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Female public servants face unique gender-specific challenges that can impact their efficiency, morale, and ability to maintain high standards of probity in their professional roles. These challenges stem from societal biases, organisational structures, work-life balance issues, and gender-based discrimination. Addressing these barriers is essential to enhance their effectiveness and uphold integrity in public service.

Indian Culture and Value System: An Equal Opportunity Has Been Provided Irrespective of Gender Identity

• Historical Roots in Scripture: The Indian philosophical doctrine of Advaita Vedanta stresses the oneness of all beings, transcending gender distinctions. Ancient texts like the Rigveda advocate gender equality as part of dharma.
  For example: The concept of Ardhanarishvara symbolises the fusion of masculine and feminine energies, promoting a balanced worldview that transcends gender binaries.
• Constitutional Framework for Equality: The Constitution of India, emphasises fairness and equality for all citizens, specifically prohibiting gender discrimination through legal instruments.
  For example: Article 14 embodies the principle of equal protection of laws, while Article 15 outlaws discrimination based on sex, reflecting the constitutional commitment to gender equality.
• Leadership and Spiritual Equality: Indian culture recognizes and honours both men and women as moral equals, celebrating female leaders and spiritual icons alike.
  For example: Rani Lakshmibai and spiritual leader Anandamayi Ma are revered for their leadership, transcending traditional gender roles, reflecting gender parity in leadership and spirituality.
• Legal Reforms Supporting Gender Parity: The Hindu Succession (amendment) Act of 2005 aligns with Amartya Sen’s capabilities approach, ensuring that women have equal access to familial resources, enhancing their autonomy and economic independence.
• Government Initiatives in Education: Programs like Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao operationalize Nussbaum’s theory of human development, emphasising education as a critical capability that ensures gender equality by empowering young girls.
• Cultural Celebrations Revering Female Deities: The celebration of male & female deities reflects the significance of both feminine and masculine principles as essential in life’s journey, thus promoting gender balance in spirituality.
  For example: Festivals like Navaratri, dedicated to Goddess Durga, celebrate the divine feminine as central to cosmic order and societal values.

Challenges Faced by Female Public Servants

• Work-Life Balance Issues: Female public servants experience role conflict due to competing domestic and professional responsibilities, leading to occupational stress, reduced productivity, and compromised mental health, as explained by Work-Family Conflict Theory.
• Workplace Harassment: Despite legal frameworks, many women in public service face psychological safety issues due to harassment, resulting in diminished mental well-being.
• Gender Bias and Stereotyping: Entrenched gender-role stereotypes contribute to the glass ceiling effect, restricting women’s access to top roles. Social Role Theory explains how societal norms limit women’s advancement in leadership.
  For example: The Department of Personnel and Training highlighted that despite increasing female participation, women remain underrepresented in senior positions within the IAS.
• Limited Access to Mentorship and Networking: Women in public service often lack career capital, particularly mentorship and networking opportunities, crucial for advancement.
  For example: Kiran Bedi, the first female IPS officer, highlighted how limited access to mentors and professional networks impeded her career progression in a male-dominated field.
• Lack of Adequate Facilities: Inadequate maternity leave, childcare, and restroom facilities create structural barriers that undermine women’s participation and productivity.
• Psychological Impact: Persistent gender discrimination leads to imposter syndrome and stereotype threat, where women internalise doubts about their abilities.

Measures to Increase Efficiency and Probity

• Strict Enforcement of Harassment Laws: Deterrence theory in ethics supports the idea that strict legal enforcement reduces misconduct by raising the costs of unethical behaviour, such as workplace harassment.
  For example: Strengthening the enforcement of the Vishaka Guidelines and Sexual Harassment Act of 2013 ensures that women can work in a safe, harassment-free environment.
• Gender Sensitization Programs: Bandura’s Social Learning Theory posits that behaviour can be shaped by observing and modelling ethical practices, which makes gender sensitization workshops essential to correcting biases in the workplace.
  For example: Programs like the HeForShe campaign create awareness of gender issues and encourage both men and women to foster an inclusive workplace environment.
• Promotion of Women Leadership: The Glass Ceiling Theory explains the invisible barriers that prevent women from rising to leadership positions. Introducing quotas can help shatter these barriers and promote gender equity in leadership roles.
  For example: The success of Panchayati Raj Institutions in empowering women leaders through reservations can be a model for implementing leadership quotas in higher public offices.
• Equal Pay Audits: Equal pay for equal work is essential to ensuring justice in the workplace, and regular audits can help identify and rectify pay disparities.
  For example: Conducting Equal Pay Audits based on the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, ensures compliance and promotes gender equity in public services.
• Improvement of Workplace Facilities: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs posits that physiological and safety needs must be met before higher-level needs like esteem and self-actualization can be achieved. Adequate workplace facilities are crucial for women’s professional growth.
  For example: Implementing the Maternity Benefit Amendment Act, 2017 provides essential support such as maternity leave and childcare facilities, which helps retain women in public service roles.
• Support Systems and Networks: It emphasises the importance of collectivism in supporting social support networks.
  For instance: Creating women-centric mentorship programs can help overcome isolation and promote collaborative growth.
• Monitoring Ethical Leadership: Virtue Ethics emphasises the importance of moral character in leadership. Developing ethical leadership training and mentorship programs ensures that leaders in public services embody virtues like fairness, compassion, and integrity.
  For example: Encouraging ethical leadership through programs like the National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG) can help cultivate probity in public service, promoting a culture of accountability and transparency.

Achieving gender equality in public service is crucial for the holistic development of governance. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “To call woman the weaker sex is a libel; it is man’s injustice to woman.” By addressing gender-specific challenges and promoting an inclusive environment, we can enhance women’s contribution to governance, ensuring efficiency, integrity, and probity in public service.

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