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Indian social activist (born 1989) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Malvika Iyer (born 18 February 1989) is a social worker and disability rights activist having lost both her hands as a child when she picked up a grenade.[2][3][4][5][6] She is also a model for accessible fashion.[7][8][9] Iyer obtained her Doctorate in Social Work from Madras School of Social Work in 2017.[10][11] Her doctoral thesis is on the stigmatization of people with disabilities.[12][13][14]
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Malvika Iyer | |
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Born | 18 February 1989[1] Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu, India |
Alma mater | |
Known for | Motivational speaking, Disability rights activism |
Iyer was born on 18 February 1989 in Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu[15] to B. Krishnan and Hema Krishnan.[16][17] She grew up in Bikaner, Rajasthan, where her father worked as an engineer at the Water Works Department.[17] On 26 May 2002, at the age of 13, Iyer lost both her hands when she accidentally picked up a grenade that exploded in her hands at her home in Bikaner[3][18][19] and sustained severe injuries to her legs including multiple fractures, nerve paralysis and hypoesthesia.[20]
Following her hospitalization, Iyer appeared as a private candidate in the Secondary School Leaving Certificate examination in Chennai.[17] Writing the exam with the help of a scribe,[17] she secured a state rank among the private candidates.[15][12] She was invited to the Rashtrapati Bhavan by the then President of India, A. P. J. Abdul Kalam.[15]
Iyer moved to New Delhi, where she studied Economics (Honors) at St. Stephen's College, Delhi, followed by a Master's in Social Work at the Delhi School of Social Work.[20] She did her M.Phil and Ph.D in Social Work[7] at the Madras School of Social Work, where she secured first class with distinction and won the Rolling Cup for the Best M.Phil. Thesis in 2012.[21]
She hosted the India Inclusion Summit in 2013.[22] An advocate for accessible fashion, Iyer walked the ramp as a showstopper for NIFT and Ability Foundation in Chennai where she emphasized the need for designing clothes with functionality and style for people with disability.[23] In 2014, she was selected as a Global Shaper to the Chennai Hub of the Global Shapers Community, an initiative of the World Economic Forum.[4][24] She joined the United Nations Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development's Working Group on Youth and Gender Equality and in March 2017 she was invited to deliver a speech at the United Nations in New York.[3][12][25][26] In October 2017, she was invited to Co-Chair the World Economic Forum's India Economic Summit held at Hotel Taj Palace, New Delhi.[27]
Iyer received the Nari Shakti Puraskar, the highest civilian honor for women for contribution to women's empowerment, from President Ram Nath Kovind on 8 March 2018 on International Women's Day.[28][29] On 8 March 2020, she was selected by the Honorable Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi to take over his social media accounts.[30][31][32] She is the recipient of the first Women in the World Emerging Leaders Award in New York in 2016.[7][13][33] She was recognized as one of the 100 Change Agents and Newsmakers of the Decade by Deccan Chronicle in 2015.[12]
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