2023, Vol. 5, Issue 2, Part A

The World Bank has recommended that the focal point of social development initiatives should be women's empowerment (World Bank, 2001). Additionally, India has accepted a number of international conventions aimed at ensuring women's equality. "The women's movement and a wide spread network of NGOs which have strong grass roots presence and deep in right into women's concerns have contributed in inspiring initiatives for the empowerment of women," according to the National Policy for the Empowerment of Women (2001). But the policy also notes that there is "a vast gap between the situational reality of the status of women in India, on the one hand, and the aims enunciated in the constitution, legislative policies, plans, programmes, and the corresponding institutions, on the other. Gender equality is demonstrated.

Many academics have debated and analysed the idea of empowerment; for the sake of this discussion, the conceptual framework proposed by United Nations is a good place to start. The procedures by which women expand their choices and take charge of their life are known as empowerment (United Nations, 2001). It is therefore the process of gaining the capacity to make wise decisions in life within the framework in which that capacity has already been identified. The fundamental components of empowerment have been identified as agency-the capacity to choose and pursue goals-awareness of gendered power dynamics, self-worth, and self-assurance.

Individual, household, community, and societal empowerment are all possible at different hierarchical levels. Encouraging factors, like exposure to new activities that can develop capacities, can be provided, and limiting factors, like a lack of resources and skills, can be removed, to enable empowerment. "Empowerment is an active multidimensional process that enables women to realize their full identity and powers in all spheres of life," claims Pillai (1995). Effective roles, policies, and programs for the development and empowerment of women have been adopted in recent years as a result of the focus placed on women in planning, policy making, and government. Women's empowerment will also lead to additional work opportunities, which will change their socioeconomic, political, and educational backgrounds.

Government of India and the state of Karnataka have launched many programs for women empowerment. The study is purely theoretical which is based on secondary data sources.

Necessary information about women empowerment programs in Karnataka state and its various parts is collected from books, magazines, online sources or similar subject.