Women Empowerment

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday launched the 'Bima Sakhi Yojana' of LIC here under which 2 lakh woman insurance agents will be appointed over the next three years. 'Bima Sakhi Yojana', an initiative of state-owned LIC, is designed to empower women aged 18-70 years who are Class X pass. They will receive specialised training and a stipend for the first three years to promote financial literacy and insurance awareness. Under the scheme, the woman agents will also get a stipend of Rs 7,000 per month for the first year, Rs 6,000 per month in the second year and Rs 5,000 per month in the third year. Bima Sakhis will also get the benefit of commission. The plan is to appoint 2 lakh Bima Sakhi over three years. After training, they can serve as LIC agents and the graduate Bima Sakhis would have the opportunity to qualify for being considered for Development Officer roles in LIC. Prime Minister will also distribute appointment certificates to prospective Bima Sakhis. The Prime Min

Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Thursday said his government is moving ahead with plans to make one crore members of women self-help groups (SHGs) "crorepatis" by involving them in various business activities. Speaking after the inauguration of the "Indira Mahila Shakti Bazar" of women SHGs here in the evening along with Governor Jishnu Dev Varma, Reddy said his government is implementing various schemes for the welfare of women, including free travel for them in state-run buses, supplying LPG cylinders for Rs 500, free power supply up to 200 units for the poor, stitching clothes for students and "Indira Mahila Shakti" canteens. The government is also allotting solar power plants to SHGs, he added. The total number of members in SHGs at present is 65 lakh and it should become one crore, the chief minister said. "It is your responsibility to make it one crore. It is my responsibility to make one crore (women) crorepatis," he said. Next year, he would visit the 10 undivi

The Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj is undertaking several measures, including the use of community radio, to spread awareness against the "Sarpanch Pati" system, the government informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. The "Sarpanch Pati" system is a practice in which the husband of an elected woman sarpanch wields the actual power. In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj SP Singh Baghel said various modes of information, education and communication activities, media engagement, conferences, seminars, training programmes, screening of public service awareness films, broadcasting of programmes through community radio were being done to spread awareness on issues such as the "Sarpanch Pati" system. Programmes such as "Jan Jan Tak Jankari" are being broadcast through 15 community radio stations in Bihar, Karnataka and Maharashtra on a pilot basis to create awareness about the practice of proxy-sarpanch, Baghel said. The ministry i

Union Women and Child Development Minister Annapurna Devi on Tuesday accused the Delhi and West Bengal governments of failing to implement crucial women's safety measures despite central funding and support. Addressing the media, she alleged that the Delhi government had not paid the staff of One-Stop Centres (OSCs) established under the Nirbhaya Fund to assist women in distress. The Delhi High Court last month asked the Delhi government's revenue department to take steps to streamline and pay outstanding salaries of the staff working at the OSCs and take action against delinquent officials. "The Centre has consistently supported states through initiatives like the Nirbhaya Fund, but it is disappointing to see delays in implementation at the state level," the minister said. Devi also criticised the West Bengal government for not operationalising Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) to expedite cases under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Reaffirming the ..

Cash transfer schemes have emerged as a powerful strategy for ruling state governments to attract women voters, often influencing election outcomes

India Tuesday said it has achieved gender parity across all levels of education and is now prioritising increasing women's workforce participation in non-conventional sectors and bridging gender pay gaps and the digital divide. Delivering the country statement at the UN Ministerial Conference on women empowerment here, Preetam B Yashwant, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Development, said India has worked on gender-responsive solutions to reduce "time poverty" of women such as clean cooking fuels, tap water connections and construction of toilets. "Aligned to regional trends demonstrating reduced inequalities in education, today, I am happy to share that India has achieved gender parity across all levels of education. We have one of the highest proportions of women in STEM disciplines globally," he said. Yashwant said that India has adopted a multi-pronged approach to address the issues of women on a life-cycle continuum basis for their educational, social, economic and

