Bhubaneswar: The dedicated women workforce of Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan (SOA) was celebrated and honored with two prestigious Femina Women Achievers’ Awards 2025 at a grand ceremony held today in Bhubaneswar. The awards, presented by India’s leading women’s magazine ‘Femina,’ recognized SOA’s significant contributions to education and healthcare.
SOA received the coveted ‘Excellence in Educational Leadership’ award for its outstanding achievements in the education sector. This collective recognition highlighted the exceptional efforts of the university’s women in leadership roles. Prominent individuals honored under this category included:
- Prof. Neeta Mohanty, Pro-Vice Chancellor
- Prof. Manjula Das, Controller of Examination
- Prof. Ruchi Bhuyan, Dean of Institute of Dental Sciences
- Prof. Pravati Tripathy, Director of SUM Nursing College
- Prof. Sasmita Das, Dean, SUM Nursing College
- Prof. Debahuti Mishra, Head of Computer Sciences at Institute of Technical Education and Research
- Prof. Renu Sharma, Additional Dean (Student Affairs) and Mentor of Jaago
- Prof. Anita Panda
In a distinct recognition, the women employees of the SOA Group of Hospitals were bestowed with the ‘Outstanding Contribution to Women Empowerment in Education and Healthcare’ award. This award acknowledged their pivotal role in promoting gender empowerment within the education and healthcare spheres. Key women from the hospital group receiving this honor included:
- Ms. Pratima Routray, Chief Facilitating Officer
- Dr. Jasmin Panda, Head of SOA Pharmacy
- Prof. Aurolipi Das, Head of Quality Control
- Ms. Manorama Parida, Head of Biomedical Engineering
- Ms. Pushpanjali Rout, Deputy General Manager, IMS and SUM Hospital
- Ms. Minati Mishra, Nursing Superintendent
- Ms. Kamalini Mallick, Nursing Superintendent of SUM Nursing College-2
- Ms. Honey Patnaik, In-charge of SOA Radio
- Prof. Snigdha Patnaik, SOA Pharmacy
- Prof. Sasmita Mohanty, School of Hotel Management
- Prof. Smita Sucharita Mohapatra, School of Hotel Management
- Dr. Susmita Panda, President, SOA Alumni Association
Further individual recognition was given to Prof. Gayatribala Panda, Head of PRACHIN, SOA, for her excellence in literature.
Bollywood actor Amol Parashar graced the event as the chief guest and presented the awards. The ceremony was attended by notable personalities including Ms. Sulochana Das, Mayor of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation; Prof. Pradipta Kumar Nanda, SOA Vice-Chancellor; Mr. Pradipta Mohanty, Chairman of SNM Group; Mr. Rajarshi Das, Managing Director of Jack Olivol Group; Ms. Tapati Das, Director of Jack Olivol Group; Mr. Primrose Monterio D’Souza, Managing Editor of Femina; and Mr. Biman Dutta, Assistant Vice-President and Regional Head (East) of Times Group.
The Femina Women Achievers’ Awards annually celebrates women who have demonstrated exceptional talent and leadership across diverse fields, including education, healthcare, art, literature, science, research, business, sports, fashion, social service, films, music, dance, and journalism.