Port Blair, Oct 15: The weeklong celebration of ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ by the Department of Social Welfare, A&N Administration, in coordination with the A&N State Social Welfare Board culminated with a valedictory function and the launch of ‘Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana’ at DBRAIT auditorium here yesterday evening. The Lt Governor, A&N Islands, Admiral DK Joshi, PVSM, AVSM, YSM, NM, VSM (Retd) was the chief guest of the function and launched the ‘Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana’. The Member of Parliament, Mr. Bishnu Pada Ray, Inspector General KR Suresh, Commander, Coast Guard, A&N Region, Adhyaksha, ZPSA, Smti Baby Fareeda, Secretary, Social Welfare, Smti Rashmi Singh, Chairperson, SSWB, Dr. Poonam Arora, Senior Officers from the Defence and Civil Administration, and a huge gathering people, including women from various walks of life, students and PRI members were present on the occasion. Port Blair, Oct 15: The weeklong celebration of ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ by the Department of Social Welfare, A&N Administration, in coordination with the A&N State Social Welfare Board culminated with a valedictory function and the launch of ‘Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana’ at DBRAIT auditorium here yesterday evening. The Lt Governor, A&N Islands, Admiral DK Joshi, PVSM, AVSM, YSM, NM, VSM (Retd) was the chief guest of the function and launched the ‘Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana’. The Member of Parliament, Mr. Bishnu Pada Ray, Inspector General KR Suresh, Commander, Coast Guard, A&N Region, Adhyaksha, ZPSA, Smti Baby Fareeda, Secretary, Social Welfare, Smti Rashmi Singh, Chairperson, SSWB, Dr. Poonam Arora, Senior Officers from the Defence and Civil Administration, and a huge gathering people, including women from various walks of life, students and PRI members were present on the occasion.
Addressing the gathering, the Lt. Governor expressed happiness that the ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ week was celebrated by the Department of Social Welfare and State Social Welfare Board here in the Islands befittingly. He said, disparity in sex ratio has always been a concern for the country and people are now becoming aware that without empowering the women, the country cannot make any progress. As a measure towards empowering women and girl child, the Prime Minister of India launched the ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ campaign in Haryana two and a half years ago. ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ Abhiyan has been implemented keeping in mind the need for upliftment of girl child and women empowerment which was initiated under the aegis of three Ministries i.e. Ministry of Women & Child Development, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and Ministry of Human Resource Development, said the Lt. Governor.
Lauding the various programmes organized to create awareness among people about safety and empowerment of girl child, as part of the celebration of ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ week, the Lt Governor said, the campaign aims at improving the girl child sex ratio besides women empowerment which will further improve the status of women in our country. He said, the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme will enable the girl child to have access to all the required facilities right from birth and will protect her interests by creating a conducive environment in the society. The Lt. Governor also expressed happiness that following the launch of this campaign, there have been decrease in the number of crimes against women and girl child; besides child marriage, adolescent health and women related social issues have shown considerable improvement. The Lt Governor further stated that despite several awareness programmes being carried out, certain parts of the country still witness crimes like female feticide. However, it’s a matter of satisfaction that there is no such issue in A&N Islands and the social status of women here is far better. The Administration is also focusing on women empowerment and providing them higher and quality education besides platforms for self employment opportunities, he added. The Lt. Governor also lauded the Social Welfare Department for organizing ‘Beti Janmahotsav’ and Women’s meetings, for the development of women. The ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ programme, being implemented throughout the country, is playing a pivotal role in welfare of womenfolk, he said, expressing hope that the A&N Islands would also make further improvement towards bringing down infant mortality rate, maternal mortality rate and increase in education level among girl children and become an example for the rest of the country to emulate.
The Lt Governor expressed happiness that under the ‘Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana’, the first beneficiary in these Islands was enrolled today. Under this scheme, a woman above 19 years of age, on the birth of her first child will get Rs 5000/-, directly deposited in her bank account. This will improve the health status of pregnant and lactating mothers, the Lt Governor added.
The Lt Governor said that women in these Islands are shouldering their responsibilities together with their male counterparts in every field and they are fully independent.
“Today women are discharging their duties in defence forces besides actively participating in various sports activities. Shakshi Mallik, Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu have made our Country proud”, the Lt Governor said. He further said, women have created history by joining the Indian Air Force Fighter Squadron, and also mentioned about the all-woman team of the Indian Navy which embarked on a circumnavigation of the globe recently. The Lt Governor made a special mention of Deborah Herold, the ace cyclist of the country, hailing from these Islands who has not only brought laurels to the A&N Islands, but to the whole Country as well.
Concluding his speech, the Lt Governor said, without women, one cannot imagine a society; and called upon all to co-operate with women in all fields, motivate them to move forward and make them aware about their importance in the society.
The Lt. Governor administered the ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ pledge to the gathering and also felicitated the winners of various competitions organized during the weeklong celebration of ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ and outstanding Sportspersons, who have brought laurels to the Islands. Speaking as the guest of honour, the Member of Parliament, Mr. Bishnu Pada Ray said, the Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi has brought ‘Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana’ for providing financial benefits to pregnant women and lactating mothers. Rs 5000/- is payable in three installments to women for her first child under this scheme, he said.
The Member of Parliament noted with appreciation that sex ratio is better in these Islands when compared to other parts of the Country and sex determination test is not at all done in these Islands. Mentioning that the root cause of the domestic violence in A&N Islands is alcoholism, the MP said, the newly created Directorate of Prohibition should create more awareness among masses to arrest the consumption of alcohol which is very high in these Islands. Referring to his interaction with some tourists, Mr. Ray informed that tourists are come here to enjoy the scenic beauty, pleasant environment and peaceful atmosphere of these Islands. Pointing to the mushrooming of tuition centers in these Islands, the MP urged the Administration to devise some plan so that poor students are also benefitted through good coaching. He also urged the Administration to raise the funds for the snacks provided to Anganwadi centres.
Speaking on the occasion, the Secretary, Social Welfare, Smti Rashmi Singh said, under the ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ Scheme, 100 cities were identified in the country, and Nicobar District was one among them. She also highlighted the issues concerning Isles; viz. child safety, child marriage, teenage pregnancy, anemic women & girl children, domestic violence etc., which need to be addressed by creating greater awareness in the society. She also stressed on the need for change of mindset towards girl children and said we must strive to create conducive environment for girl children as well as women to excel in their lives. She further stated that convergence of all Departments and multi sectoral actions will bring about a greater change and called upon all to come forward in empowering women and girl children. She also threw light on the various programmes organized by the Social Welfare Department as part of the celebration of ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ week.
Earlier, welcoming the gathering, the Chairperson, SSWB, Dr. Poonam Arora briefed about the various steps initiated by the Board towards promotion of Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme in the Isles. She also highlighted about the various programmes initiated by the SSWB viz. Divyang Saksham, Sakhi Saheli, financial awareness programme etc. across the Islands.
An ambition walk (ramp walk of aspirants with their role models) and acrobatic yoga demonstration by award winning girl children drew huge applause from the gathering.
The programme concluded with the vote of thanks proposed by the Director, Social Welfare, Smti Geethika Sharma.
