VIJAYAWADA: In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the AP State government will present Gender Budget in the ensuing Budget session of the Assembly. Announcing this while participating in the Women’s Day celebrations at his camp office in Tadepalli on Monday, AP Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said, “We will provide data pertaining to allocations made and funds spent on women’s welfare under various schemes through the concept of Gender Budget.
He said it was mandatory to constitute committees in private and government offices to prevent harassment of women at workplaces. “The first such committee committee will come up in the Secretariat,’’ Jagan said, directing Chief Secretary Aditya Nath Das to take measures in this regard.
The Chief Minister virtually inaugurated Women Help Desks in all police stations in the State along with cyber kiosks and launched the Swechha programme to create awareness on menstrual hygiene among adolescent girls. He also flagged off a fleet of 900 Disha patrol vehicles and 18 Disha crime scene management vehicles.
Jagan said women play an important role in all spheres of life. According to the 2011 census, the literacy rate among women was just 40 per cent, which reflects discrimination against girl child. Discrimination against women should be eradicated at any cost, he said. The government has distributed 30.76 lakh house sites to women beneficiaries by spending Rs 27,000 crore, he said.