Background

Mission Shakti is an integrated umbrella scheme launched by the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD), Government of India. Formulated in a mission-mode framework, its primary objective is to strengthen interventions related to women’s safety, security, and empowerment across a lifecycle continuum.

The unified mission aims to realize the government’s commitment to women-led development by removing barriers to female workforce participation, preventing crimes against women, and making them equal stakeholders in nation-building.

To execute these distinct goals efficiently, Mission Shakti is structured into two core verticals: Sambal and Samarthya.

Vertical 1: "Sambal" (For Safety and Security)
 

• The Sambal component focuses strictly on establishing defensive, regulatory, and emergency rescue frameworks to safeguard women from violence, distress, and institutional neglect.
• One Stop Centres (OSCs): Integrated centers that provide immediate medical aid, legal counsel, temporary shelter, police assistance, and psycho-social counseling under one roof to women facing domestic or public violence.
• Women Helpline (WHL - 181): A 24x7 toll-free emergency telecommunication service linked directly to OSCs, medical facilities, and local police stations.
• Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP): A flagship campaign extended nationwide to reverse declining Child Sex Ratios (CSR), prevent gender-biased sex-selective elimination, and ensure girl-child education.
• Nari Adalats: An alternative dispute resolution forum operating at the grassroots/Gram Panchayat level. These are women’s collectives designed to address petty family cases, domestic complaints, and community conflicts through mediation, cutting down formal litigation delays.

Vertical 2: "Samarthya" (For Women's Empowerment)

• The Samarthya component focuses on proactively advancing the socio-economic status of women, providing financial security, improving ease of living, and lessening the burden of domestic/caregiving tasks.
• Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY): A Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) maternity benefit scheme providing a cash incentive of ₹5,000 (in two installments) for the first child and ₹6,000 for a second child (if a girl). It compensates for wage loss during pregnancy and encourages health-seeking behavior.
• Shakti Sadan: Formed by merging the erstwhile Swadhar Greh and Ujjawala Homes, these are integrated relief, rehabilitation, and repatriation shelters for women in highly vulnerable distress situations, including victims of cross-border trafficking and abandonment.
• Sakhi Niwas (Working Women Hostels): Safely located, subsidised, and secure residential complexes aimed at encouraging urban mobility for women who are entering or seeking formal employment.
• Palna: A sub-component dedicated to setting up high-quality, safe daycare and crèche facilities for the infants of working mothers, directly tackling the "care economy barrier."
• SANKALP - Hub for Empowerment of Women (HEW): Acts as the central vehicle at the district, state, and national levels to eliminate knowledge gaps regarding all women-centric welfare policies, guiding beneficiaries to claim their rights under various inter-ministerial convergence frameworks.

Key Operational Milestones & Strategies

• Lifecycle Approach: Mission Shakti transitions away from scattered target groups to treat a woman's needs holistically—from nutritional security in pregnancy (PMMVY), to childhood protection (BBBP), working-age security (Palna, Sakhi Niwas), and legal defense mechanisms (Nari Adalats).
• Digital Optimization: The government launched a central Mission Shakti Dashboard alongside a multi-lingual mobile app, allowing women in distress to track real-time locations of Protection Officers or seamlessly book digital support appointments with their nearest One Stop Centre.
• Strict Fiscal Oversight: Funding transfers to states for running these facilities have been migrated to the SNA-SPARSH public financial management standard to ensure accountability, while encouraging state governments to build state-run capacities to directly manage shelters rather than over-relying on non-governmental bodies.