Now, all baby girls born on January 1 are 'Pink Babies'

BBMP’s ‘Pink Baby’ scheme honours baby girls born at the stroke of 12 on New Year’s day. Now, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), has decided to maximise the reach of the programme by amending the rules to include all baby girls born on January 1.

Addressing reporters on the sidelines of the BBMP’s Council meeting, Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun said that the scheme can be availed in all the 24 maternity hospitals run by the BBMP.

“A total of Rs 1.2 crore has been allocated in the budget for the Pink Baby scheme. We will deposit the money in a joint bank account held by the BBMP commissioner and the girl child, which can later be utilised for her education,” she explained.

According to the mayor, the extension of the time period will only help all those who are born on that day. “All those who come to the BBMP maternity homes usually come from poor backgrounds, and this is a good initiative to fund the child’s education,” she said.

As part of the scheme, the BBMP will deposit Rs 5 lakh in the name of every girl child delivered naturally at any of the BBMP’s maternity hospitals on January 1. The scheme was launched by the former mayor, R Sampath Raj. The interest from the account would benefit the girl’s education. Last year, a girl child born at the Nagaraj Memorial Maternity Hospital in Rajajinagar had availed the benefit.