Kids Motivational Stories | Kids Inspiration Stories

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

Science is her favourite subject. She loves to read. And she wants to become an astronomer. Meet Chinmayi Ramasubramanian, a 10-year-old girl who has developed an app to help people in flood-affected areas of Tamil Nadu, and to assist those who want to donate flood relief items.

“We were having a discussion in school about how so much food and other relief items are getting wasted in Chennai. Everybody wants to help but there is a lot of stuff being donated that people might not actually need. That’s why I created this app, so that people can choose what they want and donations can become easier,” says Chinmayi Ramasubramanian, a 10-year-old girl from Bangalore, whose interest in technology led her to develop an app that can be very useful for the ongoing relief operations in Tamil Nadu.

Launched in the first week of December, the app is called CalamityRelief. It is meant to streamline the process of giving and receiving relief materials in flood-affected areas of the state.

[caption id="attachment_40524" align="aligncenter" width="1000"] Chennai Donations

Chinmayi Ramasubramanian[/caption] The recent rains, followed by devastating floods, hit several parts of Tamil Nadu, bringing life to a standstill. Many residents lost their houses and belongings. But now is the time to help the state revive itself, and that’s something that many people across the country are trying to do by sending in donations in the form of money, relief materials, food, water, medicines, and more.

But the extent of damage and the need for assistance are so huge that the entire process has to be well organised to be effective.

Chinmayi is trying to do exactly this with her app. On opening CalamityRelief, a user enters the home page that asks for his/her role – an individual, a collector or a distributor. Depending on the one that is picked, there are the following options:

• An individual can see the list of collection centres and choose the nearest one to go to and donate. There is also the option of going through lists of things that people should or should not donate.

• Collectors, who have been gathering items from different sources, have two options. They can fill in the details of collection centres for people to come and drop whatever they want to donate.

Other than this, they can also document the details of all the items they have, so that those in need can contact them accordingly.

• Distributors or social workers, who have taken on the responsibility of delivering relief supplies, can find out what is available on what date, so they can contact the donors and arrange for transfer, packaging, etc.

Chinmayi used a program called MIT App Inventor for creating CalamityRelief. App Inventor is basically a beginner’s guide to app development. It uses graphic programming tools. It transforms the text-based coding required for making apps into a drag-and-drop building blocks mechanism. In this way, beginners can simply use specific blocks according to their app’s requirements and finalise the program. Chinmayi tested the app on her father’s Android phone first, and then uploaded it on Play Store for people to use.

“At home, we were having a lot of discussion about the floods,” says her mother, Nithya Ramasubramanian. “My grandfather, uncle and aunt live in Chennai. We were very worried throughout that time and Chinmayi was listening to our conversations. It was then that she thought of doing something to help in her own way,” she adds.

Chinmayi has been interested in programming and technology for a long time. Prior to developing this app, she was programming using the Scratch language to develop some small games. She was introduced to App Inventor about a month ago and was trying to use it to develop a program to locate misplaced objects like books, keys, etc. “She was already familiar with the idea of apps. And suddenly the floods hit, so she came up with CalamityRelief,” says Nithya.

A student of Class 4 in Sri Kumaran Children's Home in Bangalore, Chinmayi loves to read and her favourite subject is science.

[caption id="attachment_40523" align="aligncenter" width="1000"] Chennai Donations

Chinmayi at work[/caption] Ask her what she wants to be when she grows up and she replies confidently: “an astronomer.” She also wants to keep developing apps in the future.

“I want to develop more social apps – like for recycling garbage. Many people don’t know where recycling units are located. So they simply throw all their garbage wherever they want and it goes into landfills. I want to develop an app to help people find where these recycling units are located,” she adds.

But how does a 10-year-old think about technology driven solutions for such social problems? “They just click into my mind,” she quips.

In fact, she developed the CalamityRelief app in just one day –

“I had a stomach ache so I couldn’t go to school. But after some time, when I started feeling a bit better, I thought of using that time to work on an app. This was when I developed the first version.”

After that, she worked on improving the app, based on testing results and feedback received from her relatives and friends. Chinmayi does not want CalamityRelief to be restricted for use in Tamil Nadu alone. Though she got the idea from the recent foods, the app is meant to help in any place that has been hit by a natural disaster. Chinmayi's parents are working professionals and she has always been encouraged to take her passion forward. You can download the app here.

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Mizoram has seen a commendable decline in stunting and it is directly related to improved access to sanitation. Here is the complete report on how it happened. The north eastern state of Mizoram has reported a 13 percentage-point decline in stunting (below normal height for the age) and five percentage points decline in underweight children (underweight and short), according to a new report. The reason: Improved access to sanitation. As many as 92% households in Mizoram had access to sanitation at the end of the 2011 Census, against 82% during the 2001 census, the India Health Report for Nutrition Security in India, 2015 released last month said. 2642788348_e81a314ba4_b

Photo: Flickr/Overseas Development Institute

As many as 522 million people gained access to improved sources of drinking water between 1990 and 2000, said the report, published by the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI). Open defecation and inadequate hand washing have been cited as reasons for poor health among children, leading to undernourishment. India’s 40 million stunted and 17 million wasted children below the age of five are a challenge for a country whose health indices lag its economic growth.

Not enough being spent on drinking water and sanitation

Poor sanitation makes for unhealthy children, susceptible to water-borne diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera and jaundice. The United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) had set a target of halving the population without sanitation facilities by 2015. UNICEF launched the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) programme in 2006 to promote this goal. The Government of India has been focusing on improving drinking water and sanitation facilities across the country since 1999. The Total Sanitation Programme was launched in 1999 by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. It was changed to Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission) in 2012 and renamed Swachh Bharat Mission in 2014. Rs 25,387.5 crore ($3.8 billion) has been spent on drinking water and sanitation since 1999-2000, the data show. For comparison, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa sought more money, Rs 25,912 crore, from Delhi, to address the ravages of the state’s December 2015 floods.

More than 93 million households still don’t have toilets

Almost 90% of child deaths from diarrhoeal diseases are directly linked to contaminated water, lack of sanitation or inadequate hygiene, a UNICEF report said. India’s infant mortality rate (IMR) has come down from 66 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2001 to 42 in 2012 but it is still equal to poorer African countries, such as Senegal (42), Malawai (41) and Ethiopia (43). Only 47% households in India had toilets, according to the 2011 Census data, an improvement of 11 percentage points over 2001 figures. As many as 181.5 million rural households were surveyed in 2012 to assess the requirement of toilets in individual households; this survey served as the baseline for the Swachh Bharat Mission. As on December 22, 2015, 93.1 million households in rural India had no toilets, according to government data. As many as 46% households in India defecated in the open as of 2013-14, according to data from the Rapid Survey on Children (RSoC). This was an improvement of nine percentage points from 2005-06 data, when it was 55%.

Mizoram’s progress reflected in healthier children

The states that were better-off in terms of child nutrition show a strong co-relation between sanitation and child nourishment. The best example is Mizoram, where the prevalence of stunting declined by 13 percentage points, and underweight children by five percentage points between 2006 and 2014. The worst states in terms of nutrition parameters had fewer households with toilets. There has been little progress in sanitation facilities in the worst-performing states. Figures for stunting have only improved eight percentage points in Bihar, three percentage points in Jharkhand, and there was no improvement in Chhattisgarh. However, there was a decline of 10 percentage points in stunted children between 2005-06 and 2013-14. After the Swachh Bharat Mission, since 2014, Bihar, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh have managed to fulfill about 44%, 52% and 50% of the requirement as per the baseline survey. Sanitation is only one factor affecting nutrition; for instance, data from what was once Andhra Pradesh show that the proportion of wasted children increased by six percentage points between 2006 and 2014, despite an improvement in sanitation. Studies conducted in the past decade have emphasized on the need for sanitation to improve nutrition. The example of Bangladesh is often cited. Between 1990 and 2012, open defecation dropped from 34% to 2.5% in that country, accompanied by a reduction in undernourishment, according to a report by International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), the Washington-based think-tank. This is the third part in the series on child malnutrition in India based on the PFHI report, where IndiaSpend tracks the states with worst and best nutrition figures and sanitation data to examine the relation between poor nutrition and hygiene. While the first part looked at public spending on child health and nutrition, the second part looked at the impact of maternal health on child nutrition. Series concluded. You can read the first part here and the second part here. (Salve and Tewari are policy analysts at IndiaSpend.)

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Indiaspend.org is a data-driven, public-interest journalism non-profit/FactChecker.in is fact-checking initiative, scrutinising for veracity and context statements made by individuals and organisations in public life.

For the 100 eager children waiting in one of the remotest schools in Ladakh, she came bearing gifts – 1500 kg of school equipment carried by 25 horses in -20 degrees C temperatures over 3 mountain passes. Meet Sujata Sahu, who took education from New Delhi to Leh, and much beyond. Sujata Sahu was walking, quite literally, with her head in the clouds. She was on a solo trek in high-altitude, bone-chilling, barren Ladakh, and she was about to have an experience that would change her life forever. [caption id="attachment_33630" align="aligncenter" width="756"]

Centuries old village called Fotoksar, 8 hours away from Leh. No electricity or mobile connectivity here. Altitude 11348 ft. No. of Children - 46[/caption]

“As I was trudging along alone, struggling against the high altitude, with nothing but barren mountains for company, I suddenly came across two local women going the other way. What I heard from them blew my mind. These two ladies were teachers and were walking back to Leh from their school (their journey would take them a day-and-a-half of a walk and a few hours of a ride hitched from a passing vehicle). The reason for their journey? They were going to Leh to get mid-day meal supplies and uniforms for their children. Their commitment and the simplicity with which they accepted their ‘other duties,’ simply amazed me.”

Sujata was no stranger to teaching herself. A US-returned techie, she had started teaching at Sri Ram School in Delhi because she was passionate about education and children. But that was the city. Here in Ladakh, “I ran into tiny schools (schools that had just a handful of children), each with families and children eager to learn."

"They were going to schools with bare minimum infrastructure and struggling with the tough English-based curriculum. Their resilience, commitment, and overall peaceful and happy countenance, despite the extreme difficulties that they face daily, made me want to come back and do something to improve education, specifically in remote areas."

[caption id="attachment_33631" align="aligncenter" width="756"]

Middle School Merak, right beside the Pangong Tso lake, with 35 children singing their morning prayers. Altitude: 14098 ft.[/caption] Sujata came back to Delhi and spoke with her husband Sandeep Sahu, an avid trekkie who had encouraged her to travel to Ladakh in the first place. “Later in the winter, when temperatures had dipped to -15 degrees, I, along with my husband and our friend Dawa Jora, visited a very remote school in a village called Lingshed, a journey that took us 3 days to trek, going down a treacherous steep pass at an altitude of almost 17000 ft. We had school children waiting in a line on the other side of the mountain, waiting for us to reach. We were carrying books, clothes, sports materials, and a lot of other equipment for these children on the backs of 20+ donkeys and horses. People, and especially children from these villages, who don't have any occasion to leave, are exposed to just the mountains and streams surrounding them, with no idea of the outside world or the people inhabiting it."

"I remember sitting with the children and wondering how they could even hope to relate to the things referred to in their textbooks. So many vegetables and fruits, the presence of roads, streetlights, buildings, elevators, so many birds and animals, cars, trains, people from other places, electricity, television, shops, electronic gadgets, the list is endless. I was quite amazed, moved and yet completely inspired by their lives and simplicity. That was the seed that gave birth to 17000 ft Foundation."

[caption id="attachment_33632" align="aligncenter" width="842"]

Residential School Lingshed - A 100 school children wait patiently for 4 hours for the 17000 ft team to reach. They were carrying books, games and furniture for the school.[/caption] "The name was inspired from the Pass that we crossed on foot to reach Lingshed. The three of us then conspired to start 17000 ft Foundation to impact people from remote villages.” But wanting to work in remote areas of Ladakh is one thing and actually putting a plan into action is another altogether. The challenges of terrain, weather, altitude and general hardships in remote areas made it difficult for them to even think of a long term solution. They were told in no uncertain terms, even by local Ladakhis, that they were mad to think of reaching remote villages. “It took us a year to finally put a model in place that would work, be impactful and also be long term. Our biggest eureka moment came when we chanced upon the technology platform put together by Akshara Foundation, the Karnataka Learning Platform, a platform that put all the schools of Karnataka in one map to enable the local administration to monitor these schools."

"We felt that if we could similarly map all the schools of Ladakh and enable trekkers and travellers to find them on their trips, we could reach out to these villages and offer the help that was needed."

