[1] She was honoured by the Government of India, in 2012, with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri.
[2] Shamshad Begum comes from Balod district (formerly a part of the undivided Durg) in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh.
As the president of a small village society operating in Gunderdehi block, Begum had an opportunity to get associated with the National Literacy Mission Programme of the Government of India and this paved the way for her entry into social service.
[3] These groups, with their small savings, have accumulated a corpus from where needy members can avail loans for domestic emergencies.
[4] She has also been associated with National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) for training of women in leadership skills and creating awareness against sex discrimination, prevention of child marriages and molestation.