Kalpana Chawla birthday: PR body to launch self-defence drive for girls on Daughter's Day

Mumbai, July 1: Celebrating Daughters' Day on Friday, July 1 in memory of India-born US astronaut Kalpana Chawla, the Public Relations Council of India (PRCI) launched a campaign for self-defence programmes for girls to instill in them a sense of confidence and esteem.

July 1 is Kalpana Chawla's official date of birth. She had an illustrious career, achieving glory, and died along with six crew members of the US space shuttle Columbia which disintegrated over Texas during its re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, barely 16 minutes before landing.

Even after her tragic death, Kalpana continues to be a shining example and icon for many girls around the world.

In Mumbai, Daughters' Day was celebrated by Mumbai University's Department of Communication and KJ Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research (SIMSR) with events like debate, photography and poster competitions and skits focusing on girls' security.

The two institutions agreed to conduct self-defence programmes for girl students.

PRCI has tied up with organisations like Sportzconsult to run 10-day crash courses for girls with the help of trained martial arts experts. The drive will also cover corporates to run workshops to prevent sexual harassment at workplaces with the help of legal experts like Complykaro.

Powered by Concept PR, PRCI launched #shakti4beti campaign to focus on Beti Suraksha (Daughter's security) on social media and online forums which evinced lot of interest.

"Beti Suraksha falls in line with the Union government's campaign Beti Bachao - Beti Padhao. We, as communication professionals, firmly believe that it is absolutely important to communicate to the society at large on the issue that bothers all -- the security of the girl child," said PRCI National President B.N. Kumar.

PRCI -- the national body of PR, media, advertising, HR professionals and mass communication teachers and students -- has petitioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi and tweeted to Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani for their help and support for #shakti4beti.

"We are taking up the issue across the country through our 30-plus chapters and are happy to see growing interest among corporates to ensure self-confidence among women and girls," said M.B. Jayaram, Chairman Emeritus and Chief Mentor of PRCI.

IANS