Three Gujarat cities in India’s Top 5 for women-owned businesses

Ahmedabad: Three Gujarat cities have featured among India’s Top 5 million-plus cities for the share of businesses owned by women, according to Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) 2025.

Surat topped the list, with women owning 43.2% of proprietary establishments. Vadodara ranked second at 40.7%, followed by Pune at 40.7% and Ahmedabad at 40%. Pimpri Chinchwad stood fifth with a share of 38.5%.The figures come from Union ministry of statistics and programme implementation (MoSPI)’s estimates covering 46 million-plus cities, classified as cities with a population of at least 10 lakh according to the 2011 Census.

The report includes city-level indicators on female ownership of proprietary establishments, the share of women workers and gross value added.

The MoSPI report states that Rajkot recorded a share of 36.7% in women-owned proprietary establishments, placing it outside the Top 5 list.

Experts attributed the strong showing by Gujarat’s cities to the state’s startup ecosystem, policy support, easier access to finance, rising literacy and the growing participation of women in family businesses and independent ventures.