This Kashmiri woman is a messiah for poor patients

Jammu and Kashmir has given the country thousands of hardworking women who have reached the pinnacle of success. What makes their stories more fascinating is that their journeys were full of obstacles that they successfully overcame.

Along with men, there are women in our society who want to do something not only for themselves but also for the society. Dr. Sharmeen Mushtaq is among these women. She took the initiative to help those who are suffering from terminal diseases and are not able to afford the monthly expenses of medicines and other medical needs for their treatment.

Dr. Sharmeen has been providing monthly financial assistance to poor patients suffering from deadly diseases like cancer and lung problems in the valley for many years. Devoted to service, Dr. Sharmeen decided to expand her circle further by forming a charitable trust with the help of a few colleagues and later a group on social media. While making the trust, more people joined her and in today's history, many people are associated with her, apart from those in the medical profession.

Dr. Sharmeen's ARI Trust bears the cost of chemotherapy or dialysis of the poor patients as well as their monthly medicines. Help was also given to those who could not afford the cost of dialysis or therapy due to financial constraints. During this time, she also helped patients suffering from cancer and other dangerous diseases from different districts of Kashmir Valley.

A doctor by profession and a sympathizer for the poor sections of the society, Dr. Sharmeen is also fond of extraordinary off-road driving and has the title of the first woman off-road driver of the Kashmir Valley.

In 2018, she participated as Kashmir's first women off-road driver in snow car rally held in Gulmarg amidst minus 10 to 15 degree temperature. 'Gulmarg Hills' is a famous tourist destination where there is snow for about eight months of the year and various snow sports are organized here in winter.

Snow racing competitions have been held here for years, in which many Kashmiri enthusiasts participate. But in 2018, for the first time, Kashmiri woman Sharmeen Mushtaq also participated in snow-racing and created a new history in the UT by becoming the first Kashmiri woman to participate in snow-racing competition. Fifty people participated in the race, out of which Sharmeen was the only woman.

She is a mother of two children. Adventure driving is her hobby and she loves taking risks. Sharmeen says several members of her family are interested in such adventurous pursuits. This was the reason that he also thought of doing something unique in life. She said, "Under this idea I decided to take part in the ice race and prepared. It took quite a lot of courage but my passion and passion kept me motivated."