International Day of the Girl Child: Mamata Banerjee says Kanyashree scheme empowered 50 lakh girls

On the International Day of the Girl Child, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said that her government’s flagship Kanyashree scheme had empowered over 50 lakh girls in the state since its launch in 2011.

Read More | Sensex crashes over 1,000 points, Nifty below 10,200 on global sell-off

Taking to Twitter, Mamata said, “Today is International Day of the Girl Child. I am happy to share that our #Kanyashree Prakalpa for girl child had been feted by the @UN in 2017. More than 50 lakh girls have been empowered through this scheme which has a budget of Rs 5600+ crores. Best wishes to all #BiswaBangla (sic).”

Today is International Day of the Girl Child. I am happy to share that our #Kanyashree Prakalpa for girl child had been feted by the @UN in 2017. More than 50 lakh girls have been empowered through this scheme which has a budget of Rs 5600+ crores. Best wishes to all #BiswaBangla

— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) October 11, 2018

What is Kanyashree | Know all about it

1. Kanyashree scheme was launched by the Mamata Banerjee government for empowering the girl child.
2. It is a conditional cash transfer scheme aiming at improving the status and well-being of the girl child by incentivising schooling of teenage girls and delaying their marriages until the age of 18.
3. Kanyashree scheme was launched in 2011 after Mamata Banerjee assumed office after ousting the Left after a 34-year-old regime.
4. The Kanyashree scheme was given the United Nations Public Service Award in June last year
5. The scheme was ranked the best among 552 such social sector schemes from across 62 countries that were nominated for the coveted award.
6. Mamata received the award at the World Public Service Forum by UN Assistant Secretary-General at a ceremony in Hague in the Netherlands.