The transformation from Pickles, Powder and Pappad to Engineering, Electronics and Energy: An overview on Women Entrepreneurship in India

Abstract

Women entrepreneurs are those women who think of a business enterprise, initiate it, organize and combine factors of production, operate the enterprise and undertake risks and handle economic uncertainty involved in running it. The Planning Commission of India depicted that economic development of a country can only take place when women are brought in the mainstream of economic development. With the increase in industrialization, urbanization, liberalization, globalization, digitalization, social legislation, education and literacy, entrepreneurial awareness, and various empowering initiatives and schemes, the role of women are transforming drastically from housewives dealing with kitchen activities referred to as 3 Ps, viz., Pickles, Powder and Pappad into entrepreneurship in terms of 3 Es, viz., Engineering, Electronics and Energy. Indian women in the current era have made great strides relative to the past by overcoming several obstacles on their way. Even though Indian women are not on pace with their counterparts like the western countries, but still the ‘abla’ section is striving hard in establishing themselves in the male-dominated society. The status of women in India has been changing because of their active participation in all spheres of activities like, academic, administration, politics, space, and even industry. According to the Sixth Economic Census report (2016), women constitute around 14 % of the total entrepreneurship in India. By 2030, it is predicted that 150 – 170 million employments will be generated by 30 million plus women-owned enterprises and this might transform the economy’s future more promising than ever. In this scenario, the present paper makes a modest attempt to assess and identify the current scenario and status of women in entrepreneurship and their entrepreneurial activities in India.