Assessment of Empowerment among Women Entrepreneurs in Ludhiana District of Punjab

Abstract

Empowering women is the best incentive for development of society. Half of the population of India is composed of women and their empowerment would decide the empowerment of the society. Empowerment means development of women in terms of economical, social, physical, mental, educational and political growth. This paper tries to find out whether economic activity of the women empowers them. We have interviewed 60 women entrepreneurs during the Kisan Mela (Farmer's Fair) at Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana in 2011. Kisan Mela (Farmer's Fair) is an agricultural exhibition which is organized by agricultural universities every year in Kharif and Rabi season of agriculture. Women are in a vulnerable position and face a host of challenges when starting or seeking to grow their business, some of the challenges are rooted in socio-cultural norms and patriarchal practices which put women in an inferior position to men. In addition, women are seen to work twice as hard as men to prove that they are capable of doing a good job. Entrepreneurship is considered to be a significa nt determinant of economic development.