence:

• In 801 districts, there are currently 4.4 lakh pending domestic violence cases, according to a government record that was shown in court.
• While the majority of these districts have Mission Shakti one-stop centers to help victims, it is still unknown how many of them genuinely have protection officers to properly support survivors.
• The employment of protection officers is required by Section 8 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005.
• Under the law, protection officers play a crucial function and should ideally be female. They provide immediate protection and assistance, inform victims of their legal rights, aid them during court procedures, assist victims in filing complaints, supply information to the police, and provide urgent protection and support.

Preliminary plans for Mission Shakti:

• "Mission Shakti" has the "Sambal" and "Samarthya" sub-schemes.
• The Samarthya sub-scheme is for the empowerment of women, whereas the Sambal sub-scheme is for the safety and security of women.

Sambal:

The sub-purpose scheme is to:

• Enhance accessibility and incorporate all government programmes aimed at protecting and safeguarding women.
• Additionally, it is to protect women's rights and entitlements to comprehensive ongoing care.
• Help women who have experienced violence and are in distress, and help them to emerge as full participants in the construction of the country.
• The former schemes of: make up the components of the "Sambal" sub-scheme.

Samarthya:

The plan's main purpose is to:

• Through reinforcing, increase access to the range of government services accessible to women at different levels.
• convergence for women's empowerment and development.
• The plan intends to empower women and promote their social, cultural, political, and economic development.

Goals of Mission Shakti:

• Mission Shakti's goal is to offer short- and long-term services and information for all women and girls' holistic development and empowerment, especially those who are differently abled, socially and economically underprivileged, and vulnerable groups in need of care and protection.
• The components of Mission Shakti all work towards either empowering women or safeguarding women who are facing adversity or are victims of violence:
• Women who have experienced violence should receive prompt, thorough, ongoing treatment, support, and aid, as well as those who are in need;
• establishing effective systems for the rescue, defence, and rehabilitation of women in need and victims of crime and violence;
• to make various government services more easily accessible to women at all levels;
• Educating the public on government initiatives and programs as well as legal protections to combat societal ills like dowry, domestic abuse, sexual harassment at work, and advancing gender equality, among others.
• improving the skills and educating those in positions of responsibility under various laws and initiatives;
• Cooperation with partner Ministries, Departments, States, and UTs to align policies, programs, and schemes and to foster public-private partnerships for women's safety and empowerment in all spheres of society.

Conclusion

• Mission Shakti seeks to strengthen initiatives that address systemic gender prejudices and discrimination as well as women's safety and empowerment.

Read Also: Umbrella Schemes of Women and Child Development Ministry