Logo

Papers presented at the Symposium on "Girls and Girlhoods at Threshold of Youth & Gender", held at Mumbai in November 2008. This volume is an outcome of three decades of deliberations on girls and girlhoods by the women's rights organizations in India. The symposium aimed to focus on girlhoods, generate information about them and create a platform for groups and individuals concerned abut the issues. It naturally included girls themselves. Girls from different locations were invited, together with scholars and practitioners, to make presentations and to celebrate girlhood. Girls are strong survivors in our society. The symposium celebrated their power, strength and creativity in foyer and quadrangle events and during debates on declining child sex ratio and other crucial concerns of girls such as health & education, child labour, trafficking, disability, media portraval (In advertisements, television and cinema, violence, institutionalization of "problem" girls, mobilization of girls, social security for empowerment of girls by the state and NGOs and legal provisions. Important papers presented followed by and discussions at the symposium are included in this volume. Dr. Vibhuti Patel is professor and head of the University Department of Economics, and Director, Department of Post Graduate Studies and Research of SNDT Women's University, Mumbai.

Contents:

The Adolescent Girl in India, Need to Introspect Factors Responsible in Upbringing of Girl Child to Ascertain her Identity and Status in Society, Government's Commitment to the Girl Child: Promises Belied?, The Declining Sex-Ratio in India, Education & Health of Girl Child in Urban India, Child Labour in India : Emerging Issues, Trafficking of Tribal Girl Child, Existence in Shadows: Women and Disability, Condition of Female Children in Orissa (With Special Reference to Ganjam District), Sibling Abuse: A Study of Sibling Interactions in Family Setting, The Indian Girl Child: Orissa of Social Construction, Politics of Gender and the Familiar Structure in the Story- 'Girls' by Mrinal Pande, Girl Child, Television Advertising and Status Quo: Gender in HDFC Standard Life Advertisements, Absence of an age: Had it been a Durga Trilogy?, Adolescent Girls, Orissa by the Community-Detained by the States, Understanding of the Issues of Vulnerable and Violence Affected Girls through Mukta's Intervention, Violence against girls residing in two slums of Mumbai, Shaishav Balsena, Orissa of Orissa Girls through NGO Intervention, Girl Child and Law, At the Thershold of Youth and Gender National Symposium on girls and Girlhood