THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU

BHUBANESWAR, AUGUST 7, 2026

Reaffirming the Odisha Government's commitment to women's economic empowerment, Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida on Friday stressed the need to strengthen women-led enterprises by enhancing their quality, competitiveness and long-term sustainability. She emphasised that improved market access, capacity building and greater use of technology would play a crucial role in increasing women's income and making them self-reliant.

The Deputy Chief Minister was addressing a one-day State-Level Seminar-cum-Review Meeting on strengthening women-led enterprises, organised by the Mission Shakti Department at Krushi Shiksha Sadan, OUAT, Bhubaneswar. The high-level review brought together senior officials and field functionaries from across the state to assess the progress of livelihood programmes and chart strategies for further strengthening women-led enterprises under Mission Shakti.

Speaking on the occasion, Deputy CM Parida said enhancing the quality, competitiveness and sustainability of women-led enterprises is a key priority of the Odisha Government. She underlined that increasing women's income through improved market access, capacity building and the use of technology would help make them self-reliant.

The Deputy Chief Minister also called upon all concerned officials and stakeholders to work in close coordination to achieve the government's objective of empowering women entrepreneurs and strengthening rural livelihoods.

During the review meeting, the progress of various livelihood programmes being implemented across Odisha was comprehensively assessed. Participants shared field-level experiences, discussed operational challenges and deliberated on practical solutions to further improve programme implementation and outcomes.

The discussions focused on enhancing the effectiveness of livelihood initiatives, accelerating the growth of women-led enterprises and strengthening coordination among various stakeholders involved in programme execution. The seminar also provided a platform for exchanging best practices and identifying innovative approaches to ensure sustainable livelihood opportunities for women across the state.

Mission Shakti Commissioner-cum-Secretary Manasi Nimbhal, Mission Shakti Director Dr Monica Priyadarshini, senior officials of the Mission Shakti Department and Odisha Livelihoods Mission, along with District Project Coordinators (DPCs), District Project Managers (DPMs), Block Project Coordinators (BPCs), Block Project Managers (BPMs), Block Project Assistants (BPAs), District Project Assistant Cluster Associates (DPACAs), Block Livelihood Coordinators (BLCs), State Development Coordinators (SDCs) and other officials from all districts participated in the review meeting.