TIRUPATI: President Droupadi Murmu on Monday appealed to parents to stop differentiating between a son and a daughter and provide equal opportunities to both genders.
Interacting with women self-help groups, achievers, faculty and students of Sri Padmavati Mahila Visva Vidayalam here, she pointed out that countries, where women are working at the forefront, are well-developed.
Talking about the role of SHGs in empowering women, Murmu praised them, saying SHG women run families, educate their children and even take part in agricultural activities.
“The SHG women community groups are formed to complete tasks, which cannot be achieved by a single woman due to fear or other factors. Such works could be achieved by women when they come together and work as a group... breaking the fear factor among women through SHGs,” Murmu said.
The President had a word of advice for students. Emphasing the need for empathy, she felt, “it is important for us as we step ahead to look back and see how many are lagging behind and extend a hand to ensure they also progress.”
Environment protection a must: Prez
She further said environment must be protected for which students could play a significant role.
“The nation is making rapid strides in terms of development. Technology is evolving, driven by innovations and research. At this juncture, protection of environment and forests is paramount. More and more trees should be planted to fight global warming and tackle pollution levels,” Murmu pointed out.
She suggested that young students spend time with people in rural areas to study and find out whether government schemes were benefiting them. “By staying in rural areas, students can identify the schemes needed to be provided to children and women for their development. The students can chalk out plans and submit them to their respective collectors for implementation in their districts,” she said. Earlier, she interacted with Indian hockey player Rajani, and K Radha Devi, a woman barber whose fight led to nearly 1,200 women from the Nayi Brahmin community, being employed in traditional barber work at the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) and other temples.
She also met MVSN Durga, a Kuchipudi classical dancer, and Dr A Sridevi, who is currently manufacturing aqua probiotics feed supplements and bio de-composers of fruit pulp industries in Chittoor and Tirupati districts. Before the interaction session, the President visited various stalls such as Kalamkari paintings, Pushpa Prasadam,Union Minister for Tourism G Kishan Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister K Narayana Swamy and Minister RK Roja among others were present.