[caption id="attachment_33633" align="aligncenter" width="847"]

Founder Sujata Sahu with children[/caption] "That idea gave us the impetus that we needed to kickstart our programs. Trying to impact villages in the harshest and remotest of villages of Ladakh was daunting to start with, but finding a way to involve outsiders made the task that much more approachable. When we were donated our first set of 20,000 books by Pratham Education Foundation and 10,000 books from Scholastic India, we knew that we could push forward.” So what does the 17,000 ft Foundation do exactly? Their primary focus is to provide better opportunities for indigenous tribes of very remote and isolated villages of Ladakh, in an attempt to slow their desperate migration to far away cities in search of a better life. “We work within existing ecosystems to improve and transform lives right at the remote villages. To this effect, our programs work to improve schools and education in remote villages, provide income opportunities for the people there and involve local youth and communities to contribute back to their villages,” says Sujata. [caption id="attachment_33638" align="aligncenter" width="756"]

Middle School Kanji, last village before the Kargil border gets a playground which the team installed in the November. The snow does not stop the children from playing. Altitude - 10211. No. of Children - 46[/caption]

The Foundation’s programs basically revolve around three main initiatives:

MapMySchool is a technology platform connecting remote villages of Ladakh to the outside world, enabling trekkers and committed travellers to contribute. The Foundation has successfully geo-mapped 1000 remote village schools of Ladakh. The Yountan Project is aimed at improving education at the schools. The team sets up libraries and conducts periodic reading programs directly at the schools. They improve infrastructure by setting up playgrounds, furniture, etc.

“We also train hundreds of teachers annually to adopt newer pedagogy and help improve student learning outcomes at the school. We have successfully set up 100 libraries, improved infrastructure in 15 schools, and trained 500+ teachers so far. Our library programs have now been adopted across 300+ schools,” says Sujata.

Volutourist@17000ft is a way for outsiders to contribute to the Foundation’s programs. It is a way by which committed travellers can choose to travel off the beaten path, become volunteers in the Foundation’s structured programs and also contribute to a remote school while on vacation. Voluntourism also forms a revenue stream for 17000 ft by which they are able to sustain their backend costs. “We have 10 day, 16 day and 1 month programs for Voluntourists. We have successfully sent 150 voluntourists to 60 remote villages so far, all of which have received visitors for the first time,” adds Sujata. [caption id="attachment_33640" align="aligncenter" width="1008"]

Primary School Maan, near the famous Pangong Tso Lake, recently got a makeover. The only classroom in the school was freshly painted and provided with colourful furniture. Altitude - 14126. No. of children - 13[/caption] Sujata feels 17000 ft Foundation has just touched the tip of the iceberg with its interventions. She has ambitious plans for its future.

"Along with our expansion into Kargil District, we hope to move into other geographically areas, which have similar problems of remoteness and isolation but also have tourism potential. In particular, regions like Lahaul-Spiti, remote regions of Uttarakhand, Sikkim and the northeastern belt."

[caption id="attachment_33641" align="aligncenter" width="850"]

Mushko, Kargil in November, isolated from the rest of the world[/caption] "Our Kargil project, the first of our geographical expansions has already started as of April 2015. Also, given our presence across 200 villages of the region, we are best positioned to help people of remote villages find avenues for income generation, as well as develop the skills of youth from remote villages to contribute back to their villages." If you would like to know more, you could visit the 17,000 ft Foundation website: http://www.17000ft.org/

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What started as a small gesture, of feeding underprivileged children, by 31-year-old Darshan and his friends has turned into a full-blown movement. I t’s funny how mundane decisions turn out to be life-changing ones, right? This is exactly what happened in Vadodara-based Darshan Chandan’s case. An email he shot off to a restaurant, after being deeply disappointed with the service he got there, just changed the course of Darshan’s life. When the restaurant management apologised for the poor service and offered to give him free food, Darshan refused the offer and asked them to feed underprivileged children instead.

The restaurant went ahead with his suggestion, and after feeding the children, sent pictures to Darshan.

“This is the moment that changed me forever. The smile on the faces of those children left me touched. And that is when I decided to do something about it,” he says.

Thus, the BhookMitao campaign was born. On June 7, 2015, Darshan and his friends went and fed a couple of children in a slum in Vadodara, Gujarat. Today, the BhookMitao movement provides nutritious lunch to as many as 1,200 children in Vadodara.

How they do it

As the volunteer network grows, Darshan has divided it into groups. Each group takes up a particular spot in the city. For instance, in Vadodara there are 10 spots, usually in slums, where the children are fed.

Volunteers of every spot have a Whatsapp group of their own.

On Mondays, they decide what the menu for the coming Sunday is going to be. They coordinate with those who want to donate, procure the raw materials, and cook the meals in their own kitchens. The programme usually begins at 11 a.m. with some fun activities for the kids. They screen movies on education or make them do some craft work etc., and then lunch is served. It usually consists of the usual Indian fare of rice, rotis, and pulses. They also give them biscuits and bananas to snack on. The volunteers and children eat the same food together.

“We don’t accept any money. When people contact us saying they want to donate, we insist on only raw materials,” he says.

This is what the impact looks like

The movement which started in Vadodara has spread to four more cities – Gandhidam, Adipur, Nadiad, and Kosamba. And two months ago, it spread to Mumbai as well.

The number of volunteers has grown from six to over 600 now.

“The response has truly been overwhelming. A big part of the credit goes to the social media. Every day we have people writing in asking how they can contribute or volunteer,” Darshan says.

And more importantly, Darshan, who works in sales for a shipping company, says he finds the energy to keep going when he sees the positive impact the campaign has had on the children and their families. A few weeks after the programme began, some volunteers of a particular spot in Vadodara realised that two children, who used to come regularly for lunch on Sundays, were missing. These children used to have their grandparents dropping them off for the programme. A couple of the volunteers decided to go and find out why these children had suddenly stopped coming. When they approached the grandparents, they told the volunteers that they had been convinced that education was important and had sent the children back to their village and had them admitted in a school.

“This was such a motivational moment for all of us, especially because these two children were made to beg during the week. This is exactly the kind of change we want to bring about,” says Darshan.

Apart from feeding the children, the volunteers also enquire with the parents if these children are sent to school and counsel them on the importance of education.

"Our vision is to ensure that at least 150 children are sent to school in Vadodara by the end of 2016," he says.

For those who are socially conscious, Darshan has only one piece of advice.

“My mantra in life is ISR – Individual Social Responsibility. Instead of waiting for governments or other organisations to bring about a change, every individual needs to start doing something on his/her own. This is what will actually usher in change,” says Darshan.

In December 2015, Darshan was shortlisted for the Awal Gujarati award given by Radio City. Apart from this, the movement has received recognition from Lions Club, Rotary Club etc. It is heartening to see that people are taking note of this movement, says Darshan. Recently, the Collector of Vadodara called him up and spoke to him about the ways in which this movement could be taken forward. A movement that started off with just a couple of youngsters, now has a volunteer base of people of all ages and from all walks of life. And this gives a lot of hope to Darshan, who wants to see this movement become a pan-India one. To know more about the BhookMitao campaign, check them out on Facebook.

All pictures: Facebook

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They saved their friends, parents, and neighbours from drowning, electrocution, thieves and a lot more – these 25 children, who were honoured with the National Bravery Award this year, displayed immense courage and risked their lives to protect their loved ones. Here are their awesome stories. New Delhi witnessed the gathering of some of India’s bravest children on January 24, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented the National Bravery Awards to them. From a 16-year-old who fought off a tiger, to a 13-year-old who lost his life while trying to save his friend from drowning – these three girls and 22 boys showed incredible bravery in the face of some very dangerous situations.

"For the award winners, this act of bravery should not become an end in itself. Life must continue to evolve and the children should continue to develop their careers and continue to serve society to the best of their abilities," the Prime Minister told them during the event.

The National Bravery Award scheme, initiated by the Indian Council for Child Welfare (ICCW), was started with the aim of awarding children in the age group of 6-18 years, who display outstanding bravery and inspire other children with their actions. The awards consist of five categories including the Bharat Award, Sanjay Chopra Award, Geeta Chopra Award, Bapu Gaidhani Award and the General National Bravery Awards. The awardees receive a medal, a certificate, and a cash prize. Bharat Award winners get a gold medal, while the others receive silver. As a part of ICCW's sponsorship program under the Indira Gandhi scholarship scheme, each child is also receives the financial assistance to complete his or her schooling. Here are the astounding stories of this year's winners.

1. Shivampet Ruchitha, Telangana

8-year-old Shivampet Ruchitha became the youngest person to receive the award this year. On July 24, 2014, Ruchita saved two of her school mates when a train hit their school bus. She noticed that their bus had stopped on a railway track and a train was coming towards them. Showing extraordinary presence of mind, she pushed two students out of the window and jumped off the bus herself too. Unfortunately, she could not save her younger sister who was sitting in the front row. Her younger brother sustained severe injuries, but he has recovered now. 16 students, the driver, and the conductor lost their lives in that accident. She was honoured with the Geeta Chopra award.

"It feels good to have the limelight and get an award from the Prime Minister. But I wish I was able to save my sister, too, as we all miss her," she told The Indian Express.

2. Arjun Singh, Uttarakhand

In July 2014, a tiger entered 16-year-old Arjun Singh’s house in Uttarakhand. He showed extreme courage and fought it off, saving his mother’s life who had fainted as soon as the tiger entered. Arjun went into a room and picked up a sickle to fight the tiger. As it was too small to hit from a distance, Arjun grabbed a stick and waved it towards the tiger. He did not stop until the villagers reached there and the animal ran away on seeing the crowd. Arjun received the Sanjay Chopra award.

3. Late Shivansh Singh, Uttar Pradesh

Shivansh Singh, a 14-year-old medal-winning swimmer from Faizabad, was posthumously honoured with the prestigious Bharat Award. He lost his life while trying to save his friend from drowning in the Saryu River.

"I wish he was here. Seeing all these boys and girls enjoy their moment of glory, I wish my son could have been part of this," his mother, Neelam Singh, told The Telegraph.

4. Late Gaurav Kawduji Sahastrabuddhe, Maharashtra

Gaurav was only 15 when he lost his life while rescuing four of his friends from drowning in the Ambazari lake. He was a good swimmer and had gone to the lake one afternoon in June 2014. While playing in the water, his friends suddenly started drowning. According to the police, Gaurav swam for 20 minutes and rescued them all. But while trying to pull out the last boy, he hit his head on a submerged stone and drowned. He received the Bharat Award.

5. Aromal SM, Kerala

12-year-old Aromal is one of the six winners from Kerala. He saved two women from drowning in a 14-feet pond and was honoured with the Bapu Gaidhani Award.

6. Rakeshbhai Shanabhai Patel, Gujarat

This 13-year-old received the Bapu Gaidhani Award for saving a boy who accidentally fell into a well.

7. Ramdinthara, Mizoram

On January 2, 2015, Ramdinthara saved two boys who were stuck on a transformer fence. The 15-year-old pulled the boys out with his bare hands and took them to the hospital. Son of a tea-seller, Ramdinthara was walking past the transformer when he saw that two boys were struggling to free themselves after falling on the fence. He overcame his fear in just a few seconds and grabbed their hair to pull them up. He received the Bapu Gaidhani Award.

8. Abinash Mishra, Odisha

Abinash Mishra, 12, saw his friend drowning in Kushabhadra River. Without thinking twice, he just jumped into the river and swam to the shore after saving his friend. He is one of the recipients of the General National Bravery Award.

9. Chongtham Kuber Meitei, Manipur

13-year-old Chongtham Kuber Meitei became a local hero after he jumped into a 10-feet deep well to save a girl from drowning. He was awarded with the General National Bravery Award.

"I won't lie, I was really scared. But I had to jump into the well to get to her. She would have drowned," he told The Telegraph.

10. Kashish Dhanani, Gujarat

10-year-old Kashish protected his 15-months-old sibling from a German Shepherd. He received the General National Bravery Award.

11. Muhammad Shamnad, Kerala

14-year-old Muhammad Shamnad showed outstanding courage when he risked his life to save a little girl from drowning in a pond. He received the General National Bravery Award.

12. Mohit Mahendra Dalvi, Maharashtra

14-year-old Mohit saved his 10-year-old neighbour from drowning in Banganga Lake last year. When Krishna Pashtye slipped into the lake, Mohit was the only one of the hundreds of onlookers who had the courage to dive into the lake and save her. He was honoured with General National Bravery Award.

“I knew how to swim and so jumped in confidently. I saw the girl’s leg had stuck in mud in a ditch. I tried to get her leg out and managed to pull her out. When we came out, others rushed and helped us,” said Mohit, an orphan who lives with his paternal aunt.

13. Abhijith K.V, Kerala

15-year-old Abhijith was honoured with the General National Bravery Award for saving his friend from drowning in a 25 feet deep pond.

14. Sarwanand Saha, Chhattisgarh

Sarwanand Saha received the General National Bravery Award for saving a man from drowning in Mahanadi River.

