The meaning of Rajdulari is “King’s beloved daughter”. The Rajdulari Foundation was established in the state of Punjab, India in 2008. Rajdulari Foundation is an initiative by Parul Sharma, a Human Rights Lawyer with several other Child Rights projects in India. According to Indian government data on births, the number of females per males at birth in the state of Punjab is around 775 to 1000. Furthermore, reports in local Punjabi media states young men in the state are finding it hard too find brides.

The horrendous reason for such a disparity is the practice of female infanticide in India, partly promoted by the existence of a ‘dowry system’ which requires the family to pay out money when a female child is married. For a poor family, the birth of a girl child can signal the beginning of financial ruin and severe hardship. ‘Hinduism’ also only allows a son or male relative to light the father’s pyre. Then there’s the notion of the family lineage, which can only be propagated though the male line. However, this anti-female bias is by no means limited to poor families.

Much of the discrimination is to do with cultural beliefs and social norms, which are extremely prevalent in all social classes. Modern technology combined with a cultural preference for sons rather than daughters, has led to the mushrooming of neo-natal clinics across India where parents can check the sex of their unborn child, although this practice has been illegalised in India. From being unborn child, although this practice has been illegalized in India. From being an urban phenomenon, it is worrying to see the practice of sex-selection spreading to rural areas now as the technology spreads. Diagnostic centres and clinics with ultrasound scanners which detect the sex of the child, advertise with catch-lines such as “spend 600 rupees now, and save 50,000 rupees later”. According to a recent report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), up to 50 million girls and women are missing form India’s population as a result of systematic gender discrimination in India. Normally there are approximately 105 female births for every 100 males in the world. 

Offplan Properties International in association with Mukhtar Sahota is pleased to be part of the ‘Rajdulari Foundation’ awareness Campaign for the ‘Girl Child’. It’s a great pleasure to be part of such crucial awareness campaign as clearly our future does lie in the hands of our actions today.