Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Tribal leader Nirmala Bhuria, who took charge as the minister for women and child development, on Thursday said that a decision on increasing the amount paid under the Ladli Behna Yojana and to bring unmarried women under its purview would be taken in due course.
“I can tell you categorically that no scheme will be shut,” the minister added.
In an interview with the Free Press, Bhuria said that anaemia among pregnant women was a problem that needed urgent solution. She said that anaemic mothers often need blood during childbirth. In rural areas, people are reluctant to donate blood, even relatives are unwilling. “That sometimes leads to the death of mothers and children,” she said.
Bhuria said that baby girls are often unwelcome among non-tribals, whereas the birth of daughters is as much a cause of celebration as of a son among tribals. “In fact, daughters are preferred over sons among us,” she said.
When asked about her concept of women empowerment, Bhuria said that in her view, an awakened woman, an aware woman, was an empowered woman. “Women who can come out of their homes, who can achieve what they want to, who can have their say before others, I think such women are empowered,” she said.
Bhuria said that she would try to make the Women’s Commission functional. The minister said that serving eggs to children in anganwadis was a contentious issue. “Instead of malnutrition, the focus shifts on the vegetarian versus non-vegetarian debate. So, it is better to find other sources of protein,” the 56-year-old minister, who is a five-time MLA from Petlawad, Jhabua, said.
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