Karnal, June 9 -- On June 9, 2015, the world witnessed the birth of the now-iconic hashtag #SelfieWithDaughter. What started as a local initiative in Bibipur village of Jind district of Haryana, soon managed to capture global attention. Aiming to promote gender equality, the campaign raises awareness about ills, including female foeticide. Now, 10 years later, more than 2 lakh social media posts and thousands of news articles now carry a phrase that didn't exist in headlines before 2015. As the campaign spread, so did its impact. By 2020, over 20 lakh (2 million) selfies had been uploaded to the campaign's online platforms by people from over 80 countries around the world. The movement reshaped conversations on gender -- both online and offline, and resonated so strongly that Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised it in his Mann Ki Baat radio address in July 2015. PM Modi applauded Sunil Jaglan, a young sarpanch and the spirit behind #SelfieWithDaughter. During a conversation with HT, Jaglan said that #SelfieWithDaughter is no longer a campaign, but a social movement and a commitment by society. "So far, we have taken some bold steps as a foundation for the campaign. We introduced "Lado Panchayat". The traditional khap panchayats were male-only councils, and for the first time, women were invited to the table, and the council came together to publicly condemn sex-selective abortion - a powerful shift in a deeply patriarchal setting. We also brought up "women's happiness charts" to monitor the well-being of females in homes, and created "Balika Sabha" (girls' assemblies) to give young girls a platform to speak, share and be heard," he said. Under Sunil as sarpanch, a resolution was also passed to ban the use of abusive language against women that was known as "Gali band ghar". "The campaign gained strong community support and had a significant positive impact - for the first time, such incidents were openly discussed in the gram sabha, and those who used abusive language were held accountable. We have touched every perspective," he added. Jaglan said that families have now started celebrating their daughters, sharing positive stories and images that brought a sense of unity and optimism in a time of crisis. "Now people are taking this as a commitment and investing in health, education and financial independence of their daughters. Now, people have started making "period chart" for the women of their families. So far, two lakh plates with daughter's name have been put outside homes. This is the real result and future of #SelfieWithDaughter," he said. Despite initiatives like #SelfieWithDaughter and 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' -- that also started from Haryana a decade ago -- the sex ratio at birth still remains a challenge in the state. The sex ratio at birth (SRB) is a critical indicator of gender equality. According to the figures from the Civil Registration System (CRS) up to December 2024, Haryana recorded its lowest sex ratio at birth in eight years in 2024 and registered a six-point drop from figures a year ago. The SRB dipped to 910 female births per 1,000 male births in 2024, a six-points drop from 916 in 2023 and the lowest after 2016, when it stood at 900. Government interventions have been undertaken largely-crackdowns on illegal sex determination clinics, strict enforcement of the PCPNDT Act, authorities have this year seized about 8,800 MTP kits and registered over 50 FIRs, including at least 18 against online sellers of the kits, but a lot still needs to be done. Vijender Singh, an assistant professor with the department of sociology, Kurukshetra University, believes that there has been a lot of awareness regarding equality in the society, but what lacks is enough incentivisation to classes other than lower strata. "Government needs to expand its incentives in the middle and higher section of the society. These sections are aware with the issues and problems arising out of it, but shy away due to lack of incentives that are limited only to those below a certain income level," he added....