For the last eleven years, the Narendra Modi Government in the Centre has set a precedent that has been embraced by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) governments in the states. The cornerstone of the socio-economic welfare of the double-engine governments has been the nation’s women.
From the earliest welfare programmes, a disproportionate focus has been on women, and rightfully so. In our nation’s social structure, when narrowed down to a household, the woman is the nucleus that holds the family and the community together. To put it metaphorically, she is the nucleus of the atom or the mitochondria of the living cell. The social evolution of a woman is the economic evolution of a community and of the country.
It is with this perspective that the Mahila Rozgar Yojana must be studied. The Mukhyamantri Mahila Rozgar Yojana (MMRY), launched by the Bihar government on August 29, 2025, and virtually inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, aims to empower women through self-employment opportunities. Implemented by the Rural Development Department via Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society (Jeevika) in rural areas and the Urban Development Department in cities, the scheme targets one woman per family to start her preferred enterprise, fostering economic independence and state growth.
Eligibility criteria include women aged 18-60 who are Bihar residents, members of self-help groups (SHGs), and neither they nor their spouses are income tax payers or government employees. Families are defined as husband-wife and unmarried children, with provisions for unmarried women without parents. This is where the targeting is settled. The programme is aiding women and communities that require economic upliftment at the earliest.
The programme envisions an initial sum of Rs. 10,000 transferred to about 75 lakh women, followed by up to ₹2 lakh additional aid post-business assessment and training. The transferred sum should not be confused with a cash transfer, as it is a corpus for a woman to start her business. Together, women can come to start their enterprise, catering to the local community or the country at large. The programme provides thrust to the Self-Help Groups as well.
Under the Modi Government, Self-Help Groups (SHGs) have been revitalised through Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), promoting women’s empowerment and poverty alleviation. As of June 2025, India had 91 lakh SHGs with 10 crore women members, focusing on financial inclusion and skill development. In Bihar, the Jeevika program operates 10.6 lakh SHGs, empowering rural women through micro-loans, entrepreneurship, and community leadership. This has fostered businesses like shops and manufacturing, enhancing economic independence, breaking social barriers, and improving family welfare, aligning with national goals for inclusive growth.
The SHGs are also critical in the nation’s pursuit of having more Swadeshi products. Young enterprises, like the ones coming together through SHGs, are best suited to cater to the local community’s needs. With time, some of these businesses expand beyond a few villages, often encompassing a district, and from there on, the sky is the limit. Mahila Rozgar Yojana rewards the beneficiaries for their progressive success. What may begin with a corpus of Rs. 10,000 may soon evolve into an enterprise with a monthly credit requirement of Rs. 100,000. This is the financial gap Mahila Rozgar Yojana aims to address.
The Mahila Rozgar Yojana concurrently serves the Lakhpati Didi initiative under the Modi Government’s Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-NRLM. The programme empowers rural women in Self-Help Groups (SHGs) to achieve an annual household income exceeding ₹1 lakh through skill training, financial inclusion, and entrepreneurship. Launched in 2023 with a target of 2 Crore women, it was expanded to 3 Crore women in Budget 2024.
The Mahila Rozgar Yojana takes a step ahead of the MUDRA programme, nearing a successful decade of ease of credit. While the MUDRA programme targets existing enterprises and entrepreneurs, the Mahila Rozgar Yojana opens up the credit line for every aspiring woman, giving them the necessary financial rope to start their business. When the MUDRA programme began, back in 2016, many were sceptical about its success and reach, and eventually, they were proven wrong.
For the women of Bihar, this is a golden opportunity to give wings to their dreams. The corpus is theirs to begin with. In the MUDRA programme, people started with a credit of Rs. 50,000 and elevated their businesses with time. Therefore, no reason the women of Bihar cannot weave their tales of endless success.
When you educate a woman, you educate a generation, but when you economically elevate a woman, you elevate a number of generations after her. For the women of a state once tormented by law-and-order menace, the Mahila Rozgar Yojana ushers a new dawn of self-reliance and economic freedom.
