Nepal Investigative Multimedia Journalism Network (NIMJN) fellow Kalpana Bhattarai has won the South Asia Laadli Media and Advertising Awards for Gender Sensitivity (SALMAAGS) 2024. Kalpana was recognized for her investigative story, "Passage to India: How Nepali Children Are Smuggled to Monasteries across the Border to the South," which she produced at NIMJN. The story investigates how young Nepali children are smuggled to monasteries and about the abuses they go through. 

Fourteen journalists across South Asia’s seven countries, including two from Nepal, Kalpana, and BBC Nepali Correspondent Binita Dahal, are awarded this year. The award honors journalists for their efforts to promote gender sensitivity in the media throughout South Asia. The award is supported by UNFPA and is presented in collaboration with South Asian Women in Media (SAWM), the Asian Federation of Advertising Associations (AFAA), and the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA).

The award ceremony will be held at the Tata Theatre, NCPA, Mumbai, on October 9, 2024. Read the award-winning story here in Nepali and English.