Meet Vijaya Kishore Rahatkar, the newly appointed chairperson of NCW

Vijaya Kishore Rahatkar has been appointed as the 9th Chairperson of the National Commission for Women (NCW), succeeding Rekha Sharma. Rahatkar, former chairperson of the Maharashtra State Commission for Women, brings extensive experience and accolades to the role.

Gargi Chaudhry

First Published Oct 20, 2024, 11:13 AM IST | Last Updated Oct 20, 2024, 11:13 AM IST

The National Commission for Women (NCW) has named Vijaya Kishore Rahatkar as its new chairperson. In a post to X, the NCW stated, "NCW is pleased to share that in pursuance of Section 3, NCW Act, 1990, the Central Government has nominated Vijaya Kishore Rahatkar as the Chairperson of National Commission for Women."

Rahatkar will be the 9th Chairperson of NCW and her tenure will begin immediately. She took over for Rekha Sharma, whose term expired earlier this year in August. "NCWIndia is pleased to share that in pursuance of Section 3, NCW Act, 1990, the Central Government has nominated Smt. Archana Majumdar as Member of the National Commission for Women," further stated.

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According to an official statement from the Ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD), Rahatkar has served as chairperson of the Maharashtra State Commission for Women from 2016 to 2021, and was the Mayor of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad) from 2007 to 2010. Rahatkar holds a bachelor’s degree in physics and a Master’s degree in history from the University of Pune.

'Vidhilikhit' (on women's legal difficulties) and 'Aurangabad: Leading to Wide Roads' (a Ministry of Women and Children notice) are two of her novels. During her term as chairperson of the Maharashtra State Commission for Women, Rahatkar “spearheaded initiatives” like ‘Sakshama’ (support for acid attack survivors),’Prajwala’ (linking self-help groups to Central government schemes), and ‘Suhita’ (24×7 helpline service for women), the WCD statement said.

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It further stated that she has received acclaim for her efforts to empower women, including the Savitribai Phule Award from a national literary council and the National Law Award.

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