15. Sai Krishna Akhil Kilambi, Telangana

This 15-year-old saved his mother from electrocution. His mother came in contact with a live electric wire at their residence in Agapura when she was washing the floor. Sai Krishna was quick to think on his feet and he instantly rushed forward to turn off the mains supply while making sure that he did not step into the water. He was honoured with the General National Bravery Award.

16. Dishant Mehndiratta, Haryana

On April 4, 2015, Dishant Mehndiratta was at his home in Panchkula, with his mother and younger brother. His father had just left for work when a stranger knocked at the door asking for him. The family invited him in and Dishant’s mother, Archana, called her husband to inform about the visitor. His father couldn't recognise the man and asked him to come later. This was when the stranger asked if he could use the toilet. And while Archana was leading the way to show him the bathroom, he suddenly took out a knife and put it on her neck. He started threatening the children, asking them to bring out all the cash and valuables. Dishant made a quick plan and fell down on the man’s feet pretending to plead with him. And after a few seconds, he suddenly stood up, grabbed the knife from his hand, and threw it away. The family raised an alarm and got him arrested. Dishant received the General National Bravery Award for this courageous act.

17. Joena Chakraborty, Chhattisgarh

When a man snatched away her father’s mobile phone, 10-year-old Joena Chakraborty started running after him without wasting a single second, and brought the phone back.

“I knew he would head for a narrow alley, so I reached there before him and caught his legs even though people were shouting that he had a knife,” she said.

18. Nilesh Bhil, Maharashtra

Nilesh Bhil from Kothli was awarded the General National Bravery Award for saving a boy from drowning.

19. Beedhovan, Kerala

14-year-old Beedhovan saved a boy from electrocution and was honoured with the General National Bravery Award.

20. Nithin Philip Mathew, Kerala

13-year-old Nithin was honoured for saving his neighbour’s family after their house caught fire in a cylinder blast.

21. Bhimsen, Uttar Pradesh

On November 16 last year, a boat got overturned in Sarayu River. 12-year-old Bhimsen, who was present on his own boat, jumped into the water and saved 14 people from drowning.

22. Angelica Tynsong, Meghalaya

Angelica Tynsong, 13, from Ri Bhoi district, saved her 7-month-old brother when their house caught fire on February 1, 2015. Her brother was sleeping while she was washing clothes, and their parents were not present in the house at the time of the incident.

23. Anandu Dileep, Kerala

14-year-old Anandu Dileep was going to his tuition class with his friends. They were crossing a bridge when his friend slipped and fell into the 10-feet-deep canal. Anandu jumped into the water and rescued him.

24. Maurice Yengkhom, Manipur

Maurice was playing on the terrace with his friend who suddenly got an electric shock. Had it not been for Maurice’s presence of mind, his friend would have lost his life. The 14-year-old picked up a cane chair and started hitting him till he was free.

25. Vaibhav Ramesh Ghangare, Maharashtra

Vaibhav Ramesh Ghangare from Wardha also received the General National Bravery Award. He saved a 6-year-old child from drowning.

All pictures: Twitter

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The views expressed in this article are that of the author's and do not in any way reflect the views of the organisation.

Arun A.G. and Haripriya urge us to consider these measures to ensure the safety of children traveling in school buses. We are writing this based on a video which one of us watched as part of 'Road Safety Week'. The video was about how school buses must be driven safely. In one scene, due to the driver's rash driving, a student hits her head on the bar of the seat in front of her, and gets injured. The video was all about correcting the driver. At the end of the video, the driver becomes responsible. The video conveyed an interesting message. However, one thought came to our minds.

Why are we still reluctant about making seat belts compulsory in school buses?

Representational image. Photo source: Flickr/shankar s.

After all, we are an educated and modern society. We are all aware about the need of seat belts. Those who travel in cars should compulsorily wear seat belts now, otherwise they have to pay penalty. Prohibition of driving under the influence of alcohol and compulsory usage of helmet also ensure the safety of passengers. Then why do we never ensure the safety of our children? Just think about how unsafe their daily commute in the school bus is. Schools levy a huge fee for using the school bus. Here are some essential measures that have to be implemented in school buses to ensure the safety of our children.

1) Insist on seat belts and hand straps

Providing seat belts and hand straps are never a huge burden for school authorities. In fact, it is their responsibility. However, most of parents don't insist on such measures. Implementing these features will reduce risk and create a safe travel atmosphere.

2) Have a responsible caretaker

Each school bus should have a caretaker in it. The primary responsibility of the caretaker must be to ensure the safety of children. He/she should watch over the children and ensure all safety features are in place and are working.

3) Have an experienced driver

The school authorities should make sure that the drivers have a proper license and enough experience. Most accidents occur due to the careless attitude of the driver. A background check of the drivers should be made compulsory.

4) Install speed governors

Speed governors should be made mandatory in school buses. The provision to increase speed is a catalyst for rash driving. Speed governors will control and limit the speed, thus reducing the temptation to drive rashly.

5) Service the vehicle regularly

School buses need to be regularly serviced. The driver should check the bus every day and make sure that the vehicle is in good condition.

6) Maintaining a proper student-seat ratio

Representational image. Photo source: Flickr/Maureen Barlin

The school authorities have to maintain a proper student-seat ratio. Students should only be admitted, according to the seats available. This will make the travel comfortable for them. Buses shouldn't be overcrowded.

7) Emergency dialing number

Representational image. Photo source: Flickr/Arti Sandhu

Every school bus should display emergency dialing numbers both inside and outside the bus. The numbers can include the contact of school authorities, police control room, ambulance etc. This will make it easier to seek help, in the event of an accident. Others can also use these numbers to report rash driving.

8) Provide emergency exits

The inclusion of an emergency exit should be made mandatory in every bus. This will be of help to the students during an emergency.

9) Install GPS System

This measure can increase reliability. The school authorities can track the bus as and when required. Proper monitoring ensures safe driving and travel.

10) Designated entry and exit doors

Every school should ensure proper entry and exit points. This will ensure a uniform practice of safe boarding and will avoid the unwanted rush to exit the vehicle. The caretaker must be responsible to ensure this process.

11) First aid kit and training

It should be made mandatory to include a first aid box with adequate medicines and other supplementary products in the bus. The box has to be regularly checked and properly maintained. It is also important to ensure that the caretaker has undergone proper first aid training. It is a popular societal character to weep after casualties. Later, we blame the authorities. Dear society, our next cry should not be over the lives of our children. (We wholeheartedly appreciate and thank all the schools that have taken these safety measures into consideration.)

About the author: Arun A.G. works with the Evangelical Social Action Forum, an NGO based in Kerala, as Project Coordinator for Livable Cities Project. Haripriya is a PhD Scholar at the Social Work Department, Delhi University.

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This article is part of a series that covers the finalists of the HCL Grant & made possible by HCL.

A vocational training college in Rajasthan, started by well known educator and activist Sanjit Bunker Roy, is responsible for lighting up the homes of thousands of poor villagers across the world. Tilonia is a small village in Rajasthan’s Ajmer district. On the face of it, Tilonia is like any other village in India. One can see large tracts of semi-arid land, flocks of sheep on the roads, and women whose heads are covered with the pallus of brightly coloured sarees. However, what sets Tilonia apart is that it is home to the Social Work and Research Centre, popularly known as Barefoot College. This institute is known all over the world for training rural people in vocational skills.

In the 1970s, Sanjit Bunker Roy, an educator and social activist decided to give something back to society and set up Barefoot College in Tilonia.

Photo source: Youtube

The college is spread over eight acres and runs completely on solar energy. Bunker, who studied at Delhi University, says: “My elitist education almost destroyed me. In fact, the biggest reasons why the poor will always remain poor are the literate man and woman — products of the formal education system. This system makes you look down on villages.” According to him, the formal system of education demeans and devalues the traditional knowledge and practical wisdom that the poor value. He says his real education started during his initial years in Tilonia when he was working as an unskilled labourer — blasting wells for water.

“I lived with very poor and ordinary people under the stars and heard the simple stories they had to tell of their skills, knowledge, and wisdom that books and university education can never teach you. My real education started when I saw amazing people – water diviners, traditional bonesetters and midwives – at work. That was the humble beginning of the Barefoot College,” he adds.

Though the college started with the aim of providing solutions to the water problems of rural India, its mission soon changed to sustainable development and empowerment of the marginalised. In fact, the courses offered at the institute are rooted in the Gandhian philosophy of making villages self-reliant. “But it was not Gandhi or Marx who inspired the work of the college, but very ordinary people with grit, determination, and the amazing ability to survive with almost nothing,” says Bunker. Students, primarily women, are selected from the poorest of villages and are taught vocational skills in different areas like solar energy, healthcare, education, handicrafts, and so on. The college provides basic health services to the villages through a team of doctors, midwives, and dentists. It imparts education to women and children by keeping their different needs in mind. There are crèches for small children whose mothers work all day. There are night schools for children who help in the fields or tend to animals during the day. And bridge courses for those among them who wish to join day school. There is an emphasis on hands-on learning. Even the lessons offered are practical in nature. The children are taught about how democracy works, how to take care of a sick animal, how land is measured, etc.

Barefoot College is probably best known for producing hundreds of ‘barefoot’ solar engineers.

In 2003, the college decided to train illiterate rural women as solar engineers. The biggest challenge at the time was to convince donors, policy makers, as well as the male members of the community to accept the ‘impossibility’ that these women could be trained. “Do you know why we insisted on women? Because training men is pointless. They will grow restless and go to big cities in search of jobs. Women have more patience to learn the skill. And especially since they are from poor families, they will stay back home and prove their worth to their communities,” says Bunker. This training of women — to teach them how to install, repair, and maintain solar lighting units — did not stop in Rajasthan. Today, the institute trains women from countries like Afghanistan, Bhutan, Sierra Leone, Mozambique, Fiji, etc. It boasts of having over 700 solar ‘mamas’ in 70 of the least developed countries in the world. These women, from isolated and non-electrified villages, congregate in Rajasthan for a few months. To overcome the language barrier, they are taught through sign language.

They memorise the permutations and combinations of wires through colour codes.

Barefoot College brought three women from Afghanistan to Tilonia and trained them. After they went back, their village became the first ever solar-electrified village in the country. These women went on to train 27 others and now there are over a 100 solar-electrified villages in Afghanistan. The College also trained grandmothers from Sierra Leone. They lit up the first village in the country with the sun’s energy. The idea caught on and now there is a Barefoot Vocational Training Centre in Sierra Leone. Under the India Technical Economic Cooperation Programme of the Ministry of External Affairs, the Barefoot College has trained nearly 700 rural grandmothers to be solar engineers and electrify over 20,000 houses in different countries. Barefoot College is funded by various organisations and grants. Barefoot College applied for the HCL Grant and through this grant, it wanted to implement the Barefoot model of alternate community-based education and skill development in the five districts of Rajasthan, by empowering and educating children, women, and youth and setting up 25 crèches and 50 bridge schools in these districts. To know more about Barefoot College, contact the team on their website.

About HCL Grant

There are about 3.3 million NGOs in India doing commendable work in various areas aimed at inclusion and development. The HCL Grant has been launched to support the institutionalization of the Fifth Estate comprising individuals and institutions formed and led by the citizens of the country through the creation of strong governance frameworks and management capabilities. An endeavour of the HCL Foundation, HCL Grant envisions to build sustainable communities by supporting NGOs and individuals who are doing path-breaking work towards high impact transformation in rural India. In the first year, HCL Grant has identified the best NGOs in the area of rural education. To know more about the HCL Grant: http://www.hcl.com/hcl-grant

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

Parents are often worried about the safety of their children whenever they are going to or coming back from school. Why is the bus late? Did my child reach safely? Did my child get on the bus? But not anymore! A 15-year-old has developed a solution in the form of an app. Getting irritated because your school bus is stuck in a traffic jam due to heavy rains is one thing. But to reach home late, find your parents worried, and develop an app so they won’t be stressed the next time – that’s called combining innovation with care. Arjun S. is a 15-year-old student of Class 10 in Velammal Vidhyashram School in Chennai. He has developed an app that can help parents track the position of their children’s school buses whenever they want.

“I got the idea after a cyclone hit Chennai in 2012. I reached home late one day and my parents were really scared because they had no way of finding out if I was safe. I thought that if there could be a way to track school buses easily, it would be so much better for parents and school authorities. I was learning more about building apps and the android programming language at that time, and decided to find a solution,” says Arjun.

The young boy’s love for technology led to the development of LOCATERA – an app to find out where exactly a school bus is located at any given time, and to know if a particular child is there in the bus or not.

“I have been using computers since the age of two. My dad had a system and I would stack up some pillows on the chair to reach the keyboard to use some basic electronics simulation software. My parents were always careful about giving me age-appropriate tools for using the system,” he says, talking about his interest in this field.

