KOZHIKODE: Education has empowered women and endowed them with a courage to move to the centre stage of life and it is reflected positively in every sphere, said Governor P Sathasivam. He was inaugurating the second edition of The New Indian Express (TNIE) ‘Verve Awards’ in association with Faizal & Shabana Foundation, at Hyson Heritage here on Sunday.
“Yet in the 21st century there are areas where women are still under-represented such as science, technology, engineering, design, social innovation, etc. We have to bridge the present gender divide in innovation and entrepreneurship sector,” he said.
Presenting the 2019 Verve Awards to five women icons of the Malabar region, the Governor said the winners should encourage girls, especially those from weaker sections of society to come forward.
“The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day was Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for Change. Undoubtedly, the theme signals the need for equality.But these five women have equaled or even outdone their male counterparts in the field,” he said.
To celebrate the power and outstanding achievements of women, TNIE group launched the Verve Awards in 2018 in connection with the International Women’s Day. The second edition of the awards were conferred to exemplary women who have carved a niche for themselves through their hardwork and perseverance and have become leading entrepreneurs.
The winners of the second edition of the awards were Chitra Gopinath, Managing Director of Edappal Hospitals Pvt Ltd since 1990 (Life Time Achievement Award), Shine Benaven, proprietress and Managing Partner of Kanate Originals (Innovation Award),Thesnim Azeez, Celebrity Chef, entrepreneur-founder of ‘Thesnim’s school of Recipe Plus’ (Inspiring Icon Award), Vidhya Vinod, entrepreneur, educationist, president and CEO of Study World Education Holding Group (Enterprising CEO), and Fajeena Kareem, Co-founder, chief evangelist and creative director of Kiora Amorez, The Diamond Boutique and Luxury Lounge (Emerging Brand Award).
The award distribution function was attended by The New Indian Express Senior Vice President Vignesh Kumar, Resident Editor (Kerala) Kiran Prakash, General Manager (Kerala) P Vishnu Kumar, and Assistant General Manager (Kozhikode) M Chandrasekharan.
The dais was shared by invited dignitaries such as Gokulam Gopalan, Chairman of Gokulam Group of Companies, and Dr Joseph Sebastian, Director of Faizal & Shabana Foundation.
Prominent business personalities and successful entrepreneurs across the state attended the function. Matria exclusive woman and child hospital, NS Payyoli Mixture, Metrends Shoes and Bags associated with TNIE in felicitating the woman achievers.