Over the years many married women have faced problems with their surnames, in their passports. The rule said a woman needed to change her name on the passport to be able to travel with her husband. But Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Thursday announced a rule that would make many married women happy.
Married women from now on can keep their maiden name in the passport intact and not change it. In a video conference with the Indian Merchant Chambers Ladies Wing, PM Modi said, “From now onwards, women will not have to change their names in the passport after their marriage.” The PM also added that he wants women to be the priority in all the development schemes that will be introduced in the near future.
The PM also initiated many women oriented schemes. He also increased the time of the maternity leave, which had earlier been 12 weeks, to 26 weeks. Another scheme wherein women would be transferred Rs. 6000 if they chose to deliver the in a hospital, was also a topic of discussion.
Modi also spoke about the cooking gas distribution project, he said, “The Government has set a target of covering as many as 5 crore people from BPL families over the next two years. Within a year of its launch, the scheme has already benefited 2 crores women.”
Modi also went ahead and praised women. He said when given a chance women have always proved themselves better and two steps smarter than men.
