Kids Motivational Stories | Kids Inspiration Stories

Armed with finger puppets and a bubble gun - this is how people at Pallium India’s facility in Thiruvananthapuram treat children with life-limiting or disabling diseases. Here is a look into the heart-breaking but beautiful world of palliative care for children there. On a Thursday in July, we got into a car and drove from the Pallium India headquarters at the Arumana Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram to the Sree Avittom Thirunal Government Hospital for the weekly children’s palliative care clinic. This project is spearheaded by Pallium India, a national registered charitable trust that focuses on palliative care. On their website, Pallium India outlines palliative care as care that “involves improving the quality of life of people with life-limiting or disabling diseases, by treating pain and other symptoms and by providing emotional, social and spiritual support”. We arrived through a scenic route onto the rambling grounds of the hospital, where the trees and the buildings seemed to be in silent battle for dominion – in some places the trees were winning. Inside the hospital wing housing the project, we were greeted with that familiar phenyl-laden odour, and the heavy silence which hangs in such corridors. The photographer and I were led into the clinic room by Smriti Rana, Consulting Psychologist and Programme Director of the Children’s Palliative Care Project - and almost immediately, our moods changed.

We were greeted by the smiling, bright faces of five-year-old Arif and eight-year-old Altaf, brothers who have cerebral palsy.

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5-year-old Arif[/caption] Arif immediately reached out, grabbed my hand, and proceeded to teach me how to draw.

Soon we were tying glitter bands on each other’s wrists, before moving rapidly from one activity to the next, based on Arif’s breathless whims.

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Altaf, seven-years-old, also has cerebral palsy and he is Arif’s older brother[/caption] There was nine-year-old Prija with microcephaly, a neurodevelopmental condition, which made her look several years younger than she was. She sat on her mother’s lap while getting her blood drawn by the clinic’s nurse, Sandhya.

Dr. Annie Varghese knew the name of each child entering the clinic: seven-year-old Satish Kumar with Down Syndrome, a congenital disorder; seven-year-old Reshma with a nephrotic condition that is steroid-resistant; and over ten other kids who filled the room.

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Satish Kumar (7) has Down Syndrome, a congenital disease. He is a huge fan of the Tamil actor Vijay.

Satish Kumar (7) has Down Syndrome. He is a huge fan of the Tamil actor Vijay.[/caption]

She cheerfully announced in Malayalam and English, “My apologies to all the mothers, but I only remember the names of your children”.

Prija sat still like a veteran while her blood was being drawn, but to the onlooker, her bravado was completely heart-breaking. Even small procedures like these are difficult affairs here, like with Altaf, who bawled and howled and refused to be next. At times like these, Smriti Rana comes to the rescue.

She immediately fished into a box of toys and pulled out a bubble gun, filling the room with a stream of bubbles. Altaf was awed, he laughed, and his blood was drawn without any trouble.

Smriti Rana is a master of joyous interruptions. She manages to turn a series of sombre medical procedures into a room celebrating a kid’s birthday party, with all the toppings. Glitter pens, glitter bands, empty sheets of paper, building blocks, and bubble guns are her weapons of choice, and she engages them regularly in her fight against sad, crying faces, painful procedures, and worried parents.

She doesn’t speak any Malayalam but through her touch and focussed attention, she is able to communicate, soothe, calm, and cajole.

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Smriti Rana, Consulting Psychologist and Programme Director of the Children’s Palliative Care Project, plays catalyst between the children and their mirth, at the Thursday clinics.

Smriti Rana plays catalyst between the children and their mirth, at the Thursday clinics.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_32097" align="aligncenter" width="1000"]

Building blocks and bubble guns: the toys of hope and happiness.[/caption]

“Our weekly clinic started about three years ago and seeing the need in the region, we (Pallium India) decided to open an in-patient facility. We have the plans in place and are now looking for the funding,” says Rana.

Her engagement with the children seems to mirror the motto of Pallium India: Care Beyond Cure.

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One of many patients at the Thursday clinic beams at a finger puppet.[/caption]

“One of the biggest misconceptions about palliative care is that it is terminal care. This is not true at all. The simplest explanation would be that it is an overall management of distress symptoms. These symptoms aren’t limited to pain; it means financial, emotional, physical, and spiritual support,” Rana explains.

“At Pallium India, we work with a gamut of conditions, not just terminal ones. For example, we work with paraplegics, but besides pain management and physiotherapy, we also do a home assessment and modify it – ramp it, lower the shelves, and so on – to make them as autonomous as possible. With children, we have to focus on the family as the unit of care. Most of the mothers and kids have been abandoned by the fathers. The women aren’t breadwinners and treatments are expensive, so in situations like this we might find a vocational training course for the mothers. In the case of healthy siblings, we look out for education opportunities through the organisation’s Kutty Kuttam, or Little Family initiative.” she adds.

Sometimes, this could mean that the family would still be under the care of the organisation long after the patient has passed away.

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Seven-year-old Reshma is content with her chosen building block, as her mother shares a laugh with Smriti Rana.[/caption] Palliative care is also different for children, because their needs are special and specific.

“Some of these children are locked inside their own heads and can’t have certain kinds of everyday interactions. Some of them have brittle bones; others cannot grasp and hold on to things. Our attempt is to interact, engage, play, laugh, and encourage mirth, which are also ways to manage and alleviate pain and distress,” said Rana. The toy drive was an initiative started by Rana to enliven the clinic’s environment.

On this particular Thursday, the bubble guns turned out to be the show-stopper. As we returned to Arumana Hospital, we bumped into ten-year-old Rahul who has rheumatoid arthritis and was getting ready for his physiotherapy. The visibly exhausted Rana burst into action all over again, running into the neighbouring room which housed the donated toys, to grab another bubble gun. While little Rahul was made to exercise his lungs on a spirometer, she surprised him with the bubble gun. Rahul squeezed the trigger and suddenly, the room was afloat with bubbles.

He laughed, and in that moment, he was just another happy child lost in the wonder of iridescent bubbles.

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10-year-old Rahul falls prey to Rana and her army of toys.[/caption] Pallium India is accepting toy donations for their weekly children’s palliative care clinic. Certain specifications need to be considered before sending the toys across, due to the nature of the children’s illnesses, so if you are interested in sending something across do write to them at info@palliumindia.org Follow Smriti Rana’s blog on the weekly children’s clinic here.

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Written by Joshua Muyiwa for Explara Leap and republished here in arrangement with Explara Leap.

This extremely useful app enables you to actively participate in the process of locating and uniting missing children with their families. Just click photos of street kids and upload them, or match an existing photo from the police database to that of a kid you see on the street. You will have done your good deed for the day! We often see homeless children wandering on the streets, begging or asking for food, trying to sell flowers, balloons, and knick-knacks. Or sometimes just staring at the moving traffic with blank eyes, lost in unknown thoughts. Little do we know about them and their hardships. Some of them have been abandoned, some of them have never seen their families and some of them have no clue about their origins. There are thousands of such children who have been separated from their families because of kidnapping, child trafficking or just because they ran away from their homes. Most families leave no stone unturned to find their loved ones but, after a point, many lose hope too and stop searching for the children. All they can hope for is that the police will find them someday and bring them back to their doorstep.

The police have to rely on the help of ordinary citizens — they cannot be everywhere to identify missing children among the hundreds of faces seen on the streets. Helping Faceless is an app that allows you to aid the police and NGOs in rescuing street children and reuniting them with their families.

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You see several kids on the roads and you do not know if they might be lost.[/caption] Shashank Singh, the man behind Helping Faceless, was almost kidnapped when he was very young. Thanks to an active bystander and his intervention, the kidnapping was not successful and Shashank safely reached home. But how many children are as lucky as Shashank? Shashank never forgot the frightful incident and it is what led to the birth of Helping Faceless in 2013. This mobile app enables people to play a crucial role in uniting missing children with their parents.

Using face recognition software, the app matches the photos of street children clicked by users and uploaded to the app with those of lost kids that are present in their database.

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Shashank Singh, was abducted as a child which inspired him to start Helping Faceless.

Shashank Singh was abducted as a child. This inspired him to launch Helping Faceless.[/caption] This database has been created with the help of missing children information collected from various resources like the police, NGOs, etc. In this way, the government and NGOs are able to locate the families and unite them.

“You take several photos every day. Now you can take photos for a cause. You see so many kids around you on the streets. You simply have to take photos of these kids by using our app and they will automatically get uploaded in our system,” says Amol Gupta, co-founder of Helping Faceless.

The user-friendly app requires you to log in from Facebook. Then, you can either click a new pic or upload it from your gallery. You can also help by identifying and matching the already existing images on the app. After seeing two similar images on the screen, you can press “yes” if you think the photo is of the same person and “no” if the pictures don’t match. You also have the option of “Can’t Say”.

“The more people use it, the better will be the chances to identify the kids,” says Gupta. Helping Faceless has also come up with a WhatsApp group where people can share the information about the kids along with their photos.

The main team of four behind the app works with over 100 volunteers who have been actively trying to get more people to use the app. To make it easier for people to become a part of it, they have opened up the platform on Facebook, so that people can upload photos there. The Helping Faceless team will then take these photos from the timeline and upload it on their app to add to the database. "Since many people might not be interested in downloading the app or might not have a phone that supports it, they can use Facebook to upload photos of the missing kids. Our volunteers will take the authentic photos from there and upload it on the app," says Shashank To avoid spam and repetition of photos, the uploads on the page are moderated by the team. They have also collaborated with several police departments and six NGOs to get the data of lost kids and help the identified kids.

“When you lose someone, even the smallest lead is crucial. So even if someone spots a lost kid in a particular locality, it is a big clue for us and the kid’s family,” says Gupta.

Thanks to the intervention by Helping Faceless, one child in Vashi, Mumbai, was saved from a life on the streets.

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The app helps you match the faces of missing children.[/caption] "Our volunteer saw a kid sleeping near the railway track and he looked weak and hungry. She clicked his photo and shared it with me. We immediately contacted the police for an intervention and when we met him, we found out that his family stayed nearby. He had told them that he was going to attend school but had run away from his home instead," recalls Shashank. The Helping Faceless team approached the kid, found the family and counselled them. They paid regular visits to make sure that the kid was safe and did not run away from his house again. "Life on the streets is very short. There are many dangers like trafficking, accidents, etc. A child cannot be safe on the streets all by himself for over 4-5 days. It requires an immediate intervention, and that is why we make sure that we contact the police as soon as we find something suspicious," says Shashank. The app has been downloaded by about 5,000 users who have contributed to the database of lost kids. But the picture is not as simple as it looks. It is very difficult to get the right matches. Also, not many people actively use the app which makes it difficult to get new photos.

But gradually, by partnering with more NGOs and getting more people to download the app, the Helping Faceless team has been trying to make it more effective.

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You can match the existing photos or you can also upload new photos.[/caption] In the future, they want to take the app to more countries and want to track the patterns of such cases. “If we get a good database, we will be able to trace where most of the kids come from, where do they go, what do they do, etc. Tracking the pattern in which kids go missing will make later searches easy,” says Gupta. The interesting app, if used by the masses, can be very effective in tracking lost kids. You can download the app here and begin the process of helping. To know more about their work, contact them at: community-manager@helpingfaceless.com, call them on +91 8879026299 or check out their website and Facebook page.

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A toddler found tied to a post in a goat shed, a widow so traumatized she became mute, a teenager who was trafficked by her mother and stepfather – these are but a few who have escaped their dark pasts to find a home in Bal Sadan. Pooja and her sister Nisha come from a middle class home. Their mother was abused and thrown out by her family over a property dispute. Consequently, she lost her mental balance and ended up living like a beggar on the premises of a temple with her two little infants. From there she was rescued by the team of Bal Sadan, a home for orphan and destitute women and children in Panchkula, Haryana. Today, Pooja is educated and works with the Oberoi Hotel in Delhi after having completed her hotel management course. Her sister takes care of the front office at Bal Sadan. There are many other stories like this – Khushi who was found tied to a post in a goat shed, two siblings whose parents were murdered, and a girl who was trafficked by her mother and stepfather, to name just a few.