The first app developed by Arjun was called Ez School Bus Locator. He shared it with many schools, including his own, and collected the feedback from administrators and parents about their specific requirements. “I collected the information about the schools’ basic requirements and modified the app accordingly. LOCATERA is a modified version of Ez School Bus Locator, and it came two years after the first one. Unlike other solutions that require some kind of hardware installation, all this app needs is the presence of a phone inside the bus,” he adds. LOCATERA is basically a tri-app solution, which means three apps working together. These include the attendant, admin, and parent apps.

1. LOCATERA attendant:

This app captures the location of the bus and shares it with parents and the school if required. The bus attendant can install and keep it on his/her phone. The attendant adds all students to the app by scanning their Quick Response (QR) Code-based ID cards, using bar code scanning, as and when the students board or get off the bus. Student activities are recorded on the Cloud – to be used by schools in case of emergencies.

2. LOCATERA admin:

The admin version has to be with the administrator of the school transport system so he/she can see all the buses together, locate the position of a particular bus, get information about it, and find out which students are present in the bus at any given time.

3. LOCATERA parent:

Parents have to get their mobile numbers verified before they get access to the app. Once they are in, they can find the location of the bus by clicking on the ‘Bus on Map’ option. Alternatively, they can tap on ‘Bus Location’ and ‘Distance & Time’ options to find out the exact address of the bus and how soon the child will reach home. To find out if the child is there in the bus or not, they just have to select the ‘Child in Bus’ option. Parents who don’t have android phones can give a missed call to the attendant’s phone whenever they want the information. The LOCATERA attendant looks into the bank of registered numbers to find out which parent has called. He/she then sends an SMS with information about the child and the bus location. Arjun used Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)’s programming tool called MIT App Inventor to develop LOCATERA. It is basically a programming language tool with a more graphical user interface, instead of codes. Arjun submitted the app to ‘Google India Code to Learn Contest 2015’ and was declared the winner. He also won the MIT 'App of the Month (Best Design)' award in December 2012 for Ez School Bus Locator.

Among other awards, he also received the 2014 'National Child Award for Exceptional Achievements for Computer Technology', which was initiated by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India.

“I would like to work in the field of computer science itself, and would like to go to IIT or MIT or something like that,” says Arjun, talking about his future plans.

He also started a company named LateraLogics in 2012, which has several products including some other apps that Arjun has developed over the past three years. Currently, only the demo version of LOCATERA is available on Play Store, for all three stakeholders. Those who want to use the complete version can fill out the LOCATERA Flexi Plan Enquiry Form to receive the pricing details for that particular school. Arjun keeps receiving constant feedback from the schools that are already using it.

As he is also preparing for his board exams, Arjun has a tough time juggling his studies and his passion. “But I somehow manage it,” he says.

[caption id="attachment_42839" align="aligncenter" width="900"] track a school bus

Arjun at the award ceremony[/caption] He also likes to play the keyboard, and is a badminton enthusiast in his free time.

“We have been supporting Arjun from a very young age…He has always been passionate about technology. We gave him the right kinds of tools from the start and he has always been serious about what he does. He does a lot of research and discusses his ideas before finalising anything. We are also in touch with the state and Central government to see how the app can be implemented all over the country. The Ez School Bus Locator version is free of cost and it is being used in more than 10 countries right now. We think it can be used in India as well,” says Arjun’s father Santhosh Kumar.

The agreement for using the app for one academic year includes a one-time activation fee (per child, per year) and a monthly maintenance fee option (per month, per child). After a successful pilot project in his school, Arjun is having discussions with other schools for implementation the same. Trial runs have been scheduled for some schools in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and other parts of the country as well. “Look for problems around you and get inspired by them. You’ll see a lot of opportunities to make this world a better place using your own skills,” is Arjun’s advice to other youngsters like him. Download the demo versions of the app here: LOCATERA attendant LOCATERA admin LOCATERA parent You can find other details about installing the app here.

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This article is part of a series that covers the finalists of the HCL Grant & made possible by HCL.

Bachpan Bachao Andolan was established by Kailash Satyarthi and others in 1980 with a vision to end the problem of child labour. It soon became a mass movement that identified, liberated, rehabilitated, and educated child labourers across the country. It was 4 a.m. when Kailash Satyarthi and his colleagues reached an illegal stone quarry to rescue bonded labourers. As soon as the security guard went to refresh himself, they conducted a raid and rescued the men, women, and children. While the adults were taken away in a truck, Kailash himself drove the children to safety. The children were terrified. In order to break the ice, Kailash told them look under their seats, pick up a few bananas and eat them. The children picked up the fruit and looked very confused.

“'Is it an onion or a potato?' they asked. That’s when I realised these children had never seen a banana in their lives,” says Kailash.

The image of one of them eating the fruit without peeling the skin haunts him till date.

Bachpan Bachao Andolan was founded by Kailash and a group of like-minded individuals in 1980.

Photo source: Twitter

The organisation has liberated 82,000 child labourers to date and continues to work to rehabilitate and educate them.

“People always ask me whether I’ve ever felt like giving up on my mission. But I ask them if they would expect me to wait even for a day if my son or daughter was kidnapped, before swinging into action. How can I ignore the pleas of a mother who has asked me to rescue her child?” asks this Nobel Laureate who won the Peace Prize in 2014.

Back when the organisation was formed, the issue of child labour was not a part of public discourse.

Photo source: Wikimedia

Those were challenging times for the Bachpan Bachao Andolan. Over the years, its members faced brutal physical attacks and some of them have even been assassinated. “The people who enslave others are usually very powerful. So it’s common for us to conduct raids without the help of the police, especially when these factories or brothels are owned by someone with very strong contacts. We have been attacked plenty of times. One of my colleagues was shot dead. Another was beaten to death. I myself have a broken shoulder and scars all over my body,” says Kailash. However, these incidents only strengthened Kailash’s resolve to continue with his work. In Delhi, Bachpan Bachao Andolan established the Mukti Ashram in 1991. This was the first rescue home for bonded labourers in the country. In this transit home, children get food, clothing and medical and psychological aid. In 1998, Bachpan Bachao Andolan set up the Bal Ashram in Rajasthan to ensure long-term assistance to victims of child labour. After rescuing him from a zari factory in Delhi, the organisation rehabilitated Imtiyaz and sent him home. However, during follow-up visits, its members realised that the child wasn’t going to school regularly. The organisation convinced his parents to send him to the Bal Ashram, where Imtiyaz now leads a happy life.

“Life has changed a lot. I am in class 6 now. I take classical singing lessons and want to become an engineer when I grow up. My role model is Mr. Satyarthi and I hope I can free child labourers like he did when I grow up,” says Imtiyaz.

Apart from rehabilitating victims, the organisation also spreads awareness on the importance of education. For this purpose, it has encouraged the establishment of Bal Mitra Grams or child-friendly villages. The organisation has created as many as 151 Bal Mitra Grams since 2001. This model requires that children be withdrawn from labour units and sent to school. In these villages, children also form Bal Panchayats to influence the decision making process and get democratic space for themselves.

Payal, from Hinsla village in Rajasthan, is the Bal Pradhan of her panchayat.

Photo source: bba.org.in

Her village became a Bal Mitra Gram in 2012. Ever since Bachpan Bachao Andolan activists enlightened her on her role, Payal was at the forefront of a movement protesting the practice of child marriage in the village. Eventually, Payal and her Bal Panchayat managed to put an end to child marriage in Hinsla. Bachpan Bachao Andolan’s efforts also led to the framing and implementation of very important legislations on the issue of child labour in India and abroad. It held a mass demonstration outside the Parliament demanding changes,including a ban on child labour till 14 years of age, in The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act of 1986. It also helped in coordinating the historic Global March Against Child Labour in 1998. The march took place across 103 countries and culminated in an international ban on child labour. In 2008, the organisation developed a database on child labour. It contains information on over 1,300 child labourers and 2,800 offenders. This resource has become a treasure trove for research and has proven to be a reliable source of data for lawyers, activists, and the authorities. Bachpan Bachao Andolan is funded by various organisations and grants. It applied for the HCL Grant to facilitate the establishment of 30 Bal Mitra Grams in Rajasthan’s Jaipur district. The plan will engage the community, eliminate child marriage through education and involve children in the decision making process as well as mobilise 45,000 community members so they can demand education for children.

About HCL Grant

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These high school students are introducing technology to senior citizens in an effort to help them overcome loneliness and social isolation – all because of respect and love for their grandparents, who they consider their superheroes. The 2001 census of India showed that the population of senior citizens in India has crossed 100 million. Today, India is home to one out of every 10 senior citizens in the world. Yet, very few in the country are looking into the problems faced by this ageing section of our society.

An emotional and psychological problem tormenting elders in our country is loneliness.

[caption id="attachment_45645" align="aligncenter" width="600"]

A student helps a senior citizen learn how to use a computer.[/caption] This is due to the growing ‘empty nest syndrome.’ Children go away to far-off countries in search of economic betterment. Even if they live within the country, due to the spread of western ideas such as ‘space, privacy, individualism and non-interference,’ nuclear families are becoming the norm even in villages. Poor social interaction with family and friends, poor social networks, and lack of family support are some of the difficulties faced by senior citizens. At the other extreme is the young generation today, highly dependent on social networking to stay connected with family and friends and build connections. Two high school students from Delhi are helping bridge the gap between the two generations.

Vibhor Rohatgi and Suyesha Dutta were in their 11th grade in Shri Ram School Mouslari, Gurgaon, which follows the International Baccalaureate (IB) board.

[caption id="attachment_45647" align="aligncenter" width="4288"]

Suyesha (on extreme left) and Vibhor (second from right) with their teacher[/caption] Creativity, activity, service (CAS) are the three essential elements of a CAS project that every student must complete as part of the Diploma Programme (DP) in the IB board internationally. For many students, these projects provide experiences that are profound and fulfilling. Vibhor and Suyesha decided to take up a CAS project that would prove to be not only life changing for them but also for a much ignored segment of our society –senior citizens.

“When CAS is discussed in school, most students think of helping the underprivileged, the needy or the slum kids. We have this belief that only those who are deprived of money need help. But there are people who have it all but still feel emotionally empty. We wanted to help them – our grandparents,” says Suyesha.
[caption id="attachment_45646" align="aligncenter" width="1040"] Bridging the generation gap - senior citizens with students.[/caption]

Suyesha, who had spent a lot of time with her grandparents till she was in her teens, lost her grandfather three years ago. She saw her grandmother spending most of her days alone after that. So she decided to connect her to technology to help her overcome her loneliness. Once she saw how successful that experiment was, she wanted to gift technology not just to her own grandmother but to as many other grandparents as she could as a tribute to her grandfather. Suyesha and her friend Vibhor are great fans of the comic superhero Silver Surfer, a humanoid with metallic skin who can travel space with the aid of his surfboard-like craft. Since this superman is an icon of technology himself, they decided to name their initiative the Silver Surfer Programme. [caption id="attachment_45648" align="aligncenter" width="5456"]

The silver surfers[/caption]

“The Silver Surfer Programme (SSP), a social initiative started by us, is the epitome of the maxim ‘age is just a number.’ Age is a measure of experience, inefficiently gauged by how many candles one blows out every year. To this plenitude of experiences, we, looking to bring about a social change in society, decided to add one more...the experience known as technology,” says Vibhor “We called it the Silver Surfer Programme because Silver Surfer is a superhero and we consider our grandparents to be superheroes. His senses enable him to detect objects and energies light years away. Similarly, grandparents have strong intuition and can detect any problem or trouble in their children's and grandchildren's lives. He has even proven capable of time travel on occasions, just like our grandparents take us back to their times by narrating stories from their childhood,” adds Suyesha

The Silver Surfer Programme is an effort to better acquaint grandparents with the delights of modern day technology.

SSP aims to make the lives of grandparents simpler, faster and efficient. The programme includes two hour modules on three Saturdays every month for the grandparents. The programme, which began in May 2015, includes the following learning sessions:

Introduction to the programme and its aim.
Introduction to email – how to write an email.
Introduction to Facebook and Twitter – how to open and set up an account, send requests, etc.
Familiarization with smart phones and tablets and an introduction to WhatsApp – how to set up an account, send and receive messages, etc.
Introduction and use of specialist apps, such as, Grofers, Flipkart, BookMyShow, News InShorts/ Times of India, Ola and Meru Cabs, etc.
Net banking through HDFC, SBI, etc.
Paying utility bills such as electricity, phone bills, etc.

The programme, which started with the help of a few volunteers and their teacher Amrita Sai Marla, became so close to their hearts that they decided to continue it even after the CAS project was over. The classes were conducted in the computer hall of their school, so they took special permission to continue with the classes. Now, as they have graduated from school, they plan to hand it over to their juniors. Suyesha and Vibhor do not want to stop getting the blessings of grandparents even after they bid farewell to school. They are now planning to take the initiative forward by going to old age homes and teaching the grandparents who are staying there.

