For the bettering of the lot of the girl child and empowering women, the Central Government plans to amend the SABlA Scheme with the consent of State Governments and lend the National Commission of Women more teeth by giving it powers to summon and punish the criminals.Addressing the concluding session ‘Valuing the Girl Child’ on the last day of the two-day ‘National Thematic Workshop on best practices for women and child development’ in Panipat, Union Minister for Women and Child Development, Maneka Sanjay Gandhi said a meeting of education Ministers would soon be convened to chalk out the modalities for amending the SABlA scheme.
She said the aim is to devote one to two hours after the school timings to educating the girls on matters of health and hygiene.Gandhi also disclosed that the Union Ministry for Women and Child Development will confer as many as 660 awards on such women as have done exemplary work in any field, on March 8, 2015, the Women’s Day.One woman would be honoured from each district. District magistrates have been directed to recommend names from their respective districts by February.