Urmi basu biography of martin
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That small initiative today provides care and support for more than one thousand people.
In her own words her greatest moment of joy was when she was chosen as a recipient of a blessing from His Holiness The Dalai Lama under the title Unsung heroes of Compassion 2009 on the 26th of April 2009 in San Francisco for her work that promotes compassion and peace. In 2019, it was a distinguished honour for all associated with her as Ms.
Urmi Basu received the prestigious Nari Shakti Puraskar from His Excellency the President of India through the Ministry of Women and Child Development, GOI, in recognition of New Light Kolkata’s contribution to women’s empowerment on the occasion of International Women’s Day.
Awards & Accolades
▪ Selected as the NGO co-ordinator by the office of the Governor of West Bengal to make a presentation on micro credit, women’s participation in gender sensitivity and health issues during the visit of the former President of the United States Bill Clinton on 7th of April 2001
▪ Part of the core team that met the past Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on her visit to Kolkata in May 2012 and shared the experience of working against trafficking in persons
▪ Featured in the four hour documentary Half The Sky based on the novel by New York Times columnist, Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl Wu Dunn, which featured Urmi and her work with the victims of trafficking on PBS in October 2012 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXcP7vMnMaM)
▪ Following the documentary she received the Global Citizen Award at the Global Music Festival in Central Park, New York in September 2012 which was organized to mark zero tolerance for hunger, poverty and abuse (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1PW5JFeuPw)
▪ Recipient of Nari Shakti award from His Excellency The President of India on the occasion of International Women’s Day on the 8th of March 2019
▪ Recognized as Person of the Year 2020 By Weekend Leader Chennai at Vellore Institute of Technology for the contribution to the welfare of women and children
To learn more about Urmi Basu:
Twitter: @urmibasu1
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAukNw2T0AY
A life of dignity: dire straits faced by the sex workers in Kolkata – Urmi Basu – TEDxIIFT Kolkata
To learn more about New Light Kolkata:
Twitter: @newlightkolkata
IG: @newlightkolkata
Youtube: https://youtu.be/8hvCr0uxkM8
New Light Kolkata
Give them a New Ray of
hope today
The Founder
Urmi Basu is a woman of few means, facing staggering need, but her mission is clear.
Born and raised in a family of medical professionals in Kolkata, India, Urmi Basu received her primary and secondary education in the city. On completion of her first Degree in Sociology, Urmi moved to take her Masters in Social Work at the prestigious Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. "I choose to reduce the aperture of my vision and concentrate my energy only on things that I can do."
New Light provides education, healthcare and nutritional support, as well as the opportunity to live free of abuse, violence and stigma to more than two hundred children of sex workers.
Basu was chosen as a recipient of a blessing from His Holiness The Dalai Lama under the title Unsung Heroes of Compassion 2009 in San Francisco for her work promoting compassion and peace.
An impassioned speaker with a unique global perspective, Urmi Basu continues her daily fight for social justice for the marginalized community of sex workers and women in prostitution.
She is dedicated to correcting wrongs, one at a time.
"On a global scale the problem of prostitution is so complex and huge that I would be completely overwhelmed if I think about it." Urmi says. She had the opportunity address issues related to urban and rural economic development, empowerment and protection of vulnerable groups (such as women engaged in sex work and subjected to extreme violence), street children, trafficked child laborers, and young people in exploited situation.
And second "every act of violence can be overcome with tolerance and compassion," she says. In 2013, she received the Godrej Woman of Substance Award at the Femina Miss India Contest in Mumbai. She has been a part of targeted intervention programs for victims of HIV/AIDS, transsexuals, and transgenders.
In 2000, after 15 years of professional work, Basu set up the nonprofit New Light in Kolkata.
In 2012, she was featured in the four-hour PBS documentary Half the Sky, based on the novel by New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, discussing her work with the victims of trafficking. "What matter is not how much we do but that we at least can do something." She concludes by adding, "I would like to be remembered as someone who cared for her fellow beings and always fought for justice.
Nari Shakti Award
Ms.
During her training she had the opportunity to work in the first cell set up for women in distress by the Mumbai Police Department. She was selected as the NGO coordinator by the office of the Governor of West Bengal to make a presentation on microcredit, women’s participation in gender sensitivity, and health issues during the visit of former President of the United States Bill Clinton in 2001.
The organization also fights against child prostitution and trafficking for the purpose of sex-trade.
Basu has been a trainer and consultant for numerous government and nonprofit organizations.
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The family led a comfortable middle-class life until 1971, when clashes between communist inspired agrarian Naxalites and the government nearly destroyed everything they had."I have seen people helped just by a word of kindness or a moment of attention," she says. She regularly presents at seminars and conferences worldwide on HIV/AIDS, trafficking, child rights, and social justice. The organization also works to fight against child prostitution and trafficking for the purpose of sex- trade, child labour and bonded labour.
First she says, "There exists only one nanosecond between being dead and alive and none of us know when that moment is. Murder, arson, kidnapping and gunfights were common.... Over time, their efforts were rewarded.