Kalna (East Burdwan): They are teachers by profession, but they did not stop within the school boundaries. They set out on a mission to create awareness about protecting girl children across the country. With their efforts, three teachers travelling from Kolkata to Ladakh and then from Kashmir to Kanyakumari on a 'save girl child mission'.
Sutpa Das, a teacher at Baghnapara CKD Girls High School in Kalna, started the journey from her village on May 7. She is the brain behind the 'save girl child mission'. Tapati Debnath, a teacher, and resident of Haringhata Nadia, and Jharna Malakar, a retired teacher, of Uttar Dum Dum, North 24 Parganas, are her partners in the journey.
They believe that society should benefit from their travel. So, they left their respective places with the message of social awareness. They started their journey at 8:30 am on May 7 and already reached Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday. ETV Bharat spoke to teacher Sutapa Das over the phone to know about their awareness tour.
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According to Sutpa Das, a real society and state are built on the development of both men and women. "But still in most places, we see that if there is a boy and a girl in a house, the boy is given preferential treatment or attention. The main mantra is to establish the boy. And the responsibility ends when the girls get married. Our aim is that boys and girls should not be treated differently. To convey that a daughter is as important as a son and that she can stand by the family as established in life like her elder or younger brother."
"In this awareness message, we are saying, 'save the girl child', 'save the future mother', 'save the world'. Only then we can build a beautiful society. And this is our journey to build that beautiful India. And I have seen many states where child marriages are taking place. And the girl's family members were responsible for that. So, we want this mentality to change. And the only way to eradicate that is through awareness. Until we are aware, our society will not be aware. And if the society is not aware, the country will be left behind," Sutpa Das pointed out.
"We write a lot on social media by sharing posts on protecting the girl child. But, have the girls been able to convince their families that they are not a burden? If they get support from their family, they can stand on their own feet and take control of the world. Not only do they carry the identity of father and husband, but they can also have their own identities. They have the right to live freely. And we have taken a leading role in spreading this word across the country," she said.
