Indian women ahead of US in science enrolment: PM Modi

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said the enrolment of girls in science, technology, engineering and maths in India is at 43% today, more than in countries like the US, UK and Germany.

“India can move forward only by raising the levels of respect of women and the sense of equality. I call upon all of you to move forward with the determination to remove every obstacle coming in the way of women,” he said addressing a post-Budget webinar on ‘Economic Empowerment of Women’.

Highlighting how women are leading from the front in all fields, including medicine, sports, business, or politics, Modi said the number of girls studying up to high school and beyond has tripled in the last 9-10 years. The results of efforts for women’s empowerment are visible and we are feeling a revolutionary change in the social life of the country, the PM said.

“The reflection of how we can take the country forward with the help of half of the country’s population and how we can increase the potential of women’s power is visible in this Budget,” the prime minister said, adding that in the last nine years, the country has moved with a vision of women-led development.

Pitching for unicorns in self-help groups for women, Modi said more than seven crore women have joined self-help groups over the last nine years, and their value creation can be understood by their capital requirement as these SHGs have taken loans worth Rs 6.25 lakh crore. He said the daughters of the country can be seen in national security roles as well as entrepreneurs who take crucial decisions and risks.