Hundreds of girls studying in high school and junior colleges took oath to end social evils like child marriage and child labor at the National Girl Child Day celebrations held in 42 villages of Bangarupalem mandal.
Child marriage is common in most of these villages, which are located on top of hills or are settled in remote areas bordering Tamil Nadu, despite the best efforts of the government to eradicate it.
District Legal Services Authority (Chittoor) in association with Rural Poverty Alleviation Services Organization (ROPES) and Canadian NGO Children Believe celebrated the occasion with the participation of parents and teachers.
There was an overwhelming response in the villages of Kothalamdugu, Bandaladoddi, Vepanpally, Keeramanda and Ragimanupenta. Painting and Rangoli competitions were organized for the girls, followed by a community feast.
The organizers administered an oath to the girl child that they would strongly oppose child marriage and child labor and the violation of their fundamental rights.
To mark the occasion, around 3,500 families were distributed face-masks, soaps, sanitizers and sanitary pads.
Ropes Program Director P. Sri Latha said that in coordination with police personnel, Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) and DLSA staff, hundreds of child marriages were stopped over the years in Bangarupalem, Palamaner and neighboring mandals of the western region. ,
Apart from this, many girls were rescued during Operation Muskaan. We are also focusing on reducing the dropout rate among girls,” she said.
DLSA Secretary I. Karuna Kumar urged the girl students to take the help of teachers, police or dial the child helpline 1098 in case of trouble.
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