INDIA. Tikuri. 09 November 2022. Divya’s family walking trough their village Tikiuri.

Divya Chaudhry, 16-year-old, was born in the Tikuri District in the State of Madhya Pradesh. Her mother 37-year-old Miradevi Ahirwal has been an ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) supervisor since 2018. She manages and trains a cadre of 18 ASHAs under her, serving a total of 10,000 families in the region. Her primary role is sensitizing women about the contraceptive basket of choices available to them, including counselling on family planning.
In spite of incredible social pressure, Divya’s parents chose to stop childbearing after their two daughters, considering their family complete. They wanted to invest all their resources into their daughters because unlike the popular narrative in their region, they did not consider their daughters a burden, but young girls who had untapped and unlimited potential.
“My parents are my biggest supporters…they have my sister and I with every opportunity…I am now in my final year of school, and have topped my class. I have chosen the science field because just like my mother, I want to work for women’s health.”