“We raise concerns over environmental degradation or the lack of education of the underprivileged, but seldom have we ever touched upon the most experienced in our society, the grandparents. As we feel that grandparents are the cornerstones of our lives, this is how we’ve decided to do something for them, show them our love and support. We work really hard towards our modules, undertake new challenges and come up with some interesting and essential things for the grandparents to learn, while constantly keeping them engaged. The blessings that the grandparents shower upon us make us feel accomplished and we don’t want to miss a single chance to keep those jubilant smiles on their faces,” says Suyesha

One of the defining moments of the Silver Surfer Programme came when a grandmother from a foreign country came to learn about Facebook from them.

[caption id="attachment_45677" align="aligncenter" width="1040"] IMG-20150509-WA0000

Grandparents are overjoyed at connecting with old friends through Facebook.[/caption] Now in her 70s, this grandmother had not seen her friends ever since she was in her 2os and had to leave her country due to political instability. The prospect of even getting a glimpse of her school friends made her so eager to learn that within minutes Vibhor and Suyesha helped her set up her very own Facebook account. After intensive searching for an hour, they finally found her old friends.

“Never did a click ever make someone this happy. Overflowing with emotion she was as she got to speak to her friends, her smile radiating light on a cloudy, rainy day. It is for moments such as this that we had started this initiative,” says Vibhor. “The journey of the Silver Surfer Programme has instilled in me vital life lessons that have helped me develop and grow as a person. For instance, I have learned that learning, in its candid, most humble form, is not bound by time but that it is in fact imperishable. Learning is a well-oiled machine that never stops, a beating heart that gives life. I have learned that there is no ‘right’ age and it is never ‘too late’ to learn,” adds Vibhor.

Suyesha narrates another happy moment when one of the grandmothers came to her after the class and requested that she teach her how to download songs. Initially, Suyesha was reluctant to do so. She explained to her how it would be an act of piracy. However, the grandmother insisted by saying that it was her favorite song and no one was helping her download it, even though she saw her grandchildren doing it all the time.

“It was an Atif Aslam song, Jiya re Jiya re! I can’t describe the glow in her eyes after it downloaded. She left me with numerous blessings that day,” says Suyesha

The Silver Surfer Programme has now evolved to also start providing the benefits of technology to workers and guards of their school. Their next series of modules is aimed at computer literacy, wherein they will teach the guards and workers everything about the basics of using computers – using the mouse, keyboard, internet, etc.

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

About the author: A mechanical engineer, Manabi Katoch has been brought up listening to Tagore’s poems and stories, so she is kind of an emotional person within. She loves writing poems and stories on social and political issues. Few of her poems can be viewed on www.poemocean.com and satires on www.mindthenews.com. She has worked with Wipro, Frankfinn and Educomp in the past.

This article has been made possible by Airtel.

“Congratulations! Today is your day. You're off to Great Places! You're off and away!” ― Dr. Seuss in Oh, The Places You'll Go! Sometimes, all it takes is an inspiring line like this to steer a child in the right direction and see him/her fly, succeed and shine. Sometimes, all it takes is the right person, the right words, and the right opportunity to enter a child’s life at the right time, and there is no stopping him/her after that. When given these things, a child can actually go places, like these five who have made their country extremely proud.

1. Shubham Jaglan

The 10-year-old golf champ

Shubham won the IMG Academy Junior World Golf Championship for the 9-10 age category in 2015. The 10-year-old hails from Israna village in Panipat district of Haryana. His father works as a milkman and Shubham had to overcome many setbacks to reach this stage in life. Opportunity came knocking for the child in the form of an NRI who built a golfing range in his village, bought the required equipment, and hired a caddie to train kids. Shubham excelled in the game and continued practising even after the range was closed because other kids were not interested. Finally, India’s top golfer, Nonita Lall Qureshi, spotted his potential – she saw that his name was on the leader board of every small tournament for kids. She decided to take him under her wing, and the rest is history.

2. Rohit Sawant

The 18-year-old who received praise from the founder of Zumba himself

Due to improper diagnosis by doctors after he injured himself at the age of 4, Rohit’s mental abilities were severely affected. Today, at the age of 18, he has the brain of an 8-year-old. But thanks to his cousin Rahul Murundkar, who did not want to see his brother’s life wasted away, Rohit got the opportunity to become an excellent dancer. Rahul, a trained dancer himself, started dance classes for Rohit to provide him with a platform where he could shine. Dance has taken Rohit places. His talent was recently recognised and appreciated by Alberto Beto Perez, the founder of Zumba, at the international Zumba Instructor Convention 2015 in Florida.

3. Aravind Chithambaram

India’s next Vishwanathan Anand

Source: Flickr

Aravind, who is expected to be India’s next Vishwanathan Anand by many, did not have an easy childhood. His mother worked as an LIC agent to run the house, and the young boy had to cross several financial hurdles before winning the Grandmaster title at the age of 15. How did chess enter his life? It was via his grandfather, who wanted to keep him inside the house instead of constantly running out to play cricket. He bought Aravind a chess set and the boy soon became an expert. His coach, Grandmaster RB Ramesh, helped the family move to Chennai where he coached Aravind for free. Aravind was awarded the title of Grandmaster by the World Chess Federation at the age of 15.

4. Pranav Dhanawade

The boy who broke a 117 year old cricket world record

Source: Twitter

15-year-old Pranav Dhanawade of KC Gandhi School, Mumbai, broke a 117 year old cricket world record by scoring 1009 runs in a match organised by the Mumbai Cricket Association. Pranav’s father, Prashant, is an auto rickshaw driver. He is an inspiration for his son and wants Pranav to become a great cricketer.

5. Lalita Prasida Sripada Srisai

Winner of Community Impact Award at Google Science Fair, California in 2015

Lalita Prasida Sripada Srisai, a 13-year-old student from Odisha, won the Community Impact Award at the prestigious Google Science Fair in California last year. A student of DPS Damanjodi in Koraput district of Odisha, Lalita developed a low cost bio-absorbent based water purifier that makes innovative use of corn cobs in the filtering process. Besides being cheap, this also makes the purifier eco-friendly because the corn cobs would ordinarily be discarded as bio-waste. Lalita’s teachers guided and mentored her while she worked on the project, and helped her enter the competition that won her the award. These brilliant prodigies from around India are a perfect example of how opportunity can change lives.

Opportunity was also a key factor in changing the lives of five other children recently. They interacted with author Amish Tripathi to write a magical book. Watch exactly what happened here.

[embedvideo id="8iBWgJZ2R8Q" website="youtube"]

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Sparsh Shah, a 12-year-old singing prodigy who lives in the US, was born with almost 40 fractures. He has given more than 45 performances in just the last year-and-a-half. Read his inspirational story here. Sparsh (aka Purhythm) has written 10 songs – "This Love Will Never Fade," "There's Always Tomorrow," "Why'd You Have To Leave Me?", "You Are My Heroes," "Count on Me," "A Little Bit of Respect," "Turn Around," "Birthday Wishes," "You're The One," and "No One Knows." He has composed the music for most of them too. Listen to him pay homage to his favourite Eminem here: [embedvideo id="CqwzlMUt9oM" website="youtube"] Aren’t you still feeling that beat? Sparsh has been learning Hindustani classical music for the last seven-and-a-half years and American vocal music for the last three years. Sparsh is multi-talented. He performs at community events and has appeared on local radio stations and television shows, besides hosting shows as an MC. He has memorized 250 digits of Pi, can say the 12 longest words in the English dictionary in less than 18 seconds, and can speak in four different accents in English. He has written several poems, short stories, motivational/funny speeches ("I am Disabled"), etc., and acted in the developmental reading of a play called The Greatest Choice at the Crossroads theatre in New Jersey. He was able to spell a 45 letter word, “Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis,” at the age of 6.

Hiren and Jigisha Shah migrated to the US some 14 years ago. In 2003, when Sparsh was born, they could never have imagined their little boy would touch millions of hearts soon.

[caption id="attachment_47910" align="alignnone" width="960"] Sparsh1

Sparsh Shash (Purhythm)[/caption] His parents, however, could experience the joy of holding their baby only after six months of his birth – Sparsh had broken 35-40 bones while emerging from his mother’s womb.

Sparsh was born with an incurable disease called Osteogenesis Imperfecta.

This condition makes his bones extremely fragile and brittle – even a hard handshake can break his bones. He cannot bear weight on his hands and legs, so he cannot walk or run like other normal kids. He has had more than 125 fractures in the first 12 years of his life already and the doctors cannot predict how many more are to come. In April 2015, Sparsh participated in and won the prestigious talent competition Young Voice of NYC, and was honoured to be made the 'Youth Ambassador' for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. He now supports the hospital in spreading awareness about the fight against pediatric cancer.

Sparsh has been a catalyst in helping raise over half a million dollars for various philanthropic organisations.

[caption id="attachment_47913" align="aligncenter" width="960"] Sparsh3

Sparsh, at the Chennai floods fund raising programme[/caption] Sparsh was also a member of the Watt NXT Robotics team that won at the state and regional levels in the US. He participated in the first World Robotics Championship in St. Louis, MO in 2015. Sparsh won the first prize in the speech competition about Dr.Ambedkar at the Indian Consulate in New York City in November 2015. Sparsh also participated won the Swardhara Singing Competition organized by Marathi Vishwa, New Jersey, in February 2016. He always thanks his parents and grandparents for his success:

“I don’t see myself as disabled. I just dis the ‘dis’ from disabled. Most people with disability always keep thinking about their disability and that makes others think about it too. I want to be the courage of such people," says Sparsh with a smile.

When Sparsh was just three years old, he started learning the keyboard and reading books. However, as his bones kept breaking, it was difficult for him to continue to learn the keyboard and he had to stop playing.

Watch him say hello to The Better India readers here. (Thank you Sparsh for this!) [embedvideo id="45Yh_cV1jj0" website="youtube"] Once, when he was three-and-a-half, his family was travelling in the car and his father switched on the radio. To his parents’ surprise, Sparsh remembered the song that was playing on the radio and started singing along. They thought that he perhaps knew the song because it was a well known one. But then, he sang the second, the third and even the fourth song that was played on the radio. When they asked Sparsh about this, he said his preschool bus driver played the same channel and that is how he had memorized all the songs. This was the beginning of the making of this gifted singer and musician.

“Dreams are not enough, Hard work is what turns them into reality! And so, he makes sure that he works hard enough to make his dreams come true," says Jigisha Shah, Sparsh’s mother.

Sparsh started learning Indian classical music at the age of 6 and is a student of Pandit Jasraj Institute of Music (PJIM) since 2009. He also learns American vocal music.

“All we tell him is that no matter what situation you have in life, never limit yourself!. We believe that Sparsh is a miracle who has come to this world to do something extra special," says Hiren Shah (Sparsh’s father)

A 7^th grader, Sparsh is also excellent in his studies. He has a 5-year-old brother named Anuj who plays video games with him.

[caption id="attachment_47929" align="aligncenter" width="960"] SparshWithFamily

Sparsh with his family.[/caption] Sparsh has gone through multiple surgeries for his brittle bones. His parents help him write when he has fractures, or he uses voice to text technology to do his homework.

When asked how he deals with the pain, he says: “There is not much you can do about pain…isn’t it? Crying is just a natural response to pain but you need to smile. This is what my Papa taught me since I was small. He said that I should tell my bones to smile whenever there is a fracture. If I don’t smile at them, they won’t respond to me with a smile. And so, whenever there is an x-ray after a fracture, I look at my bones and say – Smile please bones.”

Sparsh loves rapping as he believes that rap makes even sad songs come alive; rapping keeps the spark going. This huge fan of Eminem also loves Bollywood songs. "Abhi mujh me kahi" by Sonu Nigam is his favourite Hindi song. He met musician Neel a year-and-a-half ago, at a Karaoke competition. They sang together. Since then, Neel and Sparsh have been inseparable musical buddies and they have written a wonderful motivational duet: "Count On Me." [embedvideo id="W7kiNVTBoyc" website="youtube"] Sparsh recently auditioned for America's Got Talent and is waiting for the results, which will be out by March 2016. He won the first prize in Gaan Nipun Spardha, a prestigious singing competition organized by PJIM and was awarded a certificate of recognition by none other than the stalwart of Hindustani classical music, Sangeet Martand Pandit Jasraj, on February 27, 2016. [caption id="attachment_47921" align="aligncenter" width="960"] SparshWithPtJasraj

Sparsh, with Pandit Jasraj[/caption] Despite all the challenges he has faced, Sparsh's spirit is unbreakable. He aspires to sing in front of a billion people one day.

“I want to leave the marks of my footprints (aka wheelchair tracks ;)) in the sand of legacy so deep that not even a tsunami can erase them," concludes Sparsh.

