Bengaluru (Karnataka): The Karnataka government will set up four industrial parks dedicated to women, Large and Medium Industries Minister Murugesh Nirani said on Thursday. "Karnataka is the first state in India to set up exclusive industrial parks dedicated to women in Mysuru, Dharwad, Kalaburagi and Harohalli," the minister said after inaugurating women entrepreneurs' event titled 'Together We Grow' organised by UBUNTU Consortium of Women Entrepreneurs Associations to mark International Women Entrepreneurship Day.
Calling upon women to make use of this opportunity, he said women should join hands with the government in driving industrial growth by taking up entrepreneurship and providing jobs. "Women are shining in every field in this competitive world. Empowerment of women will become more meaningful when women become entrepreneurs and provide jobs to others. Successful women entrepreneurs like Sudha Murty of Infosys, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw of Biocon have become role models and their success stories should become a source of inspiration for budding women entrepreneurs," Nirani opined.
The minister said government through various initiatives has been encouraging women entrepreneurs to unlock their potential to generate unlimited profit and create jobs. "We are proud of the fact that today India has 13.5 – 15.7 million women-owned enterprises, representing 20 per cent of all enterprises. Accelerating quantity and quality of entrepreneurship towards such benchmarks can create over 30 million women-owned enterprises and this is not an impossible goal," Nirani opined.
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The Minister promised incentives for women entrepreneurs from weaker sections. "Amendment to the Factories Act, 1948 allows women to work in the night shift between 7 PM to 6 AM. Additional incentives are proposed to special category entrepreneurs such as SC/ ST women under new industrial policy," Nirani informed the gathering.
The minister praised former Karnataka Chief Secretary Ratnaprabha who is heading UBUNTU for promoting the spirit of entrepreneurship among the women and helping them achieve success. He lauded UBUNTU for supporting and guiding women entrepreneurs and promised to extend government's cooperation and support in their endeavours.
UBUNTU comprises of over 30 women entrepreneurs associations where 1,500 members function under a single platform.
PTI
