Hyderabad: Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy assured continued support for women entrepreneurs and announced that he would hold review meetings with them once every three months. He said women’s empowerment remained a key priority of the Telangana government.
The Chief Minister made the announcement while interacting with members of the FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO). He said the Congress government came to power with the support of women and described their encouragement as the government’s greatest strength.
Women entrepreneurs to drive economic growth
Revanth Reddy said Amazon planned to invest ₹1 lakh crore in Future City. He added that the government’s goal was to attract Fortune 500 companies. Therefore, he said women entrepreneurs and FLO would play a key role in the project’s development.
He said the government would examine a proposal to establish another industrial park for women. The proposal follows the success of the existing FLO Industrial Park. He added that countries with greater women’s participation achieved stronger economic growth and higher living standards.
The Chief Minister said Telangana had nearly 67 lakh women associated with self-help groups. He noted that these groups had received loans worth ₹16,000 crore. Furthermore, many women now operate petrol pumps and compete with major corporate businesses.
Revanth Reddy said the government had paid ₹11,000 crore under the Mahalakshmi scheme. The amount covered free RTC bus travel for women. He added that women had effectively become stakeholders in the public transport system.
Women entrepreneurs to benefit from new initiatives
The Chief Minister said the government aimed to generate 1,000 MW of solar power under the Indira Mahila Shakti programme. Women-led self-help groups will manage the initiative.
He said the government had entrusted women’s groups with maintaining 27,000 government schools. They also stitch two uniforms each for nearly 27.5 lakh government school students. The government pays ₹75 for every uniform.
He said the government had laid the foundation for 8,000 Indira Stree Shakti Bhavans across the State. Additionally, it was working to market products made by women’s self-help groups through Amazon.
Revanth Reddy suggested that FLO should institute annual awards for outstanding women-led enterprises. He also said Telangana aimed to raise its share of India’s GDP from 5% to 10%. The State targets a $1 trillion economy by 2034 and a $3 trillion economy by 2047.
The Chief Minister said the Congress party had a history of promoting women to high constitutional offices. Finally, he expressed hope that the Women’s Reservation Bill, introduced by Sonia Gandhi in 2013, would take effect after the next elections.
Chief Secretary Sanjay Jaju, Chief Minister’s Advisor Ramakrishna Rao, FLO National President Pooja Garg, FLO Hyderabad Chairperson Sita Reddy Gaddam and several women entrepreneurs attended the meeting.