The CII Foundation Woman Exemplar Program recognizes exemplary women working at the grassroots.The program, since its inception in 2005, promotes women’s empowerment at the community level by discovering, recognizing and supporting those who have, against all odds, excelled and contributed significantly to the development process in India.
The Award is called EXEMPLAR because the winning change makers demonstrate vision, resilience and role model leadership, setting an example for others, and igniting the spirit and the belief among them that they too can be empowered. The exemplars are self-motivated individuals, who transform their own lives and that of their societies.
Since its inception, 100+ Woman Exemplars have been identified
Ranjita Pawar, born into the stigmatized Laman Banjara tribe, rose as a bold advocate from Osmanabad. To overcome the language barrier and the label of being a criminal tribe, she introduced foundational education in the local dialect, Gormati, empowering 27,000+ children, 1000 youth leaders and 20,000 adults from Nomadic Tribes and De-notified Tribes. This led to notable academic and psychological progress among Laman children.
Battling poverty and an abusive marriage, Rumi decided to stand her ground to pursue higher education, a decision that unfortunately marked the end of her marriage. Being outcasted from her own family, Rumi started volunteering at the young age of 14. Striving to improve the health indicators in rural Bihar, Rumi identified and tackled the prevalent issue of Tuberculosis and is advocating for increased awareness on menstrual and reproductive health through her NGO, impacting over 1,70,000 women and children through her work.
Drawing from her own experience with domestic violence and gender discrimination, Saraswathi recognized the correlation between food insecurity, economic dependence, and violence against women. In response, she established the “Millet Sisters,” a network of small-scale women farmers working together to ensure food security through livelihood enhancement, improving the income of over 20,000 women. Her work exemplifies the "five E's" for women's empowerment: Education, Equality, Employment, Economic development, and Empowerment.
Basmati overcame financial adversity, a meagre education, and a traumatic assault at 17 years, and went on to establish a residential school that now imparts holistic education to 230 children, and extends rights-based awareness to over 42,000 forest-dwellers belonging to the tribal belts of Jharkhand.
Born in the Sundargarh district of Odisha, Bideshini overcame an abusive childhood and a turbulent marriage, and organised communities from 10+ villages against the mining exploitation. Through her learning centres, she enables the spread of forest rights awareness, directly empowering 50,000 lives and impacting over 1,00,000 community members.
Pramila Chauhan, from Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh, fought both poverty and deprivation to establish 'Hunar ki Paathshaala', an initiative that offers education, vocational training, and awareness programs in Kurku language across 52 villages, impacting over 4,000 young individuals of the marginalized Kurku community.
Sandhya Devi, a social activist from Khorda district in Odisha, emerged from a childhood marred by caste discrimination and poverty and went on to secure land rights for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), raising awareness and promoting education among 50,000 individuals on fundamental rights.
Witnessing the brutal murder of her father at an early age, Chandravati was forced to roll bidis for a living. Scarred by the violence that she witnessed around her, Chandravati uncovered a significant correlation between violence against women, their declining mental health, and the lack of knowledge about their rights. Committed to change this, Chandravati is providing counseling services to more than 5350 survivors of violence and has worked with 36,000 women on rights based awareness.
Born in an indigenous town of Jharkhand, Khiroda was married off early, widowed soon after, with 2 infants to feed alone. Strengthened by her resolve to shield her children from the poverty and discrimination she faced, Khiroda became a community mobilizer, increasing immunization and reducing the maternal mortality rate as an ASHA worker, thus impacting over 5000 tribal women of Jharkhand.
A disappointment as the third daughter of the family, Maina was married off at the tender age of 6, marking the beginning of the battle to strive for an education. Despite being subjected to episodes of violence, lack of food for days at end and her books being set on fire by her in- laws, Maina completed her education and started working in the community to realise that many girls like her were devoid of basic rights including access to health services. Maina has committed herself to ensure a healthier life for young girls in her region by spreading awareness on sexual and reproductive health, gender, menstruation and nutrition, impacting over 35000 people.
A fierce advocate of women’s rights, Meena has been battling gender-based discrimination and violence against women for years together, having been a victim of child marriage and discrimination herself. Meena's 'Sehjani Siksha Kendra' has become a safe-space for women, where Meena provides medical aid, training on mental health and legal aid coupled with counselling to victims of abuse and violence, thus impacting over 14000 women.
Born amidst extreme poverty and patriarchal norms, Amitaben was forced into child labour and an early marriage. Restrictions and lack of basic facilities fuelled Amita's ambition to create a life of purpose and become a woman of force and substance. Working with the most improvished tribal communities, she has transformed the lives of over 12,750 women through various income generation activities.
Born into a hotbed of patriarchy, and denied access to education for being a girl, Anuradha knew early on that life won’t be easy. Married early into a patriarchal setup, the last straw for Anuradha was when she did not have enough to provide for her child. Starting as a primary school teacher, Anuradha went on to join the National Rural Livelihood Mission and has impacted over 5000 women through diverse income generation activities.
From leading a life of poverty and social constraints, to becoming a Janpad Panchayat member for her village, Godavari has come a long way. She has mobilized more than 10000 women through an SHG movement, initiated organic farming practices, and kickstarted the production of the near-extinct millets through her FPO, empowering women all along the way.
Coming from a forest area with limited resources and means of livelihood, Lilabati wanted to bring about a change. Seeing women being deprived of basic facilities as a result of social exclusion, Lilabati fought hard to get a basic education, turning every challenge into a stepping stone for success. Having transformed into a dynamic entrepreneur, Lilabati has created 1000 more entrepreneurs and impacted the lives of 25,000 individuals leading to significant behaviour change and upliftment of women.
Powering through adversity, Sangita has become a catalyst for social change.
Overcoming mental and physical abuse, Sangita remained resilient in finding
means to support her family and young children. Today, with her exeptional
entrepreneurial spirit, she is a beacon of hope for over 17,000 women. She
has established women-led SHGs across 19 villages, mobilizing them to take
on various leadership roles, resulting in increased representation in the gram
panchayat, family decision making and economic contributions by women.
