Social activist Pushpa Bhave selected for Rajarshi Shahu award

Eminent scholar and social activist Pushpa Bhave has been selected for the 'Rajarshi Shahu Puraskar'.

She will be conferred the award at a function to be organised here on June 26 on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Rajarshi Shahu, a former ruler of the erstwhile princely state of Kolhapur, said Avinash Subhedar, district collector and president of the Chhatrapati Rajarshi Shahu Memorial Trust, at a press conference today.

The prestigious award, presented in the memory of Rajarshi Shahu, a well-known social reformer, carries a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh.

The award recognises outstanding contribution of an individual in the fields of social work, science, fine arts, education and sports.

Bhave, a resident of Mumbai, has been active in various fields. Besides being an eminent scholar and social activist, the 79-year-old is also a thinker and an author.

Bhave has been selected for the award for her outstanding contribution in a range of fields, Subhedar said.

She has been part of a series of struggles for more than fifty years. Bhave fought for the empowerment of Dalits, women head loaders, sweepers and women beedi workers among other sections of the society.

She had been at the forefront of several political struggles. The veteran activist participated in the Samyukt Maharashtra Movement which was launched in 1956 to demand a separate state for Marathi-speaking people.

She rendered her support to the Narmada Bachao Andolan for rehabilitation of dam-affected people.