Women entrepreneurs get a platform to sell their products

Exhibition at Ameerpet metro station to run for a fortnight; to travel to six other metro stations in phases

The Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) is one of the safest public transport systems in the country, remarked Additional DGP (Women Safety Wing) Swati Lakra on Wednesday, adding that the city police has ensured that QR codes are available within train coaches and at the stations for female passengers to reach out to ‘SHE’ teams in case of any exigency.

Ms Lakra was addressing a gathering after inaugurating the ‘Metro Bazar - Shopping on the Go’ on the Ameerpet metro station premises where women entrepreneurs under the aegis of ‘Women’s ENvision’ (Women Envision Council for Enterpreneurship) have set up around 16 stalls, selling a variety of homemade products such as jute bags, photo frames, saris, apparel and food items among other things, for metro commuters to shop on the go.

The exhibition will be on at the Ameerpet station from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. for 15 days, and will be travel to six other metro stations in phases over the next few days. While the L&T Metro Rail authorities have offered the space for free for the women entrepreneurs’ flea market as part of the corporate social responsibility initiative, HMR managing director N.V.S. Reddy has offered to provide shops and selling spaces within the station or under the station to women entrepreneurs at discounted prices.

From the beginning, the HMR project was planned to be “people-friendly and green” and not just an engineering work taking into consideration the socio-economic issues including gender equality, Mr Reddy said.

L&T Metro Rail MD and chief executive officer K.V.B. Reddy said the pandemic has caused havoc among the business community and more so for women entrepreneurs, even as he hoped that the ‘flea market’ initiative will help them get back on their feet.

Women’s ENvision’s T. Praveena said it is a ‘golden opportunity’ for the women entrepreneurs, most of whom were homemakers wishing to become financially independent. Her organisation is 2,000-member strong, and she said the metro rail project has come as a big boon since it provides a “safe, affordable and efficient transport” for women entrepreneurs . Products at the market are eco-friendly and reasonably priced, she added.