So Few!

Well this is a topic I had wanted to write about since a long time. Probably over 3 years. Finally I have got the chance to write it in my blog. It is a controversial topic, and I don’t expect you to agree with me.

I suppose many of you might have wondered as to why there are so few girls in the IITs, IIMs and many other premier institutions, mainly related to engineering and management. Is it because girls are not as smart or academically brilliant as their male counterparts? Or is it because they are not interested or mentally inclined towards such streams(engineering, management, etc)? Or is it because of our mental and social outlook towards girls? Or lack of opportunities? Or something else? Why is it that over 90% of the cases, it’s always the male who emerges as the so called winner?

For the past few centuries, in India, women have been treated with lack of respect. They were expected to act as housewives and home keepers only. Female education was strictly discouraged and prohibited by many. Nobody wanted their daughters to pursue higher studies. Though this situation has changed in recent times, we still have a long way to go. For starters, India is a country which has a low sex ratio, around 925. Most of the developed countries have a sex ratio of over 1000, where the females are given equal rights as men. We find women workers, engineers, entrepreneurs, doctors, managers, etc in every area. No longer is the female sex, considered as a weaker sex. At least, this is true in developed countries. The situation in developing, or underdeveloped countries is far grimmer. In countries such as Afghanistan, women are discouraged from even coming out in the open, let alone working at par with men. The situation in India is better, but it can still improve. The condition of rural women is deteriorating day by day. Many urban women are working nowadays, but they form just a fraction of the total working force.

If you take any company, or any premier institution, educational or otherwise, the percentage of males will always surpass that of females. Why does this anomaly exist? Shouldn’t females be given equal rights and opportunities? For starters, not all women are willing to work in companies, and managing the house is an equally important task. Taking care of children, is also something which the women feel is a prerequisite. So that takes care of the company’s thing. What about the institutions? Well, it is partly true, that many girls prefer to study arts and commerce, and few are interested in Science or Mathematical subjects. Whether this is due to peer pressure or not, is another question. So I decided to due some research about this. This is what I found:

In the premier engineering institutes, the percentage of girls usually varies from 10% to 25%. Though there are exceptions, no doubt. In the not-so-good engineering colleges, the percentage of girls is usually a bit higher, than say the IITs, but nevertheless it scarcely goes beyond the 30% mark. There are very few girls in IITs.

The percentage of girls in Commerce colleges, usually ranges around the 50% mark. Or less. I do not have further information about this. 

I am not considering girls-only colleges, especially in the Arts stream. But under co-ed, arts stream, the percentage of girls is usually higher than boys. But we have very few premier Arts institutions in the country. 

For Science courses, such as BSc, MSc, etc, again the percentage of boys is usually higher than that of girls, by a wide margin. Very few girls, go for higher scientific research. 

Same is the situation for many other courses, such as BCA, BBA(here girls sometimes form a majority), MCA, Maths/Physics/Geography etc Honours, and others. 

Finally we come to management. The situation in IIMs is even worse than the IITs. The percentage of girls usually ranges from a miserable 5% to 10%. Should this situation be accepted, and left as it is, accepting that boys in general have better aptitude than girls? Surely we don’t want ‘All-Boys’ IIMs? Do we need to create a separate female reservation quota? Though most people would argue against it. Especially the male class. Maybe reservation is not the solution. But definitely the situation needs to improve. Girls should be encouraged to come forward and pursue higher studies. They should be treated with respect, at par with boys, and given proper guidance, not neglected, as has been done in the past. The concept that girls are only fit for cooking, washing and sewing has now become obsolete. I have seen many people, who simply assume that girls do not deserve to do well, and it will only be males who will succeed. This is just pure male chauvinism.  

Girls may not be physically as strong as their male counterparts, but are definitely capable of matching them in all other aspects, especially in handling stress, mental duress, emotional strains, etc. Moreover, the environment in study institutions becomes much more amiable, with the presence and liveliness of the fairer sex. There would be much less fights, as to who should win over the particular girl as well, assuming there is 1 girl for every 20 guys. (Okay this was a joke)

More on this topic later. Have to scram. See you all later, folks. Keep commenting. Adios,