697.6
“Problems and Prospects of Women Police: A Study of Gender Inequality in Indian Society
Keywords: Gender inequality, Indian society, Women Police, Hubli-Dharwad.
Affiliation: Karnatak University, Dharwad.
Research Committee =RC 41, Session: Population, Gender Inequality and International Migration.
Title of Abstract : Gender Inequality in Indian society: A Study of Women Police in Hubli-Dharwad.
Name and Address of author(s) : Prof. Shakuntala. C. Shettar, Professor of Sociology, Dept. of Sociology, Karnatak University, Dharwad.
Abstract
A middle class woman working outside in different jobs is post-independence phenomenon in India. It is only in recent past, women have been working in police department. Until then, it was male a dominated profession that requires lot of physical stamina, power, wisdom, rational thinking, capability to control the situation and confidence. At present, India has got the distinction of having not only first women police station but also having large number of women police.
The nature of police system is altogether different from work in the other departments such as banks, schools, hospitals, or business organization. The police work demands to work more hours, to work at late night and to work in dangerous and uncongenial places. Such a situation poses many problems for women police. The present study is an effort in understanding the problems of police women at their work place and at their family. The study is confined to 50 women police of Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation, Karnataka, India. The findings of the study suggest that women police have been emerging as a significant development especially among the lower middle class group. It has not only changed their economic status but also overall status. At the same time, women police have been facing problems at work place in respect of working hours, wages, gender discrimination, promotion, career etc. Still majority of women have a sense of satisfaction of serving a society by joining this service.