Padma Shri Winning Social worker and activist Vidyaben Shah passes away at 98
- Renowned Indian social worker and activist, Vidyaben Shah, known for her work with children, women and the elderly, has passed away. She was 98.
- She was honoured with the Padma Shri in 1992 and the National Award by Government of India in 1986, for outstanding services in the field of Child Welfare.
- Shah established India’s first ever Bal Bhavan in Rajkot in the 1940s.
- She was president of the Indian Council for Child Welfare (ICCW)- India’s single largest such institution- for 12 years from 1976 to 1979, and 1985 to 1994.
- Shah had also been the chairman of the Central Social Welfare Board from 1985 to 1988.
- She was the first non-official to become president of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) in the 1970s.