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Women's contribution to the economyImage Credit source: Getty images

Today India is moving towards a big change. Now women are not limited to just managing the house, rather they are progressing in every field and strengthening the economic strength of the country. Mother economy is now emerging as a major economic force in India with a population of 140 crores. Along with the responsibilities of home and family, women are also progressing rapidly in fashion, online selling, digital services, startups and small businesses.

This change on the occasion of Mother's Day is not just a story of increasing participation of women, but is also a sign of the new thinking where women are playing an important role in giving a new direction to the country's economy. Today lakhs of women are strengthening the image of self-reliant India by converting their skills into business.

Women's participation in employment increased rapidly

According to the Periodic Labor Force Survey (PLFS), the worker population ratio (WPR) of women was 22% in 2017-18, which has increased to 40.3% in 2023-24. Whereas the unemployment rate of women was 5.6% in 2017-18, which came down to 3.2% in 2023-24. Women's participation has increased fastest in rural India. An increase of 96% was recorded in women's employment in rural areas, while in urban areas this increase was 43%.

Employability increased with education

According to reports, the employability of female graduates was 42% in 2013, which increased to 47.53% in 2024. At the same time, the employment rate of women studying postgraduate and above has increased from 34.5% in 2017-18 to 40% in 2023-24. These figures show that women are now contributing more to the economic progress of the country than before.

Women increased in both employment and self-employment

According to EPFO ​​data, 1.56 crore women have joined the workforce in the last seven years. By August 2025, more than 16.69 crore women workers in the unorganized sector have been registered on the e-Shram portal. Due to this they are getting the benefits of many government social welfare schemes. According to PLFS, there has also been a big jump in self-employment of women. This figure was 51.9% in 2017-18, which increased to 67.4% in 2023-24.

Got huge support from government schemes

Central and state governments are running many schemes to promote women businessmen. Across the country, 70 central schemes of 15 ministries and more than 400 state level schemes are providing financial assistance and training to women. Gender budget has increased by 429% in the last decade. It was Rs 0.85 lakh crore in FY 2013-14, which increased to Rs 4.49 lakh crore in FY 2025-26. This shows that now the focus is not just on women's development, but on women-led development.

Increasing dominance of women in startup and business

Of the more than 1.54 lakh startups registered in DPIIT, about 50% have women directors. That means women have participation in 74,410 startups. Today about 2 crore women have become Lakhpati Didi. At the same time, schemes like Namo Drone Didi and Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-NRLM are providing new opportunities and resources to women. Women have received 68% of the total loans under PM Mudra Yojana. More than 35.38 crore loans have been given to women, the total amount of which is Rs 14.72 lakh crore. Whereas about 44% beneficiaries of PM Swanidhi Yojana are women.

Now women are becoming employers

The share of women-owned businesses was 17.4% in 2010-11, which has increased to 26.2% in 2023-24. At the same time, the number of women-led MSMEs has almost doubled from 1 crore to 1.92 crore. Today women are not limited to just doing jobs, but are creating employment themselves and also providing work to others.

Contribution of women in every sector

• agricultural sector

In India, most women work in the agricultural sector. Women of villages are playing a big role in farming, dairy, animal husbandry, fish farming and food processing.

• manufacturing sector

Women's participation is increasing rapidly in industries like textile, clothing industry, electronics, packaging and food processing.

• service sector

Women are working in large numbers in banking, healthcare, education, hotel industry, retail, IT and digital platforms.

• Startup Sector

Women are increasingly starting their own startups in fintech, edtech, fashion, health, beauty and food businesses.

• government jobs

Women are also playing an important role in administration, army, police, railways, health services and local governance. Steps like Nari Shakti Vandan Act emphasize on increasing participation of women.

Mahendra Bhargava

Mahendra Bhargava is an experienced automobile and business journalist, actively working in the digital media industry since 2018. Mahendra is currently associated with TV9 Bharatvarsh, where he is working on the latest updates, exclusive stories and in-depth analysis related to automobile and business. He has deep experience in presenting news related to auto sector, market trends, new car launches, industry analysis and business in a simple and effective manner. With 5+ years of experience in the automobile and business segments, Mahendra has worked in many reputed media organizations. His career includes big names like ETV Bharat, Dainik Bhaskar, News18 and Zee News, where he worked in multiple roles in digital content creation.

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