Bina Devi is popularly known as the mushroom lady for popularizing mushroom agriculture. She trains farmers in mushroom and organic farming, vermicompost production, and organic pesticide preparation. She was also the sarpanch of Dhauri panchayat of Tetiyabambara block for 5 years.
If you want to learn from the lamp, don't burn it, learn to smile
If you want to learn from the sun, don't drown, learn to rise
If you want to reach the peak, don't walk on the path, learn to build the path.
Bina Devi, 46, is the daughter-in-law of Dhauri village in the Munger district of Bihar. Like a woman of an ordinary family, she was busy throughout the day cleaning her house, cooking food, and taking care of the needs of the family members and was confined to the four walls of the house. Where any work outside the door of the house was considered beyond the capacity of a woman.
Bina Devi was born in 1977 in Munger, Bihar. She comes from a small township called Tilkari in Munger, Bihar. In 2010, she took training in mushroom cultivation from Sabour Agricultural University, Bhagalpur. Sabour Agricultural University is an agricultural institute under Govt.
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Learning mushroom cultivation, Bina Devi first grew one kilo of mushrooms on the underside of the bed of her house because there was no proper place for cultivation.
Where there is a will there is a way. Everything can be achieved with willpower. Bina Devi did not make any excuse for any lack. Like, mainly all of us keep the absence of one or the other in front of us and make it the reason for not getting any work done.
Mushrooms are very nutritious and also have a higher value in the market than many other fruits or vegetables. Bina Devi not only produced mushrooms but also started selling them in haats and markets.
After starting from the bed of her house, Bina Devi decided to train rural women in mushroom cultivation by organic method.
After becoming adept at mushroom cultivation, she started motivating women around her to step up and empower themselves. Which can not only help their households to benefit financially but also contribute to the well-being of the environment.
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She has now emerged as a role model for other women around.
She is also involved in social work and is always ready to create awareness about open defecation. Often she herself goes door-to-door to make people aware of the filth and diseases caused by open defecation.
Bina Devi created self-employment among rural women and also inspired them to take up dairy farming and animal husbandry. She has popularized mushroom production in five blocks and 105 neighboring villages in Munger district of Bihar, influencing 1,500 women and encouraging them to take up mushroom cultivation. And assumed the title of mushroom lady.
After gaining popularity, Bina Devi was also the sarpanch of Dhauri Panchayat of Tetiyabambara block for five years.
She has been involved in spreading digital literacy and was honored by Tata Trusts for training 700 women to use mobiles. She trained 2,500 farmers on crop production through an intensive paddy system and supported self-help groups.
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Today, she single-handedly supports her entire family of 18 members. Bina Devi's monthly income is ₹90,000 (₹30,000 from mushroom cultivation and ₹60,000 from organic farming of miscellaneous vegetables) and she also finances the education of her four children on her own. They have 3 sons and 1 daughter and all are studying in different parts of India. Along with her sons, her daughter is also pursuing engineering education. She wants to make her daughter independent and self-reliant first which is an important gift. Because, when daughters are encouraged and supported, they can really make the impossible possible.
On March 9, 2020, President Ram Nath Kovind honored Bina Devi with the Nari Shakti Samman for her outstanding contribution to the agriculture sector.
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