India's 1st women-owned industrial park opens in Hyderabad

Recently,   India’s first 100 percent women-owned industrial park opened in Hyderabad, Telangana commemorating the International Women’s Day 2022. 

Context

Recently,   India’s first 100 percent women-owned industrial park opened in Hyderabad, Telangana commemorating the International Women’s Day 2022. 

• The park is promoted by the FICCI Ladies Organization.
• This park was built on 50 acres of land in Sultanpur, which is near Patancheru. 

What is FLO?

• FLO is the women’s wing of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), which is the top body of industry and commerce in India.
• The full form of FLO is FICCI Ladies Organization (FLO). 
• It was established in 1983. 
• Its members include professionals, corporate executives and entrepreneurs.
• FLO is an All India Organisation and has 18 chapters across India including – Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, Bhubaneswar, Coimbatore, Jaipur, Indore, Kanpur, Pune, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Northeast, Uttarakhand and head office in New Delhi.
• This FLO industrial park exemplifies the power and self-reliance of women in the business, from electronics to packaging, medical devices, wellness, engineering, and food processing. 
• The FLO members have contributed a substantial amount of money for the construction of the park, while the government has provided the roads, electricity, water, sewerage, and sub-station.

Significance

• The FLO Industrial park that stretches across 50 acres has been built with an investment of Rs 250 crore. 
• It is a flagship project that is the first-of-its-kind in India. 
• The participation is open to chapter members and national members of FLO.
• Telangana Minister, during his inaugural address, urged entrepreneurs to think big and start thinking about emerging technologies with increased focus on defence, aerospace, food processing and forging global partnership.
• The Minister has promised another 100 acres for the expansion of FLO women industrial park, which will be subject to the park focus on novel products. 
• He has also offered an additional 10 percent subsidy for women entrepreneurs.
• The state had attracted $32 billion in investments over the last seven and a half years, which has helped in generating 1.6 million jobs.