Government Schemes for Women in India (2025)
India is steadily working towards empowering women through various government schemes for women at the central and state levels. These schemes focus on entrepreneurship, maternity support, skill development, and financial assistance for unemployed women.
Whether you’re a woman entrepreneur, a pregnant mother, or someone looking for job opportunities, this blog will help you explore the most relevant government schemes that support and uplift Indian women.
Importance of Women Empowerment in India
Women empowerment is the process of enabling women to have equal access to opportunities, resources, and rights in every aspect of life—social, economic, political, and educational. In India, empowering women is not just a social need but an essential driver of national development.
Key Reasons Why Women Empowerment is Crucial:
1. Economic Growth
- Empowered women contribute to the workforce, start businesses, and drive entrepreneurship.
- Studies show that countries with higher female participation in the economy enjoy faster and more inclusive growth.
- Women are 50% of the population. They can add immense value to the Indian economy in various fields.
2. Improved Quality of Life
- When women are empowered, they invest more in education, nutrition, and health for their families.
- This leads to healthier households and better-educated children, especially girls.
3. Poverty Reduction
- Empowering women through employment and entrepreneurship helps break the cycle of poverty, especially in rural and underprivileged areas.
4. Better Governance and Leadership
- Women in leadership bring transparency, collaboration, and balanced decision-making in politics and institutions.
5. Social Justice and Equality
- Empowering women ensures their fundamental rights, reduces gender discrimination, and creates a just society.
List of Women Empowerment Schemes in India
Now that you understand why women empowerment is important, let’s discuss the government schemes for women’s empowerment in India in 2025.
1. Lakhpati Didi Scheme
It is one of the key women empowerment schemes in India. Under the scheme, the government eyes to empower 2 crore women working in Self-Help Groups (SHGs) to build a capital of more than Rs. 1 lakh.
2. Drone Didi Scheme
The Drone Didi women empowerment scheme in India aims to train 15,000 workers of the Self Help Groups (SHGs) to become drone pilots. These trained women can perform various economic activities like delivering medicines and groceries using drones and earn their livelihood. They are also useful in mapping the agricultural land to digitalise the land records across rural India.
3. Mission Indradhanush
Mission Indradhanush is an ambitious government scheme for women’s empowerment in India. Under the scheme, the government ensures full immunisation of pregnant women and children.
4. Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY)
Launched as a part of the most popular “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao” mission, the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana accounts can be opened by the parents of a newborn girl child. The mission aims to improve the Sex Ratio by ensuring education for girls. Here are some key points of the SSY scheme:
- The scheme is for 15 years.
- It can be extended up to 5 years at a time.
- Maximum annual investment – Rs. 1.50 lakhs
- Deduction for investment available u/s 80C (in the Old Tax Regime)
- Tax-Free Interest – 8.2% p.a. (much higher than FD)
- The amount can be used for the girl child’s higher education, marriage, etc.
5. Ujjwala Yojana
Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) provides free gas connections and subsidised gas cylinders to BPL families. The scheme directly benefits women by providing them with clean fuel to cook food.
6. PMAY (Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana)
The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) is a flagship housing scheme launched by the Government of India in 2015 with the vision of providing “Housing for All” by 2022 (extended in some areas). A key feature of this scheme is the mandatory inclusion of a woman as a co-owner or sole owner of the house purchased or built under the scheme—making it highly beneficial for women’s empowerment.
7. STEP Initiative
Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women (STEP) is a government scheme for women’s empowerment in India that provides grants to institutions to run training programmes for women. The objective of the program is to ensure employment for women through skill development.
8. Stand Up India Scheme
- Who is it for? SC/ST and women entrepreneurs
- Loan Amount: ₹10 lakh to ₹1 crore for starting a business
- Key Benefit: Easy bank loans with government support
9. Mahila E-Haat Scheme
Launched by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in March 2016, the Mahila e-Haat Scheme is a digital marketing platform exclusively for women entrepreneurs, self-help groups (SHGs), and NGOs to showcase and sell their products or services online.
As the name suggests, it is an e-marketplace for women to showcase their products. They can also add proper product descriptions and photos to attract customers. It promotes Make in India while ensuring women’s empowerment.
10. Mahila Shakti Kendras
Launched under the Ministry of Women and Child Development, the Mahila Shakti Kendra (MSK) scheme is a major initiative aimed at empowering rural women by providing them with access to information, training, and employment opportunities.
The MSK is implemented with a cost-sharing pattern between the Central Government and the state government in the ratio of 60:40, except in respect of Special Category and the North-Eastern States, where the cost-sharing ratio is 90:10. In the UTs, the scheme is implemented with 100% central funds. All payments made under the scheme must be through the Public Financial Management System (PMFS) under Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mode.
11. Mahila Samman Savings Certificate (MSSC) Scheme
Announced in Budget 2023, the Mahila Samman Savings Certificate is a government-backed small savings scheme designed exclusively for women and girls to encourage financial independence and savings.
MSSCs are 2-year FDs for women in the Post Offices. They can deposit up to Rs. 2 lakhs and earn an interest of 7.5% p.a. on these deposits.
12. Mudra Yojana
The PMMY (Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana) provides collateral-free loans to small business owners up to Rs. 20 lakhs (limit increased in budget 24-25). With an increased budget allocated for MUDRA loans, the focus is on providing more loans to women-led enterprises.
13. Ladli Yojana
- For girl children born in Delhi
- Financial aid is given at birth, school admission, and class completion till 12th
- Encourages education and discourages child marriage.
14. Mudra Yojana
The PMMY (Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana) provides collateral-free loans to small business owners up to Rs. 20 lakhs (limit increased in budget 24-25). With an increased budget allocated for MUDRA loans, the focus is on providing more loans to women-led enterprises.
15. Women’s Helpline
A 24×7 helpline with a toll-free number 181 is operated across all states and UTs in India to provide emergency support to women affected by violence or any other distress.
Women’s empowerment is the need of the hour. There are several government schemes for women’s empowerment in India that we have discussed in this blog. Hope many aspiring women can get the benefits of these schemes and the objective of women-led development is fulfilled.
16. NES Cells – National Employment Service Cells
National Employment Service (NES) Cells are part of India’s public employment infrastructure established to provide employment assistance, career guidance, and vocational training to job seekers, including unemployed women. These centers are a valuable resource for women looking to re-enter the workforce, start a career, or explore entrepreneurship opportunities.
17. TREAD Scheme
One of the lesser-known women empowerment schemes in India is the Trade Related Entrepreneurship Development Assistance Scheme (TREAD). The objective of this scheme is to develop women entrepreneurs. For this reason, the government provides 30% of the total loan eligibility of women entrepreneurs up to Rs. 30 lakhs. The rest of the loan is provided by banks, through NGOs that work for women’s empowerment and can handle large funds.
Conclusion
These government schemes for women are designed to ensure financial independence, health, education, and overall well-being. Whether you’re a first-time entrepreneur, an expecting mother, or an unemployed woman, there’s a government scheme to support your journey.
