Role of Open and Distance Learning (ODL) in Empowerment of Women in Assam

Education is considered as the key factor for the development of a society. Therefore education is the necessary pre-condition of empowerment of the weaker section of the society. In many societies of the world education has never been within the reach of all sections of the society. More particularly the women’s access to education is very less in most of the developing countries. In India too, women are facing many constraints in pursuing education in their life because of the patriarchic social structure. Women have to invest more their time and energy for maintaining family responsibilities. In such conditions women are facing difficulty to acquire education through the conventional face-to-face mode of education. In such situations the Open and Distance mode of learning can help women to pursue their education thereby empower the women. Hence the Open and Distance learning has an important role in empowering women. In this paper we will try to discuss the role of Open and Distance Learning system in empowering women particularly in Assam.