Mumbai, March 9 (IANS) Maharashtra Minister for Women and Child Development Aditi Tatkare on Monday announced in the state Assembly that the government would reinforce measures against online abuse and digital harassment, which she said “kills the confidence of women trying to enter public or professional spaces”.

She said cybercrime has emerged as one of the newest and most aggressive barriers to women’s progress.

Replying to a special debate marking International Women’s Day, Minister Tatkare emphasised the need to move beyond symbolic celebrations and focus on structural and digital empowerment.

She proposed grassroots training programmes to help rural women navigate digital finance and social media safely, ensuring that technology remains a tool for growth rather than a source of fear.

The minister hailed the flagship Ladki Bahin Yojana not just as a welfare scheme but as a blueprint for financial autonomy.

She said the strict mandate for Aadhaar-linked bank accounts was designed to ensure that the money remains under the woman’s control rather than being managed by male family members.

Minister Tatkare suggested that this “direct control” model should be applied to other sectors such as sugarcane labour wages and dairy cooperatives, where women often do the work but do not always receive direct payments.

The minister also shared plans to scale up success stories from across the state. Following a successful pilot in Pune, she spoke about a statewide rollout of the Single Women Empowerment initiative, which targets widows and abandoned women by providing healthcare, livelihood opportunities and social security.

She emphasised the need for more women-led cooperative societies and indicated that the government would examine further incentives for women to hold property titles.

Tatkare also announced that special gram sabhas would be conducted across Maharashtra. These meetings are intended to empower women at the village level to take a stand against social evils such as child marriage and encourage local women leaders to take charge of governance, moving beyond the 50 per cent reservation towards active and independent leadership.

–IANS

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