The Sanjoy Ghose Grassroots Leadership Awards highlight exceptional leadership from rural areas, showcasing stories of community building often overlooked by mainstream narratives. The Charkha Development Communication Network remains committed to amplifying these voices and recognising their transformative impact
Charkha Development Communication Network, a nonprofit organisation dedicated to strengthening leadership skills among adolescent girls, youth and social workers in the remotest villages of India through information, knowledge and development communication tools, has announced the winners of the Sanjoy Ghose Grassroots Leadership Awards 2024 – from 144 applications received from 14 states across the country. The three winners are Heera Devi, Shabnam Shaikh and Ramghani Meghwanshi.
Heera Devi, from Lunkaransar in Bikaner, Rajasthan, is a social worker at Urmul Setu Sansthan. She focuses on spreading awareness among adolescent girls and boys in her village on various issues relating to socio-economic development.
Shabnam Mohammad Umar Shaikh, a 22-year-old from Shivaji Nagar, Mumbai, is a football coach associated with Parcham Public Trust Football, Mumbai. She teaches football to children from marginalised communities, including many girls who were inspired by her to start practising the sport.
Ramghani Meghwanshi, from Ajmer, works as a centre head in the Education Program of the Mahila Jan Adhikar Samiti in the city. Ramghani, who aspired to become self-reliant, faced several challenges but persevered, earning a BSc degree in Nursing.
“This year Charkha is celebrating its 30th anniversary by honouring grassroots leaders, inspired by the vision of our founder, Sanjoy Ghose, who worked to strengthen leadership in rural areas,” said Charkha’s CEO, Chetna Verma, as she provided further details about the awards. Each award includes a citation and a cash prize of Rs 25,000. The winners will be felicitated by Anshu Gupta, founder, Goonj at Charkha’s 30th Founder’s Day celebration on December 7 this year at the India International Centre Annexe in New Delhi.
This year’s winners were selected by an eminent jury panel comprising three members – Ashutosh Tosaria, who focuses on catalysing learning and growth opportunities for adolescent girls and young people; Ditilekha Sharma, a queer trans-masculine researcher, writer and development professional with more than 15 years of grassroots experience; and Kashina Kareem, co-founder of Manjhi Sansthan, who has extensive experience working with children from marginalised backgrounds.
from Webdoux