Chandigarh [India], January 14 (ANI/PRNewswire): Chandigarh Welfare Trust (CWT) organized 'Dheeyan Di Lohri' at Maloya Pind to add colors of celebration among the residents along with promoting women empowerment and girl child education. The event was inaugurated by Satnam Singh Sandhu, Founder & Chief Parton of Chandigarh Welfare Trust and Chancellor of Chandigarh University. The intent behind the theme of the celebration was to underline the need to create grass root level awareness to improve the sex ratio and promote gender equality. He also launched the Kalpana Chawla Scholarship worth Rs 10 Lakh for Chandigarh girls studying in 10+2 who want to pursue higher education, belonging to economically weaker. Every year, this scholarship will be given to ten girls from the city as financial assistance to help them in realizing their higher education dream.

Addressing the gathering at the camp, CWT Founder & Chandigarh University Chancellor Satnam Singh Sandhu said, "According to National Family Health Survey (NFHS report, a significant drop 14 per cent on the sex ratio of Chandigarh has been registered, i.e. 838 female for each 1000 male in comparison to 981 in last five years, which makes it the lowest in the region. It is very disheartening to see this thing prevalent in a modern city like Chandigarh. As we celebrate 'Dheeyan Di Lohri' today, we must all pledge to protect the life and rights of girls. With this view, Chandigarh Welfare Trust will launch an awareness campaign to promote gender equality and the need for girls' education."

CWT Founder Satnam Singh Sandhu added, "Girls continue to mettle year after year, and they are outshining boys in every sphere, at every level. Even religious scriptures of every faith accord high status to women. However, even today many people consider a girl child as a burden. But this needs to change. We must all come together to put an end to gender discrimination and offer girls the opportunity to showcase their talent and full potential.

Mentioning about the scholarship, CWT Founder Satnam Singh Sandhu said, "To promote higher education for girls, Chandigarh Welfare Trust every year will grant the Kalpana Chawla Scholarship to ten young women of 10+2 in Chandigarh for studying the course of their choice at Chandigarh University. A 10% scholarship on the total fee will be offered to the students every year, which amounts to Rs. 10 Lakh per year. The scholarship is named after Kalpana Chawla who glorified the nation at a global level by becoming the first Indian-born woman to go to space in 1997 and remains an idol for so many young women."

It is an initiative by CWT in accordance with PM Narendra Modi's 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' scheme. Ten girls were granted the Kalpana Chawla scholarship by CWT on the occasion. Various cultural activities and traditional performances related to the occasion were organized to mark the celebrations. This was followed by the distribution of gifts for the newly-born girls such as clothes, blankets, and sweets.

This story is provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/PRNewswire)