BHUBANESWAR: As the Devi Awardees received the prestigious honour, they looked back on the paths that brought them there, and ahead to the work that still remains.
Conservationist Nalini Kandi said the honour was closely tied to her commitment to protecting nature and encouraging collective action.
“Being honoured with the Devi Award is a recognition of my commitment to environmental conservation. I will continue to plant trees and encourage others to conserve the environment. By this, we can stop storms and protect future generations,” Kandi said.
Odissi exponent and Padma Awardee Aruna Mohanty said the recognition is an opportunity to continue using her art to speak about issues affecting society. “As a woman, I feel I have responsibility to our society and dance is the only language I know to express myself,” she said.
Actor and theatre practitioner Sujata Priyambada Choudhury said the award marked a journey shaped by the transformative power of theatre. “Entering the field of theatre by overcoming restrictive social conditions was a challenge. However, it was the love of my audience and the recognition I received that empowered me to build a lasting career,” she said.
Senior IPS officer Shyni S said the recognition was an encouragement to continue with the responsibility of addressing social inequalities.
“When we talk of crime against women, it’s primarily a particular patriarchy that we need to address and as a woman I would like to request all women to take care of other women around them in this journey,” she said.
Para-athlete Jayanti Behera, who became a champion at the age of 17, said the award is a celebration of ability rather than limitation.
“I never consider myself a para-athlete and also urge others to see themselves beyond labels and take pride in representing the country,” she said.
Renowned author Paramita Satpathy said the award recognised a journey in which writing has always transcended gender. “A writer is just a writer,” she said. Pattachitra artist Laxmi Meher too said she was greatly encouraged to continue nurturing the traditional art form and empowering young girls. “I love to paint Pattachitra and I teach girls to paint. Recognition like Devi will inspire me to take it forward,” she said.
Pearl culture specialist and entrepreneur Nina Singh thanked The New Indian Express and said she would continue her efforts in creating opportunities for others. Startup entrepreneur Sumona Karjee Mishra said Devi Awards represent a message to other women that high ambitions are possible. “Eastern India and Odisha are not lesser than any other part of the world. We can do it and if I can do it, all girls can do it,” she said.
Molecular scientist Prof Debasmita Pankaj Alone said the honour reinforces her belief that knowledge must ultimately serve society. “Strive to excel in whatever you do,” she said in her message to the women.
Shyni S
(Public Servant)
Shyni S is a 2001-batch senior IPS officer, currently the Additional Director General of Police of the Crime Against Women and Children Wing in Odisha. Born in Kerala, she has also served as the SP of Deogarh, Sundargarh, Balangir and Jharsuguda districts. In 2015-17, when left-wing extremism marred Koraput range, Shyni, as South Western Range DIG, led Odisha Police in dealing with the menace. During her stint as the DIG, she received the Governor’s Police Medal for Meritorious Service in 2015, and the Police Medal for Meritorious Service from the Ministry of Home Affair in 2017. In 2024, she received the DGP’s Disc in recognition of her contribution to police training. Her notable contributions include drafting the Odisha government’s ‘Policy for Women and Girls’ as consultant to the United Nations Population Fund. She is also a writer and poet. Her English poetry collection titled ‘Broken Dreams’ was published in 2014.
Jayanti Behera
(Para-athlete)
Born into a humble family in Sakhigopal’s Manitri Sahi, Jayanti Behera, 27, is the youngest of three siblings. Jayanti was just a toddler when she fell near a fire pit and suffered burn contracture on her left elbow, leaving her with non-functional fingers. Despite the odds, she made her mark in the international sports arena in para-athletics. Coach Bishnu Prasad Mishra spotted her talent at a school meet and approached her parents to allow her to train in athletics. Today, she is a leading para-sprinter. Jayanti’s first major brush with success came in 2016 at the 16th Para-athletics National Championship, where she won three gold medals and broke an unofficial Asian record in the 400m. At just 17, she competed at the London World Para Athletics Championships and finished sixth in the 400m. In 2018, she won silver in the 400m and bronze in the 200m at the Asian Para Games, earning praise from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Jayanti is popularly known as ‘Sakhigopal Express’.
Nalini Kandi
(Conservationist)
Nalini Kandi is a fisherwoman and mangrove conservationist from Sana Jhadling village in Puri’s Astaranga block. Having lived all her life in the estuarine landscape of the Devi river mouth, Nalini has seen the wrath of nature time and again. During the 1999 Super Cyclone, she came to understand the destructive power of extreme weather and the vulnerability of their settlements. Until then, people of the area viewed mangroves through the needs of livelihood. It was during a visit to a wetland to collect firewood that Nalini noticed a group of volunteers planting mangroves and approached them to know more. Eventually, she learnt and encouraged other women to embrace mangrove conservation. Today, under the Women for Mangroves movement, she has helped motivate 145 women to participate in mangrove conservation and restoration. Through these collective efforts, around 65,000 mangroves have so far been planted within the Devi river mouth landscape.
Aruna Mohanty
(Dance guru)
Padma Shri awardee Aruna Mohanty is a leading Odissi exponent and choreographer. Her Odissi journey began in 1972 under the guidance of late Padma Shri Guru Gangadhar Pradhan. Aruna has choreographed several events such as the Indian Ocean Conference and the 1st World Odia Language Conference. In 2025, she co-choreographed the Indian Swan Lake in Germany, where she represented Odissi alongside European choreographer Deda Cristina Colonna. While most of her dance compositions are based on the 12th century saint-poet Jayadeva’s Geeta Govinda, she has also explored themes such as the 1999 Super Cyclone titled ‘Srushti O Pralay’ (Creation and Destruction). In ‘Naari’, she highlighted gender stereotypes and status of women in society through the stories of Sita, Draupadi, Mandodari and Nirbhaya. In 2017, she was conferred the Padma Shri. She serves as the secretary and creative director of Orissa Dance Academy.
