Chennai, March 8 As the world marks International Women’s Day on March 8, the much-publicised Tamil Nadu Policy for Women (TNPW) remains unimplemented, more than a year after its official release.
The policy, launched in February 2024, was intended as a 10-year road map to promote gender equality and empower women across various sectors.
It aimed to improve education, healthcare, workforce participation, digital literacy, entrepreneurship, and political representation for women.
Additionally, the policy focussed on eliminating gender stereotypes, ensuring reproductive rights, and strengthening legal support for victims of gender-based violence (GBV).
However, despite these ambitious goals, the state government has yet to release a Plan of Action (PoA) to implement the policy.
According to a Right to Information (RTI) petition filed in January 2025, preparations for the PoA are still in progress.
The RTI also revealed that the Plan of Action for Tamil Nadu’s State Policy for Children (2021) remains incomplete, raising further concerns about the government’s commitment to policy execution.
Adding to the delay, the High-Level Women Empowerment Committee (HLWEC) — tasked with overseeing the policy’s implementation — has not held a single meeting since the policy’s release, despite a mandate to convene every six months.
Meanwhile, district-level monitoring committees, which were supposed to meet every two months, have also failed to convene.
Government sources confirmed that an HLWEC meeting is tentatively scheduled for 2025, nearly a year after the policy’s release.
Women’s rights activists and researchers have expressed disappointment with the policy’s vague framework and slow progress.
Suchitra Kalyani, a gender researcher and activist, criticised the policy for overlooking women farmers and fishers, particularly those from rural communities.
She noted that the document was difficult to comprehend for non-experts and lacked clear, actionable guidelines.
Despite collecting stakeholder feedback as early as December 2021, the government took over two years to finalise the policy.
However, more than a year after its official release, little progress has been made towards actual implementation.
While TNPW outlines significant reforms, its effectiveness hinges on timely execution.
Without a concrete Plan of Action, regular monitoring, and active governmental commitment, the policy risks becoming yet another unfulfilled promise on paper.
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