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Women should contribute more to GDP: Minister

Staff Reporter

Best Enterprise award presented to Oil India Ltd., Indian Oil Ltd.

KOCHI: Union Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Kanti Singh said here on Monday that women should contribute more to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The Minister, in her inaugural address at the 17th national meet of Forum of Women in Public Sector, said China had made huge strides in development because there were equal number of men and women in its workforce. "India needs to replicate the model to be the number one nation in the world," she said.

The Minister quoted a recent BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) study by an investment analysis agency that the country would be much benefited if women, who constituted almost half the population of the country, started working and added to the GDP growth.

A large section of public sector enterprises employed women in different cadres, she said, pointing out that the top four out of the five Indian firms listed in Fortune 500 were public sector companies. The public sector has contributed over 25 per cent to the GDP.

The Minister called upon the chairmen and managing directors of public sector firms to evolve a system that would utilise the potential of women. Legal provisions existed for gender equality at workplace, but the mental barrier of the male counterparts was difficult to overcome, she said.

At the meeting, Raji Philip, CMD of Hindustan Paper Corporation Ltd, gave a special address. M. Kamalam, former chairperson of the State Women's Commission, delivered the keynote address. The Minister gave away the Best Enterprise Award to Oil India Ltd. and Indian Oil Ltd. Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. bagged the second place and South Eastern Coalfields, RINL (Vizag Steel) and Bharat Electronics Ltd. got the third place.

Sally Masters, president, Women in Public Sector, Apex Body, welcomed the gathering of women from over 70 public sector companies for the two-day meeting. Manjusha Bhatnagar, general secretary of WIPS/Apex, introduced the theme of the meeting `Mainstreaming Women — Unleashing potential.' Rachel Mathew, president, WIPS, Southern Region, proposed a vote of thanks.

Different sessions on various topics under the theme were held in which executives of public sector companies participated.

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