Women Development Cell (WDC), Institute of Law-Nirma University organised a panel discussion as part of International Women’s Day Celebration on March 7, 2025. The theme of the discussion was: For all Women and Girls: Rights, Equality, Empowerment. Dr. Jyotsna Yagnik, Former Principal Judge, City Civil and Sessions Courts and Clinical Professor at the Institute, Dr. Adam David Dubin, Professor, Faculty of Law, Comillas University, Spain and Prof. (Dr.) Madhuri Parikh, Dean and Director (I/c), Institute of Law were the esteemed panellists at the session.
Dr. Jyotsana Yagnik talked about The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) as an international legal instrument that requires countries to eliminate discrimination against women and girls in all areas and promotes women’s and girls’ equal rights. She stated that inspite of a number of legislations in India for women, they still face challenges as unequal pay, gender discrimination, limited access to education and workplace bias. She expressed concern regarding the rising cases of Sexual Harassment at Workplace and the domestic violence. She urged the students to be the catalysts for change. Dr. Adam David Dubin discussed that in the United States, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are organizational frameworks that seek to promote the fair treatment and full participation of all people, particularly groups who have historically been underrepresented or subject to discrimination based on identity or disability.
Prof. (Dr.) Madhuri Parikh highlighted that Socio-cultural, Economic and Political empowerment of women is the need of the hour. She oriented the participants on her recent project titled: Social Inclusivity for Climate Adaptative Approaches for Climate Justice: With Special Focus on Role of Women. She discussed the role of Self-Help Groups (SHG) of women in developing climate adaptions. With the help of State aid through funding and Initiatives by women, financial stabilities have been achieved with smart agricultural practices and climate vulnerabilities have been reduced. The 2025 theme encourages people to take action by supporting policies and initiatives that support women and create equal opportunities. Mr. Nitesh Chaudhary and Dr. Shreya Srivastava also shared their views on the theme.