Uttaranchal Mahasangh Mumbai felicitates five women on Mahila Divas for their contribution as homemakers

Mumbai, Feb 17, 2013: The Uttaranchal Mahasangh, one of the biggest organization of Uttarakhandi people in Mumbai and its environs (Virar, Vasai ,Thane, Navi Mumbai , Panvel, Kalyan, Ambarnath etc), has recognised the immense contribution and the lead role women play as homemakers  -by felicitating five women for their special contribution in raising children and managing their households and family selflessly. The felicitation function `Mahila Shakti Parichay Divas’ was held at the Pandit Chandrabhan Sharma Memorial Hall, Powai English School, IIT Powai, Mumbai, on February 16, 2013.

The five women honoured were Shrimati Savitri Sharma (Jogeshwari), Shrimati Radha Koranga (Kanjurmarg), Shrimati Saroj Lingwal (Airoli),  Shrimati. Pitambari Gusain (Navi Mumbai) and Smt. Pushpa Shah (Powai).

During the function, another distinguished Uttarakhandi, Shri Hari Mridul, a poet-journalist-writer was also felicitated for his outstanding contribution to the upliftment of Indian literature and Hindi literature in particular. He has been recently conferred with a Bartaman Sahitya Kamleshwar Kahani  National Award by  Bartaman Sahitya Group. 

Smt Vijaya Pant Tuli, a mountaineer from NIM, Uttarkashi who climbed Kedardome (22400 ft) Skiing from Gulmarg, was also honoured for her special achievement.


The guests of honor included Shri Chandan Sharma - Corporator of Pawai, Colonel Shri Harendra Rawat, Shri H.S.Rawat - the last commanding officer of INS Vikrant, Shri Keshav Mamgain, P.F. Commissioner Shri Vijaynand Sharma, Shri Bhupendra Goniyal, Shrimati Anandi Gairola (President, Uttarakhand Mahasangh), Smt Vijaya Pant Tuli (Vice President, Uttarakhand Mahasangh) Smt. Babita Dobhal and Shri Ganesh Chandra Akoliya (H.O.D.- Electronics & Telecommunication, Thakur Polytechnic Institute).

Addressing the august gathering of around 400 on the occasion, Shrimati Kusum Lata Gosain a dedicated social worker and founder-member of the Uttaranchal Mahasangh, said “Women are the backbone of Indian families. Without a woman you cannot have a home, you cannot run your house. Women play a lead role in raising and shaping the children of today into tomorrow’s responsible citizens. It is, therefore, women who essay an important role in society.”

The Uttaranchal Mahasangh’s President Smt Anandi Gairola said “Our intention behind felicitating women this year was to recognise their contributions to both the family and the community at large.  Women don’t expect anything in return for their services. Their contribution goes unnoticed and unrecognised. We at the Uttaranchal Mahasangh decided to felicitate these women since they epitomize strength, courage, compassion and caring,”

Appreciating the role of women, especially homemakers, Chandan Sharma said “I congratulate all the five women who have been felicitated for their unique and special place in our lives. Women go through lots of hardships and pain; still they help men like us to be successful. Women are more confident, more loving and caring, more tolerant than men and I believe every woman who is present here and is engaged in encouraging other women also deserves to be appreciated.''

The event was very well attended by the Uttarakhandi community, especially women and youth. The special ceremony began with Ma Saraswati Vandana and Maangal, followed by Uttarakhandi cultural music, dance and singing performances by various groups of women from Powai, Bhandup,  Jogeshwari, Kandivili, Thane, Panvel and Airoli. 

Shri Bhupendra Goniyal described the homemakers as “Managing Directors of our homes and our institutions. They are like a university teaching children in their formative years. I request all of you to tell your children who are brought up in modern culture to connect with your Uttarakhand cultural roots.” he appealed

Brief information about the ladies who were felicitated

Shrimati Savitri Sharma

53 year old Shrimati Savitri Sharma, who shifted to Mumbai in 1978 after her marriage to Shri Rajendra Sharma, lived in a joint family and never let the family get divided or separated. Her main goal in life is to save and foster the traditional joint family culture of togetherness and unity.

