First girl born in 2018 in India's Bengaluru to get free education

Bengaluru - "Free education up to degree level in a college so that girls are not considered a burden"

In a one of its kind effort to celebrate a girl child, the first female baby born in the New Year at a civic hospital in the city will be given free education till under-graduation, Bengaluru Mayor R. Sampath Raj said on Friday.

"The first girl child born in the New Year (January 1) through a normal delivery at any civic hospital in the city would get free education up to degree level in a college so that girls are not considered a burden," Raj told IANS here.

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) would deposit Rs5 lakh (Rs0.5m) in a joint bank account of its Commissioner and the first girl child, and the interest on it would be used for her education.

"Pregnant women who go to civic hospitals for delivery are from poor families and unfortunately think a girl child is a burden for them to bring up," Raj said.

Health officials at the civic hospitals would record the timings of female babies born after December 31 midnight and in the first hour or early hours of January 1 to ascertain the winner.

"Since a Caesarean-section birth can be induced any time, civic doctors have decided to reward only the girl child born through natural process," said Raj.

About 32 health centres in the city are run by the civic body out of which 26 have maternity wards.

• India