Sujata Priyambada Choudhury
(Actor)
Sujata Priyambada Choudhury is a powerhouse of talent who wears many hats as an actor, theatre artiste, director and social activist. A lead actress of theatre organisation Natya Chetana, Sujata uses her performances as an instrument to effect social change. With a career of over three decades, she has, so far, performed in 34 plays across India and other countries, and directed 18 productions. Her performances in plays such as ‘Rebati’, ‘Dhala Suna’ and ‘Jungle Janta’ are based on unconventional themes like women’s education and empowerment, use of fertiliser in agriculture and deforestation. Sujata has also undertaken cycle expeditions to rural and tribal areas to present plays for awareness generation and study the impact of theatre on people. Beyond the stage, Sujata has been an All India Radio casual drama artist since 1994, besides being a news reader for Rourkela Steel Plant’s Cable TV. Her 30-year career is decorated with several honours and accolades.
Paramita Satpathy
(Author)
A 1989-batch IRS officer, Paramita Satpathy is a powerful voice in Indian literature. She has authored over 25 books of story collections, novels, novella collections and books of poems in Odia and other Indian languages. Her collection of novellas, ‘Prapti’ (A Boundless Moment) won her the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2016. Paramita is by far, the only woman civil servant in the country to receive the Central Sahitya Akademi Award. In 2024, she was presented the Certificate of Appreciation for Excellence in Creative Pursuits by Union Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman for her contribution to literature. Her Odia novel ‘Abhipreta Kaal’ (A Time Desired), for which Paramita was accorded the Sarala Award in 2021, is based on the last part of freedom struggle in Odisha. Among her other notable works are Intimate Pretense, Dur ke Pahad (Hindi), Chandan ke Phul (Hindi), Paap aur Anya Kahaniyan (Hindi), Abhipret Kaal (Hindi), Andhere main Ankhen (Hindi) and Prapti arAnyanya Golpo (Bengali).
Laxmi Meher
(Pattachitra artist)
A native of Subarnapur district, Laxmi Meher is a national award-winning painter known for her Pattachitra artwork. Laxmi’s husband, renowned artist Padma Shri Kailash Chandra Meher, introduced her to the world of art. Over the years, she gained expertise in Tussar painting. In the last three decades, she established a strong foothold as an artist, training younger talents in institutions, including the Indian Art & Craft Academy for Women and Handicrafts Handloom Museum and Service Centre for Women. Laxmi has also trained young artisans of the KBK districts of Odisha through central training schemes like ‘Guru Shishya Parampara under HRD scheme’ and ‘Scheme C’. In 2005, she was conferred the Master Craftsman National Award. In 1990, Laxmi was also accorded the State Award by then chief minister Biju Patnaik. Her artworks are displayed at several art exhibitions across the country, and have found home in many high-profile public institutions like the Ministry of Industries, Ministry of Textiles, Parliament House.
Nina Singh
(Pearl culture specialist)
A former bureaucrat, Nina Singh also dons the hat of a bio-entrepreneur and freshwater pearl culture specialist. Based in Balasore, Nina ventured into pearl farming in 2014, when the concept was quite foreign to the local market. With an initial investment of Rs 2 lakh, she used her backyard to grow pearls in a concrete tank. In 2017, she adopted a zero-waste framework in which she paired pearl culture with carp fish breeding to create a self-purifying aquatic model. At present, she owns around six ponds where she cultures the gems. What sets Nina’s pearls apart is that she manually shapes the pearl nuclei into intricate religious and natural motifs before inserting them into the mussels. Her model won her the title of ‘master of designer pearls’. A PhD holder in Zoology, Nina is also the founder of Tisya Agri Venture LLP, Creshthavan Ventures LLP and Elevience Consultancy LLP. She has trained hundreds of marginal farmers and rural women in Odisha and other states on pearl farming.
Sumona Karjee Mishra
(Entrepreneur)
A PhD scientist, Sumona Karjee Mishra is the founder and managing director of Prantae Solutions Pvt Ltd, a biotech startup that focuses on bridging the gaps in healthcare delivery, particularly in renal health and pregnancy-related complications, through affordable, scalable and accessible diagnostic technologies. It was after suffering from Preeclampsia, a high-risk pregnancy complication, that Sumona was driven by the desire to address the gap of early diagnosis to ensure no one else faced medical complications. Over the last 11 years, Prantae Solutions has built a portfolio of nine patents. One of the most significant innovations of the company is Proflo-U, a point-of-care platform for measuring urine albumin and creatinine, and calculating urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio. The technology is transformative for people of rural and underserved areas, where distance, cost and limited laboratory infrastructure can delay diagnosis and treatment. Sumona is also a strong advocate of gender equality and inclusive growth.
Prof debasmita Pankaj Alone
(Molecular scientist)
Born and brought up in Rourkela, Debasmita Pankaj Alone (née Upadhyaya) is a cellular and molecular geneticist leading the Molecular Genetics and Epigenetics Lab in the School of Biological Sciences, NISER, Bhubaneswar. Her lab collaborates with clinicians and scientists to advance the understanding of molecular genetics and epigenetics of aging disorders, and also contributes to cancer biology. Her research work on Glaucoma, the major cause of irreversible eye disease, demonstrates that fundamental science has the capacity to reach from the bench to the bedside to improve human health in India. After joining NISER in 2010, Debasmita has been instrumental in transforming the institute into a hub for science engagement through educational visits, student internships, among other initiatives. As the regional coordinator of the Department of Atomic Energy’s Vigyan Pratibha initiative for Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, she has also led teacher training programmes.