Jayamma Bandari (born c. 1978) is an Indian former sex worker turned social worker. In 2018 she was awarded the

Nari Shakti Puraskar The Nari Shakti Puraskar is an annual award given by the Ministry of Women and Child Development of the Government of India to individual women or to institutions that work towards the cause of women empowerment. It is the highest civilian hono ...

. In 2011 she founded an organisation which supports sex workers and their children with choices.

Life

Bandari was born in

Nalgonda Nalgonda is a city and municipality in the Indian state of Telangana. It is the headquarters of the Nalgonda district, as well as the headquarters of the Nalgonda mandal in the Nalgonda revenue division. It is located about from the state ca ...

in about 1978. She became an orphan when she was three and an uncle became her guardian. He tried to marry her off when she was fourteen and even tried to marry her to a man who was already married. Her alcoholic husband persuaded her to become a sex worker. In 2001 she founded the organisation ''Chaitanya Mahila Mandali'' in

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...

with assistance of Jaya Singh Thomas. The organisation provides support to sex workers who want to escape their profession. The organisation provides assistance and it cares for the daughters of sex workers in order that they can avoid following their parents. 3,500 children have been rescued and a thousand women have found new work. The children are checked up on regularly after they are enrolled in state schools by her organisation.

Awards

In 2014 the

Vigil India Movement Vigil India Movement (Vigil India) is a non-governmental organisation based in Bangalore working in the field of human rights in India. Founded in 1977, by Rev. Dr. M.A. Thomas, who also founded the Ecumenical Christian Centre in Bangalore in 19 ...

gave her the M A Thomas National Human Rights Award. The

Confederation of Indian Industry The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is a non-governmental trade association and advocacy group headquartered in New Delhi, India, founded in 1895. CII engages business, political, academic, and other leaders of society to shape global ...

awarded her with one of three Women Exemplar awards in 2017. The other awards were for entrepreneur Kamal Kumbhar and Monika Majumdar of West Bengal. The awards were made by

Pranab Mukherjee Dr. Pranab Mukherjee (11 December 193531 August 2020) was an Indian politician and statesman who served as the 13th president of India from 2012 until 2017. In a political career spanning five decades, Mukherjee was a senior leader in the India ...

, the President of India with CII Presidents Naushad Forbes and

Shobana Kamineni Shobana Kamineni is an Indian business executive and the executive vice-chairperson of Apollo Hospitals. Early and personal life Kamineni is the daughter of Prathap C. Reddy, the founder and chair of Apollo Hospitals. She has three sisters ...

in support. In 2018 Bandari was awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar on 8 March (

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against wom ...

). The award was made by President Kovind at the Presidential Palace (

Rastrapati Bhavan The Rashtrapati Bhavan (, rāsh-truh-puh-ti bha-vun; ; originally Viceroy's House and later Government House) is the official residence of the President of India at the western end of Rajpath, Raisina Hill, New Delhi, India. Rashtrapati Bh ...

) in New Delhi with the Prime Minister of India,

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from ...

also attending. Thirty-nine people or organisations were honoured that year. They received the award and a prize of $R 100,000.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bandari, Jayamma 1970s births Living people Year of birth uncertain People from Nalgonda Indian female prostitutes Social workers Nari Shakti Puraskar winners