PIONEER NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun
The Uttarakhand State Commission For Women (USCW) will focus on pre-marital counselling and counselling sessions for mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law to support new families. The initiative will follow the National Commission for Women’s theme ‘Tere Mere Sapne’ and will be implemented at the district level through efforts coordinated with district magistrates, the USCW chairwoman Kusum Kandwal said in the commission’s first board meeting for the financial year 2025-26.
Kandwal presided over the meeting with newly appointed vice chairpersons and commission members in attendance. During the meeting, the board passed several proposals. These included relocating the commission’s headquarters to within Dehradun city for better accessibility, increasing honorariums for commission members to match those in other states and operating two One Stop Centres (OSCs) in large districts where travel to a single centre is difficult.
The board also proposed the modernisation of OSCs across all districts and the establishment of counselling cells focusing on marital and family issues. Kandwal also reviewed data from 2024-25 and shared updates on notable cases. She encouraged members and vice chairpersons to perform their duties effectively so that no woman in the State feels unsafe or unsupported.
She stated that the commission will work in coordination with the government and administrative bodies to monitor the implementation of women-focused schemes and ensure safety and empowerment across the State. The commission also plans to inspect OSCs, Nari Niketans, juvenile homes and State prisons after June 2025, with a focus on district-wise monitoring, she said.
