WORLD NEWS SUPERFASTBritish Govt. NewsThis
week, 18-year-old Chaitanya Venkateswaran from New Delhi had the unique
opportunity to spend a day as the UK’s senior most diplomat in India. As top boss – overseeing the UK’s largest overseas network –
Chaitanya’s busy day included handing out tasks to the High Commission’s
department heads, interacting with senior female police officers, meeting the
press, and launching a study tracing the impact of British Council STEM
scholarships on Indian women participants.
Chaitanya
is the 4th young woman to take over as British High Commissioner in an annual
competition run by the UK mission, aiming to empower the next generation of
women as leaders and trail-blazers, and to highlight some of the challenges
women and girls around the world still face. The competition is run in
celebration of International Day of the Girl Child (11 October).Chaitanya
Venkateswaran, High Commissioner for the Day, said:
I used
to visit the British Council library in New Delhi when I was younger, and
that’s where I cultivated my love of learning. Building on that knowledge, to
be the British High Commissioner for a day was a golden opportunity. My day was
full of diverse experiences which have really broadened my perspective on the
role of women and their representation in fields of media, policing and STEM. I
am now more determined than ever to use my new knowledge and experience to help
promote equitable treatment of women everywhere.
Jan
Thompson, Deputy High Commissioner for the Day (on other days, Acting High
Commissioner to India), said:
This
competition is one of my favourite moments of the year – an opportunity to
provide a platform to extraordinary young women, and show how the UK and India
are sharing expertise to ensure women and girls reach their full potential
around the world. I was thrilled to relinquish my duties to Chaitanya for the
day and was impressed with how confidently and competently she took on this role,
a deserving winner out of an incredible 215 entries.
In the
side-lines of her very busy day as High Commissioner, we also enjoyed
discussing our mutual love of the arts. I look forward to seeing what Chaitanya
achieves next, as she joins a cohort of young women whose voices we have been
proud to amplify through this annual initiative; the next generation of global
leaders.
The
British High Commission has run the ‘High Commissioner for a Day’ competition
annually since 2017, inviting young Indian women aged 18 to 23 to take over as
their most senior diplomat. This year, entrants were invited to submit a
1-minute video on social media, answering the question: ‘What global challenges
and opportunities do you see for gender equality in the age of COVID-19?’
In
line with COVID-19 health and safety precautions, Ms. Venkateswaran
participated in the day via video conference, but was happy to meet Acting High
Commissioner Jan Thompson at a later date for a socially distanced walk.
Further information
Chaitanya
Venkateswaran was High Commissioner for a Day on Wednesday, 7 October. Over the
course of the day she: met with the Editor of Anandabazar Patrika to learn
about gender representation in the media industry; discussed gender and
policing with senior police officers from Madhya Pradesh and Telangana;
interacted with the Marks & Spencer India team; launched the British
Council STEM Tracer Study documenting the stories of 166 Indian women scholars;
and chaired a meeting with youth leaders (including previous competition
winners) on some of the biggest challenges facing the world.
About the winner
Chaitanya Venkateswaran is an
18-year-old recent high-school graduate from New Delhi. She is pursuing a
bachelor’s degree with a full scholarship in International Studies and
Economics, and certificate programmes in Advanced Leadership Studies and Political
Thought at American University, Washington DC, studying remotely. An active
volunteer, she has worked to aid visually-impaired students, acid attack
survivors and marginalised LGBT+ groups. She is also a trained classical
dancer, an art enthusiast and avid reader. She aims to pursue a career in
economics and global public policy. Ms. Venkateswaran’s winning entry was selected from a pool of over 200
submissions.
UK and India gender equality
work
The
UK and India are working together to help ensure women and girls can reach
their full potential. In India, the UK is working hand-in-hand with state
governments, law enforcement agencies, education authorities and British
businesses to promote gender equality. Examples of ongoing collaborative
programmes include:
·
Working with the Ministry of Rural Development to strengthen
resilience to the impacts of climate change and promote livelihood security among
women in rural communities, as part of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme.
·
Working with adolescent girls from socio-economically
marginalised communities to develop their English, digital and leadership
skills.
·
Financial inclusion programmes focusing on financial and digital
literacy, which have given 12 million Indian women access to credit to build
livelihoods. Projects have helped set up or scale 10,000 women-owned micro
businesses, created 6,000 jobs, and supported over 270 micro-entrepreneurs.
British Govt. NewsWORLD NEWS SUPERFAST – T&C APPLY
Source: https://worldnewssuperfast.blogspot.com/2020/10/indian-teenager-takes-charge-of-british.html
