Uttar Pradesh chief minister Adityanath on Sunday ordered the extension of the nine-day special awareness drive for strengthening women and children’s security to around six months, spanning the period from Shardiya Navratri to Vasantik Navratri, according to a statement from his office.
Adityanath took the decision after witnessing a presentation on the campaign, the statement said.
The home department had earlier decided to hold the special awareness and empowerment drive for women and children between October 17 and 25, coinciding with Shardiya Navratri.
Shardiya Navratri is a nine-day festival dedicated to Goddess Durga in September-October while the same deity is worshipped again for nine days during Vasantik Navratri in March-April.
The special drive was announced in the backdrop of the Hathras incident where a 19-year old Dalit woman was allegedly gang raped and brutalised and whose subsequent death on September 29 led to national outrage.
Additional chief secretary (home) Awanish Awasthi said the special awareness drive would aim to boost the morale of women and children and empower them by making them aware of their rights.
Earlier, the additional chief secretary said that along with the director general of police Hitesh Chandra Awasthy, he held a meeting to prepare an outline for the campaign. He said additional director general (Women Power Line-1090) Neera Rawat made a presentation on carrying out the drive successfully.
“For wider reach of this special awareness drive, 11 other departments like medical education, technical education, vocational education, higher education, basic education, secondary education, labour, employment exchange, Panchayati Raj, rural development and information and public relations department have also been roped in,” Awasthi said.
“Other than publicising rights and laws related to women and children through police stations and offices, posters will also be put up at schools, colleges, universities, training centres and panchayats where women’s involvement is in large numbers in the urban as well as the rural areas,” he explained.
