The Minister for Women & Child Development, Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, along with Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Adityanath Yogi today inaugurated the widows’ home ‘Krishna Kutir’ at a function at Vrindavan, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh. The Minister for Women Welfare, UP, Prof. Reeta Bahuguna Joshi; Minister for Dharmarth Karya, UP, Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary; and MP from Mathura, Hema Malini were present on the occasion alongwith other dignitaries. Krishna Kutir is a special home for 1000 widows set up by the Ministry of Women & Child Development under Swadhar Greh scheme of the Ministry and is the largest ever facility of its kind created by a government organization.
Speaking on the occasion, Maneka Sanjay Gandhi said that the Vrindavan home will offer shelter and protection to the large number of helpless widows of Vrindavan. An area of 4 acres has now been allocated near the home by the district administration which will be developed into a park and which can be used by the widows of the home, she disclosed. The WCD Minister further added that widows will be a part of various committees which will be formed to manage the widows’ home. Maneka Gandhi requested the Chief Minister of UP to provide land in Varanasi for a similar facility to be setup by WCD Ministry. Maneka Gandhi offered that WCD is willing to create a large facility in or around Lucknow where all orphaned children, helpless/abandoned women in need of care and protection can be located in a community atmosphere. She also urged that the Government should inspect the condition of women in jails as well as those living in mental asylums.
Accepting the offer of WCD Minister, the UP Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath announced that the UP Government will allocate land in Varanasi and Lucknow for construction of shelter homes for women and children as suggested by the WCD Ministry. He said it is the vision of the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi to provide protection and help to the helpless and those in need of care and protection especially women and children. It is in the pursuit of this goal that the UP Government has become the first State to link the women’s helpline 181 to the One Stop Centres and has provided rescue vans for women in distress in every district, the Chief Minister declared.
