In a bid to empower women living in rural areas by training them to become drone pilots for agricultural tasks, Prime Minister Narendra Modi distributed drones to 1,000 “Namo Drone Didis” in the national capital on Monday.
The NaMo Drone Didi initiative aims to equip 15,000 women-led Self-Help Groups (SHGs) with agricultural drones to assist in tasks such as crop monitoring, fertiliser spraying and seed sowing.
“Namo Drone Didis” from 10 different locations across the country also virtually joined the programme.
PM Modi participated in the Sashakt Nari-Viksit Bharat programme, aiming to empower women and give them financial autonomy, particularly in rural areas.
Prime Minister Modi also felicitated “Lakhpati Didis”, who have achieved success with the support of the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission and are mentoring members of other self-help groups.
Addressing the event, PM Modi called the occasion “historic.”
“Your success stories gave me the confidence to embark on this journey of making 3 crore Lakhpati Didis,” he said.
While presenting the Interim Budget 2024-25 in Parliament, Union Minister for Finance Nirmala Sitharaman announced an increase in the target for Lakhpati Didi from 2 crore to 3 crore.
The Union Minister said that eighty-three lakh SHGs, comprising nine crore women, are transforming the rural socio-economic landscape through empowerment and self-reliance. Their achievements have already helped nearly one crore women become “Lakhpati Didis.”
PM Modi also disbursed around Rs 8,000 crore in bank loans to Self Help Groups (SHGs) at subsidised interest rates through Bank Linkage Camps set up by banks in each district. He also released about Rs 2,000 crore in Capitalization Support Funds to SHGs.
“A society can progress only when opportunities are created for women to break barriers and bring ‘Nari Shakti’ to the fore,” Prime Minister Modi said.
Stressing the impact of self-help groups, PM Modi said, “These groups have contributed significantly to the development of rural infrastructure and the general upliftment and well-being of people in the hinterland.”
“From health to Digital India, our Didis are giving new impetus to the national initiatives. More than 50 per cent of those running the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan are women, and more than 50 per cent of the beneficiaries are also women. These incredible success stories have only served to strengthen my faith in ‘Nari Shakti’,” he added.
(With inputs from ANI)