Uma Preman (born 31 May 1970) is an Indian

social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

er from

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

. She is the founder of Santhi Medical Information Center, a

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

charitable organization A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...

that provides medical guidance, care and rehabilitation for patients with limited income and resources.

Biography

Early life and marriage

Uma Preman, born to TK Balakrishnan and Thankamani in

Palakkad Palakkad (), Renaming of cities in India, also known as Palghat, historically known as Palakkattussery, is a city and a municipality in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of P ...

, Kerala spent her formative years in

Coimbatore Coimbatore (Tamil: kōyamputtūr, ), also known as Kovai (), is one of the major Metropolitan cities of India, metropolitan cities in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyy ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

. At the age of eight, her mother abandoned the family for another man, leaving Uma to care for herself and her three-year-old brother. At the age of 18, Uma travelled to

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

to meet Mother Teressa and join

Missionaries of Charity The Missionaries of Charity () is a Catholic centralised religious institute of consecrated life of Pontifical Right for women established in 1950 by Mother Teresa, now known in the Catholic Church as Saint Teresa of Calcutta. , it consisted o ...

. After a few months of service, she was assigned to the Mission at Kerala, where she served as a

caregiver A caregiver, carer or support worker is a paid or unpaid person who helps an individual with activities of daily living. Caregivers who are members of a care recipient's family or social network, who may have specific professional training, are o ...

for elderly and

terminally ill Terminal illness or end-stage disease is a disease that cannot be cured or adequately treated and is expected to result in the death of the patient. This term is more commonly used for progressive diseases such as cancer, rather than fatal injur ...

patients. During her service, Uma reunited with her mother, who was facing financial difficulties after separation with her second husband. Uma's mother urged her to marry Preman Thaikad, a wealthy travel agent who promised to pay off her debt in return. Uma soon found out that Preman, who was 26 years older than her, was suffering from a severe form of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

. Due to Preman's worsening condition, the couple spent most of their time together in hospitals. Preman died seven years later in 1997.

Santhi Medical Information Center

During frequent hospital visits with Preman, Uma noticed the difficulties faced by rural patients in receiving medical help and information and offered to assist them. After Preman died, Uma continued receiving pleas for help, which prompted her to set up a medical advisory organization, Santhi Medical Information Center (SMIC), in Kottapadi, a village near Guruvayur. She travelled to many cities to gather information on available medical resources for specific ailments. Upon returning home, she sold the house inherited from Preman and set up an office in a rented house. As the service grew popular, Uma started receiving charitable donations from various sources, which allowed SMIC to move to a permanent location and increase the scope of the services provided. Over the years, the organization added

ambulance services An ambulance is a medically-equipped vehicle used to transport patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient during the transport. Ambulances are used to respond to m ...

kidney dialysis Kidney dialysis is the process of removing excess water, solutes, and toxins from the blood in people whose kidneys can no longer perform these functions naturally. Along with kidney transplantation, it is a type of renal replacement therapy. ...

facilities and rehabilitation clinics for paraplegic patients. As of 2019, SMIC facilitated 20,500 heart surgeries, 650

kidney transplantation Kidney transplant or renal transplant is the organ transplant of a kidney into a patient with end-stage kidney disease (ESRD). Kidney transplant is typically classified as deceased-donor (formerly known as cadaveric) or living-donor transplantat ...

s and

for 2,000,000 patients. The organization has also helped

repatriate Repatriation is the return of a thing or person to its or their country of origin, respectively. The term may refer to non-human entities, such as converting a foreign currency into the currency of one's own country, as well as the return of mi ...

and rehabilitate migrant Indian workers with chronic conditions.

Organ donation

In 1999, Uma became one of the first altruistic

organ donors Organ donation is the process when a person authorizes an organ of their own to be removed and transplanted to another person, legally, either by consent while the donor is alive, through a legal authorization for deceased donation made prio ...

in India, when she donated one of her kidneys to Salil Balakrishnan, a 24-year-old patient with

kidney failure Kidney failure, also known as renal failure or end-stage renal disease (ESRD), is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney fa ...