Join this miracle boy’s journey to fame and help him make his dream come true by sharing his latest sensational cover song: “Not Afraid” with all your friends and family members. To listen to Sparsh’s magical music, log on and subscribe to his YouTube channel. You can also connect with Sparsh and keep updated on his progress by liking his Facebook page or following him on Twitter or Instagram .

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The inspiring story of how a long-forgotten school was revived and brought back to life by the coordinated efforts of a few committed youth, the community and the authorities. The name Howrah may conjure up a towering bridge but the reality is that it is also an area teeming with people living in overcrowded spaces and conditions of great discomfort and deprivation. Visit Ward No. 19 and you will find men folk who are mostly cleaners or sweepers in the Corporation and many who are unemployed. The women are either domestic helps or busy with their own household chores.

The socio-economic conditions of the families here are far from easy!

Earlier, the children in the area used to roam around freely instead of attending school! The dropout rate was high. The families said they either could not afford to educate their kids or the children were not interested in school at all. The general awareness among the communities on the importance of education was low and the on-ground reality did not encourage them to change their views. A few youngsters volunteering with CRY had done a survey of the area and initiated weekend sessions with children to build rapport and share positive examples and experiences to spread some cheer in their childhood. Over a period of time, the issues of dropout and lack of interest in school kept coming up. There was no school in the immediate vicinity and the distance to the nearest school was a deterrent for the children to continue their education. The CRY volunteers wondered how a densely populated area like this did not have any school in the locality itself. To their surprise, and after making some more visits in the lanes and bylanes, they chanced upon a little building that looked like a local club. It turned out that it was actually a school that existed just in name.

The Harijan Vidya Mandir (primary school) was a rude one-room thatched structure where multiple classes were being held simultaneously. There was only one person who was running the school – he was the headmaster as well as the lone teacher.

children with the volunteer after one of the sessions

With only four benches, no toilets, no proper drinking water facility and teaching quality that can only be imagined, the number of students who went there kept going down every day until there were practically none left. A school existed, yet it was the children who had dropped out who suggested the idea of trying to make it work again! The young and committed volunteers took a note of the practical hurdles and with great zeal launched a campaign to bring about a change to make the school functional in the real sense of the term. A visit to the concerned authorities to convey the poor condition of the school and request renovation was the first step. But this was not a simple one-time solution. There was no visible movement and action towards any improvement at all. And that’s where perseverance and a never-say-die attitude came into play. Repeated visits to the Councillor’s office and school committee members were made, reiterating the difficulties and how the renovation would impact the children positively. The follow-ups continued for seven months. The volunteers also encouraged the concerned authorities to meet the community and children and assess the dire need for themselves. A councillor actually made a visit to take stock. Persistence paid off and the school renovation started. Within a matter of time, a two-room school and the basic infrastructure were put in place.

Teachers were recruited and families were back enrolling their children in the school.

"I had to drop out since my earlier school was quite far from my home and my parents could not accompany me every time. Now, with this school fully working so close to my home, I can once again go to school and can manage to go on my own too," says Aditya, a student of Class III.

Today, the school has a growing number of students and regular classes.

Computer classes, funded by the Jamshedji Tata Trust, have been introduced to make it more interesting and attractive for children.

Parents too are happy with this revamped school. One of them said, “I have two daughters and they had done primary schooling from here. But we had to send our son to a school that is a bit far away since by that time, the school was in a real bad shape. Now, with this change, I can enrol him here. It will be so convenient and the computer classes will be very useful too."

The renovated school has been well received by the authorities as well. One of the school committee members said that it was heartening and also encouraging to see the renewed interest of the parents and children in the school.

"We have started visiting the houses close to the school to identify any out-of-school/dropout child, so that no child remains outside it," the school committee member said.

Pallavi Roy,one of the key volunteer members involved in the process

The year-long effort paid off. The coordinated effort of a few youngsters who believed in change, a community that was actually eager to send their wards to a school that functions, and authorities who understood the problem and took some positive steps forward – all these people have brought change and hope for the children.

"Pehle wala school jane mein kariban ek ghanta lagta tha, jiski wajah se hum school chod diye the. Ab ghar se 5 minute ki doori par school ho jane par, hum aram se khud ja saktey hain (It used to take me one hour to go to my earlier school so I dropped out. Now that my school is only 5 minutes away from home, I can easily come here alone)," says 10-year-old Rahul smilingly.

And so, it can be concluded, if schools are made accessible to children, if the distance factor is addressed, if what is offered is made interesting and relevant for them, no family will actually ever want its children to be out of school.

CRY volunteers work across many cities in India addressing several such issues towards happy, healthy and creative childhood. To know more and to join as a volunteer/ intern, visit: www.cry.org

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Edu-Kick is a new initiative by the founders of Slum Soccer to help students of municipal schools learn mathematics through soccer. In the year 2001, Vijay Barse, a retired sports teacher, saw a small bucket being kicked and passed around by some kids, splashing muddy rainwater all around the diminutive playground of a shanty town. It was a moment of clairvoyance. Vijay saw through the simple joy and fun – he saw a great tool of emancipation in soccer because he realized that sports can transform you when you are on the field. Jhoparpatti football, as he called it then, roped in youngsters from all kinds of difficult backgrounds – drug abuse, anti-social activities, personal struggles, etc. They all started to get together for some games of soccer, but slowly and surely, their lives started changing. And thus, Slum Soccer was born. But Slum Soccer is not a baby anymore. This year, the Slum Soccer team represented India in the World Cup held in Amsterdam, Netherlands, for the seventh time and came out with flying colours. Fifteen years after its inception, Slum Soccer is also now venturing into newer territory. Abhijeet Barse (son of Vijay Barse) heads the Slum Soccer team and its operations now. Last year he came across another social challenge and, just like his father, he decided to deal with it with the help of soccer. Abhijeet was looking into the newspaper one morning and he came across a piece of news in the Times of India that got him thinking. The news item said that children in most municipal schools were struggling to learn. The data was horrifying and it left Barse restless. He wanted to do something about it but all he knew was how to play soccer. So he decided to help these kids learn through soccer and started a new initiative called Edu-kick.

“Edu-Kick was initiated with a desire to increase the learning outcome of students attending municipal school, using football as learning vehicle," says Abhijeet.

"We did what we do best; we made a game out of it and there began the journey of learning and growing together as community interested in supporting the experiential learning for its children”, he adds.

About 65 million of the Indian population lives in slums and the majority of the children from these communities are enrolled in municipal schools. Many of them are child labourers, drug addicts or indulge in anti-social activities. These circumstances create a hole in their educational outcomes. A recent study also showed that only 25.3% of Class 3 students can perform simple subtraction and 55.9% of Class 8 students are unable to do simple division.

"The experience of play changes the connections of the neurons at the front end of your brain and without play experience, those neurons aren't changed", says a researcher at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada.

With this in mind, Abhijeet and his team designed Project Edu-kick, which is aimed at improving and building upon existing educational outcomes, using football as a tool. They designed games based on football to teach elementary mathematics (number system, squares and cubes, angles) and basic communication, and help make them financially literate as well.

When conducting a survey to decide who needed their help the most, they zeroed in on Urdu medium girls' schools.

“This project is an innovation in a way that it uses football very uniquely. The use of sports to teach life skills is not something new. Even we use sports for making change in our lives but using football for mathematics & financial literacy is a one step forward," says Abhijeet.

Ankit and Sajid, two Slum Soccer coaches who are also electrical engineers, have designed this programme.

“I always believed that education shouldn’t be the property of a classroom. Education is the most powerful weapon to change the world. For promoting literacy the most important thing is to make learning easy by changing the process of teaching," says Ankit.

This duo provides an example of a simple game: Name: #Messi for Positive and Negative Theme: Improving agility & passing skill of the player. Role model: Lionel Messi (Top Men Football Player) Players required: 40 Players Warm Up (10 Min): Make a big circle and place number boards (containing both positive and negative numbers) at the periphery of the circle. At each number board there will be a player. As the coach blows the whistle, one of the players will touch the ball placed at the centre of the circle and will go to any other player in the circle. Once the player reaches the other player, he/she will shout her number -- whether it is positive or negative -- and give a high five. The second player will do the same thing. Variation: Player will touch the ball placed at the centre with different parts of the body. Main Game (20 min): There are several cones placed (depending upon the number of participants) in the ground in pairs. Each pair of cones has numbers (either both numbers are positive or negative, or both positive or both negative). There will be two or three teams having equal number of participants. When the trainer blows the whistle, two players from each team will go with the ball and one will pass the ball between the cones and the other will receive the ball. Once they complete this successfully, they will pick up the numbers placed near the cones and come back to their team. Now the next two from the same team will go and perform the same task. Once all the numbers have been picked up, the trainer will ask them to find out that how many positive and negative numbers they have. The trainer will repeat this for three or four times depending upon the performance of the participants. Learning: The warm up game will help players to work on their agility and also improve their passing and controlling skills apart from learning positive and negative numbers.

So far this programme has trained more than 200 students in the age group of 10-13 and has seen amazing results.

Nine-year-old Bushra, who studies in Class 3 in Nagar Parishad Sarpanch Mohd. Khurshid Urdu Girls primary school No.1, Kampti, Maharashtra, hated going to school and her parents didn’t bother either.

But for the past one year Bushra has been a regular student.

[caption id="attachment_48711" align="aligncenter" width="1186"] IMG-20160302-WA0003

Bushra[/caption] “I have learnt a lot since they have come to our school. Though the building of our school is not very good, I feel this is the best school now. When I tell this to my elder sister, who is in higher secondary school now, she doesn’t believe me. She says such things don’t happen in primary schools. But I know it’s true," says Bushra, with much happiness in her voice.

Apart from teaching mathematics, team Edu-kick also teaches finance. They give away fake paper currency to the winning team and ask them how they would spend it.

“It is amazing to hear the answers they give. Even if the money is fake, the sense of achievement to win it can be seen in their eyes. Some really give a proper segregation of the money. They would say how they will buy so many things which they crave for and for their family too," says Abhijeet.

Although this region is famous for football, girls here have hardly ever participated in the sport before. The team has completed three-fourths of its project and now the local people and parents support them too by allowing their daughters to come out of their homes and join the sport.

“Through this project I want to change the stereotype mentality of the male dominating community and give women a chance to come up and hold the stick to create their own path in life. Education can make a woman confident and a confident and educated woman can help a whole generation change," says Ankit.

If you wish to know more about Edu-kick or help a nearby school, please write to Mr. Abhijeet Barse at abhijeet.barse@slumsoccer.org

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Do you know if your neighbour's son, your niece or the boy who lives in the shanty across your street is safe? We read shocking stories of children falling prey to sexual abuse and molestation everyday. National statistics state that about 53% children are abused. The highest number of cases were reported in Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh and Bihar. Many cases of child abuse are never reported because the child is reluctant to confide in anyone. Or the family of the victim may not want to confront the abuser if he or she belongs to an influential family for fear of backlash or shame.

Many cases never come to light at all because no one notices that the child has been abused.

It's time to rethink how parents and teachers and other adults often take children's safety for granted. Identifying signs of sexual abuse early is important. Parents and teachers especially need to be very vigilant. But it is also incumbent on all of us – as neighbours, caretakers and members of a civilized society – to watch out for and report child abuse cases. Here are a few things we need to keep in mind: Abusers don’t just pick on the quiet ones: An outgoing, friendly child is also at risk. The level of vulnerability does not depend on age, gender or perceived maturity level. The risk level remains high for everyone – from toddlers to teens. Children are vulnerable in every section of society. So, while we keep our eyes open for the children on the streets, we also need to sit up and take notice of children in our midst – in our schools, families and neighbourhoods. Being aware of a child abuse case and not reporting it is illegal: As per Section 19 and 21 (1) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, it is mandatory to report cases, not just for those being abused, but also those who are aware of the incidence of abuse. This extends to people working in media houses, hotels, clubs, studios, photographic facilities, and hospitals. Schools in Maharashtra are mandated to report cases of sexual abuse.

As an adult who knows of a crime against a child or the potential for one, failure to report can get you jailed for six months.

[caption id="attachment_49131" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Tips on Identifying and Reporting Abuse

Background image source: publicdomainpictures.net[/caption] The process of attaining justice has sped up: After (POCSO) Act came into effect in 2012, there has been an increase in the number of cases that come to court for trial. Right after lodging a complaint with the police, an investigation is conducted within three months. A special court works on the case within a month after that, reaching a decision in less than two months. In most cases, the abuser turns out to be someone the child trusts: A recent study by RAHAT reported that in Mumbai, 91% of cases involved a parent as the perpetrator of long term sex abuse. Examining the environment and the people around them is essential. Pay particular attention to families with a reputation for domestic violence, alcoholic parents, and children living in unsafe environments such as brothels, on the streets or orphanages. Educational institutions also need to ensure that their students are safe. In a police-led investigation in Bengaluru in 2014, 10% schoolchildren were abused by their teachers. Beware of the 'groomers': Tulir, a Chennai-based NGO working against child abuse, noted in a report that abusers use trickery, making the child feel special and blackmail to lure children. The report states,"This process is known as 'grooming', and refers to a series of steps an abuser takes, such as gaining access to the child, developing a relationship with the child, making the child feel special by providing extra attention and gifts, to gradually beginning to touch the child." This manipulation is why children find it difficult to say no. Look for sudden changes in the child’s behaviour around people: Depending on the age, behavioural manifestations of sexual abuse include sudden withdrawal from socialising, aggression, inappropriate sexual behaviour, and sleep and eating disorders. In many cases for younger children, an unusual fear of certain places (such as closed or dark spaces) or of certain people could be a telling sign. But most behavioral changes are subtle.

