New Delhi: From making 2 crore “lakhpati didis” in villages to launching a scheme to train women Self Help Groups (SHGs) for using drones in agriculture, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday pitched for women led development in the last Independence Day speech of his government before the next year’s general election.
Modi said that a women-led government is an additional force that will take India forward. “Today, India can proudly say that it has the most number of women pilots. Whether it is the Chandrayaan or Moon mission, women are leading the programmes,”he said, thanking the mothers, sisters and daughters of the country for their capability.
Lauding women self-help groups, PM said that today 10 crore women are associated with SHGs and his dream is to make 2 crore ‘lakhpati didis’ in villages. “We are working to meet the target,” he said.
Modi also announced that his government will soon launch a scheme to train 15,000 women SHGs to operate drones for use in agriculture. “Women SHG will be given training to run as well as repair drones… This shows our capability,”he said.
Talking of India’s women power, Modi narrated an incident when during a recent foreign trip, he was asked by a minister of the visiting country if girls in India are studying science and engineering.
“The minister was surprised when I told him that today in India, more girls are taking up STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) courses than boys…. This shows the capability of our women,” Modi said.
He further said the G20 countries are also recognising the importance of women-led development.
The PM’s pitch for women led development comes in the backdrop of the criticism that his government has faced over its silence on top women wrestlers protest against sexual harassment by a BJP MP and the horrific sexual violence faced by two women in Manipur, who were paraded naked and videographed by a mob.
The video had forced PM Modi to break the silence on Manipur for the first time since ethnic clashes broke out in the northeastern state on 3 May. In his customary address to the media before the start of Parliament’s Monsoon session on 20 July, the PM said that what happened to the daughters of Manipur can never be forgiven.
In Independence Day speech too, Modi mentioned the violence suffered by women in Manipur. “In the past few weeks in the Northeast, especially in Manipur, a period of violence ensued, many people lost their lives and the honour of mothers and daughters suffered a lot, but in the last few days, there are reports of peace,” he said in his address from the ramparts of the Red Fort.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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