. Because of strict government regulation for

organ donation in India Organ donation in India is regulated by the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994. The law allows both deceased and living donors to donate their organs. It also identifies brain death as a form of death. The National Organ and ...

, Uma had to present her case before the Transplant Authority of Tamil Nadu and get approval. In the following decades, Uma's role in public education about organ transplant along with campaigns led by Davis Chiramel and

Kochouseph Chittilappilly Kochouseph Thomas Chittilappilly (born 1950) is an Indian business magnate, writer, investor and philanthropist. He is the founder, chairman and Chief Executive Officer of V-Guard Industries, a chain of amusement parks called Wonderla, a real e ...

helped Kerala become the leading state in India for organ donations.

Santhi Gramam

In 2014, Uma initiated ''Santhi Gramam'' ( lit. Village of peace), a social welfare project aimed at improving the

standard of living Standard of living is the level of income, comforts and services available to an individual, community or society. A contributing factor to an individual's quality of life, standard of living is generally concerned with objective metrics outsid ...

of locals in the Attapadi tribal

taluk A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative ...

, Kerala. Under this project, SMIC set up several healthcare and educational institutions including basic infrastructure like water tanks, toilets and community kitchens. The project also created employment opportunities by incentivizing organic farming and

cottage industries The putting-out system is a means of subcontracting work, like a tailor. Historically, it was also known as the workshop system and the domestic system. In putting-out, work is contracted by a central agent to subcontractors who complete the p ...

manufacturing agricultural products. A major focus of the project was on improving

menstrual health The menstrual cycle is a series of natural changes in hormone production and the structures of the uterus and ovaries of the female reproductive system that makes pregnancy possible. The ovarian cycle controls the production and release of eggs ...

of young females. As parts of the initiative, a

sanitary napkin A menstrual pad is an absorbent item worn in the underwear when menstruating, bleeding after giving birth, recovering from gynecologic surgery, experiencing a miscarriage or abortion, or in any other situation where it is necessary to absorb ...

manufacturing unit was set up in Attapadi and exclusive toilets stocked with

feminine hygiene products Feminine hygiene products are personal care products used for women's hygiene during menstruation, vaginal discharge, or other bodily functions related to the vulva and vagina. Products that are used during menstruation may also be called menstru ...

were created for adolescent girls ''Santhi Gramam'' also invested in low-cost, sustainable and climate-responsive housing solutions, which were applied in the rapid construction of 51

anganwadi Anganwadi () is a type of rural child care centre in India. It was started by the Indian government in 1975 as part of the Integrated Child Development Services program to combat child hunger and malnutrition. ''Anganwadi'' in Hindi means ...

s (rural child care center) in

Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeast India. It was formed from the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and India declared it as a state on 20 February 1987. Itanagar is its capital and la ...

in 2021.

APJ Abdul Kalam International Residential Tribal School

In 2017, Uma founded APJ Abdul Kalam International Residential Tribal School in Attapadi to provide primary education in the local tribal languages to improve student enrollment and retention in the tribal communities. In 2021, Uma helped launch a local television channel in Attapadi to

broadcast Broadcasting is the data distribution, distribution of sound, audio audiovisual content to dispersed audiences via a electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), ...

educational content to the students in their native languages and deliver daily news to the locals.

Recognition and reception

Uma Preman received over 150 awards, including the ''Woman Icon Award'' 2018, ''Vanitha Woman of the Year'' 2015 and ''CNN-IBN Real Heroes (Health and Disability'') 2010. The 2015 Malayalam-language

biographical novel The biographical novel is a genre of novel which provides a fictional account of a contemporary or historical person's life. Like other forms of biographical fiction, details are often trimmed or reimagined to meet the artistic needs of the fictio ...

''Nilachoru'' written by Shabu Kilithattil is inspired by Uma Preman's life. The same novel has been translated into Tamil as "Kadhai Ketkum Suvargal" by K.V.Shailaja of Vamsi Publications. In 2020, Tamil

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

Vigneswaran Vijayan (Vicky) announced a

bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...

(

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

and Malayalam)

biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or group of people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from Docudrama, docudrama films ...

on her life.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Preman, Uma Living people People from Coimbatore 1970 births 21st-century Indian women Indian social workers Malayali people