Giving a very strong message of family unity Shrimati Savirtri Sharama on the occasion sang a very interesting song in a melodious voice, that thrilled the gathering” Hum laye hai toofan se kasti  nikaal ke, pariwar ko rakhana meri bahino sambhal ke”

Smt. Radha Koranga

Smt. Radha, a Resident of Naval Dockyard Colony, Kanjur Marg, had to bear many hardships when her husband fell sick and the family was forced to spend all its savings to look after his health. Married at age 19, Radha had to even sell-off all her jewellery and other belongings to save his life. However, sadly, despite the family’s desperate efforts, her husband succumbed to his illness, leaving Radha alone to look after their only child----a daughter. Radha was advised by her in-laws who lived in Uttarakhand to relocate and live with them, but being a brave heart, she refused to become a burden on her relatives. She took the courageous decision to raise her daughter on her own.  She began teaching children in her neighbourhood for small amounts, lived in a rented home and laboured hard for long hours daily.

Today, her daughter is a merit-holder  and a karate champion.  Smt. Radha herself is a teacher at a Kinder Garten School and also runs a tuition class for more than 50 students. She is without any doubt a big inspiration for society and many can learn from her example.

Smt. Pitambari Gusain

Smt. Pitambari Gusain, a resident of Navi Mumbai is another successful home-maker who has become an inspiration to many. Despite being uneducated, she was eager to provide the best of education to her children and succeeded in doing so despite heavy odds. Today, her children have grown-up and are well-employed, thanks to Smt. Pithambari’s determination to give them what she could not herself experience. She went around and met a lot of people who were in high, responsible positions, seeking their advice as to how she could make her children successful. 

 Smt. Saroj Lingwal

Smt. Saroj Lingwal who has always striven to inculcate high moral values in children such as respect for elders, a sound education rooted in India’s ancient traditions coupled with a strong sense of social responsibility, is another woman who married according to her family’s wishes and came to Mumbai to live in a joint family.

Though living with a large family, she strove to keep them all united, stemming from her belief that a  woman must always unify people and not separate them. She kept her family united, not allowing it to disintegrate. In the little spare time she got, she undertook social activities and with her husband's  active support,  became an active member of  many women social groups .

Smt Pushpa Shah

Mrs. Pushpa Shah - a young progressive mother of 2 tiny twin girls, sacrificed her well-paying job to look after her two tiny tots. Her aim was to bring-up her children in the traditional Indian way by inculcating in them high moral values that ancient India was known for. She wanted her daughters to learn everything that dignifies Indian customs and culture. She combines modern thoughts and outlook with traditional values and that has helped her bring-up her two daughters with the right blend of modernity and tradition. She feels that apart from parents, grandparents too have a key role in upbringing of the children. Only then will children have a strong grounding in traditional Indian values. According to her, it is every woman’s duty to keep her family united.

The Mahasangh also felicitated Shri Sunil Noudiyal (a dedicated social worker from Dhahisar, who works with BEST, for his contribution in successfully organizing "Yuvag -Yuvati Parichay Sammellan" held on Jan 13,2013 at Mantunga, Mumbai) and.... Smt Shanti  Godhiyal, Shri Vinod Devranai, Shri Lokendra Oza and Shri Govind Mehta (members of Uttranchal Bandhu Mandal and Lok Kalyan Trust) for extending help to a 14-year-old boy late Ajay Sharma and his parents ( Late Shri Prakash and Smt Anita Sharma) who met with a  tragedy when a gas stove exploded in their house at Nerul, causing severe burns to all three, in the early hours of January 26, 2013.

About Uttaranchal Mahasangh, Mumbai

Uttaranchal Mahasangh, Mumbai (Reg.) is one of the biggest organization of Uttarakhandi people in Mumbai and nearby areas like Thane, Virar, Panvel, Vasai, Navi Mumbai, Kalyan, Ambernath etc. The Sangh is successfully run by many senior and responsible people who are doing their best to safeguard Uttarakhand’s unique traditions and culture in a distant land. The Sangh holds several functions throughout the year to help the people of Uttarakhand bond together harmoniously and safeguards their interests.

The buoyant response from people and supporters has encouraged the Mahasangh to focus on areas like adoption of girl child from economically backward communities, bringing young generation together to make them aware about Uttarakhand’s unique culture, etc. The Mahasangh is now looking for more dedicated people to come forward and use the Mahasangh’s platform for doing good work for the society.

Report By : Aryan Rana-9930372436