CSW66 side event: Unlocking the Potential For Women In STEM

(15 March 2022; 1500 hrs)

Statement by Ambassador T.S. Tirumurti

Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations

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H.E. Baroness Stedman-Scott, Minister for Women of the United Kingdom,

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I welcome you all at the CSW side event on Unlocking the potential for Women in STEM.

I am delighted that India and the UK have partnered for co-hosting this important side event. The event is in line with the objectives of the Roadmap 2030 for India-UK future relations launched by our two leaders during India-UK Virtual Summit in May 2021.

As vibrant democracies and leading economies, India and UK laid special emphasis in the Roadmap to enhance cooperation on strengthening the role of women in STEM at schools, universities, and research institutions and creating an enabling environment for equal participation of women in STEM disciplines through collaboration on new initiatives like Gender Advancement for Transforming Institutions (GATI) project.

Friends,

India has a rich legacy in science, technology and innovation. Interestingly, even our philosophical traditions have always valued the spirit of intellectual inquiry. Thus, for instance, the Buddha urged his followers not to accept his beliefs without questioning them.

The Indian Constitution underlines the development of the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform as the fundamental duty of all citizens.

In India, STEM subjects are a preferred choice of girls and boys alike. In fact, the percentage of women graduates in STEM at tertiary level in India is high. The number of women STEM graduates has grown over the years.

However, a well-qualified women get left out of the science and technology activities due to various challenges faced by them, especially motherhood and family responsibilities.

A holistic approach which addresses societal stereotyping, ensure equal education and work opportunities, and provide mechanisms to overcome ‘break in career’ for women in STEM areas is essential, especially during the pandemic.

India has launched Celebrate the Girl Child & Enable her Education Scheme in 2015 with a strong emphasis on mindset change through awareness raising and community mobilization on ground.

The Government has recently proposed a legislation to raise the minimum age of marriage for women from 18 to 21 years, bringing it on par with men.

We have also taken several steps to increase the participation of women in STEM for higher education. This includes implementation of women exclusive schemes like ‘Knowledge Involvement Research Advancement through Nurturing (KIRAN)’ to provide career opportunities including fellowships, for pursuing research in frontier areas of science and engineering.

The ‘Consolidation of University Research through Innovation and Excellence in Women Universities (CURIE)’ programme provides support to develop research infrastructure and state-of the art research facilities in women Universities and to help enhancing women’s participation in R&D activities in S&T domain.

India’s scientists, including women, have done path breaking research. Several of the renowned companies are led by women, like Dr. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director of Apollo Hospitals who will be speaking later in this event.

India has numerous examples of leading women in science.

Dr. Indira Hinduja pioneered the Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT) technique which resulted in the birth of India’s first GIFT baby on 4 January 1988.

Nandini Harinath is a prominent name amongst Indian women scientists having served as the deputy operations director on the Mars Orbiter Mission, Mangalyaan. She has worked on over 14 missions in 20 years at Indian Space Research Organisation.

Known as the Missile Woman of India, Tessy Thomas is the Director-General of Aeronautical Systems and the former Project Director for Agni-IV missile at Defence Research and Development Organisation, becoming the first female scientist in India to head a missile project.

There is no doubt that women in STEM are changing the world.

Allow me to conclude by quoting an eminent philosopher Swami Vivekananda: (Quote) “There is no chance of the welfare of the world unless the condition of women is improved. It is not possible for a bird to fly on one wing”.

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