These are but a few examples of children who have lived through the darkest of times to find light at the end of the tunnel. And this light has come to them from a place they now call home – a home run by ordinary people belonging to the community in Panchkula. A home called Bal Sadan.

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Hundreds of kids have left behind their dark past and found a new life at Bal Sadan.

Many kids have left behind their dark past and found a new life at Bal Sadan.[/caption] Bal Sadan’s story goes back to 1992 when a helpless lady landed on the door of Panchkula resident, Satish Almadi. She was running away from her abusive husband, with three kids in tow. Almadi took pity on her condition and gave her shelter. This was the start of an initiative that has now become a movement. In 1993, Almadi registered an NGO, Bal Sadan, after a few other such cases came to light. After two years of incredible work rescuing and sheltering destitute women and children, Almadi passed away in 1995, leaving behind a home that was now in the hands of other enthusiasts. But soon, the NGO took a negative direction – clothes, toys, and rations being donated for the children were being sold in the open market and the children were living in unhygienic conditions. This is when Kalpana Ghai, a hotel management professional working in Chandigarh, intervened. “I was shocked by the conditions I saw at Bal Sadan. I wanted to do something to improve things. But the governing body was not quite happy with my intervention. There were a lot of allegations and controversy. I had to leave that place but I managed to start again from scratch,” recalls Kalpana.

That was the second birth of Bal Sadan, a home that provides shelter and nurture to destitute children – right from meeting their emotional needs to providing them with a good education to motivating them to put their often traumatic pasts behind and excel in various fields and jobs.

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The kids are taught various life skills that can help them stand on their own feet as adults.[/caption] With the help of many friends and well-wishers in the community, Kalpana launched herself into a dynamic fund raising exercise. She had found the 25 children of Bal Sadan in a small one-room space living in appalling conditions. She was determined now that they should have their own home in a proper building with a kitchen, toilets, separate sleep and study space, and a common area. It took a few years but Bal Sadan now has its own building in Panchkula. It houses 50 children and is no less than a holistic learning centre. The kids are sent to good schools; they come back and have tuition classes if required. Recreational activities are lined up for later in the afternoon – these include karate, yoga, art and craft, music, dance, computers, etc. Regular outings are organised where kids are taken to concerts, events, the zoo, films, and out-of-town trips.

The students also try their hands at gardening and have yearly cultural programmes, which they eagerly await.

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Bal Sadan is not an orphanage but a home for all the kids who live here.[/caption] But make no mistake, this is not an ordinary school. A lot of work goes into rehabilitating these children who come to the Sadan with mental and emotional problems related to their past.

“Everyday is a struggle. They come from different backgrounds and have faced different difficulties. Some of them have run away from a child marriage, one girl was sold by her own parents for Rs. 60,000, one faced domestic violence. We have to deal with each one of them very patiently. We have experts and counsellors who regularly visit the girls when needed,” says Kalpana.

Kalpana says she is very conscious of the fact that Bal Sadan is not a house but a “home” to the children – many of them have known no other family and home all their lives.

Therefore, the Sadan will not abandon the children once they turn 18. They will help the children, most of whom are girls, find good jobs and even life partners once they reach the right age.

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Bal Sadan continues to provide support even when a kid turns 18.

Bal Sadan continues to provide support even after a kid turns 18.[/caption]

“We are not just an NGO. We are their home. Even when they get married, they still need a home to go back to. We are that home and provide not just educational support but most importantly an emotional support, which these kids need the most,” says Kalpana.

“We empower each one of them to live on their own terms. We make sure that they get jobs of good quality and don’t end up working as house helps, etc. After they get jobs we send the girls to working women’s hostels and they are welcome to come visit us and stay with us anytime they want,” says Kalpana. Bal Sadan’s efforts have also been recognised by the Haryana government, which now donates Rs. 2,000 every month for each child at the Sadan.

However, says Kalpana, the one place where they face a cash crunch is when the children want to pursue professional courses after finishing high school.

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The Bal Sadan team also helps the kids to find good jobs as well.

The Bal Sadan team also helps the kids in finding good jobs.[/caption] “I have young women here who are waiting to pursue courses in nursing, computer engineering, law, a bachelor’s in education, a company secretary course. We need money to send these girls to college so they can get good jobs and settle down in life. It is easy enough to send them to school, but these professional courses are expensive.”

“Just because they come from mostly poor backgrounds does not mean they can’t have good jobs. They should have equal opportunities. We encourage our students to take up mainstream courses and get fine jobs like any other person,” says Kalpana.

If you would like to extend your support to Bal Sadan and help fulfill a young girl’s dream to attend a professional development course, you can get in touch with Kalpana at kalpanasghai@gmail.com, or check out their website.

Like this story? Or have something to share? Write to us: contact@thebetterindia.com, or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter (@thebetterindia).

A well-known and well-loved animal shelter in Delhi, Friendicoes, is facing an enormous financial crunch and is on the verge of shutting down. Many people from around the country are trying to help by raising funds for this animal home. But we’re really inspired by the story of Diva, a Class 12 student, who raised an incredible Rs 1 lakh in just 3 days for this cause. Diva Sharma loves animals. But her affection for the four legged species is not limited to just sharing cute dog and cat videos on social media. She is a girl of action and her efforts are helping her favourite animal shelter keep its doors open.

Diva was one of the first few who stepped up on hearing the sad news about the shelter.

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Diva shares a close bond with animals at Friendicoes which inspired her to do something about the shelter's fund crunch.[/caption]

“I share a very close bond with Friendicoes and the animals there. I have been working on a project ‑ called Project Petsafe ‑ related to animal welfare. This has been going on for some time now and it’s also how I first got in touch with Friendicoes; they happily agreed to help me with it. I have seen their work closely and I know how amazing they are. When I got to know about their financial crunch I just knew I had to help them out,” says Diva.

Soon, Diva, a student of GD Goenka Public School, was on a mission to save Friendicoes. She started raising funds for the shelter home and approached her friends and school for the same. She made an announcement in the school assembly and requested the students and teachers to donate whatever they could. Both responded with alacrity.

“Children are naturally compassionate towards animals. I knew if I asked the school children they’d come forward for help. Though Freindicoes had started an online fundraising campaign already, not many people knew about it. Many people are not familiar with the concept of online crowd-funding. That is when I first thought of raising funds for this cause,” she says.

Related Story: How People Across India Donated Rs 13 Lakh in a Day to Save an Animal Shelter from Shutting Down

To increase the reach of her initiative, Diva started a Facebook page called Project Petsafe, where she invited more people to donate. She also approached her friends from other schools and put up posters at various locations. She soon started getting many calls from across Delhi. Many schools approached her and showed an interest in supporting her initiative. So far, about seven schools from Delhi have shown interest in helping with Diva’s mission to save Friendicoes.

Diva’s aggressive efforts have really paid off -- she managed to raise Rs 1 lakh in just three days.

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Diva Sharma raised over a lakh in just three days for Friendicoes.[/caption]

“This was more than what we had expected. The response was phenomenal and so many people showed their love towards Friendicoes,” she says.

She also plans to collaborate with Friendicoes to organise small events and concerts to raise more funds. “We plan to organise such concerts in October. I guess this will help us raise funds faster and in a more structured manner,” she says. Diva’s efforts won’t stop at just donating this first round of funding (Rs 1 lakh) to Friendicoes. She plans to continue her support by raising additional funds, as well as collecting food, medical supplies and other necessary material for the animals. Helping Friendicoes stay open is just one step towards the larger goal Diva wants to achieve.

As part of Project Petsafe, Diva has been working on developing a monitoring mechanism to detect distress in animals.

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Diva is also working on a project to help animals in distress.[/caption]

“I had a dog and she saw a very painful death because we could not identify the issue in time. There was no mechanism that could detect her need for medical intervention at an early stage. I was very close to her and this is when I decided to work on a project that can help cater to the immediate medical need of an already sick animal,” she says.

To know more about Diva’s work, contact her at - dsharma1998@gmail.com. Support her to raise more funds for Freindicoes through her Facebook page. Check out her website for details on her other interesting projects.

Like this story? Or have something to share? Write to us: contact@thebetterindia.com, or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter (@thebetterindia).

This article on using mobile technology for social good is part of the #Mobile4Good series & is made possible by Vodafone India.

ReThink is an innovative technology that detects cyber-bullying, or hurtful and bullying words – on text messages, emails, social media communications and any app that uses a keyboard – and gives a chance to the person writing them to rethink his or her actions. The developer is a 15-year-old adolescent who deserves kudos for her mature thinking and innovation. Trisha Prabhu was just 13 when she heard about an 11-year-old girl who jumped off her town's water tank and committed suicide because she was repeatedly cyber-bullied. The incident had a deep impact on her. “I was shocked, heart-broken and angry. How could a girl younger than myself be pushed to take her own life? This was unacceptable! I knew I had to do something to stop this from ever happening again,” says Trisha, now 15, who lives in Naperville in the US. [caption id="attachment_33135" align="aligncenter" width="2048"]

Trisha started working on the project when she heard about a girl's suicide due to cyber bullying.

Trisha started working on the project when she heard about a girl committing suicide after being cyber bullied.[/caption] The incident reminded Trisha about the time she too was cyber bullied. “I had received offensive messages about my wardrobe choices. I am what you’d call thick-skinned, so I just brushed it off and moved on. But after reading this story, I realized that many adolescents get really affected, especially if the cyber-bullying is repeated and targeted,” she says. This is when Trisha started researching the issue of cyber-bullying and found that more than 50% of adolescents who go online are cyber-bullied. Victims suffer from depression, low self-esteem and anxiety and are often afraid to go back to school; they eventually drop out. Over 38% of the victims suffer from suicidal tendencies. It was during her research that she read an article, which gave her the idea that can potentially change the lives of hundreds of adolescents who are cyber-bullied.

“The article said an adolescent brain was like a car with no brakes. No pausing! No thinking! Just acting! It’s all too well-known that adolescents make impulsive, rash decisions. I further researched this topic to identify why adolescents make impulsive decisions. There is a part of the brain called the pre-frontal cortex. It is the part that controls decision-making and is not fully developed until the age of 25,” she explains.

The revolutionary idea and how it works

She then thought: What if these kids are given a chance to reconsider before they actually post a message on social media? What if they are given a warning to think about their actions? This mature thinking gave birth to the revolutionary idea of ReThink, a software that filters offensive messages and gives a person a chance to change them before posting. The software has patented, sophisticated context-sensitive filtering that detects hurtful messages as they are typed and pops-up a non-intrusive alert that gives adolescents a second chance to pause, review and rethink before sending that hurtful message. The app, called Rethink - Stops Cyberbullying, can be downloaded for free from the Google Play store. Parents can also download the app and install it on their young children’s phones and computers to enable them to rethink the posts they make. The software works on all apps and platforms -- including text messages, social media, emails, etc. -- any device that uses a keyboard.

“The ReThink solution not only helps the victim, it also helps the bully change his or her behavior. It helps kids develop key decision making skills on and off the internet. ReThink allows teens to become responsible digital-citizens,” says Trisha.

The astonishing results

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Trisha's initiative has shown 93 percent success rate.

Trisha's initiative has shown a 93 percent success rate.[/caption] Trisha tested the prototype on about 1,500 users, all adolescents, and the results were amazing. Over 93% of the time, adolescents changed their minds and decided not to post offensive or hurtful messages after they received notifications or alert messages from ReThink.

“I think this was a huge success for me. Parents and teachers often find themselves trying to resolve bullying situations AFTER bullying has occurred. But this software will address the issue at source and not after the damage is done,” she says.

