Kolkata: On successful completion of the first two batches of project Sukanya that was taken up by Bidhannagar, Barrackpore and Howrah Police Commissionerate to provide self-defence training to school going girls, all the three commissionerates have now taken steps to rope in more students in its next phase.
Participants of all the three commissionerates will be felicitated at a programme to be held at Howrah Sarat Sadan on March 28 in which Chandrima Bhattacharya, the minister of state for Health, Sashi Panja, the minister of state for Women and Child Development and Social Welfare department and Surajit Kar Purakayastha, Director General of Police, will be present. They will give certificates to the participants who have successfully completed their training programme.
It may be mentioned that Sukanya project for all the three commissionerates were launched at a programme organised by Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate in July 2017.
The project was introduced in the three commissionerates after it became immensely successful in Kolkata. It is one of the dream projects of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the initiative has provided an international platform to the girls who underwent self-defence training. Six girls had participated in Kickboxing World Cup -2016 held in Russia in September and won 5 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze medals.
In the first phase, girl students of 26 schools in the jurisdiction of the three police commissionerates underwent training and they will perform at the programme that is going to be held on March 28.
"Their performance will motivate other girls to undergo self-defence training," said a senior police officer adding that more schools will also be brought under the project in the next year and girl students from some colleges would also be a part of the training programme in the coming year.
Some colleges had also approached the police to take steps so that their girl students can also undergo self-defence training.
It may be recalled that Krishnapada Mondal, an assistant sub-inspector posted with Howrah Police Commissionerate and the trainer of project Sukanya, Goutam Bhattacharya, had set out from Cooch Behar on Women's Day on their bicycles to create awareness on the need of self-defence training for girls. They had visited several girls' schools on their way from Cooch Behar to Howrah. Both will also return from their tour on March 28 and they will also be felicitated on the same platform.