Flagship scheme for girl child has helped defeat bias

Context: Asserting that the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao (Save and educate the girl
child) campaign had helped overcome gender bias, Prime Minister Narendra Modi
on Wednesday asserted focus on districts with historically low child sex ratios
had shown remarkable improvement since the campaign was launched a decade ago. The
scheme, launched by the Prime Minister at Panipat in Haryana on January 22,
2015, addresses the declining child sex ratio (CSR) and related issues of women
empowerment. It is a tri-ministerial effort of the Ministries of Women and
Child Development, Health and Family Welfare, and Education.

Key points

·       Overview: The Ministry of
Women and Child Development is commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Beti
Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) scheme, a flagship initiative to empower the girl
child and promote gender equality.

·       Beti
Bachao Beti Padhao: A government scheme aimed at addressing gender bias
and promoting the rights, survival, and education of the girl child. Launched on
January 22, 2015, in Panipat, Haryana.

Objectives - Improve Child
Sex Ratio (CSR). Ensure gender equality and empowerment of women. Prevent
gender-biased, sex-selective elimination. Promote education and participation
of the girl child.

Components - Advocacy
campaigns were launched to address the issue of declining Child Sex Ratio (CSR)
and Sex Ratio at Birth (SBR). Multi-sectoral interventions were planned and are
being implemented in gender-critical districts across the country. A financial incentive-linked
scheme—Sukanya Samriddhi scheme—was launched to encourage parents to build a
fund for female children.

Features - Advocacy
campaigns for addressing gender bias. Multi-sectoral interventions in
gender-critical districts. Financial incentives through the Sukanya Samriddhi
Scheme. Measurable outcomes, such as improving CSR and providing functional
toilets for girls in schools.

·       Mission
Shakti: Mission Shakti comprises of two sub-schemes ‘Sambal’ and ‘Samarthya’ for
safety and security of women and the empowerment of women respectively.

Ø  Sambal Scheme - The existing
schemes of One Stop Centres (OSC), Women Helplines and Beti Bachao Beti Padhao
(BBBP) have been made part of this sub-scheme, and a new component Nari Adalat
has been introduced.

Ø  Samarthya Scheme
-
The existing schemes of Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY), Ujjwala
& Swadhar Greh (Shakti Sadan), Working Women Hostel (Sakhi Niwas), Gender
Budgeting and National Crèche Scheme along with a new component of Hubs for the
empowerment of women at National, State, District levels have been subsumed in
this scheme.