Socio-Economic Empowerment of Women through 'Science, Technology and Innovation Policy, 2013' - the Missing Link?

Inclusive development must involve women since poverty is particularly acute for women living in rural households. There is a need to empower these poor women through science and technology (S&T). Discussions on the recently announced Science, Technology and Innovation Policy, 2013, however, have not deliberated what the policy entails not only for women involved in S&T but also what S&T has to offer to the poor rural women and improve their lives. This is not a new phenomenon in India as S&T policies have not been particularly favourable to women in S&T since the inception of the Five-Year Plans. The foundation set up during the Nehruvian era continued during later years as well. To understand this the present article attempts to explore how the concerns of women were addressed during the initial Five-Year Plans to the current phase with particular focus on bringing socio-economic empowerment of women through S&T.