Pune: NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday said Maharashtra has always been at the forefront of women’s reforms, and a lot of effort has gone into introducing various welfare schemes in the state.Pawar was speaking during the award ceremony of Yashaswini Awards instituted by Yashwantrao Chavan Centre in the city on Sunday. He presented the awards to six women from across the state who excelled in the fields of agriculture, literature, industries, social work, sports coaching and journalism.“The state was the first in the country to introduce a women’s policy. Many organisations working in the field of women’s welfare were associated with the policy-making. However, introducing a policy was not an easy task,” he said.“A lot of effort was needed to introduce the schemes as there was a lot of opposition, including hidden opposition by some people who favoured a male-dominated society,” the NCP (SP) president said.The awards, which were in the fourth year of inception, also saw Baramati MP Supriya Sule in attendance. The six awardees this year are from Gadchiroli, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Dharshiv, Raigad, Ahilyanagar and Mumbai.The former chief minister also said the Opposition took path-breaking decisions, such as awarding the same share of property to women. “Discussions were carried out for hours for women’s welfare programmes. Increased participation was needed not only in social sectors but also in decision-making bodies. Nearly 50% reservation was awarded to women in local self-governing bodies, panchayat samiti andcooperative organisations,” he said.“Even today, there is a need to make efforts to change the male-dominated mindset of society,” he added.
