AAFSA’s “Her Odisha” Program on the Occasion of International Women’s Day
9 Women Changemakers and 12 Women Honoured with the Her Odisha Excellence Award
Bhubaneswar : On the occasion of International Women’s Day, a special program titled “HerOdisha” was organized by the Aryalex Foundation for Social Activities (AAFSA) on 9 March 2026 at Swosti Premium, Bhubaneswar, comprising three sessions throughout the day. The main objective of the program was to promote women’s empowerment and to recognize the contributions of women in society.
In the first session, the Founder of AAFSA, Dr. Alexzandar Das, presided over the program. Supriya Swain, DGM (HR) of ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India, and NiharikaSahu, GM and CSR Head of Hindalco, Sundargarh, attended as distinguished guests. Smt. Sulochana Das, Mayor of the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation, graced the occasion as the Chief Guest and shared her views on women’s empowerment.
The second session featured a panel discussion on the topic “Women Leading a SamruddhaOdisha: Opportunities and Challenges for Odisha Vision 2026.” The session was moderated by journalist Bidyutprabha Das. The panelists included Dr. Arundhati Devi, Director of the International in Decency Movement; Dr. ManishaAcharya, Founder and MD of *Weneurs Forum; Alee Padhi, Founder of Abhista Charitable Trust; SangeetaSahu, AGM and CSR Head of Vedanta Aluminium Coal Mines; and women entrepreneur AnuradhaMohanty. They shared insightful perspectives on the role and challenges of women in the development of Odisha.
In the final session, KabitaSahu, Lead CSR of KCW, attended as the honourable guest, while Sophia Firdous, MLA of the Barabati–Cuttack constituency, graced the event as the Chief Guest.
On this occasion, the HerOdisha Excellence Awards and Changemakers Awards were presented. The HerOdisha Excellence Award was conferred upon SonaliOjha, Bidyutprabha Das, RukminiKhalia, BanasmitaPati, LilabatiUlaka, Sangeeta Das, SanjuPatra, PriyanshiBiswal, SubhashreeBhanja, VibharaniPatra, Dr. SumonaKarji Mishra, and DeepikaDandapat.
Similarly, the Changemakers Awards were presented to BharatiNahak, Krishna Priyadarshini Rout, RumanaJafri, Monalisa Mishra, PrabhavatiSamal, CharulataBiswal, ShivaniSubhadarshini, Dr. Abhilasha Mishra and ChinmayeeDeo.
As part of the three-day campaign, on the first day, school kits were distributed to the girl students of Suansahi Ashram School in Rasulpur block of Jajpur district to encourage education. On the second day, a special Women’s Blood Donation Camp was organized with participation from women donors. The program was beautifully anchored by Chirasmita Das and SaswatiPriyadarsiniBiswal. DevajyotiMohanty, COO of the organization, and Bijay Prasad Nayak, CAO, delivered the vote of thanks.
