I.SAMBAL– Safety and Security of Women

1. Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme (BBBP)

The BBBP scheme was launched on 22^nd January 2015 as a tri-ministerial effort of the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Now the ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Ministry of Minority Affairs have also been added as partnership with a view to undertake special drive and awareness Program for promoting higher education and skill development among girls. To increase girls participation in the field of sports, appropriate programme would be developed to identify sporting talent among girls and link them with appropriate authorities under “khelo India” or any other scheme/programme of central/state government for enhancing their skills. The component of BBBP will cover all the districts of the country through multi -sectorial intervention, and it was operational in 405 districts earlier. The component will aim for zero budget advertising and encouraging greater spend on activities that have on ground impact, e.g for promoting sports among girls, self-defence camps, construction of girls toilets, making available sanitary napkin vending machines and sanitary pads especially in educational institutions, awareness about PC-PNDT Act, etc.

BBBP will focus on the following groups:

1. Primary: young and newly married couples and expecting parents, Adolescents (girls and boys) and youth, households and communities.
2. Secondary: schools and Anganwadi Centres, medical doctors/practitioners, private, hospitals, nursing homes, diagnostics centres, etc. officials, PRIs/ULBs, frontline workers, women collectives and SHGs, civil society organization.

BBBP scheme aims to achieve the following:

1. Improvement in the sex ration at Birth( SRB) by 2 points every year
2. Improvement in the percentage of institutional deliveries or sustained at the rate of 95% or above
3. 1% increase in first trimester ANC registration per year and
4. 1% increase in enrolment at secondary education level and skilling of girls/women per year
5. To check dropout rate among girls at secondary and higher secondary levels
6. Raising awareness about safe menstrual hygiene management (MHM).

• Sakhi-One Stop Centre

The scheme of OSC is being implemented to provide integrated support and assistance to women affected by violence and in distress, both in public and private spaces under one roof, and to facilitate immediate, emergency and non-emergency access to a range of services including medical, legal, temporary shelter, police assistance, psychological and counselling support to fight against any form of violence against women. OSC will be scaled up and strengthened to provide forward linkages to the institutionalized/ empanelled psycho-social/legal counsellor for assisting women facing mental harassment or any other form of distress. In addition it will also connect women to the scheme/initiatives of the government economic and social on a need basis through the state/district level hubs for their development and empowerment.

The needy women including those affected by violence along with their children (girls of all ages and boys up to 12 years of age) can avail temporary shelter at the OSC for a maximum period of 5 days. The admissibility of any woman to the temporary shelter would be at the discretion of the CentreAdministrator. For long term shelter requirements, arrangements will be made by the OSCs in coordination with Shakti Sadan. In case girls below the age of 18 years are referred to the centre, they will also be provided services in coordination with authorities/institutions established under the Juvenile Justice (care and protection of children) Act, 2015 and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offence Act, 2012.

In Nagaland, Sakhi-One Stop Centres are set up in 11 districts, viz., Dimapur, Kiphire, Kohima, Longleng, Mokokchung, Mon, Peren, Phek Tuensang, Wokha, and Zunheboto. OSC Kohima and Dimapur were launched in 2016. OSC in remaining 9 Districts were launched on 8th March 2019.

The State Level Committee for Mission Shakti is set up with the Chief Secretary to the Government of Nagaland as the Chairperson. The State Hub for Empowerment of Women (SHEW) under the Department of Social Welfare is the State Project Management Unit for OSC, and at the district level, the Deputy Commissioner is the Chairperson of the District Task Force.

Sakhi-One Stop Centre Contact Details:

• 181 – Women Helpline

The Women Helpline provides toll-free 24 hours telecom services to women seeking support and information by connecting them with emergency response support system (ERSS) for all emergency services like police/fire/ambulance services and with One Stop Centres. The WHL will also provide information about government schemes/programmes, facilities and will also connect women with the statutory officers under various legislations like Dowry Prohibition Act, Child Marriage Prevention Officers, and Protection Officers etc. as per requirement within the local area in which she resides or is employed. 181 Women Helpline would be integrated with ERSS for all emergency assistance and with OSCs and other platforms like 1098 Child Line, NALSA Helpline etc for all emergency and non-emergency response for providing forward linkages in connection with Rights and Entitlements of Women. This integration will ensure seamless transfer of cases of women from 112 to 181 and vice versa.

