2 weeks ago
Modi announces 6 crore Lakhpati Didi target on Independence Day
On India's 80th Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke from the Red Fort.
He announced that the government wants to help 6 crore women in villages earn at least ₹1 lakh — one hundred thousand rupees — every year from their own work.
These successful women are called 'Lakhpati Didis.'
Already, more than 3.46 crore women have reached this goal, passing the government's earlier target of 3 crore.
Women are helped through Self-Help Groups, where they save and work together with support for credit, training and markets.
Women reach the goal in different ways, such as raising goats and hens, dairy farming, food processing, handicrafts and running small shops.
One woman in Bihar started with four goats bought for ₹5,000 and grew her business into a poultry farm.
Another woman in Kashmir earns about ₹1.20 lakh a year from her dairy business with ten animals.
The goal is to help village women earn steady incomes and make India's rural economy stronger.
PM Modi, in his 80th Independence Day address from the Red Fort on August 15, set a new target of creating 6 crore Lakhpati Didis.
More than 3.46 crore Self-Help Group members were enabled as Lakhpati Didis by July 2026, surpassing the earlier target of 3 crore.
A Lakhpati Didi is an SHG woman with at least ₹1 lakh in sustainable annual household income, maintained over four agricultural seasons or business cycles.
As of March 31, 2026, Maharashtra led with 49.66 lakh Lakhpati Didis, followed by Bihar (43.40 lakh), West Bengal (34.20 lakh) and Uttar Pradesh (33.52 lakh).
Women reach the threshold mainly through diversification and non-farm work, including goat rearing, poultry, dairy farming, food processing, handicrafts, retail, beauty services and banking-related enterprises.
- Who
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Ministry of Rural Development, and more than 3.46 crore rural women Self-Help Group members enabled as Lakhpati Didis.
- What
- Announced a target of creating 6 crore Lakhpati Didis — SHG women earning at least ₹1 lakh in sustainable annual household income — after the previous 3 crore target was surpassed.
- Where
- Announced from the Red Fort in New Delhi; the initiative spans rural areas across India's states and union territories.
- When
- August 15, 2026, India's 80th Independence Day; the 3.46 crore figure is as of July 2026, while detailed state-wise data is as of March 31, 2026.
- Why
- To economically empower rural women and bring major transformation to India's rural economy through sustainable, diversified and women-led enterprises.
Key facts
- New target
- 6 crore Lakhpati Didis, announced on August 15, 2026
- Lakhpati Didis enabled
- More than 3.46 crore (3,46,49,448) by July 2026
- Earlier target
- 3 crore Lakhpati Didis (surpassed)
- Income threshold
- At least ₹1 lakh annual household income, sustained over four agricultural seasons/business cycles (average ₹10,000 monthly)
- Top state
- Maharashtra with 49,66,617 Lakhpati Didis (as of March 31, 2026)
- Programme
- Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM)
- SVEP enterprises
- 4.32 lakh enterprises supported under Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme by June 2026
- 2025 evaluation
- 9.5% household income rise in NRLM blocks; 12-33% in mature community clusters (about 23,000 households, nine states)
Quotes
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Head of Government of India
“We have surpassed the target we had set of making three crore sisters ‘Lakhpati Didis’. Now, we are moving forward with the target of creating six crore Lakhpati Didis.”
financialexpress.com










