36 years’ efforts reached its zenith today: Nari Shakti award winner Rashmi Urdhwardeshe

Sudha Murthy, the writer, and founder of Infosys Foundation, often shares the story of her days at an engineering college, where there was no separate toilet for females as there were no female students till Murthy joined. Narrating a similar tale, the ARAI director said, “My struggle began in 1977 when I joined the engineering college. There were hardly any other female students on campus. The struggle of pursuing engineering only increased after I opted for automotive engineering, which was a highly male-dominated field.”

In her professional life, Urdhwardeshe (60) said her efforts have borne fruits as she was presented with the coveted award at the hands of President Ram Nath Kovind on the occasion of International Women’s’ Day.

She said, “It feels proud to receive the award for having lead ARAI and more importantly a field where even presence of female has been limited. We are today the advisers to the government on vehicle regulations and safety. It feels like the 36-year long struggle has reached its zenith today.”

During her three-and-a-half-decade long career, Urdhwardeshe has to her credit the development of electronic controls of hydraulic testing machines. She has also worked towards setting up emission measurements, which were implemented in the first emission laboratory setup in the country. She has co-authored a book on total quality management.

The President also honored Padala Bhudevi (Andhra Pradesh), Bina Devi (Bihar), Arifa Jan (Jammu and Kashmir), Chami Murmu (Jharkhand), Nilza Wangmo (Ladakh), Mann Kaur (Punjab), Kalavati Devi (Kanpur), Tashi and Nungshi Malik (Uttarakhand), Kaushiki Chakroborty (West Bengal) and Indian Air Force officers — Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth, and Mohana Singh Jitarwala — for their contributions towards environment, entrepreneurship, arts and handicraft and upliftment of tribals among others.