With Pickles And Perseverance, Padma Shri 'Kisan Chachi' Continues To Transform Lives
The journey of 73-year-old Rajkumari Devi from a small village in Bihar to Padma Shri and beyond.
Published : October 15, 2025 at 8:44 AM IST
Saraiya: She cycles around villages, paddling her way through alleys and dirt roads, to meet women who see her as a source of inspiration. At 73, Rajkumari Devi's gait reflects anything but weakness.
In any other place, an elderly woman cycling with such confidence would make passersby curious. Not in Saraiya. The residents of this idyllic village in Bihar's Muzzafarpur district know how their Kisan Chachi has transformed the lives of hundreds of women by creating sustainable livelihoods around farming and pickles over the last several decades.
A trailblazer and a name recognised widely, Devi was conferred the Padma Shri in 2019. The journey wasn't easy. Devi faced financial hardships from the get-go, but instead of getting bogged down, she decided to take the challenges head-on.
In the early 1990s, she briefly learned about advanced agriculture from Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University (then known as Rajendra Agriculture University) and began cultivating papaya and taro on a small parcel of land her family owned. She then made pickles and flour from the taro she grew and cycled to the nearby markets and fairs to sell her products.
Inspired by her, several women joined Devi, encouraging her to form the first of the 36 Self Help Groups that she would go on to create in the next two decades, creating a network of hundreds of working women.
Devi began introducing scientific methods to traditional farming and then, quite literally, added a dash of spice to her initiatives. At the turn of the century, she ventured into making pickles, turning a humble home-based initiative into a household name.
In 2003, Devi's efforts were recognised and she was awarded by the then-Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav during an agricultural fair in Saraiya. In 2007, during the Nitish Kumar government, she was conferred with the 'Kisan Shri' award in recognition of her contributions to organic and sustainable farming.
"When I was conferred the 'Kisan Shri' title, the government asked me to visit various panchayats and train farmers on modern and organic farming techniques. I conducted training sessions in the villages to which I was assigned. In 2002, I created our first Self Help Group and then went on to make 35 more such SHGs. We trained around 360 women in Krishi Vigyan Kendras. Each woman was placed into a group based on her work category and area of expertise," she told PTI videos.
Words of encouragement in 2013 from the then Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi, inspired her to continue her mission.
"During that time, I learned how to make pickles, and along with that jams, jellies, murabba, sattu, papad, and other food items. Our entire team of women received training. In 2013, the Prime Minister invited me, that time he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat. There was a Panchayat event held at Gandhi Maidan in 2013, where he spoke to me for about half an hour. He discussed how I make pickles, how the women of Bihar work, and appreciated our efforts," she added.
For the women alongside Rajkumari, the pickle-making unit is more than a workplace – it’s where they've found confidence, independence, and success.
"Many women come here and work together in one place. They prepare pickles of whatever is in season, mango, gooseberries, karonda (natal plum), jackfruit, and lemon. Green chilli is available throughout the year, so we make green chilli pickles continuously. This way, there's always work to do," a worker said.
"We've learned how to make pickles. When Chachi progresses, it creates work for us too. We come from poor families, and working with her gives us some income; it feels good," the worker added.
Read More
