Maharashtra: How 'people's officer' Mittali Sethi transforming children's education, sanitation
The story of Mittali Sethi, a female Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer posted in Chandrapur in Maharashtra is proving to be an inspiration for many. After abandoning her well-paid profession as a dentist, Sethi has dedicated her life to improving the health and education of the underprivileged, particularly children, writes YourStory. She has also worked with tribal people to address their dietary needs.
Sethi, as per YourStory, has displayed her phone number outside the Zilla Parishad's office in Chandrapur where she is working as CEO. She advised residents in the region to contact her whenever they wanted to discuss anything or had a problem. People first discouraged her from doing so due to unsolicited calls. However, she showed a brave face and reached out to people.
Sethi's first challenging posting was in Melgaht, Amravati where she worked as a sub-divisional magistrate and Project Officer for the Integrated Development Project. She found that poor health and nutrition are the major issues in the tribal region which prompted her to start numerous projects and used funds to accomplish them, YourStory wrote. Later, she also made films to increase awareness about the place.
She is now the CEO of Zilla Parishad, Chandrapur. Her primary concern is the area's education and cleanliness, which remained a casualty during the COVID-19 pandemic. Three of the 15 blocks she supervises are tribal, and one is urban. They began the Garudzhep (Marathi meaning jump) project last year. Nearly 62,000 pupils in 1,560 schools were examined for learning loss caused by the pandemic.
She started Padhai Bhi, Safai Bhi (Education and cleanliness go hand in hand) initiative last month. Through this, she opened 150 rural libraries in six months and building new and functioning toilets so that children, particularly females, can return to school. This effort also includes a program to provide bicycles to students whose schools are more than three kilometers distant from their homes.
Sethi was born and brought up in Jalandhar, Punjab. In Amritsar and Chennai, she earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in dental surgery, respectively. Thereafter, she worked as an orthodontist in Puducherry. In 2017, she joined the public service and was assigned to the Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP) in Melghat. She is now the CEO of the Zilla Parishad in Chandrapur.
Sethi's choice to join a youth camp in Gadchiroli, Maharashtra, transformed her life in ways she never imagined. According to her, it also launched her on the path to becoming a government servant. Her spouse, a Maharashtrian, was originally opposed to her decision, but later agreed. Then she started preparing for the IAS and cracked the exam on the third attempt.
