The first ‘One Stop Centre (OSC) for Women’ of the Ministry of Women & Child Development was inaugurated today at Raipur by the Union Minister of Women & Child Development, Smt. Maneka Sanjay Gandhi in the presence of Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, Dr. Raman Singh. WCD Minister of Chhatisgarh, Smt Ramshila Sahu was also present on the occasion. The One Stop Centre at Raipur is located in the premises District Hospital, Raipur. It will provide access to integrated range of services under one roof including medical aid, police assistance, legal aid/case management, psychosocial counseling, temporary support services to women affected by violence. Later, addressing the Mahila Sammelan at Budpara, Smt Maneka Sanjay Gandhi said that it is a matter of pride that the first One Stop Centre for Women has opened in Raipur, the credit for which goes to the dynamism of the Chief Minister of Chhatisgarh, Dr. Raman Singh. Having the first One Stop Centre, however, also entails responsibility and this One Stop Centre will be keenly watched now , she added. The Minister said that an OSC will be set up in each state/UT during the current year and if they work well, it will be possible to make an OSC in each district. The One Stop Centres will be integrated with 181 and other existing helplines to make them fully effective, she explained.
Smt Maneka Sanjay Gandhi also highlighted the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme of the Ministry launched in January this year to reverse the declining Child Sex Ratio in the currently. She praised the state of Chhatisgarh for being a progressive state in terms of child sex ratio, which is much above the national average. The Minister brought out the importance of skill development schemes like STEP to empower women. She also appealed to the Chief Minister to give 33% reservation to women in the police force to help address the problem of crimes against women. The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development has approved the Scheme of One Stop Centre for women affected with violence which is being implemented by States/ UTs from 1st April, 2015.In the current year, the Ministry of Women & Child Development proposes to set up 36 centres across the country with an outlay of Rs 14 cr . In the first phase there will be one Cente per State/UT. Smt Maneka Sanjay Gandhi also launched two schemes of the state government ie. Tejaswini for adolescent girls and Navaajatan for malnourished newborns. Earlier in the day, she visited the camp organized for malnourished children, the model anganwadi centre and Ready to Eat food production unit run by self-help group at Nawagaon. She also called on the Governor of Chhatisgarh , ShBalramji Das Tandon.