What seems like a simple yet powerful solution wasn’t easy to implement since Trisha is still a school student. She had familiarize herself with technology to create this app, and work while managing her hectic school schedule simultaneously. “I loved every bit of it though,” she quickly adds. The app, which has been downloaded by about 100 people so far, still needs more recognition and Trisha hopes more children and parents will use it on their digital devices. Her innovation won her a spot as a Google Science Fair 2014 global finalist, and also won several other awards. The award money that she received from these competitions went towards refining her prototype.

The future

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ReThink works on all Android supported devices.[/caption] In the future, Trisha wants to make ReThink available on iStore as well. Her goal is to roll out ReThink to all adolescents, schools, libraries, and communities for free.

“If I make a positive difference in the lives of many in the next 10 years, I would consider myself to be on the right track. I would love to continue on my path to social entrepreneurship and be a change agent for issues that are affecting our society. I definitely would continue to work on unravelling the secrets of the brain and understanding how they affect behaviour,” she says.

[embedvideo id="YkzwHuf6C2U" website="youtube"] As for other young innovators like her, she has a powerful message for them too: “You don't have to wear a white lab coat or have Albert Einstein's hair to be a scientist. Just look around yourself, find a problem that you are passionate about and take on the cause to solve the issues. As Steve Jobs said: simple is much harder than complex, original much harder than derived. In the end, when you get there, you can move mountains.” You can download the ReThink app here. Want to know more about her work? Contact her at contact@trishaprabhu.com - or check out her website.

Like this story? Or have something to share? Write to us: contact@thebetterindia.com, or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter (@thebetterindia).

“It’s not an orphanage. It’s a children’s home and we are their parents. We are their only family and we make sure we do the best we can for them,” says Shobha Kumar about a very special place called Spandana. In 2009, Hyderabad-based couple Shobha and Uttam Kumar came across an 11-year-old mentally challenged girl sleeping on the street, surviving on just a chapati and water that an auto driver gave her every day. Moved by the sight, Shobha and Uttam decided to help the girl and enquired about her family. When no one came forward, they decided to take her home. They took care of the abandoned girl like their own child, and after a few weeks, got her admitted into a centre for mentally challenged kids. But the incident left a huge impression on them. It also became a trigger for starting a refuge for abandoned and needy kids called Spandana.

“It’s not an orphanage. It’s a children’s home and we are their parents. We are their only family and we make sure we do the best we can for them,” says Shobha.

Uttam and Shobha take in children who are either orphaned or have a single parent not able to take good care of them.

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Shobha treats the kids like her own.[/caption] The focus is on those kids who need immediate support and intervention. The minimum age for a kid to become part of Spandana is six years. Once the children enter Spandana, they are given all the facilities and opportunities that they never had before. From healthy food to clean clothes and a good education, Spandana leaves no stone unturned to change their lives for the better.

Those kids who are keen on studying are sent to a local school, while others who want to become self-dependent are given vocational skills.

[caption id="attachment_33671" align="aligncenter" width="2048"]

Kids are given opportunities which they never had.[/caption] After six days of schooling and training, the first half of every Sunday is spent on extra-curricular activities like kabaddi, karate, skating, music, dance, and much more.

“We organize classes based on a child’s interest. For example, many girls in Spandana were interested in learning stitching so we organized regular tailoring classes for them,” says Anjali Daryanani, newly appointed director of Spandana.

What sets Spandana apart from many organisations that take in abandoned kids, is the close bond Shobha and Uttam share with the children at this home.

The couple is so attached to them emotionally that they say this is the reason they did not even have their own kids.

[caption id="attachment_33668" align="aligncenter" width="2048"]

From good food to healthy living, Spandana leaves no stone unturned to improve the lives of these kids.[/caption] The Kumars have inculcated the habit of kindness among the children and asked them to help three underprivileged kids each when they grow up and are in a position to help someone. It is this close bond and valuable advice that is cherished by all the 59 kids at Spandana, who support each other like family.

Children who were completely illiterate are now excelling in studies, and kids who would often steal and hit other kids are now giving and compassionate.

[caption id="attachment_33669" align="aligncenter" width="2048"]

Spandana has all smiling faces and chirpy souls.[/caption] The gradual change is evident and for this they cannot thank their “parents” Shobha and Uttam enough for giving them a home and family to call their own. “The transformation is huge. Many of them were unpredictable, wild, lacking in positivity and respect for others. Today they are well behaved, compassionate, loving and simply amazing,” says Anjali. However, things don’t always go smoothly at Spandana. Sometimes, the new kids run away and have to be relocated by the team. At other times, many of them have mood swings, emotional breakdowns and other small and big requirements.

“It is a slow process getting them to settle down. It requires a lot of patience and strong will,” says Anjali.

[caption id="attachment_33672" align="aligncenter" width="2048"]

Kids also get a chance to learn skills of their choice.[/caption] Hanumanthu is one such kid who was very quiet and reserved when he first came to Spandana. He would not talk to anyone as he was traumatised from the physical abuse he had suffered prior to coming there. Today, Hanumanthu is a changed young fellow. He is cheerful and never misses a chance to help other housemates. Manisha Yetamoni is also another child who was just six years old when her mother dropped her off at the doorstep of Spandana. Manisha’s mother never looked back and there was no other family member that Manisha could go to. Manisha is 11 now and has transformed into a charming little girl.

Spandana has come a long way since it started. Today, it hosts 59 students and has the capacity to host a total of 70 kids.

[caption id="attachment_33670" align="aligncenter" width="2048"]

Spandana focuses on kids with dark pasts and those who need immediate intervention.[/caption] “We do not want to overburden ourselves and the kids too. We want to restrict our numbers so that we can focus more on the kids we already have in the house,” says Anjali. The organization, which currently runs on donations, requires about Rs. 60,000 every month for the functioning of the home. Many generous people have come forward to support Shobha and Uttam’s cause by sponsoring a few children but the struggle to arrange funds every month continues to be a challenge for this couple. “We want to provide scholarships to the bright students who want to pursue higher studies. We want to support them in the best possible way and for that we constantly need help,” says Anjali. To know more about Spandana’s work, or to support some students, contact them at - info@spandanaindia.org, spandana1999@gmail.com or check out their website.

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Muskan was born with a hole in her heart, under-developed lungs, partial paralysis, and several other disorders. Doctors said she wouldn’t live for more than 100 hours. Muskan is now 16 years old and an inspiration to thousands. She has authored two books, is a motivational speaker, a radio show host, and much more. This is the story of her indomitable spirit. “Am I talking too much and too fast?”16-year-old Muskan Devta asked several times during the long interview. In fact, she sounded just like a regular teenager, prattling on about her school, friends, family, her dreams, and much more.

But Muskan is not a regular kid. Muskan was born with hemiplegia, a condition that left one side of her body paralyzed.

[caption id="attachment_34837" align="aligncenter" width="709"]

Doctors said Muskan would not live for more than 100 hours. She is 16 now and doing wonders.[/caption] Not only this, she was also born with a hole in her heart and under-developed lungs.

“Doctors had said that she would not live for more than 100 hours. But she did. And that was all I could ask for. She is 16 now and every day has been special for us. I have dedicated my entire life to her and she has been an amazing daughter. I couldn’t ask for more,” says Jaimini, Muskan’s mother.

Born in Ahmedabad, India, Muskan was taken to New Zealand when she was just four because the kind of medical care and facilities she needed were not easily available in the country then. Muskan found adjusting to a new school and environment difficult. [caption id="attachment_34841" align="aligncenter" width="644"]

Muskan is very close to her little brother who was her first friend[/caption]

“Students would make fun of me. Nobody wanted to be my friend. I would always be alone and would cry every day after returning from school. I would ask God why he did this to me and I would crave for a normal life like other kids,” she recalls.

She would spend time reading since she had nothing else to do. When she was nine, she showed a desire to learn swimming but was denied lessons at a local swimming pool in Auckland due to her disability.

She was even told that she would never be able to swim. Today Muskan swims at an advanced level at the same pool.

[caption id="attachment_34840" align="aligncenter" width="580"]

Muskan's childhood is spend in hospital visits but it never pulls her down.

Muskan's childhood was spent in hospital visits but it never pulled her down.[/caption] Since Muskan did not have many friends, she developed a close bond with her family, especially her little brother.

“Before he was born I felt very alone. I had no friends. But ever since he entered my life he has made sure that I feel confident and happy. He takes care of me so much and loves me unconditionally. He is my first friend,” she says with deep affection about her brother.

During one of her regular visits to the physiotherapy centres, Muskan found out that the centre needed an exercise bike but did not have enough funds for one.

She came back home and decided to write a book to raise funds to buy the bike ‑ she was ready with the first draft of the book in just a day.

[caption id="attachment_34838" align="aligncenter" width="710"]

the passionate girl has been invited to various platforms to talk about her life experiences.

The inspiring girl has been invited to various platforms to talk about her life experiences.[/caption] Her first book, on Lord Ganesha, was published at the age of nine. It received a great response and was included in the Ministry of Education’s 2010 journal that was distributed to all New Zealand schools. Since then, Muskan has written many pieces for local publications and even written her autobiography, I Dream, to inspire other kids with disabilities. The book has been included in the English curriculum for Year 9 students at Westlake Girls School in Auckland. About 1,000 copies of the book have been published so far and she has managed to earn over NZD 2,500 from the sale of half of these books. All proceedings were donated to Auckland’s Starship Hospital where Muskan first had surgery at the age of 13.

Apart from being a successful author, Muskan also had a radio show at a Hindi radio channel, in New Zealand.

[caption id="attachment_34839" align="aligncenter" width="417"]

Muskan's radio show had thousands of listeners.[/caption] She was the youngest host on this channel and had about 59,000 listeners who looked forward to her show Muskan and You every week. “I would talk about various issues like bullying, road safety, self esteem, education, music, movies, and much more,” she recalls. [caption id="attachment_34843" align="aligncenter" width="594"]

She wrote her first book when she was just nine.[/caption] Muskan, a girl who once struggled to just live, is now an inspiration to thousands of kids and adults. She is a motivational speaker and will be speaking at September’s Festival for the Future and Zeal Tall Poppy, which showcase young inspirational people from around the world. With her positive attitude, Muskan has not only changed her own life but also that of many people around her. “I never say no. I take challenges and make sure I succeed,” she says. You can watch Muskan’s inspiring TEDx talk - [embedvideo id="kl42kv_1HzI" website="youtube"] To know more about her, contact Jaimini at - jaimini_devta@yahoo.com

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More than one lakh children go missing in our country every year. Most of them are never found again by their families and vanish into the unknown. Vansh could have been one such child had not an NGO called Drishti, 1,500 km away from his home, found his father with the help of some good people in Sikkim and the Station House Officer in Modinagar. Vansh is the second among three sons of Mr. Babli Gujjar. He lost his mother when he was just four. Mr. Gujjar works in an oxygen plant located in Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh. After the death of his wife, his mother took care of the children but, just a few years ago, she too passed away. Now, Mr.Gujjar had no choice other than leaving the children alone at his residence at Modinagar, Sikri Khurd, in the Gaziabad district of Uttar Pradesh (UP), when he went to work. The children used to play at home after coming back from school, until their father came back from work. Mr. Gujjar felt bad about this but he was just an oxygen cylinder filler who earned about enough to feed his children and could not afford a caretaker for them. On June 22, 2013, just like any other day, 8-year-old Vansh was playing with his brothers, Dipanshu and Varun, after coming back home from school. But Vansh wandered off too far while playing and reached the railway gate located almost 1 km away from his house. He found a stationary train there and, out of curiosity, climbed aboard. Soon, the train started moving. A helpless and scared Vansh, not knowing what else to do, sat quietly till the train reached Chennai.

