Empowered Women, Rising Bihar: India's Growth Blueprint Gets a Feminine Edge

In a landmark assertion of India’s shifting development paradigm, Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh declared that women are no longer at the periphery of policy—they are at the forefront, leading India’s transformation into a developed nation by 2047. Speaking at the “Viksit Bihar: Envisioning a Developed Bihar through Women’s Participation” conference in Patna, the Minister presented a sweeping overview of how women, especially from India’s Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, are becoming powerful change agents in governance, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

The one-day event, jointly organized by the Government of Bihar’s Department of Rural Development and the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA), focused on translating Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of Women-Led Development into measurable outcomes, especially in underrepresented regions like Bihar.

76,000 Women-Led Startups: A Silent Revolution

Dr. Jitendra Singh revealed a staggering statistic—of the 1.7 lakh registered startups in India, 76,000 are led by women, generating over 17 lakh jobs. These ventures are not confined to metropolitan hubs but are flourishing in small towns and rural districts, including those in Bihar. The data marks a radical departure from the past and underlines the decentralization of innovation in India’s startup ecosystem.

“These women are not just entrepreneurs—they are nation builders. They’re reshaping local economies and rewriting social norms,” Dr. Singh said, highlighting that many of these women are first-generation business leaders creating grassroots impact.

The Four Pillars of Women-Centric Governance

Dr. Singh outlined the Modi Government’s structured and sustained strategy to empower women through four distinct, overlapping phases:

1. Access and Institutional Inclusion

This phase dismantled centuries-old barriers by opening doors to prestigious institutions:

• Sainik Schools and the National Defence Academy (NDA) are now enrolling girl students.

• Combat roles in the Indian Armed Forces are accessible to women.

• India is on track to have its first-ever woman Army Chief, redefining leadership in defense.

2. Scientific and Technological Empowerment

Government programs are helping women reclaim careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM):

• Schemes like WISE, GATI, CURIE, and the Women Scientist Programme target institutional and career-level gender disparities.

• Patna Women’s College will now be supported under the CURIE scheme, giving Bihar a leadership role in this space.

• Notable women like Kalpana of Chandrayaan-3 and Nigar Shaji of Aditya-L1 are fronting India’s most ambitious space missions.

• CSIR, India’s premier scientific research body, is now led by its first woman Director General, with one-third of its labs headed by women.

3. Economic and Social Empowerment

Financial inclusion and ownership are transforming women's lives:

• 48 crore Jan Dhan accounts for women opened.

• Women constitute over 60% of Mudra Yojana beneficiaries.

• Over 3 crore “Lakhpati Didis” (women earning over ₹1 lakh annually) have emerged from Self-Help Groups.

• Under PM Awas Yojana, millions of homes are registered in women’s names, providing both shelter and social security.

4. Legal and Workplace Reforms

The government is creating a sensitive and inclusive legal ecosystem:

• Six-month paid childcare leave for government-employed women.

• Pension rights extended to unmarried or divorced dependent daughters.

• Maternity benefits even in cases of stillbirth—a humane legal reform rarely seen globally.

“These reforms are not just gender-sensitive. They are transformative. Women are now claiming public space and power like never before,” Dr. Singh emphasized.

Bihar as a Model for Gender-Inclusive Development

The Minister commended Bihar’s government for pioneering bold and inclusive policies:

• 50% reservation for women in Panchayati Raj institutions and urban local bodies.

• 35% reservation in state police and civil services, making the bureaucracy more representative.

• Over ₹5,000 crore in financial support disbursed to more than 30 lakh women beneficiaries.

He launched the Jeevika E-Learning Management System App—a digital learning platform for rural women—and unveiled the publication “Shashakt Mahila, Samriddh Bihar”, which chronicles women’s roles in the state’s socioeconomic progress.

Dr. Singh also urged IIPA to document Bihar’s success in a replicable governance model that could be emulated across Indian states. “Bihar has not only imagined women-led growth—it is implementing it at scale,” he said.

From Tokenism to Leadership: A National Mindset Shift

In his concluding remarks, Dr. Jitendra Singh called for a complete overhaul in societal attitudes toward women in leadership. “The question is no longer how to include women—it is how to follow their lead,” he declared. He reaffirmed that Viksit Bharat@2047, India’s vision for becoming a developed nation, will only be realized through the active leadership of women across all domains—from science labs to parliament floors, from rural cooperatives to space agencies.

The event was graced by Union Ministers Giriraj Singh and Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Bihar’s Rural Development Minister Shravan Kumar, and senior officials including S.N. Tripathi (DG, IIPA), Himanshu Sharma (CEO, Jeevika), and Pratyay Amrit (Development Commissioner, Bihar).

Building India’s Future, One Woman at a Time

India’s journey to 2047 will not be a top-down narrative—it will be a mosaic of local stories, driven by women who are finally taking the reins of economic, scientific, and political power. As Bihar demonstrates, structural reforms, digital tools, and policy foresight can spark revolutions in the most unexpected corners of the country.