Parineeti not Haryana ambassador for 'Beti Bachao': Minister

Haryana has not appointed Bollywood star Parineeti Chopra as the brand ambassador for the 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' campaign in the state, Social Justice, Empowerment and Women and Child Development Minister Kavita Jain said on Tuesday.

Jain was talking to media persons after participating in an event related to the campaign.

She said the Haryana government has not made any payment to Chopra for the purpose, and Chopra expressed her wish to work for the campaign without charging any fee.

A state government spokesman said on July 16 that Parineeti was chosen for the campaign as she hailed from the state's Ambala town.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had launched the nationwide campaign from Panipat town in January to promote the cause of the girl child.

The campaign was launched from Haryana as the state has the worst sex ratio at 879 females per 1,000 males. The child sex ratio in Haryana is the worst among all the states in the country.

Haryana's Health Minister Anil Vij recently tweeted that Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar kept him in the dark over Chopra's "appointment" as brand ambassador.