Empowerment or employment? Uncovering the paradoxes of social entrepreneurship for women via Husk Power Systems in rural North India

Men continue to dominate the supply-side narratives of energy access projects, leaving an unexplored gap in gendered organizations. To fill this gap, article utilises interviews with women workers consider their lived experience working for access-based organisation. Through use narrative analysis, study highlights importance socio-cultural contextualisation social entrepreneurial activities and missions. It takes a persuasive case-study approach analysing Husk Power Systems (HPS), which operates primarily Bihar, India. HPS, mini grid-based enterprise, began its operations Bihar 2007 goal ameliorating rural Bihar’s problems secondarily, empowering through employment opportunities. Drawing on concepts women’s empowerment, inequalities, intersectionality, argues that although HPS provides formal opportunities, presence has not secured long-lasting empowerment Bihar. As limited capacity reform inequalities. Although guarantees local job creation, we underscore further exploration intersectional dimensions influencing enterprises’ business operations’ longevity impact, including those systems power, caste, gender, class.