Kathmandu, September 22

The organisers of the Wai Wai Everest Premier League, Zohra Sports Management today joined hands with Saathi for the social campaign, Our Appeal: Stop Violence Against Women and Girls.

As per the agreement, the two parties will work together to spread social message on violence against women and girls among youth, men and boys during the event slated for September 24 to October 3. In all, six franchise teams will take part in the event that features a total of 84 cricketers playing 15 matches in T20 format.

Strategic Director of Saathi, Bandana Rana said the objective of the campaign was to change the mindset of men to change the society. “This social campaign envisions to reach out to thousands of youth particularly men and boys with messages to change attitudes and perceptions towards women and girls,” said Rana. “Moreover, cricketers will act as ambassadors promoting the campaign and encouraging men and boys to join it and take active part in ending violence against women and girls starting from their homes and societies,” she added. “I hope this partnership will bring change in society and help us in our bid to build a violence-free community,” said Rana.

President of Saathi, Uma Shah highlighted the activities of her organisation. “With the belief that youths are the agents of social change, Saathi expects to use the tournament, having huge fan following and extensive media coverage, for social cause,” she said. “The programme is part of Saathi’s Addressing Social-barriers That Hampers Advancement of Women (ASTHA) project which is being implemented in eight districts of the country.”

Managing Director of Zohra International, Aamir Akhtar said the players would be used in various activities to raise awareness and support the project. “All 84 players will be committing for the campaign and we will also hold signature campaign apart from organizing various programmes to raise awareness among the fans,” he said. “The Wai Wai Everest Premier League is a good platform for the campaign as it involves a huge number of players, officials and spectators.”

General Manager of Radisson Hotel, Jaydeep Chakrabarti praised the campaign and said he was ready to tie up with Saathi for a longer period. “We are proud to be associated with Saathi for a noble cause and we can work together with various groups as we deal with different companies and people,” he said.