When he got down at Chennai, two people took him to Siliguri, and then to a place near Singla Tea Estate,West Bengal. Later, a Lepcha couple from Soreng, Sikkim, 'adopted' him illegally and kept him in their house, as a foster child.

[caption id="attachment_36068" align="aligncenter" width="1448"]

Vansh was sold to a childless couple in Chennai.

Vansh was illegally sold to a childless couple in Sikkim.[/caption] Unaware of all this, Vansh’s distraught father filed a missing complaint with the Modinagar police station about his son. But, unfortunately, he did not have a recent photograph of Vansh that he could give to the police, and hence it was all the more difficult to trace him. Finally, after one year (in 2014), Mr. Gujjar found a photograph of Vansh that had been clicked by a relative at a marriage function. He gave this to the police.

“I went wherever possible to search for my child. I searched all around Modinagar, Gaziabad, Delhi, and even Haridwar. I used to take leave from work for 10 to 15 days at a stretch and go looking for Vansh. I lost all hope of getting him back,” says Mr. Gujjar.

[caption id="attachment_36292" align="aligncenter" width="500"]

Vansh's father, Mr. Babli Gujjar[/caption] In the meantime, the couple who had adopted Vansh started abusing him physically whenever he demanded to go back home. Vansh, too, lost all hope of returning to Modinagar. However, a good samaritan who stayed near Vansh’s new house couldn't see the pain in his eyes. On September 16, 2015, he called an NGO, Drishti, in Namchi, and narrated the story of the boy.

Mr. Passang Tshering Bhutia, General Secretary of Drishti, with the help of a few other officials in Namchi and Gangtok, rescued Vansh on September 16, 2015. Vansh was brought to Manjusha, a short-stay home run by Drishti for temporary shelter.

[caption id="attachment_36293" align="aligncenter" width="500"]

Mr. Bhutia, from the NGO Drishti, rescued Vansh from his 'foster' family.[/caption] On being rescued, Vansh told Mr. Bhutia: “I told them (his 'foster' parents) repeatedly that my house is in Modinagar but they used to hit me whenever I said this. So I stopped asking them to drop me back home.” Mr. Bhutia used Google to locate Modinagar in the Gaziabad district of Uttar Pradesh. He also showed a picture of the Modi temple to Vansh to confirm that this indeed was his hometown. Vansh recognized the temple. Now that they were sure that he was from the Gaziabad area, Mr. Bhutia contacted the police there. However, Vansh’s last name got written down as Gujrati instead of Gujjar, which led the police to search for Gujrati families in Modinagar. After eight days, when nothing remarkable happened, Mr. Bhutia searched for the number of the Station House Officer (SHO) of Modinagar Mr. Deepak Sharma, and called him.

Without wasting a minute, SHO Sharma asked Mr. Bhutia to send him the kid’s picture on Whatsapp and also asked Vansh for some landmarks close to his house.

Vansh told them that his house was located near a flour mill and there was a shop which had lots of big speakers nearby. The SHO also figured out that Vansh might be a Gujjar and not Gujrati, as most of the people in Modinagar belonged to the Gujjar community. With all this information, finally, the police were able to trace Vansh’s father on October 1, 2015. Once again, Mr. Gujjar’s photograph was also shared through Whatsapp with Mr. Bhutia so that he could show it to Vansh for identification. Vansh's father, Mr. Babli Gujjar, and his uncle Mr. Lalit Kumar, reached Namchi on October 6, 2015 and all the formalities of reuniting the father and son were done by the Child Welfare Committee there. [caption id="attachment_36294" align="aligncenter" width="500"]

Vansh is reunited with his family again. From L to R: Mr. Babli Gujjar, Vansh, Mr. Bhutia, and Mr. Lalit Kumar[/caption]

On October 8, 2015, just thirteen days before Vansh’s 11th birthday, his father took him home in a train again.

[caption id="attachment_36295" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]

SHO of Modinagar, Mr. Deepak Sharma, with Vansh and his father, Mr. Gujjar.[/caption] “I can’t thank Mr. Bhutia and Drishti enough! I had lost all hopes of getting my child back. It’s like a miracle and they are like angels for me,” says Mr. Babli Gujjar. You can contact Mr. Bhutia from Drishti at passonmc@rediffmail.com

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When was the last time you smiled at a liftman or returned the morning wish of a watchman? Appreciated the kind people who are at your service even when you don’t notice them? These college students from Delhi did something remarkable for a liftman who had been with their institution for 34 years. And, in the process, sent an important message to the rest of us as well. The watchman, the peon, the liftman, the gardener – aren’t these some of the very first people one sees on entering a college building? And also the first few people whose smiles mark the beginning of a new day for most students who walk the same paths and corridors every day? While students enter and leave colleges every four to five years, these people keep doing their jobs silently and perfectly, day in and day out. They play a crucial role in the smooth functioning of a college and also form a special bond of friendship with many students.

Dhaniram, the ex-liftman at the School of Planning and Architecture (SPA) in Delhi, is one such person.

[caption id="attachment_36485" align="aligncenter" width="700"]

Dhaniramji[/caption] This 60-year-old man, respectfully known as Dhaniram ji, spent 34 years of his life working as the liftman at the college. Be it students, parents, visitors, faculty members, or old students who have now become teachers, Dhaniramji knows one and all.

“He is a really nice guy, a very friendly human being and a very important part of the college family,” says Ayush Kamalia, a fourth year student at SPA.

And so, when it was announced a month ago that the liftman is going to retire on Sept. 30, 2015, students knew they had to do something for the man, something that would help him remember the college and its students forever.

So they got together, pitched in money, and organized a full-fledged, colourful, creative, and memorable farewell party for Dhaniram ji, leaving the old man both overjoyed and teary-eyed at the same time.

[caption id="attachment_36486" align="aligncenter" width="1500"]

Dhaniram welcomed to his farewell party[/caption]

On Sept. 23, Dhaniram ji received a very warm and loud welcome by a gathering that had students, faculty members, administrative staff, and just about everyone from the college.

[caption id="attachment_36487" align="aligncenter" width="1500"]

The entire college was there[/caption]

“Everyone wanted to come together to thank him for his service, for his time and for his gleaming smile that brings out more happy wrinkles than the years he has given to the college,” says Ayush.

Being architecture students, everybody tried to contribute with their creative efforts.

[caption id="attachment_36488" align="aligncenter" width="700"]

A very important part of the college family[/caption] Dhaniram ji was pleasantly surprised with a miniature model of a lift, inside which he found a scroll with a personal message thanking him for being his awesome self, and a memento marking his time in the college. Other gifts included a wallet, belt, wrist watch, and some cash. Faculty members gave gifts as well. One of the most incredible gifts was some graffiti – the students had painted Dhaniram ji’s face inside the lift, capturing his memory for years to come.

Students and teachers also took to the podium to speak about him and thank him – each sharing their own anecdotes and memorable experiences about Dhaniram ji.

[caption id="attachment_36489" align="aligncenter" width="1500"]

Everyone had stories to share[/caption]

The director and heads of departments, who have known Dhaniram ji since they were students, thanked him for understanding the college and contributing to its growth.

[caption id="attachment_36494" align="aligncenter" width="700"]

And nobody wanted him to leave[/caption] This was followed by an event organised by a college society named Gupshup, which usually invites some eminent personalities from outside to come and give inspirational talks to the students.

This month, the chief guest and speaker at the event was none other than Dhaniram ji.

He was overwhelmed and really excited about the respect he was receiving at the place to which he had dedicated a large part of his life.

There was a ‘Wall of Thanks’ as well, and people wrote their messages on it throughout the day.

[caption id="attachment_36491" align="aligncenter" width="1000"]

Wall of Thanks[/caption]

“On days when we did not have our assignments ready, we would ask Dhaniram ji to speak with the concerned faculty and tell them not to take submissions that day. And he would joke around with us. That was the kind of relationship we had with him. First year students who used to enter the college afraid and anxious, always felt calmer after speaking with him. If you were in any sort of trouble, all you had to do was to speak to him to feel better”, says Ayush, remembering his first days at the college.

The farewell ended with lunch and some tears as everyone got emotional about the fact that a legendary figure of the college was about to leave.

[caption id="attachment_36490" align="aligncenter" width="1500"]

A memorable day[/caption] Every college, school, office, and administrative building has a Dhaniram – the man or woman who knows every nook and corner of the place, every face, every emotion, and yet, always remains in the background. The SPA students, who took such a wonderful step for Dhaniram ji, have an important message for all – that people like Dhaniram should be given the respect and love they deserve for their extraordinary service. And once in a while, they should be made to feel as special as they make others feel!

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The Bedia community of MP celebrates the birth of a girl child – but for a very different reason. One organization, Samvedna, has decided to intervene and open the gates of education and different livelihood options for this community. Here's more. In the heart of Madhya Pradesh, every time a woman is pregnant, the family hopes the child won’t be a boy. While many parts of India still see female foeticide and killings of newborn girls often, the Bedia community wishes to have more girls. At first glance, this may look like the winds of change are finally beginning to arrive in Bedia. But the reality is much darker.

What makes the Bedia community unique is their age-old tradition of introducing girls to prostitution at a young age.

[caption id="attachment_37376" align="aligncenter" width="940"]

The girls of the community are forced into sex trade at young age.

The girls of the community are forced into sex trade at a young age.[/caption] As soon as a girl hits puberty, she is considered ‘ready’ to take up the profession that has been followed by many generations in her community. The girls take charge of earning a livelihood for their families through sex trade, while the men simply stay at home or become pimps. In strong-knit communities like these, it is almost next-to-impossible to break age-old traditions and change mindsets – rebellion is quashed quickly and summarily. But Ragini (name changed) is one girl who did not just refuse to follow the same path as her two sisters and mother, but also left her village to pursue higher education. When Ragini, who is the third daughter in her family grew older, she was also given two choices - to get married or enter prostitution.

But thanks to Samvedna's intervention, not only did she refuse to become a prostitute, Ragini also left her village to go to Bhopal and finish her studies.

[caption id="attachment_37377" align="aligncenter" width="940"]

The Samvedna team is helping kids to pursue education so that they can opt for alternate careers too.[/caption] She is now in her third year of college, pursuing engineering. She wants to become an IAS officer and was recently acknowledged by Nobel Prize winner Kailash Satyarthi for her immense courage and strong will. Ragini may be the first girl from her community to go out and pursue a career that is different from prostitution. But she has opened the floodgates for many more girls back in her village. A large part of the credit for Ragini’s success goes to a Madhya Pradesh based NGO, Samvedna, which focuses on combatting commercial sexual exploitation and human sex trafficking. Started in 2002 by an IPS officer, Veerendra Mishra, Samvedna has been working closely with the Bedia community in the state. The only source of income among families in the Bedia community is prostitution. They are not educated and, since they have followed the same traditions all their lives, they do not know, or do not want to know, that they can actually earn through other sources as well.

“The Bedia children, both boys and girls, had their own reasons to neglect education. The boys grew up seeing their elders dependent on earnings that the women brought home from engaging in prostitution. The girls were raised with two options only – get married or become a prostitute. In marriage, the woman’s role is decided already – cooking and serving the family. Education isn’t an option,” says Sagar Sahu, Programme Manager, Samvedna.

The Samvedna team believes education is the best way to engage Bedia girls, who might otherwise enter the sex trade.

But the rate of school dropouts in the area is high. The children of this community often face discrimination and humiliation in school, which forces them to drop out. Some choose to present themselves as members of a different community, but this is a blow to their identity and personal growth. The Samvedna team decided to bring these children together and enrol them in a school located far from the community and the village. They admitted them to government schools in Bhopal where they did not have to change or hide their identities. No one questions their upbringing here and this has given them a new confidence.

“However, another issue was that these kids did not have fathers’ names. Schools refused to enrol them without a father’s name. This is where we intervened again and asked them to enrol kids using just their mothers’ names,” says Sagar.

