On the occasion of Teachers’ Day, Indian Institute of Management Raipur conducted an  Awareness program for its female housekeeping staff, as part of its upcoming marathon event – Prayaas.The program aimed at educating the staff about hygiene, education and several other subjects which might be useful in their day-to-day lives and help them to make better decisions as and when needed.

 

 

 

In this regard, a thirty-minute interactive session was held by Dr. EemanMallick – professor in HRM and Organizational Behavior department of the institution, who educated the staff about cleanliness and sanitation by giving several personal hygiene tips and encouraged them to open up and speak out their health issues. She also explained the importance of personal hygiene especially during the natural cycle as ignorance of such matters would lead to pregnancy related or other serious health issues in the future.

There is also a dearth of proper knowledge and genuine guidance in dealing with physiological processes and hygienic practices among several young girls of our country.Maintaining personal hygiene is necessary for many reasons; personal, social, health, psychological or simply as a way of life. Thus with their mother’s support and appropriate knowledge, every girl will be better equipped to handle several hygiene practices.

 

 

 

A small section of the session focused on sexual harassment which remains an insidious concern in today’s world. Mothers play an important role in preventing harassment of their children. Every single action they take can have enormous results when it comes to the safety and happiness of their child. Accordingly, the staff was educated in protecting their daughters from being victims of sexual harassment or any kind of abuse.

The final segment of the session emphasized the importance of educating the girl child. As the famous African Proverb goes ‘Ifwe educate a boy, we educate one person. If we educate a girl, we educate a family and a whole nation.’The modern age is the age of awakening of girls. They are competing with men in all spheres of life. Many people oppose girls’ education by arguing that the money spent on their education gets wasted. To eradicate such thinking it is essential to educate people about the benefits of educating a girl and how it will be helpful in the overall development of the society.

We hope this modest step taken by IIM Raipur will make the local women more aware of personal hygiene, education and help them to develop a better lifestyle.