Annu Tandon

Smt. Annu Tandon, a Trustee of the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), is a Member of Parliament of the 15th Lok Sabha from India's largest constituency Unnao. She won from the constituency with a record margin of over 300,000 votes. She is a member of the Parliamentary Committee on Privileges, Financial Committee on Estimates, Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Rural Development, Standing Committee on Rural Development and the Standing Committee on Empowerment of Women. She has also been selected several times to represent India in an official capacity at international forums, including the United Nations and other multilateral institutions. She was a member of the Indian parliamentary delegation to attend the 123rd Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union held at Geneva. She was also a member of the Indian delegation to the 67th UNGA session. Smt Tandon is also the founder and chairperson of the Hriday Narain Dhawan Charitable Trust (HNDCT), which has served marginalised sections of society in Unnao and surrounding areas for over 20 years. Smt. Tandon has enjoyed a successful career, spanning over 25 years, in diverse business enterprises, including IT, media and garment export. She did her schooling from St Mary's Convent, at Ramnee Park, Nainital. After that she joined the Government Girls' Intermediate College followed by her science graduation from Dayanand Subhash National Degree College, both at Unnao. Annu Tandon decided to go ahead with her father's lifelong philanthropic dream to serve the poor and started the charitable Trust in Unnao, with the special objective of uplifting and empowering women and the rural poor. The main focus of the Trust is to support education and upbringing of the rural children. A multi-faceted personality, Smt. Tandon exudes tremendous passion and zeal for social service. Her dedication towards her roots is evident in her extensive humanitarian endeavours in Uttar Pradesh. Smt. Tandon believes that changes take place in the mind. No amount of external assistance and charity can bring about the positive and sustainable change in the rural Indians' lives unless they become conscious about their problems and grow the conviction to reach out, avail, try and achieve the solutions. So, for Smt. Tandon, social service is not just accesorising rural poor with some temporary or stopgap kind of 'help', but awakening their souls to the worth of their life and the standard of living they deserve as Indian citizens. She also believes in working together with villagers towards achieving the standard of life they deserve.