Today is the World Environment Day. What does it have to do with women? There is. Ever heard people planting trees when a baby girl is born?

Yes. People in villages like Piplantri, Budania, Luhavad in Rajasthan have initiated a revolution, coined rightly as “Eco-feminism” by Rajasthan’s renowned environmentalist Harsh Vardhan. The term came into existence combining “environmentalism” and “feminism.”

No matter how much we flaunt our progressive thinking, but we have to admit that there are places in India even today where female foeticide still exists. This is a commonplace phenomenon especially in villages. But amidst this situation, these three villages of Rajasthan have set a shining example by bringing an end to the heinous act of female foeticide, which had been going on for years. Marking the birth of a baby-girl by planting a tree is like icing on the cake.

The expense of bringing in musicians to planting the tree is all borne by village’s panchayat. Moreover, harsh actions are taken against couples who are accused of trying to detect the sex of the foetus. Budhania is the first village where a case has been lodged against a couple accused of female foeticide. This revolutionary initiative was taken up by the sarpanchs of the three villages to balance the sex ratio, and maintain greenery in their village. And due to this initiative, these villages have grown green. The sarpanch of Piplantri village has even gone further, ensuring a poor born girl to be adopted by a wealthier family for her proper upbringing and education.

A survey conducted by activist Rajan Choudhary says that efforts to improve the sex ratio in Rajasthan resulted in a marked improvement from 2012 to 2013.

On this World Environment Day, OoWomaniya, as an enterprise dedicated wholly to the wellness of women, thanks these three villages for being the forerunners of much needed “Eco-Feminism” revolution.

Contributed by Abhimanyu Acharya

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