National Girl Child Day: Experts Stress On Education At KIIT’s Kanya Kiran Webinar In Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar: Experts from various fields stressed on education of girls to ensure a society free of gender bias at a webinar organised by KIIT, here on the occasion of National Girl Child Day on Sunday.

Speaking at the virtual webinar on ‘Kanya Kiran – Educating Girl Child for Building an Equitable Society’, Dr. Sunitha Krishnan, founder, Prajjwala said education is a means to create a gender-just society. It gives power to each one to live with the dreams each one has, she added.

Dr Smita Premchander, Head, Sampark & Adjunct Professor, IIM Ahmedabad said, “Education should aim towards breaking the shackles of inequality in a patriarchal society. Skill development and life skills in particular should be focused while deploying education as a tool of empowerment.”

Suryamani Roul, a veteran development professional was of the opinion that public investment in education and especially in the field of girl child education needs to be prioritised.

In his welcome address, Dr Achyuta Samanta, founder, KIIT & KISS said, Kanya Kiran, an initiative of KIIT & KISS, is a platform to promote the girl child to protect the women and empower the girl child through education. “Education is the third eye of a child,” he added.

Among others, Prof HK Mohanty, VC, KIIT Deemed to be university; Prof Sasmita Samanta, VC-in-Charge, KISS Deemed to be University; Prof Gyan Ranjan Mohanty, Registrar, KIIT and Dr PK Routray, Registrar, KISS and ace sprinter Dutee Chand also spoke.

The day was celebrated by Kanya Kiran at 34 places including 30 district headquarters of Odisha. Girl achievers and district-level toppers in the Matriculation examination among girls in 2020 were felicitated on the occasion.