Quest Journals Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Science Volume 10 ~ Issue 6 (2022) pp: 47-51 ISSN(Online):2321-9467 www.questjournals.org *Corresponding Author: Ramana Devi 47 | Page Research Paper Women Empowerment: -A Case Study of Rural Areas in Tehsil Bhaderwah. Ramana Devi* and **Naveen Kumar *Lecturer, Department of Geography, Bhaderwah Campus, University of Jammu **lecturer, Department of Geography, Bhaderwah Campus, University of Jammu Abstract The present paper is an attempt to analyze the status of women empowerment in BhaderwahTehsil, using various indicators based on data from primary and secondary sources. The desire to empower others is both a human trait and multifaceted phenomena. Though political or development processes, it lets individuals or groups to participate and succeed in families, communities and countries. Many studies have linked empowerment to a variety of developmental outcomes. Woman has achieved great progress in several domains including health, education and work over the last few decades. However, as the population grows, violence against women is on the rise, as is women’s underrepresentation in decision making. Women’s rights or hampered by discriminatory laws controlling marriage, land, property and inheritance. Women’s decision- making power in the home, financial autonomy, freedom of mobility and access to education was all highlighted as key indicators. According to data research, decision making power in women’s households and freedom of travel vary greatly depending on their age, education and economic status. Only a small percentage of women had final choice over how their earnings were spent. The survey also found that while educational qualifications and access to jobs are important variables in promoting women’s empowerments, the degree to which this goal is achieved is mostly determined by the mindset of the women. Keywords: -Empowerment, Decision Making, Education, Gender Equality. Received 15 June, 2022; Revised 28 June, 2022; Accepted 30 June, 2022 © The author(s) 2022. Published with open access at www.questjournals.org I. INTRODUCTION In the last five decades, the concept of women empowerment has undergone a sea change from welfare-oriented approach to equity approach. It has been understood as the process by which the powerless gain greater control over the circumstances of their lives. Empowerment particularly includes control over resources and ideology. According to Sen and Batliwala (2000) it leads to a growing intrinsic capability greater self-confidence, and an inner transformation of one’s consciousness that enables one to overcome external barrier. This view mainly emphasizes on two important aspects. Firstly, it is a power to achieve desired goals but not a power over others. Secondly, idea of empowerment is more applicable to those who are powerless- whether they are male or female, or group of individuals, class or caste. Though concept of empowerment is not specific to women, yet it is unique in that and it cuts across all types of class and caste and also within families and households (Malhotra et al, 2002). Women empowerment is also defined as a change in the context of a women’s life, which enables her increased capacity for leading a fulfilling human life. It gets reflected both in external qualities (viz. health, mobility, education and awareness, status in the family, participation in decision making, and also at the level of material security) and internal qualities (viz. self-awareness and self- confidence) [Human Development in South Asia (2000) as quoted by Mathew (2003)]. UNDP (1990) for the first time introduced the concept of Human Development Index (HDI) that evolved initially as a broader measure of socio-economic progress of a nation but it became popular as a measure of average achievements in human development for both the sexes. Contrary to the general belief that development is gender-neutral, statistics show that women lag behind men all over the world including India in almost all aspects of life. It is for this reason that the focus on human development has been to highlight the gender dimension and continuing inequalities confronting women since 1995 (UNDP 1995). The Report noted