Chetna Gala Sinha

Chetna Sinha is the Founder and Chairperson of Mann Deshi Bank and Mann Deshi Foundation. She passionately believes that empowering rural women can transform and drive economic growth. In 1997, she established the Mann Deshi Mahila Sahakari Bank, India's first bank for and by rural women. Operating in Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Silvassa, Man Deshi has supported over 950,000 women and aims to reach one million women by 2024; it continuously develops new financial products to support female micro-entrepreneurs. Chetna is a Yale, Ashoka, and Schwab Fellow. In 2018, she received the Nari Shakti Puraskar, the highest civilian award for women in India, from the President of India.