Thanks to Samvedna, many kids like Ragini have received a new chance to lead a better life.

Samvedna currently takes care of all the educational needs of 14 children from the community, out of which eight are girls and six are boys.

[caption id="attachment_37379" align="aligncenter" width="940"]

All the educational requirements of the kids are taken care by Samvedna.

All the educational requirements of the kids are taken care of by Samvedna.[/caption] Samvedna is not just involved with the care and protection of these children, it helps them financially as well. Like Ragini, Shikhar (name changed) too got to see a new world and complete his graduation, thanks to Samvedna. He is now looking for a job in the city. Apart from education, Samvedna also spreads awareness in the Bedia community about health issues. They organize medical camps and encourage women to go for regular medical check-ups. But their main focus now is to create livelihood options and educational excellence for them so that they can do other work to earn money. “The challenge here is that we need to provide livelihood options which give them more money or at least money that is equal to what they are earning now through prostitution. Otherwise they will not opt for change,” says Sagar. The Samvedna team is still working on the plan to set suitable livelihood options in place for the community. They work with 269 families in four villages of the district Bhopal and Rajgarh, and want to mainstream them so that they can also avail of various government benefits they are unaware of right now. [caption id="attachment_37380" align="aligncenter" width="940"]

The team is supporting 14 kids currently.

The team is supporting the education of 14 kids currently.[/caption] “The change is slow but we have noticed the difference in attitude. The community, which was very reluctant earlier, is now open to change. The members are willing to try new things. Even such small change was very difficult to bring about, but it is finally happening,” says Sagar. The Samvedna team wants to reach out to more children from the community and support their education. The organization is running short on funds and seeks your support. It has started a crowd funding campaign and is trying to raise funds to support the overall development and education of 14 children. You can extend your support by donating here. To know more about Samvedna’s work, check out their website.

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There is an army of Robin Hoods spread across different cities in India. And even in Pakistan. They are seen dressed in green, much like their namesake - a heroic outlaw in English folklore. And they go out at night, fighting hunger with a powerful weapon - food. It all started with a group of six people in Delhi – youngsters with a simple yet firm purpose in mind. They wanted to bridge the gap between two extremes – wastage of immense amounts of food and the presence of acute hunger. A conduit was needed to funnel the excess food to those who needed it. And this is where they came in. They planned to pick up the leftover food from different restaurants at dinner time and distribute it among the hungry.

This group of six named itself the Robin Hood Army (RHA), and an army is what it has grown to today with 1000 volunteers on its rolls. They are spread out across 18 cities and have served more than 2.5 lakh people so far.

[caption id="attachment_37011" align="aligncenter" width="720"]

Robin Hoods[/caption]

“But the journey has only begun,” says the co-founder of RHA, 27-year-old Neel Ghose.

An employee of a global restaurant search and discovery service, Neel was in Portugal when he first came across an organization called Refood. “These guys have a very simple model - they collect excess food from restaurants and give it to the needy," says Neel. He spent a lot of time with Hunter Halder, the founder of Refood, and also volunteered with his team to understand their operations. There was only one thing on Neel’s mind – “Why can’t we do this back home in India?” And so, on returning to Delhi, he got in touch with his friend and colleague, Anand Sinha, to start something similar.

Thus began the journey of the Robin Hood Army.

[caption id="attachment_37014" align="aligncenter" width="720"]

The greatest gift[/caption] The volunteers at RHA reach out to restaurants and wedding caterers in different cities, talk to them and help them understand their mission. From among those who agree, they collect the excess food left over at the end of the day, package it into meal packets, and go out to distribute them among the underprivileged. This is done mostly on weekends as most volunteers are working professionals.

In August 2014, Neel and Anand’s small group had started RHA by feeding about 150 people. But now, the Robin Hoods have expanded their field of operation.

[caption id="attachment_37020" align="aligncenter" width="640"]

Food packed and ready to go. In Kolkata[/caption]

"Back in the day, we would distribute food only among the homeless. But now we are going deeper to see who are the other people who need food. For example, in Bangalore, there are not that many homeless people as compared to the rest of the country. So here we started reaching out to orphanages and old age homes," says Neel.

While 80% of RHA’s activities deal with food, the organization also takes up different projects from time to time. For instance, in the winter of 2014, the team in Delhi distributed blankets to the poor, potentially saving many lives that may have perished from the extreme cold on the streets of the capital.

RHA is divided into many chapters in different cities – Delhi has seven chapters, Mumbai nine, and so on. Every chapter is run by a dedicated team, with a chapter head.

[caption id="attachment_37018" align="aligncenter" width="720"]

A picture speaks a thousand words - RHA Noida[/caption] They operate on and organize themselves mostly through WhatsApp and private Facebook groups.

"We meet at a central place, collect the food, pack it into meals if not done by restaurants, and go to the places which we have already scouted earlier. Scouting basically means that we keep an eye on regions which have clusters of people who will need food."

Those who wish to volunteer with RHA can write to them expressing interest and the central team that manages volunteers will put them in touch with the concerned chapter head.

Volunteers can also offer to start new chapters rather than join existing ones.

[caption id="attachment_37013" align="aligncenter" width="720"]

A Sunday in Mumbai[/caption]

The team has created a DIY kit which guides people to set up a chapter from scratch.

[caption id="attachment_37017" align="aligncenter" width="720"]

When RHA Bangalore turned a year old[/caption] Social media has been the biggest source of volunteers for RHA so far. According to Neel, there are no set guidelines for the Robin Hoods, except for two important thumb rules: • Funds: No one is allowed to take funds from anyone in the name of RHA. Why so? “We are crowdsourced to such an extent that people setting up chapters are those who we might not have met even once. So there is a very big chance of things going wrong,” explains Neel. When people do want to donate funds, they are asked to buy things like blankets and donate those instead. • Quality of food: The team ensures that the food is cooked not more than six hours before it is collected, and is distributed within two hours after collection. They also sample check the food and taste it at the time of collection.

The founder gives a lot of credit to the restaurant owners:

[caption id="attachment_37012" align="aligncenter" width="407"]

The restaurant contributors[/caption]

"The reason RHA has succeeded so much is because of how amazing the restaurant owners are. They have been super proactive. Almost all the packaging is taken care of by the restaurants themselves. Most of them even insist that they don’t just want to package and give out excess food but also want to contribute with freshly cooked food."

RHA also has chapters in four cities in Pakistan. They were started by Neel’s friend Sarah, who came across the initiative on social media.

"We started on a very small scale there, but now Karachi is one of our most efficient chapters," says Neel.

[caption id="attachment_37016" align="aligncenter" width="720"]

RHA Karachi[/caption] [caption id="attachment_37015" align="aligncenter" width="720"]

Around 2000 folks served at Machar Colony by Karachi Robins[/caption] The average age of volunteers in both countries is between 23 and 30. However, some of RHA’s most enthusiastic volunteers are 50-year-olds. And the youngest Robin Hood is a 5-year-old boy in Kolkata who comes to every single distribution in his chapter.

Neel and Anand are now trying to reach out to schools and colleges across the country.

[caption id="attachment_37019" align="aligncenter" width="640"]

A Mumbai Robin being blessed by a receiver[/caption]

"We realised that if we reach out to people who might have much more energy and time than us, there is no telling how far this idea could go."

But will this solve the hunger problem in the country?

"I am very confident that the idea of RHA is inspiring communities to give back. In Mumbai, there was one Robin Hood who is a karate instructor. He has now started taking karate lessons for the kids of the families he feeds. So the idea is to inspire people around us who are much more qualified than us to give back for the greater good. When that happens, there will surely be an answer to the hunger problem too in the long run," concludes Neel.

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This third grader, CEO of his own game development firm called Prudent Games, is an accomplished hacker, app developer, and cyber crime buster. Meet 9-year-old Reuben Paul, the youngest attendee at the Ground Zero Summit 2015, Asia's foremost conference on information security. He stands tall, on a chair hidden behind the lectern in order to reach the microphone, addressing some of the world's most well-known researchers and cybersecurity experts. Rubbing shoulders with chief guest, Home Minister Rajnath Singh, and an army of hackers from around the globe, 9-year-old Indian-origin kid Reuben Paul is at the summit being held at the Ashok Hotel in New Delhi.

Last year, on November 14, Reuben had delivered his own keynote address at the 2014 summit, but this year he is here as a 'special ambassador' to share his knowledge of teaching cyber security to kids.

"With great hacking skills you get power, and with great power comes great responsibility," says Reuben, quoting his hero Spiderman. Reuben attends school in Austin, Texas in the US. His mother Sangeetha says, "Reuben was selected for the Gifted and Talented programme (run by the Texas education system) and had to make a game. The others made board games and such like, but Reuben who is passionate about video games, decided to come up with one. That game was about shooting Ninja stars."

“I remember when he was five, him using words like firewall and I was totally surprised that a kid could understand and pick up those things,” Reuben’s father told iDigitalTimes.

[caption id="attachment_38193" align="aligncenter" width="960"]

Reuben (left) with his mother Sunitha Johnson and his kid brother[/caption] When he is not hacking and developing new apps, Reuben takes Kung Fu, gymnastics and swim lessons and loves spending time with his friends.

All Pics: Facebook

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Educating young children about sexual abuse is not an easy task. Deepa Kumar has made an informative website that features animated cartoons to educate both parents and children about this crucial issue. Deepa Kumar has two beautiful daughters who are fast growing up. When she first talked to her daughters about puberty and child sexual abuse, they showed a lot of apprehension and confusion.

So she came up with an interesting way to impart this information. She created a playful website where two fictional characters (friendly dragons), Mr. P and Ms. P, talk to children about this important subject without any awkwardness whatsoever.

[caption id="attachment_26230" align="aligncenter" width="310"]

Deepa Kumar[/caption]

“Their bodies are changing. They have so many question and are very anxious. Often, it is very difficult to explain all of this to them. The conversation should be normal and positive, it is nothing to get paranoid about,” says Deepa.

Kumar launched 'How To Tell Your Child' in September 2014, and uploaded the colourful and simple videos made by her and her team.

Kumar did not only focus on girls -- she talks to them about sexual abuse, puberty lessons and menstruation --but also created a separate section for boys. The videos in this section are oriented towards puberty in boys and child sexual abuse as well. The high point of her initiative is early intervention. She focuses on the behaviour of the abuser and how a child should react when he or she comes across an abusive situation.

“Many people focus on good touch and bad touch. But I feel if the pedophile has managed to come so near the child that he/she has managed to touch him or her, then it is too late. Intervention has to be done to spread awareness about precaution. Even if the child realizes it is a bad touch, the damage is already done. We are trying to enable kids to sense the situation and take action before anything like that happens,” she says.

Kumar also reaches out to parents and gives them lessons on how to talk to their kids about puberty and abuse.

From providing necessary information on how to make school safe for the kids, to dealing with situations where a child has already faced abuse, Kumar provides the necessary support to both parents and kids.

To reach out to a larger number of people, she has connected with organisations and schools where she holds workshops for kids. A video screening, followed by discussion forums, presentation and counselling are some of the key features of her work. Within a year of its operations, the initiative has attracted many kids and adults. Her videos have been seen by over 10 lakh people online and she gets mails from across the globe asking her to convert these videos in languages other than English. When a Mexican school teacher observed a student in her class becoming very quiet and shy all of a sudden, she showed Kumar’s video to her class. After watching the video, that student came forward and told her about how she felt uncomfortable around a particular uncle. [embedvideo id="uJCWysVuxcs" website="youtube"]

“Abuse is not limited to only touching. Many pedophiles also engage kids in watching pornography and sexual talking. All these things are very hard to explain to children. These videos make the process simpler,” she says.

Deepa has also been educating parents about various laws in the country that ensure a child’s safety and what action they can take in a particular situation.

