Jindal Foundation celebrates National Girl Child Day
By Subrat Sarangi
Angul, Feb.6:The Jindal Foundation celebrated National Girl Child Day with Week-long celebrations in collaboration with the Zilla Swasthya Samiti, District Child Protection Unit and ICDS. The celebration aimed to raise awareness about gender equality, recognize girls’ contributions to society, and highlight the importance of empowering them to overcome challenges.
The Jindal Foundation launched an awareness tableau, flagged off by ADM (General) Shri Pratap Pritimay and ADM (Revenue) Shri Uday Mohapatra, to educate the public about the importance of girls. The tableau, featuring audio-visual tools, banners, and information, will travel the areas with the lowest sex ratios—to raise awareness about gender equality and the value of the girl child.
The Chief Guest, ADM (Revenue) Shri Uday Mohapatra, praised the events in his address, remarking, “Investing in the girl child is investing in our future.”
A mass rally with college and school students was held to raise community awareness. Hoardings, leaflets, and banners were distributed, and a folk show (Pala) and drama performance were organized to educate participants about law enforcement and protecting girls’ rights.
A sensitization meeting, chaired by CDM & PHO Dr. Shibanand Mohanty, featured speeches by several dignitaries, including DCPO Shri Gourishankar Behera, ADPHO (FW) Dr. Antaryami Mishra, ADPHO (Vector Borne) Dr. Poornima Ugdata, DSWO Smt. Nirupama Pani, and OB-GYN Specialist Dr. Sujata Das. Each speaker emphasized the importance of empowering girls through education, healthcare, and collective community action.
Speaking on the occasion, Smt Shallu Jindal , the Chairperson of Jindal Foundation & Chancellor of OP Jindal University said ” Empowering the girl child is the best and the wisest option a Nation could have in empowering itself. Through our multi-dimensional holistic development programmes for women empowerment , we are partnering for promotion of girls’ education , sustainable livelihood options , sports & Health care and contributing to expanding the horizon of equitable and inclusive development of India.”
The Foundation works to prevent child marriages by raising awareness and supporting marriages of girls at a suitable age. Its Kishori Express Program, launched in 2011, has helped 2.7 lakh girls with anaemia, while the ‘Yashasvi’ Scholarship Program has benefited over 11,000 girls in pursuing education. The Foundation also promotes maternal health by ensuring reproductive rights and access to essential healthcare services.