The important thing to do here is to let them take their time to trust you enough to talk about what is troubling them.

[embedvideo id="DyeLLu0Osxs" website="youtube"] Not all bruises are from playing: While children are prone to cuts and bruises from playing rough, it’s important to identify and examine marks that are in unusual places, such as thighs, torso, neck, or in and around genital areas. You can identify a child who is routinely physically abused by wounds that are in varying stages of healing. Many cases of abuse come to light when the injured child is brought to hospital: In Mumbai, the Multidisciplinary Child Protection Centre, an initiative of Nair Hospital and UNICEF, works on the rationale of identifying signs of child abuse when the child is brought to the hospital. The centre consists of a team of doctors and social workers, and follows through the entire process of the case, from involving parents to working with the police and the legal system. You need to get consent from the child before reporting: In most cases, you don't need to wait for evidence before you report. But it is extremely important to get consent. Mumbai-based NGO Arpan published a report, Mandatory Reporting, which analysed the motivations and deterrents of reporting child abuse cases. The study found that abuse survivors felt betrayed when the person they trusted had reported without their consent. “The decision to report is contextual and almost entirely based on the environment, both immediate and social, of the survivor,” the report says. Call the national child relief helpline, 1098: Besides filing a report with the police, you can also contact child rescue organisations that are present in nearly every state and city. For instance, Mumbai-based Arpan works entirely on CSA cases, while Save The Child has centres all over the country. There's Bosco in Bengaluru, Rahi in Delhi, El-Shaddai in Goa, Tulir in Chennai, amongst many others. These rescue centres will assist the child and the family. A national helpline number, 1098, set up by the Childline Foundation has a team of volunteers in many cities and districts of the country, who also partner with over 700 NGOs and the police.

Featured image source: publicdomainpictures.net

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At the time when many parts of Tamil Nadu were flooded due to incessant rains last year, and thousands of people were struggling to live through every passing day, there were a few localities in Chennai that remained unaffected. A. Vicky Kumar is the resident of one such area – there were no roadblocks, no power cuts, no loss to life and property. But he was deeply moved on seeing the plight of the rest of the city and his fellow citizens. With the view of helping as much as he could, he gathered about 12 volunteers including his wife Vishakha, and they set out to help in rescue operations. They called themselves ‘The C Team’. Closing their businesses for the entire month of December, the team started visiting slums, relief camps and individual homes to deliver rescue materials like food, clothing and medicines to people in need. One of the most special volunteers of The C Team was Vicky’s 2-year-old daughter, Jiya. The student of a preschool named Developing Roots in Chennai, Jiya was a part of every field operation the team conducted.

“Many friends and well-wishers told us not to take her along for field work as she may fall sick stepping in to the dirty waters but we never bothered regarding what could happen because the need of the hour was to help the needy,” says Vishakha.

The entire team, including Jiya, were also recognized among thousands of other volunteers who put in their hearts and souls to work for Chennai, and she received a plant sapling and a certificate of appreciation from the music industry maestro Illayaraja, on December 17, 2015. Jiya will be three years old this March. Kudos to her parents who were not scared of uncertain situations and ensured that their daughter got a glimpse of what such social activities look like, to make her understand the importance of helping others in need.

Have a look at her – busy during work.

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A poster making competition on the importance of conserving our ancient monuments was conducted in the premises of Apurna Devalaya, in collaboration with the Chandrapur chapter of Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). And the outcome was spectacular. We Indians are proud of the heritage sites in our country. There is Taj Mahal, Kutub Minar, Red Fort, and so much more, and we are fortunate enough to know about them because the government takes good care of these sites. All we have to do is go there and enjoy the view without being concerned about how they are being conserved. But there are numerous monuments and sculptures in India and it is not possible for the government alone to protect all of them. Imagine how great it would be if all of us could take the responsibility of preserving at least one monument or sculpture around us. Chandrapur, a city located in Maharashtra, is one such place where a man is not only preserving the lesser known heritage sites, but is also generating awareness about them.

Meet Ashok Singh Thakur, a Convener at Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), who takes school children for a heritage walks once every month.

[caption id="attachment_49389" align="aligncenter" width="1430"] heritageWalk

The heritage walk[/caption]

“I find children to be more responsible and affectionate when it comes to talking about heritage sites. They feel a sense of pride when you tell them that these monuments were made by their ancestors and they are the owners now. They willingly take up responsibility to preserve their heritage,” says Ashok Singh Thakur

And recently, he took another step forward to make his work even more effective. He conducted a poster making competition with the topic - 'Importance of Conserving our Ancient Monuments' in the premises of Apurna Devalaya – a place with a very interesting history. In the early 17th century AD, during the time of King Dhundya Ramshaha, Raiappa Komti committed to build a temple the region. But it could not be completed due to his early demise, and the idols were left in the open. Had it been built, it would have been the largest temple in Maharashtra.

Till today, these idols can be found in Bhiwapur area of Chandrapur, behind the Rajiv Gandhi College of Engineering and Technology. The area is called Apurna Devalaya – the incomplete temple.

[caption id="attachment_49390" align="aligncenter" width="1080"] Parts-of-Apurn-Devalaya-Dashavtar-Durga

Parts-of-Apurn-Dewalaya-Dashavtar-Durga[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49391" align="aligncenter" width="768"] Parts-of-Apurn-Devalaya-Ganpati

Parts-of-Apurn-Dewalaya-Ganpati[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49392" align="aligncenter" width="1080"] Parts-of-Apurn-Devalaya

Parts-of-Apurn-Dewalaya[/caption]

As many as 50 students from various schools in the district participated in the competition. They also conducted a cleanliness drive in the temple premises.

The students conveyed the importance of conserving and protecting our heritage through their posters. Pravin Nikhare, the Project Director of the competition guided the students.

Pravin Nikhare, Kiran Katrojwar, Prashant Nawghare, Manju Sur, M B Chavhan, Smita Thakre, and others worked hard to make the event successful.

“Most of the students who participated are from government schools and the response we got from them was overwhelming. They are so excited to preserve their heritage sites now. I can see a sense of ownership and responsibility in them,” says Pravin.

Here are few of the amazing posters made during competition:

[caption id="attachment_49400" align="aligncenter" width="1208"]

By Gulafsa. m . Ansari, Class 7, Hindi City High School, Chandrapur[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49402" align="aligncenter" width="1185"]

By Gosiya Naj Khan[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49401" align="aligncenter" width="1211"]

By Savita P Maliya[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49403" align="aligncenter" width="685"]

By Trupti Bharat Chavan. Trupti's father is a photographer and a farmer and she now wants him to take pictures of these heritage sites.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49404" align="aligncenter" width="1225"]

By Yasmin Mobin Khan[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49405" align="aligncenter" width="1180"]

By Farida Asgar Khan, Hindi City High School, Chandrapur[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49406" align="aligncenter" width="1157"]

Manasi. R. Vishwakarma, City Kanya Vidyalaya, Chandrapur[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49407" align="aligncenter" width="1171"]

By Aman. S . Rajak, Hindi City High School, Chandrapur[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49408" align="aligncenter" width="646"]

By Komal Jungare, Hindi City High School, Chandrapur. "If a little girl like me can do it, everyone can do it. We are proud of our heritage," says Komal.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49409" align="aligncenter" width="1181"]

By Pallavi Raju Nimasatkar, Lokmanya Tilak Kanya Vidyalay, Chandrapur[/caption] [caption id="attachment_49412" align="aligncenter" width="695"] subir

By Subir Sarkar from Hindi City High School. "My family and I worship Maa Kali. So I wanted to paint the Dashavtar Durga. She looks like Kali Maa," says Subir. He wants to become a scientist when he grows up.[/caption]

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A team of seven robotics enthusiasts from Pune are prepping up to go to Spain for FIRST LEGO League - Open European Championships 2016. The teens take out time from their school and on weekends to design prototypes and sort out challenges, mentored by Chris Bastianpillai at Robominds. A team of six boys and a girl from Pune are eagerly awaiting the day that they can fly to Spain for an international level robotics competition. The team, called HorcruXes, qualified for the FIRST LEGO League Open European Championship (FLL-OEC). It will be held in one of the Canary Islands of Spain from May 4 to May 7, 2016. At these competitions, the children have to design and engineer Lego Mindstorms robots to complete a set of tasks, including a live robot run. They are judged on robots design, robot performance, project idea and teamwork. It is organised by FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), an international youth organisation based in the US. Avani Malaviya, PuneKanish Thiagarajan, Piyush Kolhatkar, Deep Lalwani, Harsh Savergaokar, Siddharth Thiagarajan, and Aditya Potnis, came together three years ago, driven by their love for all things robotic.

They were introduced into the world of robotics and trained to participate in competitions by their coach, Chris Bastianpillai.

[caption id="attachment_51320" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]

Chris Bastianpillai (right) and the team, HorcruXes[/caption] Chris and his wife Prakalpa founded Robominds in 2013, a Pune-based setup that provides a hands-on learning experience to children who want to learn robotics technology. When they see children with a high potential, they encourage them to participate in robotics competitions. The duo, who have worked abroad, realised that Indian engineers are not as hands-on with their thinking and working as those abroad. Says Chris, “When we came back to Pune, Parakalpa’s hometown, we started Robominds to ensure that children had access more than just theory of science and engineering, that they were getting practical knowledge through hands-on training.” Horcruxes is one of his very first batches. With his guidance and mentoring, the 12- to 16-year-old children were able to floor the judges and win competitions, from regional levels to the nationals.

The children, who study at different schools in Pune, spent massive amounts of time working on their robot project for each of these competitions.

[caption id="attachment_51322" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] robotics

At one of the FLL competitions[/caption] They snatched hours from school days and on weekends, managing their schedules to make time for their passion. And indeed, it has paid off. At the Regional Championships of FLL 2015, the team won the Champions Award for their robotic engineering. They grabbed the first place in technical design, robot performance and teamwork. Next, at the National FLL 2016, held in February, they were ranked in the top five positions, which is ultimately what got them into the Open European Championship. FLL-OEC is a major championship, with over 300,000 children from over 80 countries participating."The learning that they get out of this is phenomenal,” says Chris, adding that the exposure to different cultures and their working methods help the children to perfect their own.

The theme for the year is ‘Trash Trek’, in which the children work on solving problems of trash collection, sorting and reuse using robotics.

[caption id="attachment_51324" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]

The team competed at regional and national levels to win awards, which qualified them for the international championship.[/caption] “The students have to build a robot and perform tasks in a limited time of two and a half minutes. This year’s theme on waste management involves activities on recycling, composting, sorting waste and more. Our team is focusing on the reduction of use of plastics.” “Our focus is on building robots by trying to keep the costs down,” says Chris, “And this fundraising is also an important experience for the children to understand how to build economically viable robotics technology.” The most challenging part of the competition for the children is to figure out how to build a robot that can perform a multiple number of tasks. The students go through 5 to 15 different prototype designs, analysing its pros and cons, and working out the details.

“Now that they’re back from the nationals, they are working on perfecting their robot for the international levels,” says Chris. They’re preparing for the dynamic playing field that is characteristic of international competitions abroad.

He explains, “Like in real-life engineering, there are a lot of variations that the children have to face. For instance, even changes in temperature, lighting can affect the robot’s performance. These are factors we cannot control, so on the day of the competition, the real test for the kids will be their ability to react quickly and fine tune the robot in dynamic situations.”

The only roadblock that they’ve hit so far is the funding for the trip. “We are trying to do a fundraiser, because these competitions turn out to be quite expensive for the parents,” Chris says, adding that he does not want to burden the children's’ parents with the cost of flying to Spain and staying there for the competition. Even going to Delhi cost about Rs 30,000 per student for stay and airfare. “To go to Europe, it’s going to cost us about 1.2 lakhs per participant.”

According to Chris, funding is usually a major setback for students from developing countries to go to international competitions, as they don’t get enough recognition even from the government. Nevertheless, the Bastianpillais take the funding into their own hands, as much as possible. “We take the money we get from running Robominds and put it into sponsoring these competitions,” he says. The team set up a donation through STEM Foundation, which also runs the FLL India competitions. To contribute your bit to help the team participate at the international level competition, click here.

