Dr Priti Adani, Chairperson of the Adani Foundation, urged the nation to recognise women as the principal drivers of India’s progress towards Viksit Bharat 2047. She was speaking at the ‘Sashakt Nari, Viksit Bharat’ conference organised by the Chintan Research Foundation in the national capital.
Welcoming Union Minister for Women and Child Development Annapurna Devi, Dr Adani acknowledged the strong policy push behind women-led development. She urged stakeholders to move beyond intent and ensure sustained economic participation for women across sectors.
Drawing upon grassroots experience, she further stated that genuine empowerment begins with access to information, resources and opportunity.
Highlighting field initiatives, she said the Foundation has introduced rural women farmers to simple agricultural mobile applications. These tools provide guidance on irrigation practices, fertiliser usage, seed selection and market price monitoring.
Access to timely information has resulted in improved productivity, higher incomes and enhanced confidence.
In the dairy sector, Foundation-supported self-help groups have established collection centres involving over 3,500 women. These centres collectively procure more than 7.5 million litres of milk annually.
Transparent pricing systems, quality testing and structured procurement have strengthened income security and bargaining power.
Dr Adani also referred to the Suposhan maternal and women’s health initiative. Under the programme, trained local volunteers have contributed to improved health outcomes for more than 3.2 million women of reproductive age.
The Swabhiman programme has further enabled over 4,500 women across 300 enterprise-focused self-help groups to build sustainable livelihoods. She emphasised that empowerment is not an act of charity, it is a process of expanding access to skills, finance, markets and leadership roles.
Referring to provisions in the recent Union Budget supporting self-help entrepreneurs, Dr Priti Adani also described the move as a significant policy step. She said it would enable women to transition from micro-credit borrowers to enterprise owners with access to growth capital.
Concluding her address, Dr Adani called on institutions to remove structural barriers and broaden opportunities. She further asserted that India’s next phase of growth would be shaped by confident women leading change across communities and markets, affirming, “Give her an opportunity. And she will deliver.”
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