BETI BACHAO BETI PADHAO (BBBP)

Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao is a campaign of the Government of India that aims to generate awareness and improve the efficiency of welfare services intended for girls in India.

The scheme was launched with an initial funding of ₹100 crore (US$14 million). It mainly targets the clusters in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Bihar and Delhi.

The Union Minister of Women and Child Development honoured districts and states which have improved Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB) by successfully implementing the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) scheme.

Haryana, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh received honours for improving Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB). Ten districts selected for improvement in SRB were also felicitated during the programme.
On this occasion, Union Minister of WCD, Smriti Zubin Irani, made special mention of Kameng District of Arunachal Pradesh which has registered a sharp improvement in SRB from 807 in 2014-15 to 1039 in 2018-19.
She also highlighted that the SRB at the national level has also improved by 13 points from 918 in 2014-15 to 931 in 2018-19.

Important Info :

What is the purpose of the scheme?
The trend of decline in the Child Sex Ratio (CSR) has been unabated since 1961. The decline from 945 in 1991 to 927 in 2001 and further to 918 in 2011 is alarming.

Child Sex Ratio is defined as number of girls per 1000 of boys between 0-6 years of age. Hence, a decline in the CSR is a major indicator of women disempowerment.

The ratio reflects both, pre-birth discrimination manifested through gender biased sex selection and post birth discrimination against girls.

The social construct discrimination against girls on one hand, easy availability, affordability and subsequent misuse of diagnostic tools on the other hand, have been critical in increasing Sex Selective Elimination of girls leading to low Child Sex Ratio.

The Government announced Beti Bachao Beti Padhao initiative, as coordinated and convergent efforts are needed to ensure survival, protection and empowerment of the girl child.

The initiative is being implemented through a national campaign and focuses on multi-sectoral action in 100 selected districts low in CSR, covering all States and UTs.

It is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Ministry of Human Resource Development.

The key objectives of the initiative are as follows: