The financial capital of the country, perhaps already best placed when it comes to the quality of life for women, will now boast also the countrys first state-run gender resource centre. Apart from other things, it will have an exclusive all-woman library and a health and counselling centre where women from across the city can come and share their woes. For men, there will be courses on being more sensitive towards the other gender.
The Savitribai Phule Resource Centre, to be opened by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) early next year, will be an effort to bring parity between men and women.
The centre will be located in a two-storeyed building in Lower Parel spread across 9,000 square metres. There will be space for karate and yoga classes, and gender sensitisation projects.
Two years ago, the civic body had set up 64 working committees in different departments to deal with sexual harassment cases. Civic employees could lodge their complaints against sexual harassment with the committee, which would take decisions against the offenders. The Savitribai centre is designed as an extension of these committees, civic officials said.
The committees had very limited role. We wanted gender sensitisation to take one step ahead, said joint municipal commissioner (improvements) V Radha, who heads the project. This centre will benefit all women, not just the women BMC employees. They can come here and share their thoughts and sorrows with other women, she said.
Dr Kamakshi Bhate from the premier civic hospital, the King Edward Memorial Hospital in Parel, in-charge of the centre, added: Gender sensitisation is not a one-time issue. Members need to be constantly trained and given talks on the subject. The resource centre will regularly upgrade the knowledge on sensitisation and have a number of other activities on gender based issues, she said. The centre, in association with NGO Akshara, will house a library run exclusively for and by women. It will have around 10,000 books.
Men will be involved in the centre for its media-related programmes such as the making of short films and programmes for adolescent boys and girls. Most of the activities will be held in coordination with a team of NGOs who will be a part of the centre.