Mothers generally stay home to take care of their children after pregnancy. Do you support the opinion that these mothers should be compensated by the government?

I definitely agree with the notion that mothers, who stay at home to look after their children after pregnancy should be compensated by the government. In the following paragraphs I intend to put forth my arguments to support my views.

My major argument is that the future of the world rests largely in the hands of the generation we are rearing. Once a child is born, it becomes national property. Mothers are the front line child care providers and therefore, if they are supported by the government they can do their job better. This help can be in the form of a paid maternity leave. In most Indian homes the mother’s salary is necessary to support the family. So, if the mother does not get a paid maternity leave, then she has to go back to job earlier and this affects the childcare. Nurseries fail to provide the one-to-one interaction children need.

Secondly, a woman has to go with very stressful time physically, emotionally, and financially during pregnancy period. There is extra financial burden related to her prenatal care, preparing for a new baby, and then the care of the baby. Therefore, government help can ease their burden and they can look after their babies nicely. Finally, if women are supported by the government, they can look after their health. Health as such involves several factors. It is not simply being free from diseases. So, proper education, enough employment opportunities, food security and affordable medical care are some of the contributory factors that the government can provide to make women healthy. Needless to say, there should be enough provision for all these in a society that expects to be healthy today and tomorrow. It is well known that women play the most crucial role in managing the health of the family. And healthy families contribute greatly to social welfare.

The opponents, however, claim that it is a personal choice to have a baby. So, why should there be government support for women who stay at home to look after their children? They have a point, but I still feel that women need the aid considering the physical, emotional, and financial stress they face.

To put it in a nutshell, I pen down saying that, women should be supported by the government after delivery to look after the baby and themselves. This can contribute a lot to social welfare.