Yogi Adityanath Says Women Are Driving Uttar Pradesh’s Rural Economy

Speaking on Sunday after offering prayers to the goddess Durga during Maha Ashtami, Yogi Adityanath described women’s economic participation as part of broader changes in Uttar Pradesh. He said state initiatives had focused on women’s safety, dignity, education, nutrition, livelihoods and economic independence.

“True social progress is possible only when women are healthy, safe, educated and economically self-reliant,” Mr Adityanath said. He also said the goddess Durga represented peace, purity and compassion. The chief minister made the remarks while discussing his government’s policies and shared them on social media.

Mr Adityanath said that over 400,000 women across 31 districts were associated with dairy companies. He presented dairy farming as one of several areas in which women had become participants in the rural economy. His comments also referred to the BC Sakhi programme, under which women act as banking correspondents in villages and provide financial services locally.

According to Mr Adityanath, the BC Sakhi programme had expanded financial inclusion and supported women’s economic empowerment in rural areas. He said the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had increased opportunities for women in education, nutrition, security and employment, describing the administration as a “double-engine government”.

The chief minister also discussed the supply of take-home rations for children. He alleged that, before 2017, mafia interference had affected nutrition programmes. He said production and distribution were subsequently assigned to women-led self-help groups, which he said improved transparency and created employment opportunities.

Mr Adityanath said monthly honorariums for Anganwadi workers had risen from Rs 3,000 to Rs 12,000. He added that the workers were receiving health-insurance benefits. More than 12m women, he said, were linked to self-help groups in Uttar Pradesh, while the Lakhpati Didi initiative was helping participants pursue economic self-reliance.