Empowering women entrepreneurs

Karnataka’s first women-led industrial park in Gauribidanur opens its doors to help women entrepreneurs launch and grow manufacturing ventures while creating local jobs and promoting a community of innovation and collaboration.

Dr Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, the founder of the country's leading biotechnology enterprise Biocon, has strived to bring more women into the field while providing accessible medicines to all.

"The lack of women in this industry would always be a concern and at several instances, people have tried to insinuate that I was nothing more than a showpiece. But, I have worked my way through all this, taught myself, and now I’m proud,” says Zainab Raj from Rajasthan.

Godaam, a Nashik-based startup is trying to help farmers prevent onion wastage at the warehouse by installing IoT-based sensors.

Kalpana Saroj was born into a Dalit family, Kalpana was married at the age of 12 and faced many hardships. Eventually, she went on to overcome the impossible.

While conditioning, patriarchy and lack of social support from their own families may be a few reasons for several women, for the majority, lack of financial capital can be a major roadblock on their entrepreneurial journey.

"It takes 946 liters of water to grow enough cotton to make one pair of jeans. So every time you throw away your old denims, you not only add to the toxic landfills but also waste that much water."

The Ladies’ Wing of the IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry is a business and professional women’s organisation.