Finance
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi launched the Odisha chapter of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) on Saturday, which is funded by NITI Aayog. The goal is to boost women-led firms and promote women’s economic leadership in the state’s development path.
Majhi, who launched the platform during the ‘Udyami Odisha MSME Programme’ and International MSME Day festivities at the Convention Centre in Lok Seva Bhavan, stated that the program was more than just an institution; it was a popular movement to convert women into job creators and development leaders.
“Our goal is to build an Odisha where women will not seek jobs but will create jobs; they will not merely be consumers of various products but will themselves become producers; they will not only be participants in development but will lead development,” the Chief Minister said.
Majhi also unveiled a one-year Action Plan for the Women Entrepreneurship Platform, which will function as a one-stop shop for women entrepreneurs, bringing together Mission Shakti, the MSME Department, Startup Odisha, banks, and industry bodies to provide access to finance, markets, mentorship, skill development, and other support services.
The Chief Minister highlighted the impact of the Subhadra Yojana, stating that more than one crore women had been empowered by the plan and were on their way to economic self-reliance. Citing data from IIM Sambalpur, SBI, and an AI Voice Bot Survey, he stated that the proportion of women-led firms in Odisha has climbed from 25% to 53%, while beneficiaries’ average bank savings have increased by Rs 6,887.
Majhi also unveiled a one-year Action Plan for the Women Entrepreneurship Platform, which will function as a one-stop shop for women entrepreneurs, bringing together Mission Shakti, the MSME Department, Startup Odisha, banks, and industry bodies to provide access to finance, markets, mentorship, skill development, and other support services.
The Chief Minister highlighted the impact of the Subhadra Yojana, stating that more than one crore women had been empowered by the plan and were on their way to economic self-reliance. Citing data from IIM Sambalpur, SBI, and an AI Voice Bot Survey, he stated that the proportion of women-led firms in Odisha has climbed from 25% to 53%, while beneficiaries’ average bank savings have increased by Rs 6,887.
at addition, two Multi-Product MSME Parks, each costing Rs 10 crore, were launched at Barapalli, Ganjam, and Kesinga, Kalahandi. The Chief Minister stated that Engineering, Printing & Packaging, and Cashew Clusters would be launched in the near future, with one Multi-Product MSME Park being developed in each district of the state.
Majhi stated that the combined efforts of the central and state governments helped around 4.32 lakh MSMEs in Odisha. Under the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), Rs 146 crore in subsidies were offered to 4,900 firms, with women accounting for 42.5% of the beneficiaries. He added that collateral-free loans exceeding Rs 23,000 crore had been extended under the Credit Guarantee Scheme, while the state government was bearing the interest burden under the CM-SRIM scheme.
The Chief Minister stated that Odisha’s exports had reached Rs 95,568 crore the previous year and expressed optimism that the MSME sector will play an important part in meeting the state’s goal of being a $500 billion economy by 2036.
Addressing the audience, NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Dr Ashok Kumar Lahiri stated that Odisha was developing as a new growth engine under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Purvodaya initiative. He stated that the state’s Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) growth rate had surpassed the national GDP growth rate, and that Odisha had won the top spot in NITI Aayog’s Fiscal Health Index 2026 as a result of continued investments in healthcare and infrastructure.
Lahiri described Odisha as a “Dynamic Odisha” making significant progress in sunrise sectors such as textiles and tourism and identified women’s empowerment as the foundation of the state’s economic advancement. He also urged the state government to closely monitor its Vision 2036 targets.
Deputy Chief Minister and Women and Child Development Minister Pravati Parida said the platform’s launch marked the start of a new chapter for women entrepreneurs, while MSME Minister Gokulananda Mallik expressed confidence that women entrepreneurs would play an important role in achieving Odisha’s development goals by 2036.
Balasore MP Pratap Chandra Sarangi, Chief Secretary Anu Garg, NITI Aayog Programme Director and WEP Mission Director Anna Roy, Women and Child Development Commissioner-cum-Secretary Mrinalini Darswal, senior government officials, industry representatives, and thousands of women entrepreneurs from across the state all attended the event. The district administrations of Ganjam, Baleshwar, and Kalahandi attended the ceremony virtually.