 A woman in distress or in difficult circumstances or somebody on her behalf may call this toll-free number. Based on the urgency and the requirements explained by the caller, the responder will refer to ERSS for emergency services and to OSCs of the concerned area/district for non-emergency services. In case women need information about the laws and existing schemes of government then the WHL will provide the information available with them or connect them to the nearest OSCs that will provide information to the women through specialist/counsellors or to any expert/agency based on the details maintained by them.

The Helpline can also be accessed through text or other forms of messages in respect of those who are unable to speak/communicate due to any situational or physical challenges and will be sensitive to the needs of persons who are hearing and speech impaired or people with disabilities. It will have provisions to locate/ trace the number from which a call has been received. In case a woman has been interrupted during her call or was unable to specify her problem or her address due to some reasons then the same would be traced and the helpline will facilitate an emergency response through the nearest One Stop Centre/ERSS.

The 181-Women Helpline Nagaland was launched in the State in June 2016. The centre is established in the premises of the Nagaland State Social Welfare Board. The State Level Committee for Mission Shakti is set up with the Chief Secretary to the Government of Nagaland as the Chairperson. The State Hub for Empowerment of Women (SHEW) under the Department of Social Welfare is the State Project Management Unit for the Women Helpline Nagaland. Women facing violence of any kind can call for help at the toll-free number 181, or 9485239098.

II.             SAMARTHYA– Empowerment of women

1. Hubs for  Empowerment of Women

Hub for empowerment of women aims to facilitate inter-sectoral convergence of schemes and programs meant for women at the central (NHEW), state/UT level (SHEW) and district level (DHEW) with the mandate to create an environment in which women realize their full potential. The support under the HEW would be for guiding, linking and hand holding women to various institutional and schematic set ups for their empowerment and development including equal access to health care, quality education, career and vocational counselling/training, financial inclusions, entrepreneurship, backward and forward linkages, health and safety for workers, social security and digital literacy at district/blocks/gram panchayats level across the country.

The Hubs will also strive to create an independent identity for women through economic empowerment, eradicating all forms of exploitation and discrimination with their rightful share in the allocation of resources and decision making etc. for them to become equal partners in the process of national building for a women led development by the year 2025 as envisaged by the honourable Prime Minister of India.

• Sakhi Niwas ( Working Women Hostel)

The erstwhile Working Women Hostel has been renamed as Sakhi Niwas. The working women hostel projects under this scheme shall be made available to all working women without any distinction with respect to caste, religion, marital status etc. subject to norms prescribed under the scheme. The facility of Sakhi Niwas can be availed by any working women, who may be single, widowed, divorced, separated or married (whose immediate family does not reside in the same city/area). Preference will be given to women from disadvantaged sections of the society. Special preference would be given to beneficiaries with physical disabilities, in case there is shortage of accommodation. Women who are under training for a job will also be considered for accommodation subject to availability and provided that the total training period does not exceed one year. The number of women under training for jobs should not exceed 30% of the total capacity. Girls up to the age of 18 years and boys up to the age of 12 years, accompanying working mothers will be provided accommodation with their mothers. Working mothers may also avail of the services of the day care centre, as provided under the scheme.

At present, there are fifteen functional Sakhi Niwas (Working Women Hostels) across Nagaland.

• Shakti Sadan (Swadhar Greh and Ujjawala)

Swadhar Greh and Ujjawala have been merged and now known as “Shakti Sadan”- Integrated Relief and Rehabilitation Home. Swadhar Greh scheme is for women in difficult circumstances and Ujjawala is for prevention of trafficking. Both the scheme were aimed at creating a safe and enabling environment for the women in distress including trafficked women, and thereby give them the strength to women to overcome their difficult circumstances and make a fresh start.

