From Undergoing Divorce to Becoming a Social Awareness Champion: Story of a Woman Farmer

She fought many wars and came out victorious in all of them. From being a farmer to a bank worker and then a social worker, Sushma Kumari from the Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh wears many hats.

Sushma has been working in the State Bank of India bank since 2007. Alongside this, she became a social worker through the National Rural Livelihoods Mission in 2012. Since then, she has been addressing women’s issues such as gender inequality, divorces, harassment, and domestic violence. She is also using her knowledge of the banking sector to create awareness about the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana and government loan schemes for farmers.

In 2005, Sushma went through a difficult divorce. Thereafter, she stayed single. Her struggles motivated her to help other women farmers to raise their issues. She is now the state secretary and district president of Himachal Nari Sabha, National Federation of Indian Women, and looks after around 49 villages and various panchayats in the state.

While addressing the issues in the farming sector, she stated that Himachal Pradesh is a mountain region where snowfall hampers most crop production. “Nothing grows when it snows,” she says. Her work inspired many women in the state to grow mushrooms inside their homes, through which they earn around 1-1.5 lakh every month.

Moreover, the self-help groups that Sushma is a part of, are aiding women like her to make raw turmeric products, different kinds of pickles, and millet products. “Many have also increased their incomes by selling cow dung lamps and candles during the Diwali season,” says Sushma.

She was introduced to farming at the age of 20. On her small land, Sushma rears maize and wheat, alongside managing her social awareness job. To her, women's issues such as equal pay for equal work and exploitation of labor, matter a lot. She has shown determination and even raised these issues at the panchayat level. “Women are like Goddess Durga (A fierce woman deity in Hinduism) who can do everything,” she opines.

This woman farmer is also a part of Krishi Jagran’s ‘Farmer the Journalist’ forum and has brought success stories of many women farmers across Himachal Pradesh. With her help, many female farmers in the state have become financially literate and independent.