Niti Aayog's Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) has partnered with Urban Company to empower women salon and beauty parlour owners, an official statement said on Friday. According to the statement, WEP, under its award-to-reward initiative, launched the pilot to support women MSMEs to scale up their businesses in the beauty and wellness sector. Women entrepreneurs will be offered training across six key ecosystem needs, including skilling, legal and compliance, access to finance, market, and business development services, along with mentorship and networking, it added. A baseline study conducted by MicroSave Consulting identified four key sectors with more than 1,00,000 women MSMEs -- beauty & wellness, textile manufacturing, retail trade and food & beverages. The statement said this pilot initiative aims to develop process templates by leveraging insights and learnings gathered through the programme and upscaling women MSMEs nationwide. Urban Company will spearhead the ...

The monthly financial assistance being given to eligible women in Madhya Pradesh under the Ladli Bahna Yojana will gradually go up to Rs 5,000, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said on Saturday. The state government currently transfers Rs 1,250 per month to bank accounts of women beneficiaries of this scheme, launched ahead of last year's assembly elections. Reacting to the CM's announcement, the Congress termed it a corrupt practice and a gross violation of the model code in force for the upcoming bypolls for two assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh. "Sisters, did anyone ever deposit money in your account? Ask this to the Congress people. You (Congress) used to loot and snatch from people," Yadav said while addressing a rally in the Budhni assembly seat, where a bypoll will be held on November 13. He said the Congress had alleged that the monthly cash transfer scheme was launched by then CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan for the elections and it would be discontinued. "You (Congress) keep making no

CM Yadav deposited Rs 1573 crores in the bank accounts of 1.29 crore beneficiaries of the Ladli Behna Yojana across the state as part of a monthly instalment of Rs 1250

NCP (SP) working Supriya Sule has said the opposition MVA is not planning to counter the Maharashtra government's flagship Ladki Bahin Yojana, but questioned the amount provided under the scheme in view of the soaring inflation. Under the Ladki Bahin Yojana, women with an annual family income of less than Rs 2.5 lakh are given Rs 1500 per month as aid. On the scheme being called a "gamechanger" ahead of the November 20 state assembly polls, Sule in an interview to PTI said, "All depends on how you see it and who is saying it." 'Rs 1,500 is given to women and at the same time oil prices, food inflation is at an all-time high. Sales dropped during Diwali and the state GDP is not flattering. Crimes against women have gone up,' she pointed out. Sule said the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), comprising the NCP (SP), Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT), is not attempting to counter the Ladki Bahin scheme. 'The Congress government had brought Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Yojana for women. We didn't scream fr

Vijaya Kishore Rahatkar has been appointed the ninth chairperson of the National Commission for Women (NCW) succeeding Rekha Sharma, according to an official order. The appointment made under Section 3 of the National Commission for Women Act, 1990, will be for a period of three years or until she reaches the age of 65, whichever comes first, a government notification issued on Saturday said. Rahatkar's tenure will begin with immediate effect. The announcement will also be published in the Gazette of India. In addition to the appointment of Rahatkar, Archana Majumdar has been officially named a member of the NCW for a tenure of three years, as per a notification issued by the Ministry of Women and Child Development. The NCW, a statutory body, is empowered to work towards the advancement of women's rights. Its mandate includes reviewing the constitutional and legal safeguards provided for women. According to a statement issued by the Women and Child Development Ministry, Rahatkar h

A significant number of women-owned micro businesses in India lack savings for financial emergencies, making them highly vulnerable to economic shocks, said a report. The report titled 'Decoding the Financial Health of Women-Owned Micro-Businesses (wMB) in India' was prepared by MicroSave Consulting (MSC) in collaboration with Sa-Dhan and supported by JPMorgan Chase. The research covers six regions - Delhi-NCR, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Telangana, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu - providing data-driven insights and calls for targeted interventions. Data was collected through 1,460 computer-assisted personal interviews, key informant interviews with financial institutions and enterprise support organisations, and comprehensive desk research. Interviews with 150 women-owned micro businesses across the six regions revealed insights into their financial decision-making processes, challenges and motivations. The report indicated that 45 per cent of women entrepreneurs lack savings for financial

