Ever wondered who is updating the CSR Facebook page, searching for the latest statistics on crimes against women, or assisting our core team in envisioning, coordinating and facilitating our projects and programs?

We are always very proud of our enthusiastic young interns in the CSR office. Over the years we’ve had interns join us from both across the country and across the world – from Punjab, Jharkhand, and Maharashtra in India to Scotland, Germany, Canada and Georgia. They’ve worked on a variety of projects such as Walk a Mile in Her Shoes, the I Stand for Safe Delhi campaign, Human Rights Defenders training workshops and numerous research projects. We’d like to introduce you to some of our current hard working interns!

Meet Prerna Dharni, Gender Training Institute Intern at Centre for Social Research, from Chandigarh, India.

GTI Intern Prerna Dharni taking part in the I Stand for Safe Delhi campaign 2011

What led to you joining the Centre for Social Research team?

I’m a single child and grew up hearing people tell my parents it was important to have a boy to “complete” the family. It unsettled me that people still thought like that. I’ve been interested in women and gender studies since an early age but it was really during my student life that my level of interest intensified. I graduated with a Masters in International Politics from JNU in 2010.

What does your role at CSR include?

I work in the Gender Training Institute (GTI). I mainly plan and execute workshops on gender sensitisation with college students, police, teachers and government officials. I am also the intern coordinator, which involves responding to applications and interviewing prospective interns. I also write articles for the CSR blog, work on awareness campaigns, and assist with our ‘Women in Democracy’ project.

What is the most interesting thing you have learned during your internship about women in politics?

I’m interested in the role reservation has played at the Panchayat level to empower women politically. These women exhibit confidence and provide hope for a more gender-inclusive political system in India.

What do you like most about living in Delhi?

I am a foodie and a history freak so Delhi is a perfect place for me to fulfill both of those passions! I love visiting old monuments and places of historical relevance, and trying all of the food that the city has to offer.

Centre for Social Research’s Gender Training Institute joined forces yesterday with the students of Lady Shri Ram College in Delhi to call for an end to female foeticide. Meeting with students as part of the College’s Diwali Mala (commonly known as the festival of lights) celebration, over 100 students joined in by signing our campaign banner and pledging their support to preventing female foeticide. Students decorated the banner with motivational phrases for women while learning more about sex selection. The signature campaign was part of our Meri Shakti Meri Beti project, helping raise awareness of female foeticide, which has plagued India, resulting in skewed sex ratios across the country.

Due to the introduction of sex determination technologies during the 1970s, the practise of sex-based abortion has become a growing trend. The sex ratio in India continues to become more skewed in favour of boys, particularly in the states of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi. Although the 1994 Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act (PC & PNDT) bans determination of the sex of the foetus, the continued decrease in the number of girls shows that the techniques that determine sex are still being practiced.

We’re planning to host more signature campaigns throughout Delhi colleges in the upcoming year. Get in touch with us at media@csr.org if you’d like to host a similar event at your own college!

View the full photo gallery from this event at Centre for Social Research’s Flickr account.

As part of our continuing efforts to address Violence against Women, we engaged with students and community members last week during an awareness generating and capacity building workshop in Delhi College of Arts and Commerce. During the workshop, CSR staff members discussed various types of violence and shared some of the lessons we’ve learned training Delhi Police in gender sensitisation throughout this year. Students also contributed to debates on increasing crime rates, harassment of women and the difficulties faced by lower class women in particular. One student argued that women are essentially treated like minors everywhere they go. We also discussed some examples of complicated cases involving Violence Against Women, helping students understand some of the difficulties and problems that arise with fighting abuse and harassment against women.

View more photos from this and other Delhi-area college workshops at Centre for Social Research’s Flickr account.