In the future, Kumar wants to take her initiative to more schools at the global level, as she believes it is a worldwide issue and should be taken very seriously.

Kumar has, in a very creative way, simplified a complex topic and made it easier for both kids and parents to talk about abuse without awkwardness and fear. If you want to reach out to How To Tell Your Child, you can extend your support by putting them in touch with schools and children that can benefit from their intervention. Check out their website to learn more.

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Thirty children from across India received the National Child Awards for Exceptional Achievement, 2015, on the occasion of Children’s Day. The awards were presented by President Pranab Mukherjee, in a ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement was introduced in 1996 and is awarded by the Department of Women and Child Development every year to recognise children for their abilities and achievements in various fields. This year, the winners were aged between nine and 16. These are children who have shown outstanding talent in different fields ranging from innovation and sports to singing and acting. Here is a list of the winners and their incredible achievements:

Excellence in the Field of Music:

1. Suhit Rakshit

16-year-old Suhit Rakshit has been awarded for excellence in the field of music. He plays the Sitar and is a recipient of Government of India’s Cultural Talent Search Scholarship since 2010. He has performed on stage in many different states of India, other than performing for All India Radio and Doordarshan. The musician was also ranked first at All India Level in the 139th Harivallabh Sangeet Pratiyogita held in Punjab. “At the age of five I started playing the Sitar. In 2009, I was professionally trained for it. I saw so many people who were passionate about music instruments,” he told The Hans India on the occasion of World Music Day this year.

2. Rupak Khushal Kolamkar

A resident of Amravati district in Maharashtra, 15-year-old Rupak received the award for his exceptional skills as a tabla player. He has received many awards and has also been a solo performer for Nagpur radio. In 2013, he participated in the Bal Kala Utsav and National Children Festival. Rupak clinched a bronze medal during the fourth Cultural Olympiad of Performing Arts held at Singapore in 2014.

3. K. Naidhruvane

10-year-old K. Naidhruvane is a great mridangam and tabla player. Having participated in over 100 musical programmes, he has received many awards. He stood first in nine inter-school music competitions and played the tabla for up to four hours in a World Record Program.

4. Aditi B. Prahalad

Aditi B. Prahalad, 14, is a Carnatic classical musician. She has performed at various national and international events, and has received the Cultural Talent Search Scholarship from the Ministry of Culture. Till now, she has performed in more than 375 programmes.

Excellence in the Field of Arts:

5. Panchami Maroor

Panchami Maroor is a 14-year-old dancer from Mangalore who has won many state level and national awards. She has performed at more than 700 shows, including about a hundred shows of 'Yakshagana Nritya Vaibhava'. This class eight student has received awards from many different institutions and organizations. She also gained fame after participating in some television shows like Zee TV Kannada's 'Kuniyona Bara' programme, where she won the 'best expression' award.

6. Likith B.

Likith B. is a very talented actor who has performed in more than 200 drama shows, nine movies, eight mega serials and three regular serials. Likith had a role in the Kannada film 'Karanika Shishu' that won the best social awareness film for the year 2012 in Karnataka. Additionally, Likith is also a voice over artist for feature films.

7. Animesh Ghosh

At the young age of 10, Animesh is already a very talented actor. Based on his acting in about 17 Odia and Bengali documentary movies, he has received many accolades along with numerous district and state level awards. He has also used his earnings to start an organization called 'Animesh Foundation' to help orphan children.

8. Kamisetty Venkat

15-year-old Kamisetty Venkat is a differently abled child who is known for his exceptions qualities like lip reading, dancing, singing songs based on the tune, and singing parody songs. He has received many awards till now and has participated in more than 150 programmes.

9. Pratiksha Sarma

Recipient of best actress award in All India one Act Play competition and Bhaben All India Assam Children's Drama Competition for the year 2011- 2013, Pratiksha is a brilliant actress at a young age of 13.

Excellence in the Field of Innovation:

10. Soring Lepcha

Soring Lepcha is a 12-year-old innovator from Dzongu in North Sikkim, who has been awarded for designing a cost effective water filter that can prevent many water borne diseases. His idea was simple - that of installing water filters in community taps to provide residents with clean drinking water.

11. Mayal Lepcha

16-year-old Mayal Lepcha is another young innovator from Dzongu in North Sikkim. He came up with the brilliant idea of fitting a small generator in a water tap, so that it can be used to charge mobile phones when water flows through it. “His charger operates on used mobile batteries which he has assembled in such a way that there is no need of electricity to charge the mobile phone” said Sonam Lepcha, the HRD joint director of North Sikkim to Sikkim Express.

12. Ananya K.G.

Ananya K.G. has designed an automatic mobile nebulizer that works on solar energy. This 14-year-old designed the device with the aim of helping farmers spray pesticides on plants. The motor in the nebulizer identifies the plant automatically and sprays insecticide accordingly. It can be utilized to reduce manpower and save money. Other than this she has also developed a mobile charging device and a simple wooden machine for extracting sugercane juice easily.

13. Aditya Makkar

Aditya Makkar, 16, has designed Rickshaw X. It is a cycle rickshaw equipped with reverse gear, foldable seat and indicators. Other than this, he has also designed a car that automatically checks for car theft, over speeding, drunken driving and a lot more. A portable roof harvester is another one of his brilliant innovations that can be placed on top of cars to harvest rainwater.

14. Affan Siddiqui

Affan Siddiqui has been awarded for his useful idea of designing bus steps at a low height for the benefit of elderly commuters to get on and off the bus. He has designed the steps with the help of retracting moving steps just like an escalator.

Excellence in the Field of Sports:

15. Suchitra Thourangbam

14-year-old Suchitra is an outstanding archer. After participating in the 7th Mini National Archery Championship at Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, she was declared the individual champion in Archery - Indian round.

16. V.R Aravindh Chithambaram

This 16-year-old has won several chess championships at district, state, national and international level. In 2013, he got the ninth rank in Russia and won world youth Star (Blitz) , and also won a medal at the Asian youth chess championship held in Iran. Other than these, this Madurai resident has received several medals and has also represented India at different international events.

17. Aryanpal Singh Ghuman

This 14-year-old roller skating enthusiast has been skating since he was four. A recipient of 143 gold medals, 48 silver medals, and 30 bronze medals at different events, Aryanpal has participated in various games at the national level nine times up till now. He has also been facilitated with a certificate from the Roller Skating Federation of India.

18. Deepak Lather

He is 15-year-old and has already made a name in the field of weightlifting. Deepak was a winner during the 17th Asian Youth weightlifting championships held at Doha in Qatar this year. He has also made records in the 62 kg weight category in several events.

19. Palak Kalia

11-year-old Palak Kalia is differently abled. She is a brilliant athlete and soft ball throw player and has won several medals. In 2014, she won silver in 50 metres race and soft ball throw in a national level competition conducted by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in Kalinga. She also won gold in a 50 metres race organized by Handicapped Children's Rehabilitation Association in New Delhi.

20. Shubham Jaglan

This 11-year-old is a golf champion. He won a world championship in the Junior World Golf Championship event held at San Diego in the United States on July 16, 2015. Other than that, he has won more than 100 tournaments, both in India and abroad, such as the Call Away Junior Golf Tournament, Little Master Golf tournament, Audi South Junior Golf Championship, and more.

21. Kashish Sharma

15-year-old Kashish has been receiving medals in Fencing since she was 10. She received a silver medal in National Championship that time. After that, she became the first Indian girl to win four gold medals in a single fencing tournament. In 2015, she got the 7th rank in the Asian Junior and cadet Fencing championship, and the 4th rank in Commonwealth Games held in South Africa.

22. Gora Ho

He is another brilliant archer. After participating in the 7th Mini National Archery Championship held at Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh last year, this 14-year-old was declared the National record holder in Archery - Indian round. He clinched the top spot in the boys' individual Olympic round event during the 35th Sub-Junior National Archery Championship in January this year.

23. K. Jyoshna

At a young age of 13, K. Jyoshna is already a successful archery-compound player. She has participated in the 6th Mini National Archery Championship and is a National Record Holder in archery-compound.

24. Anjali Kumari

Just 10-year-old, Anjali Kumari is an exceptional archer and has a National record in her name.

25. R. Vaishali

R. Vaishali, 14, has represented India at several international events and recently won a gold medal in under-14 chess competition at the Asian Youth chess championship held in South Korea this year. In her career so far, she has received 17 gold medals, 4 silver medals and 2 bronze medals.

26. Vijender Singh

Vijender Singh, 14, is a National champion in archery and is an excellent recurve archer.

27. Archana Girish Kamath

This 15-year-old is an upcoming tennis player. Presently, she is the National Champion for sub-junior girls’ category. She was the winner of the Junior Girls’ Singles event during the 2015 India Junior and Cadet Open in Indore, held in September.

28. Himnakulhpuingheta Jeho

14-year-old Jeho is a National Champion in table tennis and received the award for the same.

29. Manav Vikash Thakkar

15-year-old Manav is a National Champion in sub junior boys' category for table tennis.

30. Vanshika Bhargava

This 12-year-old from Delhi is another upcoming Table Tennis player, and was awarded for her talent.

Other than these, the President also gave the Rajiv Gandhi Manav Seva Awards 2015 to three individuals for their exceptional contribution towards service of children and the National Awards for Child Welfare 2014 to organizations for their work for child development.

Featured Image Credit: Facebook

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We sometimes hear of NRIs who leave their lucrative jobs in foreign lands and return to India to serve the needy. But have you heard of anyone who cancelled his green card process, left a full-fledged career as general manager of an international hotel chain in the US, studied again to make a new beginning, and returned to India with a new mission in mind? Meet Hari Balaji, US-returned hotelier turned humanitarian, who wants to create a ‘disaster resilient India.’ On September 11, 2001, one of the biggest man-made disasters in recent times hit the World Trade Centre in New York City. Hari was on a flight from Zurich to Atlanta on the same day that terrorists struck at the heart of the US, flying two jetliners into the twin trade towers and killing nearly 3,000 people. Hari’s flight was instructed to return to Zurich, without even having touched down in the US. Nobody knew what had happened.

When Hari reached his hotel room in Zurich, he came to know about the WTC twin tower attack. This was the first time that he was experiencing a man-made disaster.

[caption id="attachment_38696" align="aligncenter" width="413"]

Hari Balaji[/caption] Airspace in the US was shut within minutes of this event and Hari's flight was not allowed into US airspace. Even the flights within the US were instructed to land immediately. When, a year later, Hari attended a ‘Get Motivated’ workshop in Georgia Dome, Atlanta, one of the speakers there was Rudy Giuliani, the Mayor of New York on the fateful day of 9/11. Giuliani talked about how New York City had control over the entire situation within an hour of the incident. Hari was very impressed on learning all these facts about disaster preparedness in the US. Hari is originally from Chennai, India. He is an alumnus of the Swiss Hotel Management School, Switzerland, and has held management positions in pre-opening, renovation and re-branding phases with the world’s most prominent brands in India, Switzerland, US, and Kuwait. His work in the US revolved around project management of hotels. Whenever a new property was built or purchased or revamped, he was deployed there to work with code enforcement. One of the properties he worked with was located in Louisiana and had been badly affected by Hurricane Katrina. This was his second exposure to disaster and this time it was a natural disaster. The US has a clear cut, almost clinical, approach when it comes to handling disasters. Community level awareness of what to do and not to do during a disaster is high and was notched up after 9/11. However, in India, it was only after the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami of 2004 that a centralized body for disaster management was formed and the Disaster Management Act came into existence in 2005.

Hari sensed that he was needed more in his own country than in the US.

