Budget 2023 allocates ₹2,23,000 cr only for women’s projects

Budget 2023 – If organizations choose female leaders based on how compliant, submissive, and nice they are, you may not find their names at the top echelons of corporate power, said Union Minister for Women and Child Development Smriti Irani at the Fortune India’s Most Powerful Women Awards event in Mumbai.

“Why do we seek out pleasant women who don’t make a lot of noise in boardrooms? Why can’t we put up with that cantankerous woman who makes sense and you only lament the fact that you wish you had listened to her huge rapturous voice when she was trying to drill some sense into you? When we start giving those women positions of power in corporate entities, I believe your Top 100 CEOs will require a separate men’s section. Where are the men hiring them, is the question.” Irani inquired.

The union minister also claimed that she did not travel to Amethi, where she defeated Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in 2019, because she was nurturing. “I was sent because I was the most combative member of the BJP,” she explained.

“When discussing the budget, one gets the impression that the women’s agency is solely responsible for the woman and child development ministry. For years, I’ve said on numerous platforms that until it becomes the agency of every gender and every family, you won’t see the changes you seek. As a professional politician and minister, one of my greatest joys is seeing the Prime Minister of India lead changes in terms of women’s agency “According to the Union Minister for Women and Child Development.

“I also believe that, when looking at women’s agency from an administrative standpoint, we have had a total allocation of 2,23,000 crore this year across 60 departments for projects that are dedicated to women’s needs. I have already received gender budget reporting from 41 of the 43 departments that were supposed to report the gender budget, indicating that there is fiscal discipline when it comes to gender justice, which is now a permanent part of governance at the Centre “Irani stated.

Budget 2023

For the first time, the 15th Finance Commission has spent tied to gender justice across all panchayats in our country, she said, adding that this is not only limited to female-led panchayats, but it is now mandatory for every panchayat that a specific amount in the budget be spent on issues that women deem fit within the panchayat. “This has never happened before in the history of the world,” Irani added.

“The paradox is that while 46% of STEM graduates in India are women, their transition into science-based enterprise is less than 30%. And this is because, when it comes to women and science, you can only go so far; it is extremely rare for such women to be taught how to commercialize their innovation “said the minister.

In response to an audience member’s question about how to become an entrepreneur when you need that monthly income to pay bills and support your family, Irani said,

“I used to sweep floors at the first McDonald’s in Bandra, which opened in 1998. I made ₹1,500. The road between inspiration and aspiration is difficult and costly. It comes at a personal cost. I’ll be straight with you. Run to the aspiration if you are willing to pay that personal cost. I did that run before getting married and having two children. Many women, I believe, have the potential to lead but limit themselves because they are more tied to their responsibilities, and there is a cost to that ambition. And the most difficult sacrifice is giving up your ambitions, knowing you have the talent, so that your children can support themselves.

So, if you can afford it, go after that dream. And if you can’t, someone in this room will someday hire you or support you in making your dream a reality.”