POLITICAL VOICES
Member of Parliament
(Shiv Sena Party), India
Priyanka Chaturvedi is Rajya Sabha MP from Shiv Sena, Maharashtra. She has been honoured with an award for Excellence in her field of work and for being amongst the Top 50 Inspirational Women in Maharashtra at a Women’s Leadership Symposium.
She is currently on the advisory board of Femme First Foundation, a women advocacy group working to bring more women participation in leadership roles. She is an honorary advisory board Member of Commonwealth Youth Innovation Hub.
The inclusion of pregnant women in vaccine drive across the country has been the most successful initiative taken by me. At a time when Covid-19 was at its peak, one of the most vulnerable groups – pregnant women – were not included in the vaccination ambit. Pregnant women have been found at an increased risk of severe illness and the risk of death is 70% higher in pregnant women than in non-pregnant women, so this puts them at extreme risk.
Noting the severity of the crisis at hand, I flagged this issue and advocated the inclusion of pregnant women. In July, 2021, the Government of India allowed vaccination of pregnant women, ending the exclusionary policy.
“There is always a need of more leaders and there is always a need of more women leaders who are equally as respected. Whether it is a country or a voice, they always look up to examples that have served well in times of crisis, peace and war. As far as women are concerned, we have very few examples; let’s make it a habit of having more women leaders who we can look up to.” – Priyanka Chaturvedi
On International Women’s Day, the issues of women rights and empowerment were being discussed all over the country. The issue was also discussed in Rajya Sabha. The Women’s Reservation Bill—The Constitution 108th Amendment Bill, 2008—is pending in Parliament. The bill has not seen the light despite being passed in Rajya Sabha in 2010. MP Chaturvedi addressed Rajya Sabha on this occasion and demanded 50% reservation for women in Parliament and Assembly.
Over the years I have realised the importance of working with a range of stakeholders to find common ground. It becomes essential to understand the emotions of the multiple stakeholders and then look at possible solutions. Empathy is the most important attribute when it comes to the inclusion of the most vulnerable, and inclusion needs representation. Members of Parliament play an important role as they represent the wishes and dreams of even the most marginalized and vulnerable sections of society.
