Towards Gender Inclusive Development in Odisha

Odisha, one of the fastest growing states in India was the first to adopt the practice of gender budgeting. The Government of Odisha initiated the process of gender budgeting in 2004-05 and is the first state in India to practice gender budgeting.

During the initial years, the State Government has been preparing the Gender Budget Statement only for 100 percent women-centric schemes. However, the Gender Budget Statement was brought out both in Part-A (schemes in which 100% provision is for women) and Part-B (where the allocations for women constitute at least 30% of the provision) during the year 2016-17. The gross budgetary allocation to schemes in which 100 percent provision is for women has increased from INR 1703.8 crores in 2017-18 to INR 3248.5 crores in 2018-19. However, the gross budgetary support to schemes where women constitute at least 30 percent of provision has reduced by INR 594.6 crores from INR 30907.32 crores in 2017-18 to INR 30312.7 crores in 2018-19.

Despite some progressive gender-centric socio-economic policy measures taken by the Government of Odisha, the state needs to create an appropriate socio-economic environment for women by making different interventions in livelihood generation, addressing domestic violence and increasing access to education. The state government should ensure strict implementation of laws namely, Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (PWDVA) and Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act (PCPNDT).