Women Empowerment and Entrepreneurs in rural India

Sanjib Kumar Sarma

sanjibsarmabajali@gmail.co

In every society, women play critical roles in the family and outside. The socioeconomic advancement of a country can be judged best by the status and position of women. Women constitute half of the total population in the world. Empowerment of women is a critical factor in the eradication of poverty through remunerative and non-remunerative work at home, in the community and in the workplace. Participation of women in income-generating activities is related to an increase in their status, roles and decision-making power in the family and the society. As more and more women entrepreneurs are coming up, taking an active role in the economic development of the nation, making women more productive and training them in modern lines where they can excel in their skills can reduce their dependency and enhance their position.

Women constitute around half of the total world population. They are, therefore, regarded as the better half of society. In traditional societies of India, women were confined to the four walls of houses performing household activities. But as societies progressed, they have come out of the four walls to participate in all sorts of activities. The global evidence support that women have been performing exceedingly well in different spheres of activities like academics, politics, administration, social work and so on. Now, they have started plunging into industry also and running their enterprises successfully.

Women today form an active section of the society, involved in all sorts of functions and performing all kinds of duties, shouldering men at every stage. They are active partners in the development of the country, and they work for it. Women constitute a vital part of the workforce in any business establishment and even in industries. Now, they are joining those professions as well which were earlier considered to be the domain of males only. Responsibly, they share the burden of man. Entrepreneurship is an art and to some people, it is in borne or it may have to be developed which makes one successful in whichever enterprise she takes up and pursues to reach its Zenith. Economic development originates and fosters the strength and health of local entrepreneurship and the rate of its germination and generation. With the advancement of science and technology nowadays, a certain amount of change regarding gender responsibilities has come about. Not only the men, but an increasing number of women have also come up to participate in the economic activities of the nation. Although entrepreneurship and business, in general, have been male-dominated for decades, the scene is rapidly changing. Women are not starting more businesses than they did previously but also starting them in nontraditional industries with ambitious plans for growth and profit. They have some strong points desirable and relevant for entrepreneurship development, such as their ability to manage enterprise, dedication to work they take up, tolerance and kindness towards people. There is a saying that women are more capable of facing risk and absorbing misfortunes than men.

The emergence of women as a viable force on the economic scene as an entrepreneur, especially the Northeast women is a significant development in the emancipation of women securing for them a permanent place in our society, a society that can serve at large by opening new vistas for the educated, unemployed, needy and desirous women. In addition, the active association of women with economic enterprises should also usher in an era of clean business ethics. The Northeast women take up entrepreneurship not only for economic independence but also to gain freedom from subordination in the family. Business is the best occupation for women since it gives them a chance to apply their creativity, earn additional income for the family, maintain self-respect, flexible working hours, etc. They run mostly household industries like pickles, papad, powders, detergents, tailoring, embroidery, forest-based, and cottage industry like handloom and handicraft.

The women have the power to lead the nation toward the avenue of growth and prosperity. Women can certainly be very efficient agents of change for better homes, better society and ultimately a strong economy. Today, women are moving ahead and becoming a major economic force with the growth of technology and the business environment. Women of today are contributing a lot to the growth of society. It is not possible to neglect this economic force. For the speedy growth of the economy of any country, it is important that men and women both participate in the progress of the nation. Women's entrepreneurship is an important tool for women's empowerment. It involves access to resources and market, control of resources, actual ownership and power to make and act on the decision, these may be significant factors for empowering women. In a country like India with such a vast population and the problem of unemployment, entrepreneurship can be the best instrument for women to empower themselves.

The welfare of women had envisaged in the Second Five Year Plan (1956-61) under Central Social Welfare Broad Schemes and also included a comprehensive social welfare programme, family planning attributed prominently in health plans. Emphasis had been given to women's education in the Third, Fourth and other interim Plans (1961-74). The period from the Seventies onwards observed an awareness and sensitivity towards issues regarding women. The Government of India appointed the committee on the status of women in India in 1971, to take on a complete examination of all the questions relating to the rights and status of women, problems related to the advancement of women in the context of transforming economic and social conditions in the country. The committee presented its historic report entitled 'Towards Equality, which proved to be an eye-opener for the government. The Report stressed that disparity and disabilities imposed on women have to be seen in the total context of the society, where a large segment of the population male and female, adults and children-suffer under the oppression of an exploitative system. The report pointed out that the dynamics of social change and development had adversely affected a majority of the women and had created new imbalances and inequality. The Report focused on that dissimilarity and inabilities forced on women must be found in the aggregate setting of the society, where a large section of the population male and female, grown-ups and youngsters endure under the exploitative and oppressive system. The report brought up that the elements of social change and development had adversely affected the majority of women and had created new imbalances and inequality. In the year 1975 number of initiatives have been taken by the Government after the mandate from Parliament on the Report of the committee. The government outlined a National Plan of Action for women. A Women's Welfare and Development Bureau was established under the Ministry of Social Welfare to perform as the nodal agency within the government. It was associated to coordinate programmes and policies to initiate measures for women's development.

Society is a vehicle, both men and women are its two wheels. Contributions of both women and men are entitled to the actions of building a nation. Now the time has been changed, those days are gone when a man could possess of being able to nurture the whole family. Nearly 40% of our population is living below the poverty line. It has, therefore, become apparent that if a family wishes to maintain a reasonable standard of living, the income of man is not sufficient at all. Now women have started proving themselves in many fields, including entrepreneurship and their involvement in entrepreneurial activities has been enhanced by leap and bound. Quite a large number of women entrepreneurs have started their enterprises and have been in business successfully. Women entrepreneurs have proved to be on a par with their male counterparts in business insight and are rising as smart and dynamic entrepreneurs. Women have been successful in breaking their age-old confinement which restricts their freedom by entering into varied kinds of professions and services. They are an important part of the economic development of the country. Rural women concentrated on traditional activities in the past, but due to the spread of education and favourable governmental policies, rural women are also showing their presence in income-generating activities. They are progressively turning to entrepreneurship as a way of coping with poverty. They are utilizing their entrepreneurial skills to become independent and provided financial support to the family through entrepreneurship. It is thus important to recognize and acknowledge the entrepreneurial spirit and approach which lie behind the survival and livelihood strategies of poor people. Also, it is important to foster and promote the spirit of self-reliance by directing entrepreneurial support services, programmes and policies to those who live at the edge of economic survival.