Tata Global Beverages and the Tata group release a 10-Point Women’s Manifesto - Voice of 49%, ahead of the General Elections

21 March 2014 1409 words 6-MINUTE READ

Corporate

For the first time more than a million Indian voices were heard and aggregated into the “Voice of 49%” - a women’s manifesto by the women, for the women of India.

Ahead of the 2014 General Elections, Tata Global Beverages and the Tata group today released a 10-point ‘Voice of 49%’ women’s manifesto, aggregating issues raised by more than a million women from across India. The manifesto, an outcome of the ‘Power of 49’ campaign, aims at giving a voice to the women of India to be heard in the political discourse of our country. The key issues that have emerged in the manifesto are broadly around the themes of Violence, Safety, Health and Education.

The Power of 49 campaign was launched by Tata Global Beverages, through their social awakening platform Jaago Re, and the Tata group in August 2013 with the objective of creating a more awakened and informed female electorate who constitute 49% of the world’s largest democracy. The issues that have emerged as a result of this campaign were studied and debated in depth by 14 experts led by the editorial team of CNN-IBN and have put together this 10-point ‘Voice of 49%’ manifesto, to be presented and discussed with political parties, in an attempt for them to integrate it into their political agenda.

Since the launch of the campaign, more than 1.4 million responses have come from all over the country through multiple communication platforms. The highest participation has come from the states of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Bihar, respectively.

Key highlights of the Voice of 49 manifesto

Politicians must lead by example by displaying zero tolerance for perpetrators of domestic abuse and dowry in political parties
Address the under representation of women in the parliament through increased representation in party ticket distribution as well as cabinet
Make gender sensitization for boys a compulsory part of the school curriculum from Std. V to XII in order to counter eve-teasing
Increase percentage of women police personnel from current 5% to at least 33%
Build a combined ‘front line army’ of government workers, NGOs, local health and sanitation workers with accredited social health activists
Build 1 crore women toilets within a year with privacy and 24/7 access to water
Provide mandatory crèches, women-friendly maternity policies that include long-term leave- both rural and urban
Incentivise schooling for girls by providing financial saving schemes and free transportation
Install GPS on all buses, double the number of street lights and provide round the clock public transportation for women
Provide complete medical, legal and psychological support to victims of domestic violence by instituting special family counselling centers in government buildings and policy centres

Speaking at this milestone, Vikram Grover, Vice President, Marketing, India and South Asia, Tata Global Beverages said, “The objective of the campaign was to create a large number of educated women voters with a view that an informed female electorate would propel the political leaders to include their issues in the agenda in the forthcoming elections. Our study indicates that women are beginning to understand the role they play in forming a government and are more inclined towards voting now. We are delighted by the overwhelming 1.4 million responses received through our Power of 49 initiative where women have expressed their specific issues.

These issues were collated in a first-of–its-kind manifesto that represents the collective voice of the Aam Aurat. Our triumph lies in Jaago Re becoming a platform for national discourse for issues like the importance of voting and the ills of corruption. With the Power of 49, we have reached another milestone with respect to women and their role in the forthcoming elections and the future of our democracy,” he added.

Power of 49 is being supported by the Tata group as it aligns closely with the group’s social agenda. The campaign saw Tata group companies and employees coming together in the spirit of volunteering to play their part in amplifying the impact of the campaign.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Mukund Rajan, Member – Group Executive Council and Brand Custodian, Tata Sons said, “The Tata group is proud to associate with Power of 49, which aims to create awareness among the women voters of India about the power they have to bring about change. The ‘Voice of 49%’ manifesto represents an opportunity for Indian women to cast informed votes for candidates who address their issues and at the same time gets political parties to see women as a determining factor in elections. We believe that women’s empowerment is an important subject for our nation’s progress, and the Power of 49 initiative is a step in that direction, seeking to give women their rightful place in the future of our country.”

The Power of 49 campaign comprises of three phases

The first phase was focused on creating awareness amongst women to the Power of 49% and the power of their informed vote

The second and the current phase is about encouraging women to voice out their issues that are critical to them, their family and locality through forging partnerships and communicating it through multiple platforms. With the impactful ‘KaalaTeeka’ television commercial, the ‘Push the Pin’ initiative and the endorsement of leading television soap protagonists through the BahuNahiBahumat platform, the initiative has encouraged women from across the country to raise their voice. Tata Global Beverages partnered with General Entertainment Channels (GECs), news channels, and an NGO to broaden its reach and create maximum impact resulting in the creation of the ‘Voice of 49%’ manifesto

Through the creation of manifesto, the final phase of the campaign urges women to go and cast an informed vote for a candidate who is most likely to address their issues ahead of General Elections 2014

The ‘Voice of 49’ manifesto, voicing the issues and concerns of women from across India, if implemented by the political parties, could have a large positive impact on the country. The Power of 49 campaign will continue to leverage multiple communication platforms to create awareness amongst women to cast an informed vote for a candidate who will address their issues.

About creation of the Voice of 49% Manifesto:

Over 1.4 million responses have been received of which more than 0.5 million people have expressed specific issues that concern them, their family and locality. These key issues were studied and debated in-depth by a team of independent experts led by editorial team of CNN-IBN who have formulated a 10 point ‘Voice of 49%’ manifesto.

About Power of 49:

Power of 49, a Jaago Re initiative for women, was launched in August 2013 with an objective to awaken women who form 49 percent of India’s voter base. The campaign is centered around inspiring them to cast an informed and independent vote and exercise the power they have to make or break a government in this forthcoming election. The campaign was conceptualized from the insight that women constitute 49 percent of the voter base in India but often do not get their due as they are not seen as a determining factor in elections.

Association with Haiyya:

Power of 49 joined hands with Haiyya, a Mumbai based not-for-profit organisation to create awareness within the Tata group through roadshows and voter registration camps to be held across Tata group companies. This will help to achieve the Group’s aim of 100% voter-readiness.

About Push the Pin:

Push the Pin, a location-based application was designed to map out all the issues pushed in a particular area around the user who logs into the application. The application also allowed hyper-local mapping of issues from women safety, to street harassment, public transport etc at a constituency level. To deepen its reach, this application was made further interactive available through mobile and IVRS platforms.

About the ‘BahuNahiBahumat’:

Several research reports have shown that television soaps affect the lives of everyday households and in turn impact societies. The journey has been the same for Indian television soaps which have metamorphosed over the 80s and 90s, till today. The General Entertainment Channels (GEC) that once showcased Indian woman in traditional, stereotype roles now showcase her as the Indian woman of the new millennium. The Power of 49 initiative has associated with key GEC channels, bringing together the “bahus” (TV serial stars) of the leading serials in the country to deliver a message through their soap characters. This leg of the campaign addressing the GEC women audience is called the “49% kaPowerBahuNahiBahumat”.

Some of the leading ladies include:

Sandhya from Diya aur Bati Hum – Star Plus
Akshara from Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai – Star Plus
Kamla Tai from Ek Mutthi Asmaan – Zee TV
Gunjan from Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke – Zee TV
Anandi from Balika Vadhu – Colors