Empowerment Concept: Defining the term “empowerment” is just a difficult task. The dictionary meaning of the word “empowerment” is “to enable” (Oxford Dictionary, 1962: 265). Empowerment involves a person's right to decision-making and autonomous power. When an individual is able to decide his own life based on the situation he is living in, then that particular individual is said to be empowered. However, the notion of empowerment is subjective in nature. Empowerment literally means to make someone powerful, to help the weak gain strength, to increase one's self-esteem, to help someone become assertive or confident, to enable someone to cope with injustice and oppression and support someone in the fight for their rights. Empowerment is when an individual takes possession of the power to think and act freely, to make choices and to conform to their possible potentials to become fully capable and equal members of society. Thus, empowerment means a cognitive understanding of an individual's control or influence over actual social factors, political power, and legal rights. It is a multi-level formulation referring to individuals, organizations and the community as a whole. It is something that involves mutual respect, critical thinking, caring and group participation, through which people lacking an equal share of valued resources gain greater access and control over these resources. According to Sahay (1998), the main points of the current strategy The definitions proposed for “empowerment” include: (1) Giving power or authority to; (2) Give the ability to; enable; permitted, (for example, a court is empowered to judge a person to be punished or not). “Power” is the key word in the term “Empowerment”, which means having cont...... middle of paper ....ways to solve and approach problems that affect their lives.5. Advocacy for the establishment of a system and environment that promotes participation. References: (Empowerment: theoretical constructs and operational issues. ir.inflibnet.ac.in:8080/jspui/bitstream/10603/.. ./9/09_chapter%202.pdf‎ VISIT 01/20/2014 TIME 5:00 PM).(.Women empowerment through Panchayati raj.By-Dr Ramesh H. Makwana. ABD Publication Jaipur New Delhi Eition 2012)( Empowerment of rural women The disincentives and determinants By - MP BORAIAN, Concept Publishing Company, New Delhi - 110059 First published in 2008)). (Problems, Challenges and Strategies of Women Empowerment - A Source Book, By –hajira kumar Jaimon Varghese Regency publications New Delhi, Author 2005) (Women Empowerment through Panchayati raj.By- Dr. Ramesh H. Makwana ABD Publication Jaipur New Delhi Edition. 2012)