Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme-The Hindu-12-10-2022

GS-2
GOVERNANCE AND GOVERNMENT SCHEMES:
CONTEXT:

Background :
“Government has always encouraged and empowered girls to pursue the vocation of their choice irrespective of gender stereotypes.”
The scheme was launched after the national census results for 2011 revealed a detraction in key gender metrics – Child Sex Ratio (CSR) and Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB). CSR is defined as the number of girls per 1,000 boys aged 0-6 years. This ratio has showcased a steady decline, from 945 in 1999 to 927 in 2001. This declined further to 918 girls for every 1,000 boys in 2011.
This is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Women and Child Development, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the Ministry of Human Resource Development.
The programme is being implemented across 405 districts in the country.
Main Objectives:
Prevention of gender-biased sex-selective elimination.
Ensuring the survival & protection of the girl child.
Ensuring education and participation of the girl child.
Protecting rights of Girl children.
What new change brings to this scheme?
The scheme will now also focus on increasing the enrolment of girls in secondary education, particularly in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) subjects. Women have been historically under-represented in areas such as technology.
Challenges
The lack of policy implementation, diversion of funds and the failure of monitoring mechanisms
Underutilisation of funds
Infrequent task force meetings
Non-compliance to guidelines
Way Forward
Increase planned expenditure allocation for education and health-related interventions. District-level task forces should be headed by local female frontline workers. Ensure that on-ground implementation personnel are adequately trained in community outreach activities. Necessitate greater use of mobile technology for monitoring and documentation.