Nobel Prize winner Kailash Satyarthi on Wednesday congratulated Payal Jangid for winning the Changemaker award from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation here.
"Sumedha ji and I are so proud and moved to watch our daughter Payal receiving Changemaker Award from Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation now in New York. She refused her marriage and her entire village was free from child marriages and labour," Satyarthi's tweet read.
Coming from Hinsla village in Rajasthan, Payal served as the head of the Bal Panchayat (Children's Council) in her village as part of the 'Bal Mitra Gram' (Child-Friendly Village) program, which comes under Satyarthi's Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA).
Payal Jangid received the Changemaker Award at tonight's Goalkeepers Global Goals Awards. This award recognizes her campaign to end child labour and child marriage.
The annual Goalkeeper awards, in five categories, are presented to leaders and individuals for their efforts in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The categories are Progress, Changemaker, Campaign, Goalkeepers Voice and the Global Goalkeeper.
Prior to this, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation also honoured Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the Global Goalkeeper Award for his contributions to the cleanliness drive and efforts to "improve access to station in India through Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan."
The Swachh Bharat Mission was launched by the Modi government in 2014 and its components include the construction of household toilets, community and public toilets and solid waste management.
( With inputs from ANI )