Working with Jatan Sansthan since 2019 as a cluster coordinator, Samundni Choudhary has been contributing to child education, Anganwadi development, nutrition, gender equality, and community awareness through grassroots social work across villages.

Samundni Choudhary has been associated with the NGO, Jatan Sansthan, since 2019. During her time with the organization, she has worked across 4–5 different projects and currently serves as a Cluster Coordinator.

Choudhary shares that when she joined Jatan Sansthan in 2019, she initially worked under the ‘Khushi Pariyojana’. This project focused on Anganwadi development, where underdeveloped Anganwadis were converted into ‘Nand Ghars’. Their role was to support ICDS workers, guide them on early childhood education, strengthen learning processes for children, and involve them in various developmental initiatives. They trained Anganwadi workers on how to educate children effectively and how to implement multiple activities to enhance learning outcomes.

Alongside this, their work also focused on pregnant women, as she explains that in many low-income communities, awareness about nutrition is very limited. One of Jatan Sansthan’s key objectives was to educate pregnant and lactating women about proper nutrition. For this, several programs were organized, one of which was the PD (Poshan Demonstration). In this program, pregnant women were invited to centers where they were taught how to prepare nutritious recipes using locally available ingredients, and how these everyday meals could be enhanced nutritionally.

Additionally, for families who could not afford vegetables from the market, Jatan Sansthan provided seeds, encouraging households to grow vegetables at home. They were also trained on how to use these vegetables effectively and prepare nutritious meals for their families.

Apart from Khushi Pariyojana, she also worked with Child Helpline and Panchayati Raj, and is currently associated with the “Pehla Kadam” project. Under this initiative, the focus is on school-readiness education (Shala Purva Shiksha), where the primary aim is to strengthen a child’s learning and understanding before entering formal schooling. This work addresses multiple dimensions of a child’s development, physical, mental, social, intellectual, and also emphasizes gender sensitivity and equality.

She explains that Jatan Sansthan’s core mission is to promote early childhood education and gender equality within society.

Samundni Choudhary was born at the Tilonia Centre of the Sansthan, where Aruna Roy, the renowned Ramon Magsaysay Awardee social activist, used to work actively. Samundni shares that Aruna Roy has been a major inspiration in her life. Despite being an IAS officer, Aruna Roy left her government position to work for women who were illiterate and engaged in daily wage labor, especially construction work. She initiated night schools for women who worked during the day, enabling them to learn and empower themselves.

Samundni grew up observing this environment closely, as her mother also worked there. Seeing her mother and Aruna Roy run learning centers deeply influenced her values and aspirations.

As she grew older, she began her schooling but, due to family pressure, she discontinued her education and remained away from studies for 10–11 years. Despite this break, she always carried a strong desire to work in the field of social service, inspired by what she had seen in her childhood. However, she did not initially know how to move forward. She believes that while one should dream big, it is equally important to have faith in fulfilling those dreams.

Her path took a turning point when she joined Jatan Sansthan, where she met Kailash Brijwasi Sir, the Director. Inspired by his guidance, she began her work in Khushi Pariyojana and gradually became involved in other projects, gaining experience and confidence over time.

She shares that before joining Jatan, she had limited exposure and mostly stayed at home for many years. After joining the organization, she began understanding the real challenges faced by villages, especially issues related to women. Being part of Jatan helped her build self-confidence and she realized that to work effectively for society, one must first be enlightened from within.

Observing her colleagues and their dedication motivated her further. As part of her work, she interacted with Panchayats, Sarpanchs, and local leaders, which helped her overcome hesitation and build confidence. She explains that many villages were unaware of the purpose and services of Anganwadis. Through Jatan Sansthan, communities were made aware that Anganwadis are not only for nutrition but also provide early education, vaccination support for women, and connections to government schemes.

By bridging the gap between communities, Anganwadis, and Panchayats, Jatan Sansthan helped strengthen grassroots awareness and participation.

She expresses a strong desire to see villages take collective responsibility for children and Anganwadi centers. She highlights that in some areas, Anganwadi buildings are in extremely poor condition, sometimes even unsafe. Her vision is to create awareness that Anganwadis are not the responsibility of one individual or department, but of the entire village, and that collective effort can bring positive change.

She observes that since Jatan Sansthan began working in villages, people have started recognizing the organization. Earlier, there were no Kishori groups or youth groups, and Anganwadis received little attention. After Jatan’s involvement, youth participation increased, awareness improved, and community engagement strengthened. Youth groups now assist Anganwadi workers when needed, which she considers a major achievement.

Her dream is that no child should be deprived of education. She wants school dropouts to be re-enrolled and children lacking documents like Aadhaar cards to receive support through Panchayat and Jatan Sansthan so that no child is excluded from education.

Social Worker Samundni Choudhary was born in Mathura and completed her schooling in Kishangarh near Ajmer. She later stayed in a hostel at Vidyawadi, completed her B.Ed. from Rajasthan University, Jaipur, and earned her M.A. from Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Udaipur.

She recalls a childhood incident where friends pushed her into a water tank and ran away, leaving her frightened until someone rescued her. This incident left a lasting impact on her emotional strength.

Later in life, she lost contact with close childhood friends for over a decade. During a gender training program in Jaipur, where Jatan Sansthan played a major role, she unexpectedly reconnected with one of her long-lost friends through another organization, which brought her immense joy.

She considers Aruna Roy and Kailash Sir as her role models. Aruna Roy inspired her from childhood, while Kailash Sir supported and guided her throughout her professional journey at Jatan Sansthan.

A quote that deeply motivates her is:

“सपने बड़े देखने चाहिए, पर उन्हें पूरा करने का विश्वास भी मन में होना चाहिए।”

She explains that dreaming big is easy, but fulfilling dreams requires self-belief, dedication, and inner motivation.

She also shares that her life was not easy, especially due to resistance from her orthodox in-laws, who wanted her to remain confined to traditional roles. Despite this, she chose to pursue her dreams and social work. Working at the grassroots level brought its own challenges, lack of staff, limited community participation, and resistance, but through persistence, she built her identity.

Today, her greatest achievement is that people recognize her by her name and work, as Samundni Choudhary of Jatan Sansthan.

Her message to the youth and society is clear: social service is not inferior to any profession. Everyone living in society has a responsibility towards it. She urges people, men, women, and youth, to raise their voices against social evils such as child marriage and child abuse, rather than ignoring them.

Jatan Sansthan Cluster Coordinator Samundni Choudhary concludes by sharing that Jatan Sansthan works across all sections of society. On behalf of the organisation, she gives a message that one must stand against what is wrong and support what is right, while actively promoting gender equality and social justice.