Amrita Patel (born 1943) is an Indian businessperson associated with cooperative dairy sector as well as an environmentalist. She headed the National Dairy Development Board from 1998 to 2014 which led the world's biggest dairy development program Operation Flood. She chaired several other institutes and has been a member of board of banks. She was awarded the

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan (IAST: ''Padma Bhūṣaṇa'', lit. 'Lotus Decoration') is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 Januar ...

in 2001.

Early life

Amrita Patel was born on 13 November 1943 at 1, Safdarjung Road,

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

. She was the youngest among five daughters of civil servant and politician Hirubhai M. Patel and Savitaben, a Gujarati family. When her father retired, her family moved back to Anand in

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

in 1959. She received her higher education from

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

and completed her study in Bachelor of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry. In 1965, she joined Amul, a dairy cooperative, and was trained under Verghese Kurien.

Career

After four decades of work in Amul, she served as the chairperson of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) in from 1998 to 2014. As the managing director of NDDB, she led the Operation Flood, the world's biggest dairy development program. She also became a chairperson of Mother Dairy, Delhi; the President of Indian National Committee of the International Dairy Federation and later a member of Planning Commission of

Government of Himachal Pradesh The Government of Himachal Pradesh also known as the State Government of Himachal Pradesh, or locally as State Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It consists of an executive branch, led by th ...

. She has been a member of the Boards of the

Reserve Bank of India Reserve Bank of India, abbreviated as RBI, is the central bank of the Republic of India, and regulatory body responsible for regulation of the Indian banking system and Indian rupee, Indian currency. Owned by the Ministry of Finance (India), Min ...

and the

National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) is an All India Development Financial Institution (DFI) and an apex Supervisory Body for overall supervision of Regional Rural Banks, State Cooperative Banks and District Central ...

(NABARD). She advocates the protection of environment and ecology. She was the chairperson of the Foundation for Ecological Security working in the field of ecology. She is the Chairman of the Sardar Patel Renewable Energy Research Institute, Anand as well as Charutar Arogya Mandal.

Recognition

She was awarded various awards for her contribution in development and management of dairy sector including the Financial Express Lifetime Achievement Award, Jawaharlal Nehru Birth Centenary Award for Nation Building (1999–2000), World Dairy Expo's International Person of the Year (1997), Indian Dairy Association Fellowship, Krishimitra Award, Foundation National Award from Fuel Injection Engineering Company, Sahkarita Bandhu Award, Borlaug Award (1991), Indira Gandhi Paryavaran Puraskar (2005), Mahindra Samriddhi Krishi Shiromani Samman (Lifetime Achievement Award, 2016). The

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

awarded her the

, the third highest civilian award of India, in 2001.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patel, Amrita Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in trade and industry Businesspeople from Gujarat Businesswomen from Gujarat Living people 1943 births 21st-century Indian women educational theorists 21st-century Indian educational theorists 20th-century Indian educational theorists 20th-century Indian businesswomen 20th-century Indian businesspeople 21st-century Indian businesswomen 21st-century Indian businesspeople People from Anand district Indian ecologists Indian environmentalists 20th-century Indian women educators 20th-century Indian educators 20th-century Indian women educational theorists