Sruti Mohapatra

Sruti Mohapatra was born c. 1963.^[1] She lives in Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Odisha, India.^[2][1] In 1987, she wanted to become an Indian Administrative Service officer after passing the Union Public Service Commission examination but she injured her spinal cord in a car accident.^[1] Mohaptra is a wheelchair user who campaigns for disability rights.^[2] She has chaired the Odisha State Commission for the Protection of Child Rights and is a member of the National Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.^[3]

In 2009, she won a victory with other activists when the Jagannath Temple at Puri was made accessible to wheelchair users.^[4] During the COVID-19 pandemic in India, she warned that 43 per cent of disabled children in Odisha were dropping out of school.^[5]

Mohaptra received the Real Heroes Award in 2010.^[1] President Ram Nath Kovind presented her with the 2021 Nari Shakti Puraskar on International Women's Day 2022.^[3]