In February I will be visiting the Unique Home for girls. I’d like to raise funds which will help keep Unique home operating, assist in building better facilities and provide amenities for the staff and girls.

Unique Home for Girls is a home for unwanted, abandoned girls in Punjab, India. They are dedicated to the upbringing, nurturing and well-being of these girls ranging from newborns onwards. Due to many cultural and economic reasons (dowry, daughters thought of as consumers and sons as producers, potential conflict over property division, continuation of family line, to name but a few) boys are regarded as the preferred sex and consequently female foeticide and infanticide is often the chosen path for women who feel they have no alternative. 274 girls die every day in Punjab before they are born. Around 11 million children are abandoned in India every year, 90% of these children are girls.

Children arrive here as hapless, barely alive foundlings. From those like Reva, a newborn baby dumped by her parents near the highway in Kapurthala to those like Siya, only a few hours old left in a drain wrapped in a black polythene bag. The one thing they have in common; they don't know who they are, where they came from or any recollection of how they were brought to the home. Unique Home for Girls provides a safe haven for those that are fortunate enough not to be killed before or at birth. The home has one simple aim: to give these abandoned girls back their lives through education and love.

The woman behind the home is Prakash Kaur, who was herself left on the streets as a baby 60 years ago. Since 1993, she has dedicated her life to the noble but onerous mission of rescuing unwanted and unclaimed newborn girls and being able to provide the 80-odd young girls who live there with a warm and loving environment, in addition to basic daily necessities and a proper education. She pleads that people don’t kill their daughters or leave them on the streets but asks them to leave them with her where she will raise them and put them through school. The maternal compassion shown by this lady who has dedicated her life to dispelling a bit of the darkness that engulfs Punjab, indeed all of India is nothing short of inspirational. Under her care and tutelage, these girls are all well adjusted individuals, willing and able to take their rightful place in a society that still seems to harbour a strong aversion to children of their gender. The girls brought to Unique Home grow up with a sense of belonging and this is the only home they know.

As we celebrate Lohri and welcome all the new born children into our families this is a good time to think about those children who aren’t lucky enough to have loving, doting families. Please share and let’s work together to raise awareness for these beautiful abandoned girls and bring more awareness to the issue of female infanticide in India.

Thank you so much for your support, it is greatly appreciated xx