Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal at a FICCI event on Tuesday stressed on more women representation in businesses as directors, owners based on merit and not just reservations.
He said reservation only makes a husband get his wife elected as a dummy "sarpanch or a CM". "Sushma Swaraj and Nirmala Sitharaman are better examples of those who rose without reservations," he said.
Talking about resurrecting India's indigenous handicrafts, Goyal said that he had spoken to
Falguni Nayar who promised to exhibit them all on
Nykaa. He stressed that there was a huge gap and intermediaries between artists' income and market price and these layers needed to be removed.
Amul began as a cooperative, helping to link farmers with markets, whereas Lijjat Papad began as a self-help group. Goyal expressed the need for FICCI to launch a campaign to encourage family-run firms to hire women from outside their families.
“We need to promote Indian handicrafts, utilise them as gifts on a regular basis, and support female businesses,” he added.
He also stressed that India must aim for a GDP growth rate of over 8 percent
CAGR over the next 30 years, adding that inclusive growth is impossible without women having a significant role.
Rs 10 crore have been set aside for bathrooms and cooking gas connections throughout India, both of which were intended to empower women and protect their dignity, Goyal said.
He also said that for the wealthy, wasted food may not matter, but for the most vulnerable, every gram counts.
