Dr. Satyavan Saurabh
The decision to remove the couple case mark from the Haryana Education Department’s transfer policy poses a serious challenge for working women. The traditional expectations of being the “ideal wife” and “ideal daughter-in-law” force women to shoulder equal burdens at home and at work. Male employees often focus solely on their jobs. Women, however, carry the additional responsibilities of cooking, caring for children and the elderly, and managing household work alongside professional duties. This policy change increases pressure on women and undermines the idea of empowerment.
Many challenges still exist in ensuring women’s empowerment in society. For working women, the struggle of balancing duties at home and at the workplace remains acute. Recent changes in Haryana’s teacher transfer policy, particularly the recommendation to remove “couple case” marks, have highlighted this problem. This change is not simply administrative. It directly affects women’s lives, family balance, and overall well-being.
The transfer policy has evolved since 2016. Under earlier provisions, if both husband and wife were teachers, they received couple case points that prioritized their posting in the same or nearby districts. This policy helped families remain together and allowed women to balance professional and family responsibilities. It also supported children’s education, family stability, and mental health.
The 2023 draft policy recommends removing these points. If implemented, couples will no longer receive such priority. For female teachers, this means new difficulties in balancing family life with professional obligations. Families could be split across different districts, and dissatisfaction within the teaching community may rise. Teachers’ unions and social groups have already criticized the decision as “anti-women” and “anti-family.”
The issue reflects the larger social reality of the “double burden.” While men often limit themselves to professional duties, women must divide their time and energy between jobs and household responsibilities. A working man may avoid domestic chores, but a working woman is expected to manage them along with her office work. This deepens inequality and adds physical, mental, and social pressure on women. When policies ignore this inequality, they weaken the very claim of empowerment.
True empowerment cannot stop at providing jobs or launching schemes. It requires equal opportunity, equal pay, shared responsibility, and safe working conditions. By removing couple case points, the government worsens inequality and forces women into more sacrifice. The idea of the “dutiful” woman continues to dominate, while genuine equality remains out of reach.
Steps must be taken to reform this situation. Household work should be shared equally between men and women. Government policies must be gender-sensitive, especially in areas such as transfers and postings. Teachers’ unions and social organizations must continue to raise awareness and challenge decisions that ignore women’s realities. Transparency is also essential. Citizens can use tools like RTI to seek information from the Education Department on why couple case points were removed and what reasoning supports the change.
The removal of couple case marks is not a small technical shift. It represents a challenge to women’s empowerment and gender equality. It increases the double burden already carried by working women and disrupts family balance. If the state and society truly aim to empower women, they must adopt gender-sensitive policies, ensure equal sharing of household duties, and protect women’s rights in both family and workplace.
Equal opportunity, equal responsibility, and transparency are the real foundations of empowerment. Without these, problems like the double burden will remain, and policies will continue to fall short of their promises.
Dr. Satyavan Saurabh
Poet, freelance journalist and columnist
All India Radio and TV panelist
333, Fairy Garden, Kaushalya Bhawan, Barwa (Siwani), Bhiwani, Haryana