[caption id="attachment_38699" align="aligncenter" width="593"]

Hari conducting a workshop[/caption] There are five major departments that come together and coordinate closely during a disaster. They are: healthcare/medical; police; fire and rescue; revenue administration; and municipality. Hari decided he wanted to become an independent consultant/trainer for government projects in the field of disaster management. And for this purpose, he chose the healthcare vertical. Then, with the support of his family, he cancelled his green card process and moved to India, after a short stint in Kuwait acquiring practical knowledge in ‘hospital preparedness in case of disaster.’ In order to gain formal education in healthcare, he did a second post graduation degree, an MBA in Hospital and Health Systems Management, from the College of Management, Sri Ramachandra University, Chennai. As a part of the course, he studied ‘Hazard Vulnerability Assessment of Major Hospitals in Chennai and Bangalore Region.’ During his MBA, he served as an Executive Committee Member in Chennai Emergency Management Exercise 2011, United Nations Development Program/ National Disaster Management Authority assignment in Chennai. After completing his MBA, based on his project work in disaster management and his active participation in the Chennai Emergency Management Exercise, he was deployed by the National Disaster Management Authority, Government of India, through United Nations Children's Fund in Assam to coordinate Guwahati Emergency Management Exercise 2012.

Hari soon started to conduct independent workshops in disaster management. Disaster management training had been done before in India but never had the public been consistently involved.

[caption id="attachment_38701" align="aligncenter" width="991"]

Hari, with a government team on disaster management[/caption] Even the various emergency support functions such as healthcare/medical, police, fire and rescue, revenue department, ambulance, and municipality, which are involved in managing disasters, had never been trained together under one roof. Training them separately helped them work individually, but during a disaster they were supposed to work with each other in a cohesive manner to ensure minimal loss of lives.

Role-playing in Hari’s workshops focuses on strategies to deploy in fire accidents, road traffic accidents, and dilapidated building collapse.

[caption id="attachment_38702" align="aligncenter" width="422"]

Disaster management role playing[/caption] Hari also provides training in psychological management during a disaster. The rescuers often focus only on the victims who are physically injured; however there are victims who are mental sufferers too. People who lose everything overnight need a lot of moral support. They need to find work soon or they go into depression, which can be dangerous. There are other areas to be addressed during disaster management. For example, three to four percent of women are pregnant at any given point of time and they are present during disasters as well. A safe place for delivery needs to be earmarked and identified in safe zones.

Usually, anti-social elements get active post disaster. The police have to be well trained to identify the menace and curb it in time.

[caption id="attachment_38704" align="aligncenter" width="397"]

Disaster management exercises[/caption] Also, human trafficking is an issue since women and adolescent/teenage girls are highly vulnerable when they are away from family and staying in evacuation camps. Gender-based violence also increases during a disaster. Providing proper and separate restrooms with locks, 24x7 electricity, and safety/security are important challenges. Different statements by different sources might make a disaster situation even worse. So communicating with media through a well-organized press meet and leveraging their support during and post disaster is also a subject covered in Hari’s sessions.

Hari, apart from rendering his disaster preparedness consulting service to non-governmental organizations such as Sphere India and Red R for their UNICEF, UNFPA projects, also conducts his workshops in various educational institutions.

[caption id="attachment_38706" align="aligncenter" width="571"]

Disaster management workshops in educational institutions[/caption] He also visits places and makes individual reports for different disaster-prone areas. A manual is prepared, which includes details of infrastructure, total number of people in that property, nearby hospitals, number of beds in those hospitals, blood storage information, and the hazard/disaster vulnerability of that particular area, with personnel to be contacted when disaster strikes. After this, a core team called a Rapid Response Team is formed and trained to rescue people by taking the lead in the unlikely event of a disaster. His workshops teach how to handle sexual and gender-based violence too. For example, all the members are trained on how to handle a rape case and maintain the safety and confidentiality of the survivor.

Hari has recently finished conducting a ‘Strengthening Emergency Response System in Hospitals’ workshop in all thirty-two districts of Tamil Nadu. This was an assignment by the Directorate of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Government of Tamil Nadu.

[caption id="attachment_38707" align="aligncenter" width="340"]

Hari, conducting a workshop[/caption] Hari’s aim is to make every citizen of India mentally and physically ready to confront a disaster. He guides authorities in setting up disaster management cells in schools/colleges and conducts intensive disaster management courses customized for each institution. He envisions India to be the global leader in the arena of disaster management and mitigation. To support the ‘Disaster Resilient India’ initiative or increase the disaster preparedness level of your organization, visit his website www.haribalaji.com Also check out his 13-point plan to stay safe during heavy rains and floods like the ones that Chennai and the east coast of the country is witnessing currently.

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Inputs from Nishi Malhotra.

Ishita Katyal is an author, a public speaker, an avid reader who loves the works of Ruskin Bond, a dancer, a singer and also a basketball player in her free time. And she is just 10 years old! Recently, she added yet another feather in her cap by being the youngest Indian to speak at a TEDx event.

A student of Vibgyor High in Balewadi, Pune, Ishita delivered a talk at TEDx Youth Conference in New York, becoming the youngest Indian to do so.

Kids her age are often showered with questions like - ‘what do you want to be when you grow up’. Ishita answered everyone with her four minute long talk titled ‘What do you Want to be Now’. Her talk challenged the system which thinks that children aren’t mature enough to make a difference. This young speaker’s journey with TEDx started in 2013 when she visited an event organized by TEDx Pune. She loved the event so much that she immediately contacted the organisers to be part of the team. Her passion towards the event won everyone’s heart and she was given the permission to organize TEDx Youth@Balewadi, becoming the youngest person to conduct such event at an age of eight. In her latest talk, she speaks her heart out so that more children get inspired to follow their dreams, irrespective of their age. Other than this, Ishita has been achieving extra ordinary things since a very young age.

She realised early that she wanted to be an author, and wrote a book called “Simran’s Diary” when she was eight.

She utilised her summer break and completed the book focussing on things that go on in a child’s mind and why they should be taken seriously.

The book was published on Amazon’s Kindle Store and later printed by Partridge Publishers.

“Earlier it was very hard for me to manage everything – school, studies, TEDx, writing. Sometimes when I finished writing, I realized that I had forgotten to do my homework. Then my dad suggested me to wake up early in the morning. So at first I woke up at 6 a.m and then eventually I started waking up at 5 a.m. I would make a checklist of things I forgot, to make sure that I do them the following day in the morning,” she says.

Ishita’s New York talk has not been released yet, but you can take a look at her Bhilwara talk here-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlW7uzxurmA All pics: Facebook

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He stumbled across some slum kids while walking to the temple one morning — feeding them has become his religion since then! Read the heartwarming story of a man who is using his imagination and effort to ensure food keeps the children motivated to attend school. Eight-year-old Rani Kamle was not allowed to go to school regularly. Her parents used to send her to beg on the streets of Pune so that she could bring home some money. One day, about three months ago, all her classmates received bags full of books and stationary, but she could not get one because of her poor attendance. It was then that Rani decided to speak up. She went back home, fought with her parents for two days, and made sure they would never stop her from going to school again. Today, she is a regular student, and a very happy one. Rani, along with about 40 other children like her, also attends extra classes after school everyday. None of these children want to miss the two-hour long extra class. Many even fight with their parents if they are stopped from going.

But what keeps them so motivated to study? Other than the fully stuffed bags that were recently given to them, it is the food they get every day after class — idli, dosa, vada, and more!

Thanks to Nitin Jirafe, an engineer with a multinational firm, these children are guaranteed a tasty meal after they finish their studies every day.

This forty-year-old man has made it his mission to ensure that none of the children drops out of school and goes back to a life of begging and working on the streets.

It all started on what was just another Saturday morning for Nitin. He was on his way to the temple when he came across a group of 12-15 children playing on a footpath in Phule Nagar. Curious as to what they were doing, Nitin went ahead and enquired. These kids were associated with a Pune-based NGO called Awakening Jagriti, and were attending an open air extra class organized for them. Under a tree near the footpath, the kids stood surrounding a volunteer from the organization. Nitin came to know that they were residents of a nearby slum. The NGO had found them doing menial jobs like rag picking and household work, or begging on the streets. The team at Awakening Jagriti convinced their parents to enrol them in a free Municipal Corporation School nearby. However, the volunteers soon realised that once the school got over at around 1 pm, the parents would send the children back to work. They came up with an innovative solution — conducting extra classes after school to teach science and maths in a fun way. This helped the kids understand concepts that they may not learn at school and also prevented them from going back to work. These classes take place from 2-4 pm on weekdays and 9-11 am on Saturdays. Initially, as an incentive for the kids to attend, the NGO provided them with food after the classes. While this solution worked successfully for some time, it later started failing because the NGO could no longer arrange the required funds for food. The biggest challenge now was the declining attendance because food had been a great motivation for the kids to come to the extra classes.

Nitin was inspired by what the NGO was doing and did not want them to fail in their endeavour. So he promised to bring in food on Saturdays to help ensure high attendance on one day of the week at least.

[caption id="attachment_32245" align="aligncenter" width="735"]

Volunteer of Awakening Jagriti distributing fruits among children[/caption] He began taking fruit and snacks for about 20 children to the Saturday morning classes. This was in April 2015. In 4 weeks’ time, Nitin was informed that the strength of the class on Saturdays had gone up from 12-15 kids per day before his help, to about 40 every day since he started bringing in food.

“This is when I decided that I should be doing this all 365 days,” he says.

To start with, Nitin drafted a small story about these children and how he was trying to help them. He shared it with everyone at the multinational organization where he works, asking if people would be willing to contribute.

He was able to collect a sum of Rs. 45,000, to which he added another Rs 10,000 from his own pocket.

Next, he tied up with an idli seller near the slum. According to the deal, the seller now packs around 60 idlis every day, and a volunteer from the NGO delivers them to the children. The seller charges Rs. 200 per day and thus the amount that Nitin has accumulated is enough for about a year’s worth of food.

“The good thing is that the retention rate has now increased to about 90 percent and has become stable. About 30-40 children come for the extra class every day,” he says.

But Nitin had no plans of stopping here. As the parents of these children could not afford books and stationary, he bought fully stuffed school bags for them with the funds he had collected. These bags include all the basic text books for their age, along with notebooks, writing pads, drawing books, and pencil pouches.

He distributed about 40 school bags.

[caption id="attachment_32236" align="aligncenter" width="1000"]

Children with a volunteer from Awakening Jagriti[/caption] His condition was that only those children who attend school regularly would get these bags. Those who did not get one tried their best to convince their parents to let them go to school more regularly. One August 10, 2015, Nitin replicated the same model in the Sangvi slum of Pune as well, where the NGO conducts similar classes. For this, he took the help of a professional photography group that he is a part of. The group has about 20 people, and with their contribution, Nitin was able to collect enough funds for seven months’ worth of commitment in Sangvi.

With about 30 regular kids from both the slums, there are a total of 60 who are attending these classes.

The challenge for him now is to continue the process after a year. For this, he has decided to organize an exhibition with the photographs of these children, along with some artwork and greeting cards made by the kids.

“It is only the start and I hope that we will be able to collect enough to continue helping these children. They are really interested in studies, it’s just that because of poverty, their parents send them to do other jobs,” he points out.

As for the food, if the kids get bored of idlis, Nitin has told the volunteers to pick up anything else from the seller who also makes dosas and vadas.

“My only concern is that the children should remain connected to their studies. If they keep going to school, they may be motivated to continue with their education later in life too,” he concludes.

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Many children today have very easy access to the latest technologies - internet being the scariest one of them, if you ask parents and teachers. While there is a very advantageous side to the fact that internet is being used by children to enhance their knowledge with just a few clicks, one of the major concerns remains that it is not a very safe place for a child. With cases of cyber bullying, frauds and scams surfacing so often, it is quite natural for parents to be worried every time their child picks up a smartphone or tablet to browse. Thankfully, when technology causes distress, it is technology that comes to the rescue as well. There are numerous apps which have been developed with the sole purpose of giving parents peace of mind with regards to the safety of their children. And it’s not just about protecting them on the internet; these apps are meant to keep an eye on their whereabouts, to find them in time of need, to provide them with tools to reach out for help, and more. Working parents are also anxious when they have to leave their kids behind for long hours. For them, and many others, here are 10 apps that can help ensure a safe environment for your child, and also help them sleep peacefully at night.

