The Ministry of Women and Child Development instituted the First Ladies Award to honor the ladies who have made significant achievements in the respective fields. A total of 112 women were awarded by President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Out of these, three women namely Dr. Asha Pande, Chhavi Rajawat and Manju Devi Yadav belong to Jaipur.
Here’s a brief look at the achievements and milestones set by these 3 women hailing from the state of Rajasthan:
Dr. Asha Pande
Image Courtesy: TimesofIndia
Dr. Asha Pande is the founder and director of Rajasthan University’s Master in European Studies Program. She has been promoting French language and culture in Rajasthan from the last 4 decades. For the services she rendered to promote foreign languages, Dr. Pande was given the highest civilian award of France i.e. Chevalier Dands ‘LOrdre National De La Legion D’Honneur, back in 2009.
Apart from being a French professor, she has also been a theatre actor and an activist, earlier in her career. Back in 2004, she became the first Indian woman to be elected to the executive committee of a UNESCO organization named International Federation of Theatre Research (IFTR).
Chhavi Rajawat
Image Courtesy: celebritycurry
Chhavi Rajawat became the first MBA Sarpanch of Soda village of Rajasthan in 2010 and set an example for all young ladies of the state. Currently, she is serving the second tenure as the Sarpanch. Fondly named as Bai Sa, Chhavi had earlier represented India at the 11th info-poverty World Conference at the United Nations Headquarters.
Here she talked at length about the struggles that rural India is facing. She is working on a mission to improve the lives of rural people residing in the village. With her main focus on issues like sex ratio and gender disparity, she is aiming at changing the attitude of grass root polity and bureaucratic system.
Manju Devi Yadav
Image Courtesy: newstracklive
Manju Devi Yadav is the woman coolie working at the Jaipur Railway Station who is breaking all stereotypes left, right, and center. She had to get into the male-dominated profession after the demise of her husband. With the job of a coolie, Manju Devi is not just supporting her kids and their education but is also setting a great example for other women. Her only ambition is to ensure a bright future for her kids by giving them proper education.
