The Indian parliament has passed a bill that guarantees a third of seats for women in the lower house of parliament and state assemblies. But the country is a long way away from seeing more women elected to its legislatures soon since it will be implemented only after India completes the next census and an exercise to redraw the boundaries of constituencies - the complicated processes are expected to take several years.

India's parliament on Wednesday approved a landmark bill to reserve a third of its seats in the lower house and state assemblies for women to boost female participation in politics that had been disproportionately low for decades.