The Nari Shakti Puraskar is an annual award given by the Ministry of Women and Child Development of the Government of India to individual women or to institutions that work towards the cause of women empowerment. It is the highest civilian honour for women in India, and is presented by the president of India on International Women's Day at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi. The award was instituted in 1999 under the title of Stree Shakti Puraskar, renamed and reorganised in 2015. It is awarded in six institutional and two individual categories, which carry a cash prize of 200,000 and 100,000 rupees, respectively.
Mumtaz née Maqsood Ahmed Kazi also popularly known as Mumtaz M. Kazi is an Indian train engineer who is also regarded as the first Indian woman to drive a diesel engine train. In fact, she is also Asia's first woman locomotive driver after Surekha Yadav. She was awarded the prestigious Nari Shakti Puraskar in March 2017 coinciding the International Women's Day from the then Indian President Pranab Mukherjee.
Bina Devi is an Indian leader who became known for inspiring women to become businesswoman through mushroom cultivation. Nicknamed 'Mushroom Mahila' for popularising mushroom cultivation, Bina Devi gained respect and became the Sarpanch of Dhauri Panchayat, Tetiabamber block for five years. She has trained farmers on mushroom and organic farming, vermicompost production and organic insecticide preparation.
Qamar Dagar is an Indian calligrapher. She is the founder of the Qalamkaari Creative Calligraphy Trust. In 2016, she was awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar, India's highest civilian award for women.
B. Codanayaguy is an Electronics & Instrumentation Engineer at the ISRO. She is responsible for the instrumentation of control systems for the solid rocket motors used in rocket launches. She was given the highest award for women in India, the Nari Shakti Puraskar, at the Presidential Palace in 2017.
Subha Varier is an Indian space engineer. She has specialised in the video systems used on Indian satellite launches. In 2017 she received the Nari Shakti Puraskar, India's highest award for women after the record release of 104 satellites in one launch.
Pamela Gale Malhotra is an American animal sanctuary owner who lives in India. She was awarded India's highest award for women, the Nari Shakti Puraskar for her work at the SAI Sanctuary.
Zuboni Hümtsoe was an Indian entrepreneur from Nagaland who started an online fashion and handicraft brand called PreciousMeLove in Nagaland. She was given the Nari Shakti Puraskar, a national award.
Rashmi Anand is an Indian activist and writer concerned about domestic violence. The President of India awarded her the Nari Shakti Puraskar. This is the highest award for women in India. She founded the "Woman of the Elements Trust" which supplies support to victims of domestic abuse in Delhi.
Neha Kirpal is a social entrepreneur who worked extensively at the intersection of creative arts and social sector. She founded of the India Art Fair in 2008. She sold her interest in the Fair after ten years. In 2019, Kirpal and Dr. Amit Malik co-founded Amaha, a mental health organization.
P Kausalya, aka Periasamy Kousalya is an Indian HIV activist. She came to notice as the first woman to talk to the media about being one of India's HIV-positive people. She was awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar in 2015 by the Indian government. She was one of four people who started the Positive Women Network to champion the rights of women who were HIV+.
Swaraj Vidwan is an Indian social worker and activist for the underrepresented. She is a member of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes. She was awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar by the government of India for her work with vulnerable and marginalised groups.
Dr. Meena Sharma is an Indian journalist who was awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar in 2016. She has identified scandals of children who did not look after their elderly parents and the large number of abortions that were taking place of pregnancies that were predicted to deliver a female child.
Uttara Padwar is an Indian charity worker from Madhya Pradesh who was awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar in 2013.
Sumita Ghose, is an Indian entrepreneur who started the Rangsutra collective and won the Nari Shakti Puraskar award from the president of India. Hundreds of artisan's co-own Rangsutra and through the company they sell their goods bridging the gap to global customers such as Ikea.
Jayamma Bandari is an Indian former sex worker turned social worker. In 2018 she was awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar. In 2011 she founded an organisation which supports sex workers and their children with choices.
The Tripunithura Kathakali Kendram Ladies Troupe was formed in 1975 breaking the 300 year tradition that only men performed Kathakali dance. The troupe was recognised with an award of the Nari Shakti Puraskar on International Women's Day in 2017.
Reema Sathe is an Indian social activist and entrepreneur. She created a food company that shares its profits more fairly with small farmers. She was awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar for her work in 2017. She has been Featured by the Forbes Magazine for her work in 2018 and by the World Bank Group and United Nations Development Program in 2019.
Pooja Sharma is an Indian entrepreneur. She is the first woman in her village to work outside the home. She set up a self-help group that employs 150 women in a bakery, and has received awards in recognition of her achievements, including the Nari Shakti Puraskar, India's highest civilian honour for women.
Seema Sakhare is an Indian feminist who campaigns to stop violence against women.
