A single women’s conference, held under the auspices of the Ekal Mahila Adhikar Sangathan, in Gujarat’s Modasa town of Aravalli district has demanded of the state’s chief minister Vijay Rupani give them a lifelong pension and that the amount should be increased to Rs 5,000 per month. Currently, the state government offers Rs 1,000 as widow pension only. A representation was submitted following the meet to the Aravalli district collector and addressed to Rupani. Besides, the meeting also wanted the authorities to give all single women a plot of land and also demanded that they should be provided with housing facilities, free electricity connection, below poverty line (BPL) and Antyodaya cards, and Annapurna cards to destitute elderly women.
Also stating that the widow pension should be started within six months of the death of husband, the representation also wanted the state government to give training to young single women in order to enable them to take up self-employment within a year. These women should also be provided with immediate assistance under existing government schemes, it added.
The meet was attended by around 500 single women, most of whom are widows. The representation submitted by the women also demanded that the government do away with the age limit for single widows for getting government schemes. Those attending the conference included the women’s rights activists Huraben, Jalpaben, Savitaben, Shameemben, Hetalben, Santaben, Hansaben, Shahnazben, Genhi Ben, Heenaben, Meeraben, others. Mujahid Nafees, patron of the Ekal Mahila Adhikar Sangathan also addressed the meet.