New Delhi: The International Women's Day is being celebrated on March 8 to pay tribute and give respect to modern women, who have learnt to stand up on their own and exercise their rights in the society. Hats off to those women, who dared to fight against the odds and reached the top today.

 

The Indian woman in 2010 is no less than her male counterpart. She has proved herself in every field and outperformed the men in many areas, which remained the exclusive domains of men for centuries.

 

The male dominance is almost over. The new and confident woman is here, who wants to stay on the top. Be it in education or work field or politics, women have taken the lead everywhere. Interestingly, they are getting full support from their male partners in making a career or creating their own domain in the society.

 

The day is over when women used to stay inside and allowed men to take over. Today, they want to rule, they want to take the lead - a complete reversal, which is all set to bring a revolutionary change in the society.

 

It's true that there are some men, who are yet to acknowledge the fact that women can lead if there is a need.  They use force to dissuade women from moving ahead. The cases or rape, sexual harassment, dowry deaths and molestation still occur. But will these incidents deter the women from taking centrestage? Never... They will never give up.

 

It's high time the men accept the fact that women are equal to them and not the inferior ones. If they admit this and accept the women as their companions, there will be no conflict, no ego clashes and no violence.

 

Gender equality will create a healthy atmosphere for our generations to come. Let's build a strong and powerful nation by supporting each other. A conflict or battle of sexes will take us nowhere. Women in India call for gender equality and mutual respect. Will our male friends respond???

 

Contributed by Sanghamitra Kar (New Delhi)