An 18-year-old woman, Chaitanya Venkateswaran, from New Delhi had a unique opportunity to spend a day as the “British High Commissioner” last Wednesday. She was chosen to spend her day as the UK’s senior-most diplomat in India under the mission’s initiative aimed at empowering and highlighting the challenges faced by women across the world.

Venkasteswaran’s day as the UK’s top diplomat included handing out tasks to the High Commission’s department heads, interacting with senior woman police officers, meeting the press, and launching a study tracing the impact of British Council STEM scholarships on Indian women participants.

“…to be the British High Commissioner for a day was a golden opportunity,” Venkateswaran said. 

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She added, “My day was full of diverse experiences which have really broadened my perspective on the role of women and their representation in fields of media, policing and STEM. I am now more determined than ever to use my new knowledge and experience to help promote equitable treatment of women everywhere.”

The British High Commission has been organising the ‘High Commissioner for a Day’ competition every year since 2017, where it invites young Indian women, aged 18 to 23 years, to take over as their most senior diplomat.

Venkateswaran is the fourth young woman to take over as the British High Commissioner in an annual competition run by the UK mission in celebration of International Day of the Girl Child on October 11, the British High Commission said in a statement.

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Jan Thompson, the Deputy High Commissioner for that day and acting High Commissioner to India on other days, said this competition is one of his favourite moments of the year – an opportunity to provide a platform to extraordinary young women, and show how the UK and India are sharing expertise to ensure women and girls reach their full potential around the world.

“I was thrilled to relinquish my duties to Chaitanya for the day and was impressed with how confidently and competently she took on this role, a deserving winner out of an incredible 215 entries,” he said.

A recent high-school graduate from New Delhi, Venkateswaran is pursuing a bachelor’s degree with a full scholarship in International Studies and Economics, and certificate programmes in Advanced Leadership Studies and Political Thought at American University, Washington DC. She is currently studying remotely.