How can 'Selfie with Daughter' fight female foeticide and infanticide?
Among the steps taken to prevent female foeticide and infanticide, we now have a mobile application—'Selfie with Daughter'—to help create awareness about the social evils. President Pranab Mukherjee launched the campaign a few days ago, asking people to take photographs with their daughters and upload them on the app to make it a success.
The campaign was started by Sunil Jaglan, a former sarpanch of Bibipur, Haryana in 2015. Sunil has championed women’s rights and empowerment since the birth of his first daughter in 2012. According to India Today, he said,
"After my daughter was born, I was surprised to see the hospital staff refusing the sweets being distributed. I was asked why I am celebrating the birth of a girl child in my house. Similarly, villagers thought I was welcoming a baby boy when they saw the grand celebrations in the village the next day."
When he started the campaign, people who participated were asked to take selfies with their daughters and send them to a WhatsApp number. With nearly 800 participants from 12 states participating, the campaign became a success. Among them, three winners were given cash prizes, trophies, and certificates.
In the meeting with Silicon Valley CEOs, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared it an international movement and many prominent people including Sachin Tendulkar took part in the initiative. According to PTI, the President, while talking about the importance of the campaign, said,
"'Selfie with Daughter' has become a worldwide movement against female foeticide and sex selection."
The aim is to make parents feel proud of having a daughter and thereby bring a balanced sex ratio. However, despite the good intentions behind it, one has to wonder how an app and taking selfies can address the root cause of the problems. With people in rural areas not having access to smartphones, chances of the campaign reaching them are low. Even if it does, what is to guarantee that selfies would change the mentality of the people drastically when certain beliefs have been ingrained in their minds for decades, if not for centuries?
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