To mark the sacred Teej festival, Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Monday announced scores of women welfare schemes, comprising the opening up of 131 Mahila Sanskriti Kendras. At the state-level celebration held in Ambala district, the Chief Minister launched the ‘Lado Sakhi Yojana’ to further strengthen the ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ campaign.
Under this initiative, a ‘Lado Sakhi’, an anganwadi worker, ASHA worker, or ANM nurse, will take care of pregnant women during childbirth. For every girl child born, the designated ‘Lado Sakhi’ will receive an incentive of Rs 1,000.
The Chief Minister also launched the ‘Badhte Kadam: Digital Bal Programme’ in Anganwadis, which will help anganwadi workers provide better care and early education to young children. Highlighting that new initiatives have already successfully helped women-led startups to account for 50 per cent in the state, the Chief Minister announced more such steps to encourage women entrepreneurs.
Under the state startup policy, half of all beneficiaries will be women-led ventures. To encourage entrepreneurial skills from a young age, 10,000 ‘do-it-yourself’ kits will be distributed among girl students.
A separate scheme will be formulated to support women-led startups engaged in handmade and traditional items, such as ethnic fabrics, eco-friendly rural crafts, Ayurveda-based health and wellness products, and indigenous food products, with financial aid between Rs 50,000 and Rs 1 lakh.
He said in partnership with NITI Aayog, Haryana will establish a ‘state chapter’ of the women entrepreneurship platform, giving women entrepreneurs access to over 700 mentors, sector-specific training, funding opportunities, market access, and incubation support.
The Chief Minister announced that under new industrial and sectoral policies, businesses employing Haryana’s women will receive additional subsidies, and public procurement norms will be relaxed to boost women entrepreneurs’ participation.
Additionally, one ration depot in every development block will be allotted to women from self-help groups, providing them with livelihood opportunities while also increasing their participation in local governance.
At the event, the Chief Minister virtually inaugurated 131 Mahila Sanskriti Kendras across the state. These centres will serve as platforms for women to engage in cultural activities such as singing, dancing, and devotional performances.
He also handed over cheques worth Rs 14.26 crore to self-help groups (SHGs) as part of revolving and community investment funds, and keys to newly established ‘Rural Harts’ in six districts were given to SHGs.
Women artisans excelling in handicrafts were awarded Rs 3 lakh each for the state Handicraft Award and the Outstanding Woman Artisan Award, along with 12 consolation prizes of Rs 51,000 each.
Awards were also presented to high-performing SHGs at the district level, with cash prizes of Rs 1 lakh, Rs 50,000, and Rs 25,000 for the first, second, and third positions, respectively.