She is the youngest female CRPF officer to be a part of COmmando Battalion for Resolute Action (COBRA) and is currently serving the volatile region of Bastar in Chhattisgarh.
Puttamma recalls how a young Usha, then in high school wanted to go to the tryouts at Vidyapeetha for the sub-junior selections. She asked her mother for Rs 10 to take the bus from Yeshwantpur.