Mumbai, Apr 15 (PTI) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said crores of women had become “Lakhpati Didis” under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s initiatives.
Addressing an event organised by Nari Shakti Vichar Manch in Mumbai to discuss the Women’s Reservation Bill, the chief minister said the government’s efforts had significantly increased women’s economic participation.
“There are crores of women in the country who have become beneficiaries of the Lakhpati Didi Scheme,” Fadnavis said.
The Lakhpati Didi scheme is a government initiative under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) aimed at enabling Self-Help Group (SHG) women to earn a sustainable annual household income of Rs 1 lakh or more.
Fadnavis said PM Modi had consistently supported the women’s reservation bill, unlike previous governments, when it could not be passed (in Parliament) despite opportunities.
“When Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister, some alliance partners had opposed the bill, while during Manmohan Singh’s tenure, despite having a majority, there appeared to be a lack of political will to push it through,” he added.
Fadnavis described the proposed 33 per cent reservation for women in legislative bodies, including Lok Sabha and state assemblies, as a watershed moment that would shape the country’s social, economic and political future, calling it a landmark development.
The Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, seeks to reserve one-third of seats in the Lok Sabha, state legislative assemblies and the Delhi Assembly for women to enhance their political participation, and is expected to be implemented after the delimitation exercise.
Fadnavis said Modi’s focus on women’s empowerment began with initiatives such as ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’, which aims to improve the gender ratio and expand educational opportunities for women.
He added that the prime minister had often emphasised that for India to become a developed nation, women, who constitute nearly 50 per cent of the population, must play a central role in economic progress. PTI ND NSK
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