CHANDIGARH: Punjab Social Security, Women and Child Development Minister Mrs. Aruna Chaudhary, on Saturday, extended greetings the daughters of the state on National Girl Child Day, with hopes and prayers of their well being.
In her message, the Cabinet Minister urged the girl child to spend the day with firm resolution not to bow down before the conservative mindset. She said that the National Girl Child Day is observed on January 24 every year to spread awareness against the inequalities and discrimination they face in modern society. She said that the day is observed to combat social discrimination and exploitation girls face every day of their lives.
Acknowledging the importance of the day, Mrs. Aruna Chaudhary said that the Punjab Government has decided to celebrate 'Dheeyan di Lohri' in order to break the stereotype of celebrating the festival of boys alone and this year, we are celebrating the first Lohri of about 1.5 lakh new born girls throughout the state, wherein the parents would be handed over a certificate on behalf of the Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh.
The Cabinet Minister said that Punjab Government has provided smart phones to 86915 Class XII girl students for the facilitation online studies with the commitment to empower them. The state government has also decided to implement 33% reservation for women in government jobs and 50% reservation for them in PRIs & ULBs. The decision pertaining to 50% subsidized fare for all women in state-run buses would be implemented soon.