Padma Shri Prabhaben Shah passes away at age 92

By: WE Staff | Thursday, 19 January 2023

At the government hospital in Daman on Wednesday, Prabhaben Shah, a case manager from Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman, and Diu, passed away. She had received the Padma Shri honour. She was 92.

On Thursday in the late afternoon, Daman will host the final rituals. Prabhaben was taken by ambulance to the medical clinic on Wednesday morning after having respiratory issues and heart-related disorders. However, due to age-related ailments and cardiac issues, she died suddenly in the afternoon.

Varsha Shah, the daughter of Prabhaben, stated, "Dr. Tapan and his staff at the government hospital in Daman proclaimed her dead in the late afternoon due to her advanced age and cardiac issues. She did not respond to the therapy. Her remains will be transported from our home in Moti Daman to Nani Daman across a distance of about 5 kilometers on Thursday morning as part of the final ceremonies, which are scheduled to take place. Her body is currently being preserved in the mortuary of the public hospital. By Thursday morning, all of our family from Gujarat and Mumbai would be in Daman.

Prabhaben was awarded the Padma Shri in the field of social work in January 2022, which is India's fourth-highest civilian honour. Ramnath Kovind, who was the Current president, gave Prabhaben Shah an award during a ceremony in Delhi. She has fought for environmental issues and women's emancipation for the past 60 years.

Prabhaben was born in 1929 in the Bardoli town of the Surat area and later relocated to Daman. She was brought up in the Gandhian philosophy and has ties to the Bardoli Swaraj Ashram. In Daman, Prabhaben started instructing women in stitching in 1969. She also started the Women's Cooperation Society and the Women's Credit Society.

She also started a Balwadi (nursery) with Gujarati and English as secondary languages, as well as a library for students from economically underprivileged areas. Prabhaben has also campaigned to ban dowries. In conjunction with Daman & Diu and DNH, her work area also encompassed Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Goa.

Her two daughters, Varsha and Kiran Shah, as well as her son Sanjay Shah, who currently resides in the USA, are still alive. Sobhag Shah, Prabhaben Shah's husband, passed away 15 years prior. Varsha Shah lived in Daman with her mother.