New Delhi- Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal have emerged as the top three states in producing ‘Lakhpati Didis’—women earning a minimum annual income of ₹1 lakh—out of a total of 1,15,00,274 such women across India.

In a written response to the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, Minister of State for Rural Development Chandrasekhar Pemmasani revealed that Andhra Pradesh has 14,87,631 Lakhpati Didis, Bihar 13,47,649, and West Bengal 11,81,852.

Other states contributing significantly include Madhya Pradesh (10,51,069), Maharashtra (10,04,338), Uttar Pradesh (8,41,923), Telangana (7,58,693), Gujarat (5,38,760), Odisha (5,37,350), Jharkhand (3,51,808), Tamil Nadu (3,18,101), Kerala (2,84,616), Rajasthan (2,70,405), and Karnataka (2,36,315).

However, northern states like Punjab and Haryana report comparatively lower numbers, with 31,700 and 62,743 Lakhpati Didis, respectively.

While responding to questions posed by Kota Srinivas Pujari and Chamla Kiran Kumar Reddy, the Minister also provided updates on the Namo Drone Didi initiative, which has delivered 503 drones as of December 3. Andhra Pradesh received the highest allocation with 97 drones, followed by Karnataka (84), Telangana (72), Madhya Pradesh (34), Uttar Pradesh (32), Maharashtra (30), Punjab (23), and Haryana (22).

The Minister highlighted that under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM), 10.05 crore women have been organized into 90.87 lakh Self-Help Groups (SHGs) as of October 2024. This centrally-sponsored scheme aims to alleviate rural poverty by organizing women from economically disadvantaged backgrounds into SHGs and providing them with sustained support to improve their incomes and living standards.

A 2019-20 study conducted by the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation, in collaboration with the World Bank, reported a 19% increase in income for beneficiaries of DAY-NRLM. It also noted a 20% decline in reliance on informal credit and a 28% rise in savings among the beneficiaries.

The Ministry has initiated further evaluation studies to understand the impact of various interventions under DAY-NRLM on the financial independence of SHG women.