Province 2 government started the implementation of the ‘Beti Bachau-Beti Padhau’ campaign—an insurance scheme to encourage girl education—from January 15.

According to the scheme, every newly borsn girl will be insured in the Province’s eight districts from Tuesday. The Chief Minister’s Office said the girls will receive the insurance amount in a lump sum after they get their citizenship certificates.

Each of the insured girls will receive Rs 125,000 for education. This year, Province 2 government plans to insure 5,000 girls from Saptari, Siraha, Dhanusha, Mahottari, Sarlahi, Rautahat, Bara and Parsa districts.

According to the Secretariat of the CM’s Office, the eight districts of Province 2 have started orientation programmes on education insurance. To get the benefit of the insurance scheme, parents are required to submit the birth registration certificate of their newly born girl, a recommendation letter from the ward office, a letter from a health institution, along with the citizenship certificates of themselves.

In the first phase, the Province will implement the scheme in Birgunj Metropolitan City of Parsa, Subarnapur Rural Municipality of Bara, Yamunamai Municipality of Rautahat, Parsa Rural Municipality of Sarlahi, Ekdara Rural Municipality of Mahottari, Kamala Municipality of Dhanusha, Aurahi Rural Municipality of Siraha and Mahadeva Rural Municipality of Saptari district.

Chief Minister of Province 2 Lalbabu Raut said impoverished, Dalit and Muslim girls will be insured in the first phase. “This insurance policy will be a milestone in stopping child marriage and dowry system that are prevalent in Madhes,” said Raut. “Girls need to be educated to transform society. This scheme will help in empowering women.”   

Under the Beti Bachau-Beti Padhau campaign, 1,000 bicycles have been distributed to girls in Madhes, said Raut. The CM’s office has requested people to send their daughters to schools, and has also asked the local governments to support the campaign.