Kerala and Tamil Nadu show stark contrast in terms of violence against women. Violent crimes like rape and assault, in particular, are at high levels in Kerala, almost in the same league as north Indian states.

In Kerala, the rate of crimes against women is 63 per lakh population, higher than the national average of 56.3, and over three times the rate for neighbouring Tamil Nadu (18.4), as per National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). Rate of crimes is the number of incidents per lakh population.

This is ironic because in Kerala, women are not only half the electorate as elsewhere, but are much more organized in various ways. The state has one of the largest community-based women's networks called Kudumbashree with over 41 lakh members. Pressure from the women's movement paved the way for the government's move to make prohibition a reality: Alcoholism being directly linked with violence against women.

Kerala's violence is more astonishing as on most other parameters, it is way ahead of other states - highest literacy (94%), highest women's literacy (92%), a healthy sex ratio at birth (966), and India's lowest maternal mortality rate of 167.

While TN is not bad in most of these indicators, it is not as good as Kerala. And yet, rape incidents are six times lower, assaults eight times lower and domestic violence three times lower in TN compared to Kerala. Even more shocking is that the violence against women is growing at a faster clip in Kerala than in TN, and in fact, is one of the country's fastest growing. Between 2005 and 2014, rate of rape grew by a staggering 436%, assaults 246%, sexual harassment 980% and cases of cruelty by husband by 82%.

Overall, crimes against women zoomed by 210% in Kerala, compared to 38% in Tamil Nadu, and 299% for India as a whole. Says Praveena Kodoth, professor at Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram. "Better education, stronger community networks enable women to set aside patriarchal pressures and report violent crimes. Having said that, there's no denying that there's a high degree of violence against women in Kerala," she told TOI, adding "Studies have shown that women who have property rights face less violence compared to those that don't and increased alienation of such rights has perhaps heightened violence."

Neetha P of Delhi's Centre for Women's Development Studies underscored the role played by a religious or community-based educational institution system in Kerala to creating a more submissive generation of women.

She also pointed at the declining levels of employment in Kerala, especially for women, as one of the factors contributing to the ethos of violence.



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