On Women’s Day, Rajya Sabha MPs demand equal representation

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As the Parliament convened today on the International Women’s Day for the second part of the budget session, several parliamentarians in Rajya Sabha spoke about women rights and highlighted the need for their political empowerment in the country. Issues like increased crimes against women and prevalence of socio-economic barriers in India were touched upon.

On women’s reservation in Parliament, Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said that a 33 per cent quota, proposed 24 years ago, should be raised to 50 per cent.

Similarly, NCP MP, Dr Fauzia Khan, underlined that “not more than 6% of women have got leadership roles, and therefore, we can make a beginning by bringing the legislation on 33% reservation of women in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.

The “deep-seated historic, cultural, socio-economic barriers prevent women from taking their seat at the decision making table,” Khan said, highlighting the need to provide opportunities to women in order to shape “pivotal decisions.”

Meanwhile, the BJP’s Sonal Mansingh said that since we talk about equality, “we should also celebrate international men’s day like we celebrate women’s day.’

Congress MP Chhaya Verma said that despite the government pushing the slogan ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’, the high rate of crimes against women tells a different story.

Rajya Sabha chairman Venkaiah Naidu commenced today’s session by saying that Women’s Day was a day to celebrate achievements of women and “honour their indomitable spirit, resolute determination & efforts that underline their achievements.”

The second part of the Parliament’s Budget Session reconvened today. The first part of the Budget Session, which had commenced on January 29 had ended on February 29.

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Back from US, Bengaluru woman brings AR Yoga instructor to your iPhones

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For the past 20 years, Raksha Rao, 33, has been learning and practising Carnatic vocals and even ran a music school in the US with 50 students. But this mother from Bengaluru now runs Parjanya Creative Solutions, the company behind Prayoga, an app that uses augmented reality (AR) and body tracking technology to help users learn Yoga.

The idea to develop Prayoga came from Rao and her husband’s personal experience of using Yoga apps. “When you go to a trainer or a gym, what they try to do is, they’ll give you a set of exercises and you will have to perform in front of them. They come and correct you if the form is wrong. That part was really lacking in terms of all these apps,” Rao tells Indianexpress.com.

Rao was clear from the beginning that the Prayoga app would give some form of feedback, mimicking how an instructor corrects people as if they are attending an in-person session in a Yoga studio. The solution to the problem was augmented reality, a technology that can superimpose a computer-generated image on top of your view of the real world. With the help of ARKit and body tracking, Rao’s team thought of bringing an instructor right inside your living room as a 3D render. All you need is your iPhone and you can learn Yoga asanas and correct them as you perform. The app also offers well-produced instruction videos.

Prayoga app, Prayoga Yoga app, Prayoga app iPhone, Raksha Rao app developer, international womens day 2021, Apple iPhone Rao has been the force behind Prayoga, an app that uses augmented reality (AR) and body tracking technology to help users learn Yoga. (Image credit: Raksha Rao)

“We wanted to combine our passion areas with technology, and try to come up with an innovative product in this,” she says, adding that her husband’s expertise in AR and VR helped — he used to work at a Hollywood Studio in Los Angeles.

Rao, an MBA in Information Science from California State University and an engineer who moved back to India in 2019 with her husband, says the development of the app has been done entirely in-house. She and her husband primarily work on the development part along with product strategy. Currently, Rao’s team has 10 people, a mix of full-time employees and interns, and most of them women.

It’s been almost a year since the Prayoga app hit the App Store, and Rao and her team are already working on the second version. “Our aim for this app was to make Yoga a lifestyle, and not a fitness fad or anything,” she says. The existing version of Prayoga has been well received, getting over 100,000 impressions on the App Store when the app originally debuted in June last year.

Prayoga app, Prayoga Yoga app, Prayoga app iPhone, Raksha Rao app developer, international womens day 2021, Apple iPhone Rao has been learning Carnatic music, the Indian classical music style for the past 20 years. (Image credit: Raksha Rao)

Based on the feedback the app has received, the second version will include as many as 75 asanas, created by Yoga experts. The app also features a customisable option where you can choose a specific time and perform Yoga asanas as per your needs. There is also a new option to mirror the app on your TV and see the instructor performing the action on the big screen.

But Rao isn’t done yet. Being someone learning and practising Carnatic classical vocal music for years, she wants to bring this old art form to the masses using immersive technologies like AR and VR. “We are trying to bring a product that helps us do that,” says Rao, who is about to complete her masters in Carnatic music from Jain University.

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Women’s Day 2021: Google doodle honors historical firsts in women’s history | India News – Times of India

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NEW DELHI: Google doodle on Monday celebrated international women’s day by honouring a history of firsts achieved by women shattering the glass ceilings in roles traditionally closed to them.
In a short video, Google Doodle features only the hands of women who were the first female scientists, doctors, astronauts, engineers, activists, artists etc.
“Today’s annual international women’s day doodle takes a journey through a series of firsts in women’s history—highlighting female pioneers who have challenged the status quo and paved the way in education, civil rights, science, art, and so much more,” said Google in its note on the women’s day doodle.
The video doodle pays homage to these “(s)heroes” by depicting the hands that have opened the doors for generations of women.
“While some firsts achieve something spectacularly new, others are receiving a recognition or right that is long overdue,” reads the note.
Suffragists, academics, gold medalists, entrepreneurs and more—today’s Doodle celebrates the women around the world who overcame the obstacles of their time to create a lasting legacy.
“These firsts stand on the shoulders of countless others—women who laid the foundation, in the past, for today’s doors to be finally opened and glass ceilings broken,” said the Google doodle.
In honour of the trailblazers of the past, present, and future—Happy International Women’s Day!

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Instagram Adds New Stickers Illustrated by Diverse Women for International Women’s Day 2021

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Instagram is introducing new stickers illustrated by diverse women around the world, to celebrate International Women’s Day 2021 that will take place on March 8. The Facebook-owned social media company notes that the latest stickers stand in solidarity with frontline workers who assumed responsibilities through the pandemic, with mothers, among many more. The stickers also extend solidarity to women who face discrimination based on race and body types. Instagram brings special stickers and filters to celebrate various occasions. Last year, the company celebrated Diwali with a distinct AR filter called ‘Share Your Light.’

Tara Bedi, Public Policy and Community Outreach Manager at Instagram India, has also shared a post on the platform, showcasing the new stickers. “These stickers stand in solidarity with front line workers who assumed so much responsibility through the pandemic, with mothers, those among the limb disability community, with elderly Asian women who faced racism, and all the communities of support that have sparked joy in the lives of women all over the world,” she stated in the post. Instagram users can find these stickers in the featured section under the Story section.

Notably, Apple has introduced a new Apple Watch challenge to promote International Women’s Day this year. Its International Women’s Day challenge has a virtual trophy and animated stickers on completing it. Additionally, the App Store will feature an App of the Day and Game of the Day from a woman creator while the Apple Arcade will showcase a collection of games starring powerful female characters. The Apple Music is also highlighting women who are leaders in their field, breaking records, topping charts, and inspiring others through their work, advocacy, and influence within pop culture and beyond. Moreover, Apple Books is celebrating everywhere with country-specific collections that feature women’s voices and elevate their contributions to every field.

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