Form of words:
MAny year before, while working as a doctor, Neeru Kumar read American relationship counselor John Gray’s 1992 breakthrough book Men are from Mars, women are from Venus, It meant a lot to him. This year, when her name was echoing in the grand hall of Rashtrapati Bhavan, she walked up to President Ram Nath Kovind in a golden hue with a red border. all The Padma Shri award that matched the complexion was given to her for a 30-year journey that resulted in her becoming India’s first ‘Mars-Venus coach’ – her inspiration coached by none other than John Grey.
Dr. Neeru Kumar, a social worker working for women empowerment for 3 decades, received Padma Shri from President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan#PadmaAwards2021 #peoplepadma #President Kovind pic.twitter.com/JLtfkQOnJv
— PIB India (@PIB_India) November 9, 2021
President Kovind presented Padma Shri to Dr. Neeru Kumar for social work. A medical doctor and gender diversity consultant, she is the founder of “Ask Insights”, a diversity and inclusion counseling organization. pic.twitter.com/h4aXtYq1RO
— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) November 9, 2021
Niru Kumar’s work in gender empowerment, diversity and inclusion may have started in 2012, but she is no ordinary private sector consultant. After working as a senior officer in the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) for 25 years, he took voluntary retirement to work in the field of diversity and inclusion. More than ‘gender sensitization’, his method emphasizes ‘gender intelligence’ – a thoughtful way of bridging differences. Its clients include the largest corporations around the world – Walmart, PepsiCo, Hindalco, SAP, Coca Cola, Vodafone, Cairns India, Vedanta Group, Tata Teleservices and Barbara Ennis & Associates.
Kumar, founder of ‘Ask Insights’, a diversity and inclusion consulting organization, is somewhat of a first investigator To raise awareness about the concept of diversity and inclusion among Indian companies. “At that time, about 15 years ago, I was probably the first person to start the diversity conversation in India at workplaces, especially gender diversity,” she tells ThePrint.
In 2020, as a polio survivor, he was also selected as one of the national symbols of the Election Commission of India (ECI), which was working on making voting accessible to people with different needs. Recently in an interview with Hindustan Times, Youth said that his “voting experience was very different than it is now. At that time, even a wheelchair could not go in because of the lack of ramps.”
The Padma Shri award has made her believe that her life’s script has a deeper purpose, and her voice will not go away.”unclear“No more. Maybe it was the hardships she faced as a child with polio that inspired her to make positive changes for people with different needs.
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Neeru Kumar’s childhood struggles
Neeru Kumar’s parents were also among those who migrated from Pakistan during Partition. But both were working, and the fact that Kumar was diagnosed with polio in his early years, when society had not yet recognized access as a necessity, didn’t help either. For him, it was a long and difficult struggle to overcome on his own.
“It was almost as if your life was ruined. These are cards that are dealt and you have to make peace with them. You are not entitled to want too much from life,” recalls Kumar. The struggle, coupled with the physical challenge of wearing calipers, was tough.”
Kumar says that his father was of a progressive mindset and a self-motivated person, which he learned from his childhood. She says that her orthopedic surgeon at Safdarjung Hospital, Dr. Sankaran, was also instrumental in helping her recover and manage her life.
She was only 6 years old when she began to understand the need for proper treatment. “All I wanted was for people to respect each other. If someone insulted someone for who they are, whether it was on the street or in my own house, it would hurt me and I would stand up for them. Of course, people didn’t appreciate it and asked what was my problem, why was I getting in the way, but that didn’t stop me,” she says.
Read also: Meet Kanaka Raju, 80, the Padma Shri awardee who has kept the tribal folk dance Gusadi alive
work on gender and diversity
Working as a ‘Mars-Venus Coach’ in relationship counseling and executive coaching based on the principles of John Grey’s book, Kumar realized that the gender gap is a concern in the professional environment. During her work as a gender diversity and inclusion consultant, she observed deeply ingrained gender stereotypes that were holding back the female workforce in private organizations.
She told ThePrint about senior employees that women “have to make a choice between having children or coming to work” and that “roles in sales, industrial plants, manufacturing units or even technical roles are more accessible to women.” Should not be good for night duty and strict nature of these jobs.”
“In addition, women were also faced with comments on their appearance or body for roles such as sales. Young graduates pursuing engineering in manufacturing units will have to face such comments.Why did you do mechanical engineering? Didn’t find anything else?‘ or even You are a girl from a good family, why have you come here?,” recalls Kumar.
She says it was important to change the culture in such places as it was not only a good thing but also had strong business sense.
“It was my responsibility to persuade them [the leaders] That they are here because of a professional choice and you cannot see them as non-serious employees. I would say that culture changes, language changes, and by the end of the day, I will see change. Kumar says he had to convince senior leaders that if periods of childbearing and career development overlap for women, it was not his responsibility alone. “It is the collective responsibility of humanity, organizations and the government.”
Although India’s diversity recruitment has grown in recent years, the female labor force take part Still very low at 24 per cent.
Kumar worked extensively with private sector organizations to conduct training sessions and workshops, create diversity and sensitize them towards the various needs of women employees with inclusion policies.
National Emblem of ECI
In June 2020The Election Commission of India named Niru Kumar as one of the ‘National Icons’ and inducted him as a board member of the Advisory Committee on Voter Access.
She tells ThePrint, “Accessibility was a big agenda for ECI in 2020 and I think they wanted a representation of someone who is able to overcome challenges and come from a place of credibility despite being different. “
Kumar was awarded by the ECI for his work on voter outreach and awareness in the 2020 Bihar elections. She laughs recalling how she was on the spot receiving an award from the President for her work on voter awareness with the Election Commission last year, when the Padma award was also announced.
Having worked in the field of diversity and inclusion, Kumar acknowledges that there is still a long way to go. She says that despite policy interventions, the representation of senior women in the corporate world is still a sad story across the world. “This is because the mindset is still not right, the bias is still there and the policies are not enough,” she explains.
Talking about policy initiatives in the private sector, she says that some organizations are progressive in their mindset, while others just follow it. However, the government already has strong policies in place. Childcare leave of two years is one example,” says Kumar.
Still, she stresses that it is the combination of policy intervention and mindset change that makes the difference. “How do you change the mindset? First, you ask leaders to take ownership and be allies. Then they start communicating more until it becomes the agenda of the government and the corporate sector that every employee One has to be sensitized at the time of joining. Then change happens,” says Neeru Kumar.
(Edited by Srinjoy Dey)
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