In India, women have a secondary status in the traditional patriarchal society. This is revealed in the economy, social and political domains. Women's equality and empowerment have always been a priority and have been given utmost importance by stakeholders. This paper critically examines the status of women in India and compares it to other countries. The paper develops arguments based on secondary sources such as journal reviews, books, reports, NGOs, government and international organisations, and websites. It critically observes women's empowerment in India, different models and dimensions. It discusses constitutional safe guards, government plans and programmes, indicators of women's empowerment, etc. However, India ranks low when compared to other countries. Therefore, there is a need to reassess and modify programmes to achieve sustainable development goal -5 by 2030.

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Keywords: Women Empowerment Government, Social, Gender Equality, Rights.