Sushma Mohirle was the elected sarpanch (village head) of Kalamgaon of Chandrapur district in Vidarbha. She is also in the leadership team of a CBO ‘Akshay Seva Sanstha. Sushma had to drop out of school in the 8th grade and was married off at the age of 16. Her introduction to the self-help saving group in the year 2008, opened up a new horizon for Sushma. She became an active member of Akshay Seva Sanstha, mobilized women through the self-help groups, got elected in the panchayat, and became sarpanch in 2013. Her participation in the ‘Grassroots leadership development program’ was the turning point in her life. Currently, she is an elected president of the 17 gramsabhas working on the issues of community forest rights. Transformations in the livelihood mean in the village based on the forest produces is core to her work. Sushma has completed her graduation and has also set up a small business with a copying machine (Xerox).
