Govt takes measures to assist widows, single women: Tirath

New Delhi, Dec 7 : The Government has taken a number of steps to provide assistance to 3,72,89,729 widows and 23,42,930 divorcee/ separated women in the country, Parliament was informed today.

Minister of State for Women and Child Development Krishna Tirath said, in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha that under NREGA, all rural households including single women were entitled to guaranteed 100 days employment.

Under Indira Gandhi National Social Assistance Programme, all persons who were 65 years of age or older and belonged to the BPL category, were eligible for a pension of Rs 200/- per month from the Government of India. The Scheme was expended in February, 2009 to include widows in the age group of 40-64.

The government also runs the Support to Training and Employment Programme (STEP) for skill upgradation and generation of livelihood options for assetless and marginalised women, she informed.

Besides, the government was implementing two shelter-based schemes, Swadhar and Short Stay Homes, which would provide emergency outreach services to women in difficult circumstances who do not have societal/family support of independent means of income, she added.

--UNI