Girl child

Four special-needs girls have overcome great odds and difficult circumstances to represent India at the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Austria, and win medals too. Barnali Das finds out more about these intrepid sportswomen.

Sometimes, great adversity can change lives and inspire people to better themselves. Sandhya is a 25-year-old who overcame personal tragedy to emerge stronger and inspire others around her with her grit and determination.

As a woman in rural India, life doesn’t give you choices. You either stand up and create your own choices, or you stay put and give in. Lalita created hers by swimming against the current of life in the village she comes from, and getting an education that guaranteed her independence.

A miracle has taken place in Rapar district, one of the most backward areas of the Kutch region in Gujarat. The cleft surgery of three-year-old Hansa has brought back smiles to not only the little girl. but also her parents.

Poetry and art can be used as a great medium for encouraging thought and progress. A 24-year-old Bangalore poet, Aparna Agarwal, explores that side through her new poem about women’s rights.

Paralysis after an accident can be a difficult reality to accept, especially for active individuals. However, Nancy, a young girl, refused to accept her paralysis as a final diagnosis, eventually regaining movement through sheer determination and will.

Access to water and other facilities continues to be a problem for many parts of rural India. Recognising the need for a solution, three girls got together to help bring water access to their village through the construction of a borewell.

Despite sustained efforts, India continues to have one of the most skewed ratios for equal opportunities between genders. This National Girl Child Day, it is important to realise that a huge part of improving this scenario is educating future generations about the need for gender equality. Here’s how parents and institutions can contribute.

At 17, Nisha has become the face of a revolution by taking a difficult, even dangerous, stand against child marriage in her community. Here’s how it happened.

This National Day of the Girl Child, let’s get inspired by the possibilities visible in these pictures, challenge the stereotypes and mind-sets that keep girls out of school, and pledge to end gender disparity in education.