Jaipur, January, 2020.

The week old #ZeroTeenMothers campaign initiated by the Population Foundation of India has gathered the uninhibited support of Rajasthan policy makers who believe in making a tangible change. The campaign was launched on the occasion of National Youth Day on January 12, 2020 and has received support across political parties in the state. The campaign hopes to set-off a re-think on the issue of teenage pregnancy in Rajasthan.

So far, the campaign has engaged influential names like Dr. Raghu Sharma, Health Minister, Mr. Subhash Garg, State Health Minister, Mr. Rohit Kumar Singh, (IAS) Additional Chief Secretary, Health, Mr. Govind Pareek, Deputy Director of the Department of Information and Public Relations. Among MLAs from Rajasthan, Mr. Harish Chandra Meena from the Deoli Tonk, Mr. Nirmal Kumawat from Phulera, Mr. Prashant Bairwa from the Newai-Tonk have supported the campaign. Ms. Krishna Pooniya from Sadalpur Churu also backed the campaign, and like the others, shared a photograph of herself holding the placard (Zero Teenage Pregnancy) on social media. Ms Pooniya is an athlete and an international gold-medalist and been actively engaged in girl-child development initiatives.

Lending his support, Mr. Harish Chandra Meena MLA from Deoli Tonk and former DGP of Rajasthan, strongly advocates for education and health rights of young people. He is champion of issue and is of opinion that there should be no teenage pregnancy. Newai-Tonk, MLA Mr. Prashant Bairwa added on social media, “Healthy young people and adolescents are the foundation for a healthy society. much-needed push.

Mr. Govind Pareek, Deputy Director, Department of Information and Public Relations also backed the #ZeroTeenMothers campaign. Mr. Pareek is an expert in Information, Education and Communication and he provided credibility and support for the state-wide campaign.

As per the NFHS-4 data, 35 percent of girls in Rajasthan were married before the age of 18, and more than 6 percent of these girls either had children or were pregnant at the time of the survey. The Zero Teenage Pregnancy campaign therefore, is a means of creating dialogue and combating teenage pregnancy in Rajasthan by engaging with not just the public but with elected representatives, government officials and other community partners. Some of the other senior government officials who participated are Mr. Adarsh Sidhu, (IPS), Superintendent of Police in Tonk District, who pledged support for 'child-rights.' Yet another was Ms. Mamta Gupta (IPS), Superintendent of Police in Bundi District, a young bureaucrat who is already engaged in various women and girl’s empowerment initiatives.

Population Foundation of India has already held eight youth-led consultations across the country to identify and put forward challenges and recommendations to improve adolescent health. PFI also works in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to increase awareness of adolescent health programmes and expand health services especially for the vulnerable. Population Foundation of India is a national civil society organisation, which promotes and advocates effective formulation and implementation of gender-sensitive population, health and development strategies and policies.

Bharat Ratna JRD Tata founded PFI in 1970. PFI addresses population issues within the larger discourse of empowering women and men so that they are able to make informed decisions related to their fertility, health, and well-being.