1. eKavach

This is a digital parenting app meant to increase awareness among parents about their children’s online activities. Available in Android and iOS platforms, eKavach was launched last year by a Delhi-based technology start-up, Certus Technologies. Noopur Raghunath, mother of a 10-year-old, is the brain behind the app. She was worried about her son's obsession with internet browsing, and decided to do something about it. Parents just need to download the app on their phone, and on their children’s phones or tablets. This is how it helps them:

Manage applications: eKavach tells parents what applications are being used by a child, and how much time he/she spends on any particular app. It also provides information about new apps installed.
Web filtering: It allows parents to block certain web categories, content, websites etc. Parents can also set time limits on web surfing, and enable safe search options to ensure that a child does not come across any adult, profane, or objectionable content while searching for something.
Get real time alerts: eKavach monitors the child’s online activities all the time. The instant any boundaries set by parents are breached, the app sends a notification on their phone. One can also receive SMS alerts in case the internet is not working. The app also makes the details of a child’s whereabouts available on the map, and enables children to send SOS messages in case of a problem.

Download here.

2. Angel Child Monitoring

Bangalore based Krishnendu Dasgupta, a telecom industry veteran, developed Angel Child Monitoring device after the incident of rape of a 6-year-old girl at a school in the city. It is a GPS- and GSM-card-enabled device that can be carried by a child like a mobile phone, or can used like an ID card given in schools, thus tracking the location. It also enables parents to learn about the real time surroundings of a child. For this, they can call the gadget. It does not ring but the call gets answered automatically and parents can hear all that is happening around the child. Parents can also create safe zones by including all the usual places that the child visits every day, and get alerts if the device is somewhere else. They get a notification when the child leaves one safe zone, and then again when he/she enters another. Parents can access the device through their computers, or the Safe In City Android app that was also developed by Dasgupta. Weighing 25 grams, the device can register two mobile numbers that will be called automatically in case of an emergency. It has been differentiated based on age of children. For children below six, there are no buttons on the device, and it is completely remote controlled. Angel candy, made for slightly older kids, allows children to make a call as well.

“We're very particular about the devices being used for children below 12. Teenagers want their privacy and we have to respect that. The kids, however, actually like having the device, as do their parents!” Krishnendu Dasgupta told Deccan Chronicle.

3. IT Act, 2000 & Cyber Law India

This is an app that was developed with the aim of creating cyber awareness in India among all sections of the society. With tips for general safety on the Internet, the app is very useful for children, educators, and parents. It provides information on how to be safe on the internet, and also explains the cyber law as applicable in India, including the Information Technology Act 2000, as amended by IT (Amendment) Act, 2008. With the help of the cyber dictionary, the app helps people get familiar with the jargon, so they can understand the law and the various cases in a simple manner. There is a dedicated option named cyber safety tips for children that parents can go through, while also reading about different cyber law cases to understand situations better. Download here.

4. Safe Browser

This is a cloud-based browser that monitors more than 8 million websites and a billion web pages every day to prevent children from opening inappropriate pages. Every time a child browses the internet, this app will make sure that he/she is not able to reach the wrong places. Download here.

5. Kids Place

There are guests in the house. Your child asks for your phone and you know you will not be around to check what he/she is using it for. What do you do? This parental control app can come handy in such situations. It an app that launches parental control and child lock kits to protect sensitive data and restrict kids from accessing adult content or apps that are not age appropriate. It also prevents children from downloading unnecessary apps, materials etc. Just run Kids Place before handing the phone to the child and you will be set. Download here.

6. Talkative Parents

Wouldn't it be wonderful if you got a chance to interact with parents of other kids in your child's classroom? And not just during parent teacher meeting, but whenever you want? Well, now you can! It is sometimes important for different parents to interact with one another so they can help each other. So, Bengaluru-based Mahesh Vorkady, launched the Talkative Parents app last year. With a database of 6,900 schools and over 2,000 active users, the app connects the parents of children studying in the same class. Called the social network for parents, this app enables parents to chat with one another. It helps them pool resources, share information, coordinate a child’s travel to and from school, keep up with assignments, learn about tuition options, and so much more. It also offers schools the option to send notices, documents, files etc. to parents. Download here.

7. BabyChakra

Source: Facebook

Many first time parents are often hassled by the numerous options of child care facilities available these days, with absolutely no information about which one is trust worthy. To help them out of their misery, Naiyya Saggi from Mumbai started an online platform that connects parents to childcare services and products. She came up with Babychakra after coming across several Facebook pages that were filled with questions from worried parents about various services available for their child. BabyChakra helps parents find plays schools, doctors, products, events related to children or parenting - all at one place. With the help of reviews from other parents, they are able to take more informed and confident decisions. Visit here.

8. ItsMyChild

This is a comprehensive app that helps parents keep track of their child’s physical safety and academic achievements, while also managing healthcare, digital communication and socialising. Developed by entrepreneur Adris Chakraborty and tech professional Animikh Sen, the app has the following options: • Emergency Alerts - Sends an alert to six contacts from your child’s phone in case of an emergency. • Find My Child - Helps parents locate their child with just a click. • Ping my child - Helps parents connect with their child. • Find a Doctor - Quickly Search for a physician nearby in case of an emergency. • Phone Safety - Parents can set usage limits, times and categories on their child's phone. • Health - Enables parents to maintain complete health records online. • Memories - Parents can also store special moments and achievements of their child, all at one place. • Event Calendar & Reminders - Set up reminders for all academic and non-academic activities. • School Notifications - Schools can send notifications to individual parents or common announcements to everybody. Download here.

9. Children TV

Want to be sure that your kid is watching the right things online? Then this is the right app for you. Children TV is meant for children and adults to enjoy watching child friendly video clips on YouTube. Parents can search for their child’s favourite video clips. The app also provides the option for parents to suggest a video clip that might not be available on the app but is there on YouTube, by filling out a simple form. Selection can be done on the basis of age group and language. This way parents can be sure that the child is watching age appropriate things online, and does not come across something objectionable. Download here.

10. MamaBear

This all-in-one parenting app creates a private hub for families to interact. It has several social media monitoring features, family mapping features, alerts about cyber threats to children, and more. Parents can know where their child is, what is on their social media page, and also get alerts if someone in the family is over speeding. Download here.

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A bunch of college kids in Jamshedpur, with nothing more than compassion in their hearts and a determination to make a difference, started teaching underprivileged kids in 2007. Today, their effort has grown into a large-scale organization called Sankalp that reaches out to over 650 children in three states of India. Seven years ago, some students from the National Institute of Technology (NIT) in Jamshedpur, started teaching the children of their hostel mess workers. “We didn’t have any plan. We started within our college and then went to the nearby villages and tribal areas. Kids there hardly attended school and lacked even basic learning skills,” says Shivendra Shrivastava, an alumni of NIT who started the program. Today, this small initiative has become a structured organization called 'Sankalp,' which caters to the educational needs of tribal and marginalized children in three states of India.

This NIT-alumni-run organization, with over 200 active members, does not only provide quality education to the kids but also enables some of them to attend sought-after private schools in the city.

[caption id="attachment_19493" align="aligncenter" width="1280"]

Students are exposed to various arts and craft classes.

Art and craft classes for the children.[/caption] Working in three states now – Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand – Sankalp reaches out to over 650 students with the help of NIT students, teachers and volunteers.

“The students are mostly from government schools or they are dropouts. Class 7 students do not even know the basics of what a Class 3 student should know; they can barely write in English and Hindi. We are trying to bridge the gaps in their learning,” says Shrivastava.

[caption id="attachment_19492" align="aligncenter" width="600"]

Students are also taken on various exposure visits.

Students are taken for outings.[/caption] The Sankalp team divides the children according to age groups and learning levels before beginning the process of teaching them. After one to two years of observing the students’ performance, they start preparing the academically oriented for better schools. Currently, 23 of Sankalp’s students attend good private schools in Jamshedpur. All activities, education, books, and other necessities are funded by the alumni of NIT. Some money also comes from current college students who contribute Rs.10 per month to Sankalp.

Over a period of time, kids who barely knew the basics of language and maths earlier have begun to score well in school, are eager to learn, and show confidence in their abilities.

[caption id="attachment_19491" align="aligncenter" width="960"]

Sankalp has seven centres across three states of India.

Sankalp has eight centres across three states in India.[/caption] “The tribals say that earlier no one would come to help them. Even the NGOs that intervened came for a few months and left. There was no long-term sustainable model. Through Sankalp we are trying to bring about a permanent solution to the problem with the help of college students,” says Shrivastava. Amar Pratap Singh is one shining example of the impact Sankalp has had on the children's lives. Singh joined Sankalp in 2007 and has been with the organization since. Currently a student of Class 11, he is a conscientious learner and has high hopes for his future. A documentary film maker who visited his village near Jamshedpur was so impressed with his development that he made a small documentary on Singh, which has won three prestigious international awards. [embedvideo id="X8RZCGIbwsA" website="youtube"] However, Sankalp has faced several challenges along its journey. To start with, it took a long time for the NIT students to build trust about their intentions among the villagers and convince them that they would be there for the long term. Since the organization is managed by working professionals and current students, it is very hard to keep the classes going regularly. They do so with the help of an excellent team of volunteers and teachers. The team is so dedicated that despite roadblocks they haven't missed taking a single class in all these years.

Sankalp currently runs eight centres in three states in the country, reaches out to more than 650 children and sponsors the complete education of 41 of them.

[caption id="attachment_19490" align="aligncenter" width="526"]

Sankalp reaches out to 500 students currently.

Sankalp reaches out to 650 students currently.[/caption] “There is so much more we want to do. I have involved myself full time in this initiative, but we are always looking for teachers and volunteers who can take this up in rural areas. We have the whole module, syllabus and everything ready. We just need someone to take responsibility now,” says a hopeful Shrivastava. If you would like to reach out to Sankalp financially or as a volunteer to teach the kids, visit their website or contact Shivendra at shivendranit@gmail.com

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In the MY STORY section, we present some of the most compelling and pertinent stories and experiences shared with us by our readers. Do you have something to share? Write to us: contact@thebetterindia.com with "MY STORY" in the subject line.

There’s a greater reason that karma repeats itself, and it’s not to cause you pain - it’s to teach you to take different actions for a better future.

Anil Gavade is a one such example of a man who literally turned his life around, and has evolved from a dacoit to a charitable human being.

His early life revolved around robberies, thefts, cheating and fraud. Anil has spent days fooling people, cheating them and setting traps. On an unfortunate day, he met with a horrific train accident and lost his left arm. It was his karma that had paid him back. This called for some honest introspection and evaluation of his faults and weaknesses, which led him to leave his earlier work and reincarnate. You cannot escape karma; hence he started his livelihood by setting up a Chinese food stall. Feeding people was making him happy, but he wasn’t content. He realized that Chinese food has ajinomoto that has some hazardous health effects. He finally shut down the place and opened a tea stall instead, which is situated in Matunga. Apart from running a tea stall, he does a lot of charity work as well. Every year, on his birthday, he donates some amount of money to the cancer patients at the Tata Memorial Centre. He also serves free tea every day to people with disabilities who visit his stall. Simultaneously, he visits various temples, mosques, churches and gurudwaras, seeking forgiveness for his misdeeds. Recognize what must be changed inside of you so as to change what’s outside of you. Anil now lives a peaceful and happy life with his wife and a son.

“Karma moves in two directions. If we act virtuously, the seed we plant will result in happiness. If we act non-virtuously, suffering results.”

- Sukanya Nair