Karnataka - Bellary   

A champion of women's causes

Staff Correspondent

BELLARY: Sumangalamma Basavaraj, president of the Akka Nagalambika Mahila Samaj and former member of the Bellary Taluk Panchayat, has been selected for the Kittur Rani Chennamma Award for 2004-05 in recognition of her contribution to the uplift and empowerment of women. The award will be presented at a function to be held in Bangalore on Wednesday.

Ms. Basavaraj has been a crusader for women's rights since 1988. As a member of various women's associations, Ms. Basavaraj has tried to serve the cause of women's empowerment.

Training camps

She was instrumental in organising many training camps for women. Also, membership of the Bellary Taluk Panchayat came as a shot in the arm for Ms. Basavaraj. She made use of her position to get women benefits due to them under various welfare schemes announced by the Government.

Ms. Basavaraj was also instrumental in establishing women self-help groups and arranging bank linkages. "Besides helping girls to continue their education by taking care of their fees and books, I wanted to be of some help to poor women to enable them to become self-reliant. Today, women in the Lambani tandas are happy as they are earning and supplementing their family income through embroidery and mirror work. Other women self-help groups are also busy with dairy farming, sheep rearing and other vocations and they have been repaying their loans on time, which has made me happy," she says.

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A champion of women's causes

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