In India, much before news headlines screamed of atrocities on women every day, Mr Sethia had observed the pitiful plight of widows in his own hometown of Sujangarh.
Here age-old tradition and blind greed caused families to shun widows. These women were turned out of their own homes by their own families and had nowhere to go. Moved by their plight, Mr Nirmal Sethia established the Nirmal Sethia Charitable Trust to provide monetary aid to these widows and other helpless women.
For the past 50 years, he has worked tirelessly for the betterment of women in Sujangarh and has established both, a women’s college (Sona Devi Sethia P.G. Girls College) as well as a school (Ratan Devi Sethia Public School) to help future generations become confident and self-sufficient.