IAS Aditya Singh is a 2014 batch officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre and is currently posted as  Collector of Harda, MP.

His Vision for the district focuses on improving the declining gender ratio and promoting the value of girl child, aiming to make parents feel honoured and  privileged to have daughters. “The sex ratio, it’s on the declining side. So if a boy child is not there, there is often a feeling that there is no son at home and a sense of being inferior. To reverse this psychology, we decided how to make girl child parents privileged,” he said.

To achieve this, Singh launched an innovative initiative called Rewa Shakti. Under this scheme, families with daughters will be issued a Keerti card. “Keerti means like a kind of an honour”. This card will allow families to avail benefits and discounts across different sectors in both public and private. “We want these parents to feel a sense of achievement, being the parents of a girl child or two girl children.” he explained.

Under his leadership, the Keerti Card opens up numerous opportunities for girl child families. These include discounts at private hospitals during treatment, fee concessions at educational institutions, reduced fares for bus travel, and discounts on food at hotels and restaurants. Additionally access to national-level coaching institutions to further extend the benefit. “Every government office in the district will feature a dedicated Keerti Corner for complaint resolution and service delivery like Aadhar or caste certificate .You don’t have to go anywhere; you just have to come here, give your file, and we will solve it and deliver it to your doorstep,” Singh shared.

Keerti Card holders are also given priority access to government officials “If you get the Keerti Card, even if I am in a meeting, I will step out. They will not have to wait. This is not only me; it will be in every police station, every subdivision office, tehsil, and SP office. This is the way we are establishing it,” he added.

The initiative’s partnership with private institutions aims to change perception with community’s support “An ideological and psychological change comes only when the community itself makes you feel a sense of privilege and achievement” Singh said

As part of this holistic approach, Singh has also introduced Daughter’s club to enhance the scope of the initiative “Regular meetings will be there. We will be celebrating whatever achievements that will be there. And also, we will be providing them free coaching. We are also creating a library there,” he explained. Notably the scheme is inclusive ,with no criteria based on poverty line or caste.