Kurek discusses Oriflame's commitment to the direct-selling model, its plans to expand its women-led sales force, and how India remains a priority market

In the last few weeks, for the on-going Assembly elections in J&K and in Haryana, all the major political parties in the fray have announced monthly allowances for women

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said women empowerment is key to development of Odisha, asserting that the third NDA government at the Centre, in its first 100 days, has taken a slew of steps for their welfare. Addressing a rally in Bhubaneswar, he said the promises made by the BJP before the elections this year were being fulfilled at a "rapid pace". "In the first 100 days of the third NDA government, major steps were taken for uplift of the poor, farmers and youth along with the empowerment of women. "Women's empowerment is key to Odisha's development," Modi said after launching the state government's flagship Subhadra Yojana. Under the scheme, all eligible beneficiaries between the age group of 21-60 years would receive Rs 50,000 over a period of five years between 2024-25 and 2028-29. "As promised, we opened Ratna Bhandar at Puri's Jagannath temple after coming to power in the state," he said. PM Modi also announced that the Centre has decided to add 75,000 medical se

India and the United Arab Emirates have demonstrated that women-led development can deliver more effective results for overall socio-economic development, President Droupadi Murmu said on Monday. Her assertion came during a meeting she had with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan who had called on the President at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here. She also praised the UAE leadership for ensuring the welfare, particularly the special care taken during the difficult times of the Covid pandemic, of more than 35 lakh Indian citizens in the West Asian country. Murmu was also happy to note the high rate of participation and contribution of women in all aspects of Emirati society, a statement issued by the President's office said. She said, "Both our countries have demonstrated that women-led development can deliver more effective results for overall socio-economic development". The President expressed satisfaction that during the Crown Prince's visit,

President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday said economic empowerment of women will lead to the country's progress and development. She also asked women to avail of the welfare schemes of the Centre and the state government. Addressing a gathering here, where the beneficiaries of the Eknath Shinde-led government's 'Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana' and 'Shashan Aplya Dari' programmes were given certificates, she said the economic empowerment will result in the personal growth of women, who account for half of the country's population. President Murmu expressed happiness that the Maharashtra government has set the target of making 25 lakh women Lakhpati Didis (women earning more than Rs one lakh per year). She said she was happy to note that 13 lakh women have already become Lakhpati Didis. "The Centre has revised the target of Lakhpati Didis from one crore to three crore," the president said. Murmu asked women to take care of their health while caring for their families. "If you

President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday stressed the need to encourage research in the education system, and said research scholars in India are capable of finding solutions to the problems not only faced by the country but by the world. The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 gives impetus to research, she noted while addressing the 21st convocation ceremony at Symbiosis International (Deemed University) in Pune. Murmu also urged students to pursue excellence and not to equate success with material possessions like money, a big house or a car. "I am confident that the young generation is working hard towards the development of the country. People of the country possess a lot of talent and skill. "I want you to understand the requirements of the society and using your knowledge, come up with solutions that can help in the development of the masses, especially those who are marginalised, and it can encourage sustainability," the President said. Through the government schemes, like ...

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Saturday said the ambit of the Majhi Ladki Bahin Scheme will be expanded to cover 2.5 crore women even as the state government has transferred money into the bank accounts of 1.7 crore beneficiaries so far. The chief minister launched the second phase of the scheme at Reshimbagh ground here in the presence of Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, and Women and Child Welfare Minister Aditi Tatkare. "We were not born with a golden spoon. We belong to the family of farmers. Having experienced poverty, we understood why a scheme like this was necessary. We know the value of Rs 1,500," Shinde said. The Ladki Bahin Scheme provides monthly assistance of Rs 1,500 to married, divorced, and destitute women in the 21-60 age group with a Rs 2.5 lakh annual family income ceiling. The chief minister said the state government deposited money in the bank accounts of 1.7 crore women in the first phase of th

Moreover, significant disparities in wages paid, overall employment and education continue for women, data from the report shows