Sabira is a rural development practitioner who is passionate about working with indigenous and under-served communities. She started her journey in the development sector with PRADAN, a leading grassroots organization that works for improving the quality of life of tribal women in the poorest regions of central India. The observant reflections on power asymmetry, systemic marginalization and lived experiences of the indigenous women have had a profound influence on her personal and professional life. She has worked closely with Gond and Mauriya communities in southern Madhya Pradesh and  Bastar region of Chhattisgarh for building and strengthening women led-collectives, capacitating tribal women for community leadership with focus on natural resource management, asset creation, livelihood augmentation, influencing local governance and driving social action. She has also served in the capacity of a research fellow with Delhi Legislative Assembly where she had an opportunity to learn and understand the nuances of urban poverty and design interventions for strengthening public service delivery in Old Delhi constituency.

To her, PPIA fellowship is a generous opportunity to deeply understand, contribute and mitigate complex developmental challenges in LWE affected areas and make social change and action, keeping women at the centre, a lived reality.