Man sends amity message in save girl child campaign
Surendra Rathore runs the organisation -- Nayi Pahal Sansthan, where he leads rallies to the houses of the families where baby girls are born.
A man runs a campaign in Kota to save the girl child, and he does it in a way that promotes communal harmony.
The organisation of Surendra Rathore (35) gifts a copy of the ‘Ramayana’ through a Muslim to a Hindu family where a girl child is born. A Hindu presents a copy of the Quran to a Muslim family on the birth of a girl child.
Rathore, a small agricultural trader who runs the organisation -- Nayi Pahal Sansthan -- in Kota, leads rallies to the houses of the families where baby girls are born. Volunteers of the organisation and schoolchildren participate in the rallies.
Lokesh Meghwal (28) of Banjara Colony was pleasantly surprised on Saturday when Rathore and volunteers visited his house. They presented garlands, sweets, and clothes for Meghwal’s wife and her newborn girl child.
A Muslim man handed over a copy of the Ramayana, an ancient epic poem with lord Ram as its hero, to Meghwal’s wife. “When the country is witnessing incidents that disturb communal harmony, the initiative of Nayi Pahal Sansthan is inspiring,” Meghwal said.
Anwarul Hasan’s family in Kota was cheerful when the volunteers offered sweets, clothes and garlands to his wife who gave birth to a baby girl recently. A Hindu volunteer handed over a copy of the Quran, the holy book of the Muslims, to Hasan’s family. “The organisation is conveying the save girl child message and spreading communal amity,” Hasan said.
According to 2011 census data, India recorded 939 girls for 1,000 boys. Rajasthan registered 888 girls per 1,000 boys. According to official data, the state’s sex ratio-at-birth figures improved in subsequent years. The numbers for 2015-16 stood at 929 girls per 1,000 boys.
“Sex ratio is skewed in India. My organisation has been campaigning for the girl child for the last couple of years,” said Rathore. “I have a daughter and do not want a son; my daughter has inspired me for the drive.”