Dhaka, Dec 9 – The Begum Rokeya Day will be observed on Monday marking the 139th birth as well as 87th death anniversary of Begum Rokeya Shakhawat Hossain, a pioneer in the fight for securing women’s rights in the subcontinent.Women and Children Affairs Ministry, Begum Rokeya Foundation and various other socio-cultural and political organisations have chalked out elaborate programmes to mark the day.
The Ministry has nominated five women for the prestigious Rokeya Padak 2019 in recognition of their outstanding contributions to society and women’s empowerment.
The nominated women are Begum Selina Khalek, Principal Shamsunnahar, Dr. Nurunnahar Faizunnesa (posthumous), Papri Basu and Begum Akhter Jahan.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will hand over the award among the winners and their family members at a programme which will be held at Osmani Memorial Auditorium on Monday at 10am.
On the occasion, President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina issued separate messages paying rich tributes to Begum Rokeya.
Besides, Dhaka University’s Rokeya Hall will arrange a programme marking the day.
Meanwhile, different programmes have been chalked out at government and non-government levels across the country to mark the day.
Begum Rokeya Shakhawat Hossain was born on December 9 in 1880 at Pairaband village in Rangpur. She also passed away on the same date in 1932.
Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain was a Bengali feminist thinker, writer, educationist, social activist, advocate of women’s rights, and widely regarded as the pioneer of women’s education in the Indian subcontinent, particularly Muslim women, during the time of the British rule. – UNB
