Welfare Schemes for Vulnerable Sections of the Population by the Centre and States

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1.NATIONAL GIRL CHILD DAY

24th January is celebrated as the National Girl Child Day every year in India.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL GIRL CHILD DAY:

The day is an initiative of the Ministry of Women and Child Development started in 2008.
The objective behind celebrating the National Girl Child Day is to provide all support and opportunities to the girls of the country.
It also aims towards promoting awareness about the rights of the girl child and to increase awareness on the importance of girls’ education, and their health and nutrition.
The National Girl Child day 2021 is being celebrated across the country with the objective of raising awareness on the issue of declining Child Sex Ratio (CSR).
The celebrations will also mark the anniversary of BetiBachao, BetiPadhao (BBBP) scheme.
Various ministries of the government of India like those of Education, Sports, Skill Development and Department of Science and Technology have undertaken various initiatives and programmes for the progress and empowerment of girls.

NATIONAL EDUCATION POLICY (NEP) – 2020

It has introduced a Gender Inclusion Fund for targeting the development of the girl child.
The fund will focus on ensuring 100% enrolment of girls in schools and a record participation rate in higher education, decrease gender gaps at all levels, practise gender equity and inclusion in society, and improve the leadership capacity of girls through positive civil dialogues.
NEP 2020 will focus on the safety and security of school-going girls both inside and outside of the campus.
The schools have to ensure harassment, discrimination, and domineer free campus before enlisting for yearly accreditation.

Under SamagraShiksha Scheme, the following interventions are being made:

Opening of schools in the neighbourhood as defined by the State,
Provision of free text-books to girls up to Class VIII,
Uniforms to all girls, SC, ST children and Below Poverty Line (BPL) children up to class VIII,
Provision of gender-segregated toilets in all schools,
Teachers’ sensitization programmes to promote girls’ participation,
Provision for Self-Defence training for girls from classes VI to XII,
Stipend to CWSN girls from class I to Class XII,
Residential Schools/Hostels,
Construction of residential quarters for teachers in remote/hilly areas/in areas with difficult terrain.
The Department of Science and Technology (DST) has launched ‘Knowledge Involvement in Research Advancement through Nurturing (KIRAN)’ Scheme to provide various career opportunities to women scientists and technologists.
It is primarily aimed to bring gender parity in the Science & Technology sector by inducting more women talent in the research & development domain through various programmes.
The Ministry of Skill Development is making efforts for building a conducive ecosystem for skilling women in India.
Out of 33 National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs), 19 NSTIs are providing skill training exclusively for women.