Mounesh Vishwakarma
Daijiworld Media Network - Bantwal
Bantwal, Jan 25: Prema Poojary, a member of the Amrutha Sanjeevini gram panchayat-level model federation from Sangabettu village in Bantwal taluk, has been selected as a special guest for the 75th Republic Day celebrations to be held at Kartavya Path in Delhi.
Prema began her journey in 2016 as a member of the Bhramari Navodaya self-help group, taking up agriculture and dairy farming as her livelihood. From the outset, her interest in community-oriented activities was evident. Her leadership qualities came to the fore in 2018 during the formation of the gram panchayat-level federation.
Actively involved in strengthening the federation, she later served as a resource person for Bantwal taluk, shouldering the responsibility with commitment. She played a key role in bringing as many as 430 self-help groups under Sanjeevini federations across Bantwal taluk and consistently worked to create awareness among women about various government welfare schemes.
With guidance and support from district panchayat programme manager Hariprasad and state resource person Ali, Prema functioned as a community resource person at the taluk level. She continuously spread awareness among rural women about the importance of self-help groups, the objectives of the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM), and empowerment opportunities available through Sanjeevini federations. She was instrumental in integrating around 25 self-help groups into the federation in and around Sangabettu.
After being selected as a local resource person, she played a crucial role in guiding several women towards self-employment. By facilitating skill training, income-generation activities, community investment fund loans and bank linkages, she helped strengthen the financial stability of many families.
Another notable achievement is her role as a key link in enabling women from Siddakatte and Sangabettu areas to secure loans amounting to over Rs 1 crore through the Bank of Baroda, Siddakatte branch.
Along with mentoring others, Prema herself is engaged in soap-making, phenyl production, dairy farming and agriculture, earning a steady income. Her self-reliant journey has become a source of inspiration for many women.
A symbol of hard work, determination, service and empowerment, Prema stands as a strong example of how rural women can achieve success. She departed for Delhi along with her husband Gopala Poojary on Saturday evening by flight.
Expressing happiness over her selection, she said that although she had never travelled by train earlier, being recognised by the department and given the opportunity to fly to Delhi as a special guest had brought her immense joy.