The safest state for the women in India has been named as ‘Goa’ followed by Kerala Mizoram, Sikkim and Manipur. The national capital, on the other hand, continues to linger at the bottom of the index with other states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Arunachal Pradeesh according to a report by The Times of India.
The reason for Goa being ranked as ‘safest’ for women is its top spot in the Gender Vulnerability Index (GVI) in which it has scored 0.656. The national average, on the other hand, is 0.5314. The tourist destination has also been ranked first in the protection of its people, fifth in the education sector, sixth in health, and eighth in poverty.
In the top bracket, states such as Kerala, Mizoram, Sikkim, and Manipur have cemented themselves. The report released on Wednesday by Ministry of Women and Child Development labelled Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Delhi ‘most vulnerable for girls’.
As per the TOI report, such an index scans the challenges faced by women keeping sectors such as education, health, poverty and protection against violence in mind.
Kerala’s Gender Vulnerability Index (GVI) is 0.634 and the report clearly mentioned that the state has achieved heights in the area of health, reported TOI.
On the other hand taking the safety of girls in the picture and health conditions, Bihar’s GVI is 0.410, poorest among all the states. Besides this, the Nitish Kumar-ruled state has also been ranked lowest in the education sector.
Another factor for ranking considered by Plan India was child marriage. More than 39 per cent of girls got married before the age of 21 years, whereas around 12 per cent of girls became mothers before the age of 19, found the survey by Plan India.
The GVI of national capital is 0.436. The index of Delhi was hammered down due to track record in education and protection. With a GVI of 0.450, Jharkhand ranks above Delhi and UP is ranked below the national capital with a GVI of 0.434.