Defying all odds, at 65, Himachal’s first woman transporter and petrol pump owner Nirmal Sethi is still going strong and is in fact set to play a new innings. Having carved a niche for herself, she is looking forward to help the underprivileged through social service on a larger scale.

Even today her never give-up approach is palpable. Talking to The Statesman Nirmal Sethi said, “A Sarain (home stay) is on the anvil, for  pilgrims coming to Abhayeshwar Mahadev temple in Kangra constructed by my husband and me in the 1990’s. I also intend to put to use some of my idle land in Nalsua, Dehra, to help the disadvantaged, especially migrants and beggars to eke out a living by generating some useful activities.”

Sethi draws her strength from her struggle and the vicissitudes of life that has helped her blossom into an enterprising woman. She went on to become the first woman transporter and petrol pump owner. She is also the only woman Indian Oil dealer in North India.

She got her business acumen from her father who was then one of the richest businessmen in Kangra district and would treat her brother and sisters as equals. He would often take her along with him and this helped her to learn the nuances of business.

“I got married to an Army Officer K C Sethi, while still in college at Jalandhar. Once I finished graduation, I confided to my husband my business plans and my desire to float my own transport business. Though it was considered an unconventional field in those days for women, my father and husband supported my idea fully despite the fact that there were no woman in this field in the entire northern region.”

Thus in 1971, she started her transport business, Singham Highways, with one bus shuttling between Dharamsala and Chintpurni during the days when there were very few buses on the route.

As an Army man her husband was constantly on the move, but she herself managed both the family and her business staying back at Dharamsala, even at times commuting in the bus along with the conductor and driver to ensure her business gains ground.

An advertisement in a newspaper by Indian Oil in 1981 looking for dealers for their first petrol pump in Kangra caught her attention. After a discussion with her husband and his encouragement there were no second thoughts.

“I still remember his words. He had said, you will either fall or fly so there is no harm trying,” she said. Her zeal and determination translated into success in getting the dealership.  “I was the only woman applicant among around 2000 applicants for the interview that was conducted in Jammu,” she recalled.

“The members in the panel were surprised to see me and had some doubts about my seriousness, until I strongly put forward my conviction, stating that when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi could run the country, why couldn’t I handle a petrol pump. This was enough to change the whole dimension and thus I managed to become the first woman oil dealer in North India in 1983,” said Nirmal.

With concerted efforts, her business started flourishing, from one oil tanker her fleet grew to eight. She personally managed these tankers that even included weekly travel to Ambala for filling and workshop visits for regular servicing.

“Those days people too were good and I was lucky to get help  anywhere I went without any prejudices,” she added.

At a time when her business was doing well, Nirmal lost her husband in 2005. The loss was immense as he had been her strong moral strength.

The perception grew that this would be an end of her business as well. However, with two daughters to support, she gathered all her courage and once again focused on business.

In 2017, she extended help to two women, Sunita, who had lost her husband, and Madhu, wanting to support her family, by providing them jobs at her petrol pump. While her younger daughter Kushboo is a doctor, her elder daughter Shagun is also treading in her footsteps and is running two petrol pumps in Mohali and Dalutpur. She is also running a school in Hamirpur.