The story of the society told by Teej

Teej is important from religious, cultural and social point of view. Teej is believed to have originated from the story of Parvati, daughter of the Himalayas, who fasted to get Mahadev as her husband. In the early days, Teej provided an opportunity to reunite with Maiti. When women married at a young age and in-laws were far away, the significance of Teej was even greater. At that time, there was no communication and social media like now, so women had to wait for a long time to meet their mother and end their pain. Now Teej is developing as a festival of meeting, fun and exchange of wishes. Teej can also be considered as a powerful means of women empowerment. This festival should be used as an opportunity to raise voice against the decades of social, cultural and economic oppression and exploitation of women and gather the support of conscious men. There are a few reasons why

Teej is important. The topic of wishing for long life through fasting and worship for the family can be connected with the religious context. Fasting is also considered beneficial for health. Teej is important not only from the religious aspect but also as a cultural tradition. In today's context, Teej is playing a role as a means of preserving the cultural aspect, providing opportunities for meeting and preserving our identity. Along with the social transformation, the form of Teej has also changed. With the development of communication, the distance between family and home has decreased. With increasing access to education, urban women are becoming empowered themselves. Teej songs have also changed. Earlier Teej songs were mostly limited to sadness and pain, now they are fun and also focus on women empowerment.

Women's rights are protected constitutionally, but they are not enough. The constitution has set women's rights as fundamental rights. According to a study by the World Labor Organization, Nepali women do almost 6 times more housework than men. Moreover, the economic value of Nepali women's unpaid labor inside and outside the home is about 42 percent of the country's gross domestic product. However, for that neither women get any financial incentive nor society gives importance to it. No matter how much work women do, they do not get a fair price for their labor, they continue to experience exploitation and oppression. As in the past, the belief that you need a son is gradually disappearing. The tradition of the daughter doing the work of her parents has started, which can be taken as a sign of social transformation.

A study conducted in India has shown that after the government provided free bicycles to school girls, the drop out rate decreased and the number of female students riding bicycles to school almost doubled from 2007 to 2017. According to the BBC, not only in India but also in countries like Colombia, Kenya, Malawi and Zimbabwe, after providing free bicycles to school girls, not only did their enrollment rate increase, but also the continuation of their education.

In Nepal, the government of Madhesh province bought thousands of bicycles for girls studying in eighth grade under the 'Beti Padhau, Beti Bachau' program a few years ago. But the program came to a standstill after the authority started an investigation, suspecting that crores of corruption had been committed in the purchase of bicycles. From this, it appears that those who have Dadupanyu in their hands are really motivated to fulfill their own vested interests rather than empowering women. This is just an example. If women are to be truly promoted, the presence of women at the policy-making level is essential. As the candidacy of women in the election is not guaranteed, it is necessary to be limited to the proportional system. According to the policy of positive discrimination, reservation areas should be set aside for women and their presence at the policy-making level should be ensured.

Skills along with education are the major needs of women today. The government should provide concessional loans for entrepreneurship after learning skills and help in finding markets. Female students should be encouraged to advance in information technology and other fields. The government should introduce empowerment and empowerment programs to make women independent. Only when there is a sense of equality between men and women and when both of them use their strength and wisdom, the country can become advanced and prosperous. Teej needs to carry messages like ending violence against women, economic empowerment, equality of both sons and daughters, equal opportunities, equal responsibility and 50 percent representation at every level of the state.

There is no doubt that Teej holds cultural, religious, social and political significance. Teej needs to be developed not only as a religious and cultural festival, but also as a festival of women's awakening, awareness and empowerment. Time has come for Teej to raise her voice in favor of ending violence against women, economic empowerment and equal representation of women. Only if that happens, as singer Bishnu Majhi said, the girl who could not pass away this Teej will be able to pass away with a smiling face in the coming Teej.

– Ex-MP Sangraula is the head of professional and intellectual department of Congress.