New girls’ names for unwanted in India

MORE than 200 Indian girls whose names mean “unwanted” in Hindi have chosen new names for a fresh start in life.

A central Indian district yesterday held a renaming ceremony it hopes will give the girls new dignity and help fight the widespread gender discrimination that gives India a skewed gender ratio, with far more boys than girls.

The girls – wearing their best outfits – lined up to receive certificates with their new names, along with small bouquets from Satara district officials in Maharashtra state.

In shedding names like “Nakusa” or “Nakushi,” which mean “unwanted” in Hindi, girls chose to name themselves after Bollywood stars like “Aishwarya” or Hindu goddesses such as “Savitri”. Others went for traditional names with happier meanings, such as “Vaishali” or “prosperous, beautiful and good”.

The plight of girls in India was highlighted when this year’s census showed the nation’s sex ratio had dropped over the past decade from 927 girls for every 1,000 boys under the age of six to 914. Maharashtra state’s ratio is well below that, with just 883 girls for every 1,000 boys, and in the district of Satara, it is even lower at 881.

Such ratios are the result of abortions of female foetuses, or just sheer neglect leading to a higher death rate among girls. Indians favour sons partly because of the enormous expense of marrying off girls and paying for dowries.

“Nakusa is a very negative name as far as female discrimination is concerned,” said Satara district health officer Dr Bhagwan Pawar, who came up with the idea for the ceremony.

Other government incentives include free meals and education to encourage people to take care of girls, and cash bonuses for families whose girls graduate from high school.

“We have to take care of the girls, their education and even financial and social security, or again the cycle is going to repeat”, said Sudha Kankaria of Save the Girl Child.