Welcome the girl child: Smriti Irani

Shimla, Nov 1 (IANS) Union Textiles Minister Smriti Irani on Thursday urged people to celebrate the birth of girl child by ending the evil practice of female foeticide.

"It's unfortunate that in a country like India where girls are worshipped as 'devi' that they feel insecure," she said in the Himachal Pradesh capital.

Addressing girls under Mission Sahasi, an initiative of the ABVP to make girls fearless and self-confident, Irani said: "No matter what a girl wears or which family she belongs to, respect is her birth right.

"It was an absolutely enthralling experience to witness 1,300 young school and college girls perform martial arts in Shimla as part of self-defence training programme being organised by ABVP across the country," she said in a tweet.