In a first of its kind, the governments of Telangana and Gujarat have drafted a new roadmap for women entrepreneurship and empowerment. Both states have joined hands to facilitate the growth of women-led start-ups in various focus sectors. According to the plan, 240 women entrepreneurs will initially be selected for the pre-incubation programme. Among them, 20 will be selected for co-incubation. If successfully implemented, this ambitious plan will not only be a major step towards making India Atmanirbhar (Self-reliant), but will also open the doors for women entrepreneurs from India to conquer the world. Thus, both state governments should be congratulated for taking up this path-breaking initiative.
The effort to support women entrepreneurship and help them to scale new heights by making their initiative sustainable started way back in 2017 with the creation of Women Entrepreneurs (WE) Hub in Telangana. According to K. T. Rama Rao, Telangana Industries Minister stated that WE hub was created with an aim to pave way for women entrepreneurs to make smooth progress without any barriers. Deepthi Ravula, CEO of WE hub claims that the collaboration would promote women entrepreneurship across Telangana and Gujarat. She also revealed that the WE hub of Telangana and the I-Hub of Gujarat will share knowledge and experiences acquired through women entrepreneurship by working over 3400 projects that began with start-up ideas. The selected entrepreneurs from both states would further work based on their experiences. Both states are hopeful of making India the capital of women entrepreneurship in the near future.
The same model, if adopted and implemented properly, can help the Northeastern region immensely. Northeastern women are highly capable and are advanced in many aspects. Many women of the region have done very well in professional fields and have made the region proud. Moreover, Northeastern women have always played an important role in shaping the society. In Meghalaya, the Khasi society is matrilineal. Perhaps the only field, where Northeastern women do not venture much into, is politics. Apart from politics, there are several of success stories of Northeastern women in all other fields. It would not be an exaggeration to say that given a chance women from the Northeast can make large contributions towards nation building.
So, it would be wise for all Northeastern states to join hands to promote women entrepreneurship. The move will not only help to showcase the tremendous potential of Northeastern women to the entire world, but will ask help the nation to become self-reliant. Further, the hilly terrain of the region is not conducive to heavy industries. Thus to strengthen the region’s economy, micro, small and medium industries should be encouraged and be given all necessary support to flourish. This is why all state governments should sit together with utmost urgency and draw a plan to promote women entrepreneurship in the region which in turn will prove that the women of the region are second to none in facing new challenges.