Women show the way in india’s progress

Women show the way in India’s progress

Varsha Pawar resides in a village in Maharashtra was like any other housewife until she started selling

solar cook stoves and lamps in her neighbourhood a little over a year ago. Today, she is the Sarpanch

(village council chief) of Tirth Khurd (her village name) advocating the use of clean energy not only in

her village but also in the entire Tuljapur administrative block.

Mrs. Pawar story is amongst many such stories which captivate the mind of an individual. India is a

developing economy and the role of women’s contribution is as equally important as the men’s.

According to an ASSOCHAM-Thought Arbitrage Research study, in 2016, India's performance in female

workforce participation stood at 27 per cent, significantly behind China (64 per cent), Brazil (59 per cent),

Russian Federation (57 per cent), and South Africa (45 per cent). Things are changing and fast for good.

Women have come a long way and today they walk with the men counterparts in every stride of life. To

bring forth a vision which lies ahead for many more contributions going to happen, let’s look in to their

accomplishments here.

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Here we present some of the leading women entrepreneurs in India:

Indu Jain

Indu Jain is the current chairperson of India’s largest media group, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd., which

owns the Times of India and other large newspapers.

A Padma Bhushan recipient, she is known by many different identities such as that of a spiritualist,

humanist, entrepreneur, an aficionado of culture and the arts, an educationalist but her most prominent

and eminent role has been that of Chairman.


Kiran Mazumdar Shaw

She is the founder Chairman and Managing Director of Biocon Limited. She started Biocon in 1978 and

spearheaded its evolution from industrial enzymes manufacturing company to a fully integrated bio-

pharmaceutical company. Today Biocon is a leading player in biomedicine research with a focus on

diabetes and oncology.


Vandana Luthra

Vandana Luthra owes the credit to make VLCC, a beauty and wellness company into a multinational

major with presence in 11 countries across Asia, Africa and the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council). She

was awarded the Padma Shri in 2013 for her contribution and last year, she was listed as the 33rd most

powerful woman in business in India by Fortune India.


Naina Lal Kidwai

From being Head of Investment Banking at ANZ Grindlays during 1982-1994 to Vice Chairman JM

Morgan Stanley, Naina Lal Kidwai is one of the most successful and famous Indian businesswomen.

She is currently Country Head and Group General Manager HSBC Group India. She has also held other

eminent positions such as that of Global Advisor, Harvard Business School, non-executive director at


Nestle SA and as a member of Governing Board NCAER, Auditor General of India and several other

positions.

Chanda Kochhar

She is currently the MD & CEO of India’s largest private bank ICICI Bank. Under her leadership, ICICI

Bank won the “Best Retail Bank in India” award in 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2005 and “Excellence in Retail

Banking Award” in 2002 and both awards was given by The Asian Banker.

Besides them, there are many more names to count and look upon in our country.


An improving sentiment

According to a report in The Hindu, Partner, E-commerce and Startups at KPMG, Sreedhar Prasad said

that 15 to 17 per cent of entrepreneurs in e-commerce are women. He added, “A few years ago, it was just

2-3 per cent.” The start-up world is adding a new level-playing field and encouraging all to take the

plunge.

Anisha Singh,founder and CEO, mydala.com says, “The more awareness we build,

the more we inspire people, women included, to join in.”

Promoting climate resilience

Women entrepreneurs are now supporting rural communities to take constructive steps to improve the

quality of the environment. Adopting clean energy products and services, recharge of community water

sources and promoting agricultural best practices are undertaken to improve the long-term resilience to

climate change.

Government’sefforts

The Centre has launched of ‘Mahila E-Haat,’ an initiative to strengthen women entrepreneurs in the

country. An online marketing platform, ‘Mahila E-Haat’ will help women entrepreneurs in rural parts of

the country to sell products online to larger markets all across the country.

Conclusion

Unleashing the power of female entrepreneurship will have a dramatic effect on a country’s economy. To

truly drive the country’s progress, everyone must be able to participate in the process. The time is now for

women entrepreneurs to tap into the abundant business opportunities available to entrepreneurs today. As

a significant part of the entrepreneurial community, women have the power to grow businesses, create

jobs and develop sustainable, scalable solutions that will change the world. Women have defied


stereotypes and are spearheading companies in every field. They are made of substance, the one who

delivers performance not only at work but also ignite the path to many other aspiring ones.


Education

Women show the way in india’s progress