Hirabai Ibrahim Lobi of Junagadh, Gujarat: A Trailblazer for Women's Empowerment in the Siddi Community
By Sahil Razvi, New Age Islam
04 February 2025
Hirabai Ibrahim Lobi, A Padma Shri Awardee, Was A Dedicated Social Worker From The Siddi Community. She Championed Women’s Empowerment, Education, And Financial Independence. Through Grassroots Initiatives, She Transformed The Lives Of Marginalized Women. Her Efforts Earned National And International Recognition, Leaving A Lasting Impact On Her Community.
Main Points:
1. Founded the Mahila Vikas Sangh in 2004, promoting education and employment for rural women.
2. Honored with the Padma Shri in 2023, the Women’s World Summit Foundation Award (2002), and the Jankidevi Bajaj Award (2006).
3. Worked tirelessly to uplift the Siddi community, integrating them into mainstream society.
4. Helped women secure loans, open bank accounts, and gain financial literacy.
5. Passed away on January 24, 2025; her contributions were recognized as a profound loss to society.
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Hirabai Ibrahim Lobi (in some places, her name is also written as 'Hirbai Ibrahim Lobi') was a social worker, belonging specifically to the Siddi community. She worked in the fields of women's empowerment, education, health, and nutrition. In 2004, Hirabai founded the Mahila Vikas Sangh (Women Development Association) and organized education and employment initiatives for women in villages. For her social services, she was honored with the Padma Shri Award in 2023. Her efforts brought about numerous positive changes for the Siddi community and women.
Hirabai Lobi resided in Madhupur Jambur village, located in the Talala tehsil of Junagadh district, Gujarat. The Siddi community, which follows Islam, traces its origins to Africa, from where its ancestors were brought to India as enslaved people.
Hirabai was born in 1960 in Jambur village, Junagadh district, Gujarat. Although Hirabai Lobi did not receive formal education, she possessed a deep passion for learning. She acquired knowledge about organic manure preparation techniques and government schemes through the radio and shared this information with others. Hirabai served as the president of the Adivasi Mahila Sangh (Tribal Women’s Union), also known as the Siddi Mahila Mahasangh (Siddi Women’s Federation).
In 2023, when she was invited to receive the Padma Shri Award, she showered Prime Minister Narendra Modi with heartfelt blessings, symbolically filling his lap with prayers. She also posed for a photo with President Droupadi Murmu, placing her hand on the President’s shoulder and affectionately remarking, “You are like our own sister, a tribal.” Though her son had advised her not to touch the President, Hirabai expressed her heartfelt desire to do so.
Hirabai’s parents passed away during her childhood, after which her grandparents took on the responsibility of raising her. Between 2019 and 2020, her husband also died. He had worked as a labourer in agriculture. Though her grandparents were uneducated, her grandmother deeply understood the importance of schooling and wished for Hirabai to pursue studies. However, Hirabai could only attend school up to the second grade. Married at the age of 14, she and her husband were later forced to leave their home by her in-laws, compelling them to move back to her maternal village.
Hirabai has two sons and one daughter. While one son works in a private company, the other, along with her daughter, earns a living as agricultural labourers. Her village, Madhupur-Jambur, is predominantly inhabited by the Siddi community, an Afro-descendant group historically brought to India as enslaved people. The Siddis remain one of India’s most marginalized communities, facing significant social and economic challenges.
Despite facing immense personal hardships, Hirabai emerged as a resilient leader, dedicating her life to uplifting her community, particularly through women’s empowerment and education a cause her grandmother had quietly championed decades earlier.
Hirabai Ibrahim Lobi joined the Aga Khan Foundation in 1995 and initiated her journey in social service by forming Mahila Sakhi Mandals (women’s solidarity groups). She began producing organic compost and helped women secure loans to pursue farming. Building on this momentum, she founded the Mahila Vikas Foundation in 2004 to institutionalize her efforts toward women’s empowerment.
Hirabai often cited Indira Gandhi as her role model, famously questioning, “If a woman like Indira Gandhi could lead the nation, why can’t women like us become self-reliant?” She also drew inspiration from her grandmother, who instilled in her the value of education despite societal barriers.
Through relentless efforts, Hirabai empowered women across 14 villages, focusing on integrating marginalized Siddi tribal women many of whom were illiterate into the economic mainstream. She pioneered initiatives to connect them with banking systems, encouraging them to open accounts with just one rupee. Over time, these women began saving regularly, gaining financial literacy, and participating actively in the formal economy.
Her work transformed educational outcomes in her community. Once, finding an educated Siddi youth in the village was rare, but today, thanks to her advocacy, young men and women from the community pursue education and contribute meaningfully to society. Hirabai’s legacy lies in bridging systemic gaps and fostering a culture of self-reliance among those long excluded from India’s developmental narrative.
Hirabai firmly believed that if she persisted in her work, it would one day gain recognition from the government. Even before this acknowledgment, her efforts had already earned her acclaim. In 2002, she was honoured with the ‘Women’s Creativity in Rural Life Award’ by the Switzerland-based Women’s World Summit Foundation (WWSF), which included a cash prize of $500. Her contributions were further celebrated through a Letter of Honor from Gujarat Agricultural University, Junagadh, and the prestigious Jankidevi Bajaj Award in 2006 a national accolade recognizing outstanding rural women entrepreneurs in India.
These awards underscored her tireless advocacy for grassroots empowerment and her ability to inspire marginalized women to break socio-economic barriers. Hirabai’s journey from battling personal hardships to becoming a beacon of change reflects her unwavering resolve to uplift her community, proving that grassroots activism can indeed ripple into national recognition.
Siddi Community
The Siddi community is a small ethnic group of African origin residing in Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Andhra Pradesh, India. It is believed that they arrived in India as slaves, traders, or sailors and gradually integrated into the local culture.
Siddis follow a blend of Islam, Christianity, and traditional African beliefs. Their livelihood primarily depends on agriculture, labor, and small businesses.
On January 24, 2025, Heerabai passed away due to a sudden heart attack. Expressing grief over her demise, Reliance Director (Corporate Affairs) Parimal Nathwani called it a profound loss for society.
Citations
"Icon Detailed Description". Drishti IAS.
Puraskar, Jankidevi Bajaj (2016-08-02). "TBI Blogs: How a 56-Year-Old Siddi Woman is Transforming Her Village, One Initiative at a Time". The Better India.
"Hirabai Lobi: 700 से ज्यादा महिलाओं और बच्चों का संवारा जीवन, जानें पद्मश्री हीराबाई लोबी के बारे में". Amar Ujala (in Hindi).
"दुख में रोना नहीं और सुख में रुकना नहीं... पढ़ें पद्मश्री पाने वाले सीदी समुदाय की हीराबाई लोबी से बातचीत". Navbharat Times (in Hindi).
"Hirabai Lobi, who uplifted Siddis, dead". The Times of India. 2025-01-24. ISSN 0971-8257.
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A regular contributor to New Age Islam, Sahil Razvi is a research scholar specialising in Sufism and Islamic History. He is an alumnus of Jamia Millia Islamia.
New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism