Nai Roshni Scheme | 09 Feb 2022

Why in News?

Recently, the Ministry of Minority Affairs has informed the Rajya Sabha that the Government has sanctioned Rs 26 crore under the Nai Roshni scheme in the last three years (2018-19 to 2020-21) through which around one Lakh women have been trained.

What is the Nai Roshni Scheme?

• Nai Roshni-a Leadership Development Programme for Minority Women is a Central Sector Scheme for women belonging to minority communities in the age group of 18 to 65 years.
• It was started in 2012-13.
• The objective of the scheme is to empower and instil confidence among minority women, including their neighbours from other communities living in the same village/locality, by providing knowledge, tools and techniques for interacting with Government systems, banks and other institutions at all levels.
• It is run with the help of NGOs, Civil societies and Government Institutions all over the country.
• It includes various training modules like Leadership of women, Educational Programmes, Health and Hygiene, Swachch Bharat, Financial Literacy, Life Skills, Legal Rights of Women, Digital Literacy and Advocacy for Social and behavioral change.

What is the Significance of the Scheme?

• Empowerment of women per se is not only essential for equity, but also constitutes a critical element in our fight for poverty reduction, economic growth and strengthening of civil society.
• Women and children are always the worst sufferers in a poverty stricken family and need support. Empowering women, especially mothers, is even more important as it is in homes that she nourishes, nurtures and molds the character of her offspring.
• It helps embolden minority women to move out of the confines of their home and community and assume leadership roles and assert their rights, collectively or individually, in accessing services, facilities, skills, and opportunities besides claiming their due share of development benefits of the Government for improving their lives and living conditions.

Source: PIB