India (Commonwealth Union)_ January 24 marks India’s National Girl Child Day, which is commemorated yearly to raise awareness about the gender imbalance that girls face. National Girl Child Day aims to eliminate the hurdles encountered by women and girls in their pursuit of education, a healthy lifestyle, employment, and other aspects of life. To mark this special day, the Ministry of Education has organized a celebration with the theme “Self-Defense Training for Girls”.
In 2008, the Ministry of Women and Child Development declared the National Girl Child Day. This special day creates awareness of the inequality that girls face in their regular lives in our society. In India, girls are mostly denied access to school and are obliged to assist with household chores at a very young age. This day for girl children aims to challenge this narrow view towards girls. Moreover, the government highlights the importance of equality and respect for every girl child on this special day.
Further, the government also organizes annual educational campaigns to promote this message. National Girl Child Day is noteworthy because its primary objective is to alter how society views girls, reduce female feticide, and bring attention to the diminishing sex ratio. The purpose of this day is to modify society’s attitudes towards women so that they will value and respect them. Further, the government has also taken several serious initiatives in order to achieve the objectives of National Girl Child Day.
Some of the major initiatives by the government in order to protect and empower girls are Save the Girl Child, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana, CBSE Udaan Scheme, Free or Subsidized Education for Girl Children, and Reservations for Women in Colleges and Universities. All of these schemes contribute significantly to the empowerment of women.
