Union Minister for Women and Child Development, Annapurna Devi, today said that women-led development remains at the centre of the government’s policy framework to ensure greater access to opportunities, financial independence and improved quality of life for women across the country.

 

She said this while addressing the inaugural session of the Women-Led Conference ‘Sashakt Nari-Viksit Bharat’ in New Delhi. The minister highlighted several government initiatives, like Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana, Startup India and PM SVANidhi, which have strengthened women financially and enhanced their confidence and self-reliance.

 

Referring to the Union Budget 2026, she noted that the allocation under the Gender Budget has been increased with a provision of around five lakh crore rupees made this year for women-centric schemes. She also said that the proposed SHE-Mart initiative will provide a dedicated marketing platform for women and promote their products under the ‘Local for Global’ vision.

 

The Minister highlighted that nearly 10 crore women are linked to Self-Help Groups across the country, and over two crore have become Lakhpati Didis, with a target to raise this number to six crore. On women’s participation in Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, she said nearly 43 per cent of students in STEM fields are women. She added that the government has announced setting up one hostel in every district to support girls pursuing STEM education.