Srinagar, Oct 12: Rafia Yaseen after completing her graduation worked hard in the private sector to support her family.
Situation didn’t improve for her because of the low wages she used to get while working as a computer operator in a private firm.
It was one of her friends who suggested she set up a boutique by getting financial assistance from the government under various schemes.
“The idea worked and now I am earning a good sum to support my family. I have even employed four women in my boutique who also support their families,” she said.
Women in Jammu and Kashmir are breaking the glass ceiling to take entrepreneurship in the Union Territory to the next level.
From handicrafts to hospitality, horticulture and agriculture, women from Jammu and Kashmir have set up their units, which is registering a massive growth in terms of returns.
As per the figures, under Prime Minister’s Employment Guarantee Programme (PMEGP) 14,943 projects have been set up by women in the last three years.
These projects provided jobs to at least 1, 19,544 qualified youth from the union territory.
In 2022, 3188 projects have been set up by women, who employed around 25,504 youth in these projects.
Figures suggested that 8,520 and 3,235 projects were set up by women in 2021-22 and 2020-21, which employed 68,160 and 25,880 youth, respectively.
A flagship scheme of the Union MSME Ministry, PMEGP was launched in 2008 by subsuming the erstwhile Rural Employment Generation Programme (REGP) implemented by KVIC and Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Yojana (PMRY) implemented by District Industries Centers
In addition to PMEG, a total of 33,390 women-owned enterprises have also come up in Jammu and Kashmir during the last three years through Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE).
The centre released Rs 870.45 crore under CGTMSE during these three years for Jammu and Kashmir.
Moreover, in last three years, a total of 29,091 units including Micro, Small, and Medium owned by women have been registered in Jammu and Kashmir through Udyam.
A senior official said that women have been successfully forayed into the male dominated business sectors.
“From apparels to handicrafts, women are successfully running a wide range of businesses in Jammu and Kashmir. The government is equally encouraging women to get empowered under various centrally sponsored schemes,” he said.KNO
