Raksha Bandhan 2018: Gift a 'skill' to your sister, urges Dharmendra Pradhan

In a bid to promote women empowerment, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday urged the nation to “gift a skill” to sisters on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan to make women self-reliant, saying that with changing times, our understanding of “protecting” a sister should also be re-imagined.

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“To protect a sister is to equip her to become economically self-reliant, to unshackle her from a cycle of dependency that is often her biological destiny, to gift her a skill that will see her through life’s challenge,” the union skill development minister said in a video released on his social media accounts.

This Raksha Bandhan #GiftASkill to your sister that will protect and empower her forever. pic.twitter.com/CcTPkHTjbB

— Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) August 24, 2018

“Gift a skill to your sister this year instead of gifting her material things, which though high on emotive value, does little to empower her well-being. Pay her fees for enrolment in a skills’ programme. Take her to a skill-counselling centre.Today, there are many avenues in both the private and government sectors- encourage her to explore these and discover her passion ensuring that she leads a life of dignity. Embark on a mission of responsibility today that this should hold true not only for the sisters in your family but also for that sister who is your domestic help, who is your driver’s wife, who sells you vegetables, her daughters, who may not be as privileged as us. Give them the gift of knowledge, of hope, of possibilities,” Pradhan said.

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The union skill development minister also appealed to spread the initiative through social media and otherwise.

(With inputs from PTI)