The Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) is a flagship social scheme of the Government of India, translating to 'Save the Daughter, Educate the Daughter'. It was launched on January 22, 2015, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Panipat, Haryana. The scheme's origin lies in the alarming decline of the Child Sex Ratio (CSR), which dropped to 918 girls per 1,000 boys in the 2011 Census, signaling widespread gender-biased sex-selective elimination and discrimination.
The scheme works as a tri-ministerial initiative, jointly implemented by the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD), the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), and the Ministry of Education (MoE). Its mechanism focuses on multi-sectoral interventions and advocacy campaigns to create behavioral and social change towards the girl child. While the scheme itself does not involve Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), it links to the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) savings scheme to encourage financial security for girls. The MoHFW is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Pre-conception & Prenatal Diagnostic Technique (PC & PNDT) Act to prevent sex-selective practices.
The BBBP scheme has recently been expanded from its initial focus on 100 gender-critical districts to cover all districts in the country. It is now integrated as a component under the SAMBAL vertical of Mission Shakti for the 15th Finance Commission Period (2021-2022 to 2025-2026), which aims to strengthen interventions for women's safety and empowerment. The core objectives of preventing gender-biased elimination and promoting the survival, protection, and education of the girl child remain constant.