Lok Sabha Question No. 5570 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-04-04
Subject: Funds for Beti Bachao Beti Padhao Schemes
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Shri Vishaldada Prakashbapu Patil

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5570

TO BE ANSWERED ON 04.04.2025

## FUNDS FOR BETI BACHAO BETI PADHAO SCHEMES

## 5570.  SHRI VISHALDADA PRAKASHBAPU PATIL:

Will the Minister of Women and Child Development be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  approximately  80  percent  of  the  Beti  Bachao  Beti  Padhao  (BBBP) scheme's funds during the year 2016-19 were allocated to media campaigns.
- (b) if so, the details thereof along with the reasons for prioritizing media campaigns over direct interventions.
- (c) whether  the  Government  has  assessed  the  on-ground  effectiveness  of  the BBBP scheme in achieving its objectives over the past decade.
- (d) if so, the measurable improvements observed in child sex ratios and the socioeconomic status of girls in the areas targeted by the scheme; and
- (e) the details of the steps being taken to balance awareness campaigns with direct action and grassroots interventions to ensure comprehensive empowerment of the girl child?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SAVITRI THAKUR)

(a) &(b): Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) Scheme was launched on 22nd January 2015  to  help  address  declining  Child  Sex  Ratio  (CSR)  and  related  issues  of empowerment of girls and women. The scheme focuses on creating mindset and behavioural  changes  towards  the  girl  child  by  informing,  influencing,  motivating, engaging,  and  empowering  all  stakeholders.  Year  wise  expenditure  on  BBBP including media advocacy during the years 2016-19 is in the table below:-

|   Sl. No. | Financial Year   |   Revised Estimates (R.E) (In Crores) |   Funds released For Multi Sectoral Interventions including media advocacy (In Crores) |
|-----------|------------------|---------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|         1 | 2016-17          |                                    43 |                                                                                  28.66 |
|         2 | 2017-18          |                                   200 |                                                                                 169.1  |
|         3 | 2018-19          |                                   280 |                                                                                 244.73 |

These  initiatives  have  successfully  established  the  brand  BBBP  which  has  an excellent  recall  value  and  has  transformed  from  a  policy  initiative  into  a  national movement by mobilizing various stakeholders, including government agencies, media, civil  society,  and  the  public  at  large.  This  movement  aims  not  only  to  address immediate concerns related to Sex Ratio at Birth and gender-based discrimination but also to foster a cultural shift towards valuing the girl child and ensuring her rights and opportunities.

(c)  to  (e): An  evaluation  of  the  schemes  of  the  Ministry  of  Women  and  Child Development was conducted during the Financial Year 2020-21 by NITI Aayog. Based on the report, the Ministry has modified the guideline under Mission Shakti including increasing coverage of the scheme to all the districts of the country through multisectoral interventions and by encouraging greater expenditure on activities that have a  direct  impact  like  promoting  sports  among  girls,  self-defence  camps,  awareness about PC-PNDT Act etc. Ministry has also developed an operational manual which, inter-alia,  includes  a thematic calendar for suggested convergence activities at the district level with  month wise specific themes for holistic development and comprehensive empowerment of the Girl Child and to ensure year-round engagement of girls, their families and communities.

BBBP  dashboard  has  been  developed  for  real  time  monitoring  of  the  activities conducted at district and State/UT level. Ministry issues regular advisories and reviews the scheme through video conferencing from time to time with the officials of States and UTs. Field visits are also undertaken by senior officers to review implementation of the scheme on ground. State and UT -wise detailed reviews are conducted during the  annual  Programme  Approval  Board  meetings,  in  which  Ministry  reviews  the progress of the State/UT. As per the latest reports of Health Management Information System (HMIS) of Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW), Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB) has increased from 918 in 2014-15 to 930 in 2023-24 at the national level during 2014-15 and 2023-24 with a net addition of 12 points. Further, Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) of girls in the schools at secondary level has increased from 75.51 percent in (2014-15) to 78 percent in (2023-24) [UDISE-data, MoE]. The Government gives utmost priority to the safety, security and empowerment of girls the  country.  To  this  end,  the  Government  has  adopted  multi-pronged  approach  to address the educational, social and economic empowerment of girls. In order to enhance the ease of living for the girl child, particularly in the rural areas of the country, under the Swachh Bharat Mission more than 11.8 crore toilets have been constructed. Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) is a small savings scheme designed to secure the future  of  girl  children,  offering  a  high  interest  rate.  Only  one  Sukanya  Samriddhi account can be opened in the name of a girl child. The total number of active accounts under Sukanya Samriddhi account (SSA) and the total amount deposited in these accounts (as on 31.01.2025) are more than 4.16 Crores and more than Rs. 2.70 lakh crore respectively. Samagra Shiksha is an integrated scheme for school education from pre-school to class XII, supporting the implementation of the National Education Policy 2020 and the Right to Education Act, 2009. It emphasizes early childhood care and education, foundational  literacy  and  numeracy,  a  holistic  and  inclusive  curriculum,  enhancing learning outcomes, bridging social and gender gaps, and ensuring equity and inclusion at all education levels. Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) scheme seeks to bridge gender and social category gaps in school education by providing residential schooling facilities for girls up to Class XII. Under the scheme, the girls in the age group of 10-18 years from

Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), Other Backward Class (OBC), minority communities, and BPL families are covered.

The Scheme for Adolescent Girls (SAG) has been subsumed under Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 w.e.f. 01.04.2022. The targeted beneficiaries under this scheme are girls in the age group of 14 - 18 years in the Aspirational Districts and all North Eastern States.

Vigyan Jyoti Programme encourages girls to pursue education and careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) fields to improve gender balance. It  targets  meritorious  girls  from  Class  IX  to  Class  XII  and  includes  student-parent counselling,  career  counselling,  additional  academic  support  classes,  tinkering activities, special lectures, visits to scientific institutions, labs, industries, and science camps and workshops.

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