Rajasthan teen receives Changemaker Award in the US

Payal Jangid, a teenager from Rajasthan, has received the Changemaker Award at the Goalkeepers Global Goals Awards in the US.

Presented by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the award is in recognition of her campaign against child labour and child marriage.

The Gates Foundation has also shared Payal's story on Twitter.

In the video, she reveals how she had to fight her own family who wanted her to tie the knot at a young age.

She also shares how she united children from several villages across the state who went door-to-door to raise awareness about issues such as child education and the menace of child marriage.

My campaign had many tasks such as organising rallies, putting up posters and interacting with people about the issues, she says, adding that each child in society should get education and a chance to move forward.

Nobel prize winner Kailash Satyarthi has praised Jangid's eforts and the prize for her.

Satyarthi, in his tweet, said, "Sumedha ji and I are so proud & moved to watch our daughter Payal receiving Changemaker Award from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation now in New York. She refused her marriage and her entire village was free from child marriages & labour."

Payal is a resident of Thanagaazi in Alwar district. She is just 17. Her father is a farmer and her mother is a housewife.

The locals say Payal's family members wanted her to get married at a young age. However, she said no to the proposal and then started a drive against child marriage which soon impacted the entire state.

Payal then was associated with Kailash Satyarthi's Bachpan Bachao Aandolan and has also worked with The World's Children's Prize (WCP) as its jury member.

In the video, her father Pappuram Jangid says that the number of child marriages has decreased over the years as Payal brought significant improvement; kids have started going to school now and not even a single child marriage has been reported in their village in the last 10 years.IANS