A few hours after birth, on 11 May 2000, a newborn at the Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi was named India’s billionth child. Government ministers posed for many photos with the girl wrapped in a pink blanket. As soon as Aastha was born, India reached the club where there was only China before – the club of a country with a population of 100 crores. At a function organized on the occasion, Michael Vlasoff, India’s representative of the United Nations Population Fund, described Aastha as a very special and unique child. Officials also said that the birth of faith is also a warning that India will have to think anew to control the population.
Headlines of newspapers around the world
The celebration after the birth became the headline of newspapers around the world, for several days at Aastha’s house in Najafgarh, Delhi, there was an influx of journalists. I was also part of a BBC team that visited India’s youngest celebrity and visited her home to talk to her mother, Anjana Arora.
Aastha doesn’t feel special anymore
On Sunday morning 22-year-old Aastha opened the door of her house for me. He told me that feeling special had stopped him years ago. He said that the leaders made many promises at the time of his birth, but they were never fulfilled.
Benefits of being in the media
It was a big deal for a girl child to come on TV, I loved this attention. Media attention also got some benefits. Aastha’s father was a salesman in a shop. Her monthly income was less than four thousand and it was getting difficult for her to pay the fees. Every year journalists used to come and tell stories on me, says Aastha. The school used to get free publicity from this, so from the second grade onwards, they used to waive my fees.
Money received from UNFPA funds
The family says that they got help of two lakhs only through a fund of UNFPA. It was used for Aastha’s college studies when she turned 18. This amount had increased to seven lakhs, and this amount helped in her nursing studies.
