BERHAMPUR: As Aska ringed in the new year celebrations, Lok Sabha Member Pramila Bisoi showed that age is just a number. The 71-year-old was the centre of all attraction at the Town Hall as she sashayed down the ramp in style.
The Aska MP, who was pitchforked into politics by BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik, not only participated in the cake-cutting ceremony but also walked the ramp, much to the surprise of the revellers.
Not stopping there, the former Anganwadi cook also sang a song on rural culture and women empowerment and ended it up with a bhajan in praise of Lord Jagannath at the function organised by Aska MLA Manjula Swain.
“This New Year celebration will live in the memory of public for long time,” said Amulya Upadhyaya, Sarapanch of Bhetanai in Aska.
As the visitors to the town hall sang and danced to her songs, she made her point loud and clear. A front-runner of women empowerment, Pramila wanted to put across that be it political responsibility or social function, women can always remain ahead.
Pramila, who won the acronym ‘Palli to Delhi’ after her win in the 2019 Lok Sabha election, comes from a humble background.
Married off at the tender age, her school education had been stopped. Undeterred by the personal problems, she started working as a cook in the Anganwadi centre in her village Chermaria. Later, she became a representative for Mission Shakti, the women’s SHG movement in Odisha.
Over the years, Pramila went on to be a champion of women’s participation in civil society and pushed their employment.