From NIFT to village panchayat, Priyanka Yadav knits with ease

LUCKNOW: For Priyanka Yadav, the 7th National Panchayati Raj Day celebrations held at Indira Gandhi Pratisthan would certainly be a special one, as the 24-year-old village pradhan from Etawah’s Sarsai Nawar (village panchayat) and a pass out of the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Bengaluru was felicitated by the State Election Commission.
Priayanka who seeks inspiration from Chhavi Rajawat, the woman sarpanch from Rajasthan’s Soda village (60 kilometres from Jaipur), says, “I first came to know about Chhavi Rajawat from my elder sister, who reposed faith in me that I have the attributes of leading a village.” She further stated that initially, she was apprehensive of stepping into politics, but after persuasion from her father (Jairaj Singh alias Pappu Yadav), who is also the kshetra panchayat chairman from Takha.
Elaborating her plan of action to empower the villagers, Priyanka, who is currently pursuing master in fashion business from NIFT, said, “I obtained knowledge in knitwear designing from NIFT-Bengaluru, while studying there from 2010 to 2014, and I want to empower the people of village by giving them the latest innovations in knitting techniques and designing, so that they can prosper, while staying in the village itself.” She further stated that gradually, women could start their own business and support their families.
When asked whether she would move ahead electorally, Priyanka said that if the women voters of my village start showing signs of self-reliance and self-confidence, “then I will move on, else, I would continue to work at the village panchayat level.”
Smriti Singh (23), who has done post-graduation in management (HR), and won the polls from Ratsarkala in Ballia wanted to have a word with chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, and said, “I wanted CM sir to make the entire village like me.” Singh who was attached to KGMU for two-and-half years as a research associate said that she did not want to join the politics, but it was only after her siblings convinced her that she eventually decided to contest the panchayat polls.
Similarly, a couple of other elected village pradhans also wanted to use the opportunity to narrate their woes to the chief minister, but could not do so, as CM did not turn up in the event. Woman entrepreneur Pooja Kumari, who won from Majra Jatpatiyaali in Kasganj district was so overwhelmed by the award that she was unable to speak out of excitement.