Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao: Centre spent 56% of funds on publicity, minister tells Lok Sabha
New Delhi, Jan 22: More than 56% of the funds for the “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao” scheme have been allocated for media-related activities since 2014-’15, with less than 25% being distributed to states and districts, information released by the government has shown. The scheme, launched in January 2015, attempts to address the declining child sex ratio and other issues of women empowerment in India.
Union Minister of State for Women and Child Development Virendra Kumar told the Lok Sabha on January 4 that the government had allocated Rs 648 crore for the programme in the last five years and spent 56.27% of it, or Rs 364.66 crore, on advertising. Only 24.5%, or Rs 159.18 crore, was disbursed to states and districts.
The Centre had earmarked Rs 280 crore for the scheme in 2018-’19, out of which Rs 155.71 crore was allocated for advertising and Rs 70.63 crore distributed to states and districts. The government had failed to release Rs 53.66 crore, or over 19% of the funds.
This number was higher in 2017-’18, with 68% of the Rs 200 crore, or Rs 135.71 crore, allocated to advertising. In 2016-’17, the government had earmarked Rs 29.79 crore for publicity as opposed to distributing Rs 2.9 crore to states and districts.
Kumar was responding to a question by MPs Kapil Patil and Shivkumar Udasi of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Sushmita Dev of the Congress, Gutha Sukender Reddy of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, and Sanjay Jadhav of the Shiv Sena.
When asked if the scheme had failed due to lack of policy implementation, ineffective monitoring mechanisms and diversion of funds, Kumar replied in the negative. “Since 2018-’19, all 640 districts [as per Census 2011] of the country have been covered under Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao scheme,” he answered.
Courtesy: scroll.in
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UP: Fake IAS officer marries woman, flees with Rs 15 lakh dowry
Gorakhpur (UP) (PTI): A newly married man fled with the Rs 15 lakh given to him as dowry by the bride's family, and it came to light later that he was an alleged serial scammer, police said on Sunday.
The accused, identified as Pritam Kumar Nishad from Etawah, allegedly posed as an IAS officer to deceive the woman into marrying him. He is currently absconding with his sister, and a case has been filed against him for cheating, dowry harassment, and forgery, officials said.
According to the police, the woman's family claimed that they spent nearly Rs 30 lakh for the wedding that was solemnised on March 11.
The match was arranged through a matrimonial group, where the accused introduced himself as an IAS officer, sharing purported interview clips, office visuals, and photographs with politicians to gain the family's trust.
Despite initially claiming he would marry without dowry, the accused allegedly demanded Rs 15 lakh shortly before the engagement. The bride's family paid Rs 10 lakh in cash during the engagement and the remaining Rs 5 lakh on the wedding day, the police said.
The fraud came to light on Saturday after the woman reached Etawah, and a wedding attendee informed the family that the accused was not a civil servant. When her relatives visited the address provided by him, they found her in a small rented room, while the accused and his sister had fled, the police added.
The woman has also alleged that the accused planned to take her to Goa and sell her, and accused him of inappropriate behaviour.
The police suspect that the accused may have been involved in multiple such marriages in the past. Based on a complaint lodged at the cantonment police station, an FIR was registered on Saturday evening.
Senior Superintendent of Police Dr Kaustubh said efforts are underway to arrest the accused.
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