Smt. Urmila Apte

URMILA BALAVANT APTE

M.Sc.(Mathematics), University of Mumbai, Diploma in Higher Education

 

Served as:

  • Lecturer of Mathematics at colleges in Mumbai from 1969 to 1977
  • Founder member and President of Bharatiya Shree Shakti (BSS), an all-India women’s organization from 1989 to 1995
  • All-India Organizing Secretary of BSS from 1995 to 2014
  • National Executive Council Member of BSS Since 2014
  • Secretary and Trustee of People’s Education Society, Dadar, Mumbai from 1992 to 2016
  • Chairperson and Trustee of People’s Education  Society, Dadar, Mumbai from 2016 till date.
  • Travelled around India to establish BharatiyaStree Shakti; BSS currently has 33 branches across 10 States
  • Former Activist of ABVP

 

Honoured with:

Nari Shakti Puraskar – 2017, Ministry of Women and Child Development, Govt. India

Stree Shakti Puraskar-2010, Brihan Mumbai Mahanagar Palika, Mumbai

Ojaswani Alankaran – 2008 at Bhopal (M.P.)

 

Government Assignments

  • A member of Maharashtra State Commission for Women, from 1996 to 1998
  • Member of the Monitoring Committee of the project of Counselling Centres to combat violence against women, in police stations (in co-operation with Tata Institute of Social Science) Govt. of Maharashtra
  • Former Member, Central Supervisory Board constituted under Pre-Natal Diagnostic (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act 1994
  • Former Member, District Supervisory Board, Mumbai, Under Pre-Natal DiagnosticTechniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act 1994
  • Member, Women’s Grievances Redressal Committee of the Maharashtra State Co-op.Housing Finance Corporation Ltd., Mumbai

 

Organised and Participated in Workshops on (State and National level)

  • 2017 | National seminar on efficacy of laws regarding women in different religions, 2017
  • 2017 | Workshop for self-help groups of western India for e-marketing, in collaboration with IRCTC
  • 2003 | Women and Mass Media
  • 2002 | Health of Women
  • The Education and Employment of women, self-employment schemes for women, family counseling (1991, 1992, 1993, 2006)
  • The Laws regarding protection of women’s rights (1992, 1995, 1999, 2001)
  • The participation of women in water shedding projects in rural area (1996, 2003)
  • 1997 | Newly elected women representatives under 33% reservation in Panchayat elections
  • 1997 | The social participation of Anganwadi Workers
  • 1996 | Development of women in rural areas
  • 1989 | The National Perspective Plan for Women

 

Organised and Attended Conferences

  • State level conferences (1989, 1992, 1995, 1998, 2001, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2013, 2107.) of women activists from grass root level to discuss issues like domestic violence, atrocities against women, prostitution and child prostitution, the problems of women working in Beer Bars, female foeticide, and infanticide, equal opportunities in education and employment, 1994 amendment to the Hindu Succession Act (Maharashtra), the facilities like primary health centres in the rural areas, domestic violence, sexual harassment at workplace, surrogacy, etc.
  • National Conference on Voluntarism and Social Development (2000)
  • All India Conferences of Women Activists of BSS (2007, 2013, 2018)

 

Organised and Participated in Seminars on:

  • 2000 | The Impact of Globalization on Women
  • 1998 | The Impact of Mass Media on Crime and Society
  • 1998 | Post-Independence Indian Women and Politics
  • The 1994 amendment to The Hindu Succession Act (Maharashtra) 1995
  • 1993 | The Maharashtra State Govt’s Policy for Women

 

Surveys Conducted

  • 2005 | Women in Sports
  • 1997 | Women in Jails
  • 1997 | The Election Process in Municipal Corporation Elections – A Gender study
  • 1991 | Hostels for Girls from Backward Classes (1991)
  • 1991 | Govt. Reception Centres, State Homes for Women (1991)
  • 1990 | Working women in Organised Sector regarding part time jobs (1990)
  • Students in the age group of 15 to 20 regarding one sided love affairs and violence

 

Other Activities

  • Ongoing Activities:

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> Health camps for women
> Family Counseling
> Awareness programmes for women regarding Laws, Health,Self Employment, Marketing Process, Self-help groups etc.
> VachakManch (reader’s forum) – A monthly literacy activity for women
> Family life, education programmes for adolescent girls in urban and rural areas

  • 2000 | Competition and networking of MahilaMandals in Mumbai region
  • 1996 | Awareness programmes against exploitation and indecent representation of women through beauty contests, multinational consumerism and economic power politics behind these contest
  • 1996 | Awareness programmes against propagation of extreme permissiveness, violence and vulgarity through media
  • 1995 | Pre-marital counseling camps for youth
  • 1990 | Vocational guidance programmes for girls and women
  • Essay competition on different aspects of women’s life