The resident of Shakti Sadan will be provided with shelter, food, clothing, primary health facilities and other essential daily need items. Residents will be facilitated for opening bank accounts in their names in which an amount of rupees 500 per month per resident shall be deposited, which cannot be withdrawn by the account holders during their stay in the home. However if the resident is willing to avail the benefits for PM Jeewan Jyoti Bima Yojana and/or PM Suraksha Bima Yojana, payment of premium can be utilised as seed money by the beneficiary for beginning her life/career afresh after she leaves the home. Vocational training and social security benefits (including medical benefit under Ayushman Bharat Yojana or similar schemes, Disability pensions) etc. shall be arranged for the residents of homes in convergence with the relevant departments. Their special needs, if any, will also be taken care of. For other services like psycho-social counselling, legal aid, there shall be a common pool of persons under overall charge of OSC.

The facilities at these centres could also be availed by the children accompanying women in the above categories. Unmarried girls of any age and boys up to the age of 12 years would be allowed to stay in Shakti Sadan with their mothers. (Boys of more than 12 years of age will be shifted to the Children homes run under JJ Act/ Integrated Child Protection Scheme or ICPS). Women affected by Domestic Violence, who need care and protection for a short term, would be serviced by One Stop Centre first. If required, she could stay there up to 5 days. However, for long term stay requirement such women and the victims of traffickingor distressed or destitute women, will be referred to Shakti Sadan where they can stay up to a maximum period of 3 years.Extension for stay in Shakti Sadan beyond 3years can be granted on need basis by the concerned District Magistrate. However, the older women above the 55 years of age can be accommodated for maximum period of 5 years after which they will have to be shifted to old age homes or other similar institutions.

In Nagaland, there are three Shakti Sadans, i.e., two Swadhar Grehs – one each in Dimapur and Kohima, and one Ujjawala in Dimapur.

The PMMVY Scheme is being implemented as per provisions under Section 4 of the National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013 which provides for financial support for pregnant and lactating mothers to improve the health and nutrition for mother and child as well as compensation for wage loss, if any. The objective of the PMMVY is to provide cash incentives for partial compensation for the wage loss so that the women can take adequate rest before and after delivery of the first child: and to improve health seeking behaviour amongst the pregnant women and lactating mothers (PW & LM). The scheme also seeks to promote positive behavioural change towards girl child by providing additional cash incentives for the second child, if it is a girl.

Under this component free of charge meal, during pregnancy and six months after the child birth, through the local Anganwadi is envisaged so as to meet the nutritional standards: and maternity benefits of not less than rupees five thousand, in two instalments will be provided to women belonging to socially and economically disadvantaged sections of society. However, any additional incentive available under any other scheme such as Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) shall continue to be availed. The eligible beneficiaries would receive the remaining cash incentives as per approved norms towards maternity benefit under JSY after institutional delivery so that on an average, a woman will get ₹6000/-.

The benefit is available to women for the first two living children provided the second child is a girl. In case of the first child the amount of ₹5000/- in two instalments and for the second child, the benefit of ₹6000/- will be provided subject to the second child being a girl in one instalment after the birth.  However, for availing benefit for second child, registration during the pregnancy shall be mandatory. This would contribute to improve the sex ratio at birth and to prevent female foeticide.

The Palna National Crèche Scheme provides support to young children in terms of quality care and other services while the mothers are at work. The objective of the Palna component of the sub-scheme is to address the urgent need for quality crèche care facilities by providing a safe and secure environment for nutritional, health and cognitive development of the children, thereby enabling more mothers to take up gainful employment. The objective to provide crèche facility to all mothers, irrespective of their employment status, is a marked shift from the existing policy, arising out of the understanding that existence of quality crèche facilities is a necessary precondition to encourage women to explore employment opportunities.

Under the component, an integrated package of the service, such as day care facilities including sleeping facilities, early stimulation for children below 3 years and preschool education for 3- to 6-year-old children, supplementary nutrition (to be locally sourced), growth Monitoring and Health Check-up and Immunization in convergence with mission Poshan 2.0 will be provided.