THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday said while crimes against women have come down in the state due to government interventions, their occurrence even now in a progressive society like that of Kerala was a matter of serious concern.
Vijayan, after inaugurating the International Women's Day celebrations organised here by the Kerala Women's Commission (KWC), said that everyone needs to work together to ensure there are no crimes against women in the state.
He further said that despite the southern state's history of empowering women, many of them were still not confident to come out in public spaces.
"As a result, they are unable to make use of the various opportunities that are available to them nowadays. This needs to change," the CM said.
He said that the KWC has been able to bring about notable changes in relation to women empowerment in society in the last three decades and expressed hope that its activities will continue to do so in future.
The CM also said that Kerala was the first state in the country to carry out gender budgeting and was appreciated by the United Nations for it.
He further said that the aim of the government was to set aside 25 per cent of the project outlay for women empowerment initiatives.