India Moved From Women Development To Women-Led Development In Last Nine Years: Prime Minister Narendra Modi

New Delhi: Pushing for unicorns in self-help groups for women, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday (March 10), said India has moved from women development to women-led development in the last nine years. Addressing the post-budget webinar on women empowerment, Modi highlighted that enrolment of women in the fields of engineering, science, technology and maths in the country today was 42 per cent.

Can we make unicorns in self-help groups too, we have brought that vision in this year’s budget, he said.

Also Read: Celebrating The Work Of Women In India Who Are Helping The Country Achieve Its Sustainable Development Goals

Unicorn companies are those that reach a valuation of USD 1 billion without being listed on the stock market.

The prime minister also said around 70 per cent beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY) are women. It is a scheme launched by the Prime Minister on April 8, 2015, for providing loans up to 10 lakh to the non-corporate, non-farm small/micro enterprises. These loans are classified as MUDRA loans under PMMY, and are given by Commercial Banks, RRBs, Small Finance Banks, MFIs and NBFCs.

These women are not only increasing the earnings of their families but are also opening new economic avenues for the nation, he said.

PM Modi also linked a sense of respect towards women to their equality.

Also Read: Women Need To Believe In Themselves: Actor & Social Activist Nafisa Ali Sodhi

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diarrhoea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.