The status of women in India has been undergoing a sea-change. Supported by Constitutional guarantees to ensure dignity and equal opportunities, their active participation in all walks of life including education, politics, sport etc., has been growing. Taking note of women's role in the nation-building activities, the Government had declared 2001 as the year of Women's Empowerment by adopting a National Policy to offer “Swashakti†to women. Several laws have also been adopted to empower women socially, economically, legally and politically. Considering the role of rural India, the country's backbone, the Government had taken several measures to strengthen Pachayanti Raj system with the active participation of women. This gave a boost to increase the number of women being elected to the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies, an indication to suggest their political empowerment.