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Are you dreading the coming school holidays when you'll have to figure out how to keep your pre-schoolers and teens occupied? Summer camps can be a solution, but not for long. Children need family time. Here's a list of 10 cool destinations to hang out with the kids this summer. Travelling with children, young ones especially, can seem a bit daunting but need not be if you prepare right. Pick kid-friendly hotels or, better still, vacation apartments with small kitchenettes where you can heat milk for babies, make simple sandwiches for hungry munchkins and let the whole family spread out a bit instead of being cramped in a hotel room. Take a good stroller along so you don't get weary carrying small children everywhere you visit. Pack some board games for older children and the family to play as you may not be able to venture out after dark at hill stations in particular. Carrying colouring and sticker books to keep young kids occupied at airports and on trains where they get restless is also a good idea. A small first aid kit, or at least a few band-aids, should find room in your purse or backpack. Here's a list of 10 destinations within India that families can visit together. We've picked some cooler climes to give you and the kids a respite from the summer heat.

1. Kashmir - Houseboat and shikaras

[caption id="attachment_51371" align="aligncenter" width="1600"]

Shikaras on Dal Lake[/caption]

Pic credit: makeindiatours.com

The Mughals called Kashmir 'paradise on earth' and the British named it 'Switzerland of the East.' The stunning valley, with its gentle slopes and distant snow-covered peaks, exquisite crafts and beautifully-laid out gardens, makes for a once-in-a-lifetime visit at least. The whole family will enjoy the experience of staying in a houseboat on Dal Lake in Srinagar and taking rides in the shikaras that ferry you to the shore. Travel up further to Gulmarg and Khilanmarg and there are opportunities for young kids to enjoy pony rides while teenagers get a chance to ski and trek. Food tip: Don't forget to enjoy a cup of Kahwa tea.

2. Munnar - Tea gardens and Kalaripayattu

[caption id="attachment_51372" align="aligncenter" width="720"]

Tea gardens in Munnar[/caption]

Photo credit: keralatourism.org

Located 1,600 m above sea level, Matheran was once the summer resort of the erstwhile British Government in South India. Sprawling tea plantations, picture-book towns, winding lanes and holiday facilities make this a popular resort town. Children of all ages will enjoy a tour of the tea plantations and tea museum. Another major attraction for the old and young is a performance of traditional Kerala martial arts - Kalaripayattu. Young boys of all ages often take part in it and interact with the children afterwards. For some culture exposure, enjoy a Kathakali performance - dramatic makeup and face masks are bound to tickle the fancy of young kids while proving an enlightening experience for your teenagers. Head to Echo Point and Lakkam Waterfalls where you can go for nature trails and treks too. Food tip: Aapams and stew at most restaurants and hotels.

3. Coonoor - Farm stay and cheese making

[caption id="attachment_51375" align="aligncenter" width="500"]

Cheese making at a farm[/caption]

Photo credit: acres-wild.com

For a different holiday experience, try the all-year good weather destination of Coonoor. There are a couple of cheese making farms spread out over several acres in the area that the children are bound to enjoy. Take in a beautiful view of the Nilgiris and enjoy the experience of a farm stay. Kids may love getting the opportunity to milk a cow, watching the process of cheese making, and helping pick organic produce on the farm. Food tip: Cheese, of course!

4. Sikkim - Buddhist culture, wildlife and China border

[caption id="attachment_51361" align="aligncenter" width="640"]

Little monks at Doling monastery[/caption] Bound by the Himalayas with the majestic Teesta river crisscrossing the region, Sikkim is a relatively undiscovered delight. The surroundings here are clean and pristine, so make sure you leave them the same way when you depart. Since kids don't enjoy being on the road for long stretches, it may be wise to confine your visit to the state to two cities - Pelling and Gangtok. In Pelling, visit the waterfalls, the rock garden, walk to the Rabdentse ruins and hike to the Sankacholing Monastery (this is a great hike with lots of beautiful butterflies and flora and fauna along the way). In Gangtok, the Himalayan Wildlife Park has black bears, red pandas, snow leopards, civets, etc. The animals have a huge area to move around in and look very healthy. Older kids may be up for a 3-hour drive to Nathu La pass, the border with China, which gives you a stunning view of Tibet. Other than this, just the exposure to Buddhist culture and monasteries will give your kids the memories of a lifetime. Food tip: A steaming hot bowl of Thukpa soup.

5. Mussoorie - Treks, history and cable car

[caption id="attachment_51358" align="aligncenter" width="600"]

A cable car ride in Mussoorie is a must[/caption]

Photo credit: ankitguptatravelagent.traveloca.com

Mussoorie, with its beautiful, undulating, tree-covered hills, looking down on the Doon valley and with a fantastic view of the Himalayas, is a quaint post-card pretty town in Uttarakhand. An idyllic stroll through any of the meandering mountain roads of the town, will bring you and the kids to some of the well known and not so well known spots - each with its own tale to tell - Landour Bazaar, Chaar dukaan, Lal tibba, Gun hill, the Camel Back cemetery, the Mussoorie Library, and of course the Savoy Hotel - a historical edifice in itself. Take the kids for a cable car ride and an eating sojourn to the Lovely Omelette Centre along the Mall - a cubbyhole that is said to serve some of the best omelettes in India. If you are very very lucky you may even run into Mussoorie resident Ruskin Bond, one of the most beloved writers of children's literature in India, on one of your walks in the Landour area. Food tip: Omelettes at the Lovely Omelette Centre.

6. Ranthambore National Park - Tigers and safari

[caption id="attachment_51377" align="aligncenter" width="995"]

Tiger safari[/caption]

Photo credit: travonica.com

This national park is known for tigers. People from around the world visit to see these magnificent creatures wandering around in their natural habitat - a sight that will give your children goosebumps for sure. Although there are other national parks in the country, spotting tigers is easier here. Summer may not be the ideal time to visit weather wise but this is when the tigers are really out and about - you will likely not come away disappointed. Have the kids look out for deer, nilgai, wild boars, bears, langurs, marsh crocodiles, and almost 500 species of birds as well. Amidst the hills, lakes and rivers in the picturesque region, lies a smattering of ruined old forts too, for the history buffs that is. Food tip: Chokhi Dhani restaurant offers traditional and authentic Rajasthani food.

7. Matheran - Zip-lining and toy train

[caption id="attachment_51378" align="aligncenter" width="500"]

Toy train from Neral to Matheran[/caption]

Photo credit: mumbailocaltraintimetable.net

The smallest hill station in India to be declared an eco-sensitive zone by the Environment Ministry, Matheran is completely pollution free because it is a vehicle-free zone. Cars are banned in Matheran - horses and manual rickshaws are the only modes of transport allowed. But to reach here, you can take a toy train from Neral near Mumbai - the Matheran Light Railway covers a distance of 20 kms winding across hilly forest tracts - an experience the children will not want to miss. Matheran is also a popular spot for zip lining, paragliding and parasailing enthusiasts. Try any or all for a breathtaking aerial view of the rugged Western Ghats. Food tip: Do try the refreshing Kokum sherbet - a delicious local drink that is tangy and sweet.

8. Lonavala - Hot air balloon ride and Dell Adventures

[caption id="attachment_51379" align="aligncenter" width="710"]

Hot air ballooning in Lonavala[/caption]

Photo credit: enidhi.net

A hot air balloon ride, if you can afford it (Rs 6000-12,000 per person), is a spectacular way to see the Western Ghats. Imagine floating in the sky, with extraordinary views of lakes, valleys and cliffs! Lonavala is a great summer getaway from Mumbai. Della Adventures, just 3.3 km from Lonavala, is also a must-visit place with plenty of activities for kids - swoop swings, paintball, zip lining, dirt bike riding, rappelling, rodeo, bubble soccer, land zorbing, high rope challenge course, and much much more. Food tip: Hot batata vadas in the main market.

9. Bir Billing - Paragliding capital of India

[caption id="attachment_51381" align="aligncenter" width="819"]

Paragliding in Bir[/caption]

Photo credit: travelbirbilling.com

The charming town of Bir is known worldwide as a destination for ecotourism and is praised by visitors from all corners of the world for its natural beauty. Bir is situated in the Kangra District of Himachal Pradesh, amidst paths winding through tea gardens into the forests and the Dhauladhar mountains to the north. The greater Bir area (which includes Billing, the Tibetan Colony in Chowgan, Ghornala, and Sherab Ling in Bhattu) is home to a diverse community of over a thousand Indian villagers, a Tibetan refugee settlement, and a small but growing international population (including seasonal waves of paragliders and other outdoors enthusiasts). This is a destination for older children, especially those looking for some high octane paragliding adventure, natural beauty and treks. Food tip: Lhakpa Café in the main bazaar of Upper Bir serves tasty veg momos, but they usually run out around 1 pm so get there early.

10. Saputara - Honey extraction and ropeway

[caption id="attachment_51382" align="aligncenter" width="750"]

Saputara Bee Centre[/caption]

Photo credit: gujarattourism.com

This is the only hill station in the state of Gujarat. It is also one of the least developed areas, with several tribes still calling it home. But if you are looking for a quiet hill station, far from the crowds, you've found one. As for the kids, places and activities like the ropeway, rose garden, tribal museum, boating on the lake, camel and horse riding will keep them occupied and happy. A visit to the honey extraction centre, where they will enjoy observing the art of extracting honey from hives, is a must. Food tip: An authentic Gujarati thali.

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A newspaper written and published by street children in Delhi helps them tell their stories and fight for their rights. Balaknama is, literally, the 'voice of children.' Balaknama has been in circulation since 2003. It is a unique newspaper, written by and for street children. The story of how it came to be published is very interesting and deserves to be told. Today, this publication touches the lives of almost 10,000 street children. Childhood Enhancement through Training and Action (CHETNA) is a public charitable trust founded in 2002. This organisation empowers street children in many ways and one of its main points of focus is education. It helped the first bunch of street children it supported to form a federation of their own, which they call Badte Kadam.

“Badte Kadam is a federation of street and working children, formed by a core team of 35 children. An identity for every child is their main aim. Every child who grows up on the street has his or her own story of pain, sorrow, horrific incidents, and joy. These stories are shared among these children, without much hesitation,” says Sanno, the former editor and present adviser to Balaknama.

[caption id="attachment_51779" align="aligncenter" width="3553"]

Balaknama reporters with their unique newspaper[/caption]

Photo Credit : Vijay Kumar of CHETNA

Initially, these children tried sharing the stories of their lives with many print media houses but that effort did not pay off. So the children started a newspaper of their own -- called Balaknama or the 'voice of the children' -- which they hoped would reach other street children and government authorities who could help them. Balaknama’s first issue was a 2-page Hindi edition paper, printed once every three months. Soon, it became a 4-page paper and then an 8-page one. Today, it is a 16-page monthly newspaper and, in 2014, the kids were able to start publishing in English too.

“At the beginning of every month, an action plan for the work to be done for the following month’s edition is drawn up. The reporters, who are children themselves, generally stick to the plan without any deviation. The team consists of 70 ‘batuni reporters’ or vocal reporters, and 14 ‘writer reporters'," says Chandini, the present editor of Balaknama.

If a batuni reporter has a story to tell, he/she connects with one of the writers and the story is shared either on the telephone or in a face-to-face meeting. Batuni reporters are usually young, uneducated children who cannot write their own stories. These children are encouraged to study and learn how to write and soon they are capable of joining the team of ‘writing’ reporters.

The reporters compile the stories and write them out on paper for Chandini and Sanno to work on.

[caption id="attachment_51778" align="aligncenter" width="3648"]

Chandini helping Sanno upload a story onto the computer

Chandini helping Sanno upload a story on the computer[/caption]

Photo Credit : Aparna Menon

“The Balaknama team have an office of their own, where they have regular meetings of Badte Kadam too. Sanno, who was the previous editor, had to relinquish the position after she turned 18. However, she is the one who types out all the stories onto the computer and, between Chandini and Sanno, spellings and other mistakes are checked and corrected,” says Jyoti, one of the many reporters.

Shambu usually handles the camera owned by Balaknama, although the kids sometimes take pictures with their mobile phones too. He says, “Pictures are taken for most stories. However, should a child feel that his photograph should not be published or that his story should be published without a picture to support it, his wish is adhered to. Other reporters too get an opportunity to handle the official camera. The camera is usually circulated amongst us, though I do most of the photography."

Photo credit: Aparna Menon

On the 25^th of every month, all the reporters meet up at the Balaknama office to discuss their stories and decide on how the pages will be laid out. Once the plan is agreed upon, the newspaper is sent to the printer. Circulation of the printed copies is limited. Very few are kept in newspaper stalls for people to purchase. The paper is meant for the children who are part of Badte Kadam, as the stories concern them or are about them. The paper is also circulated among the parents of these children, the policemen in the local area and other NGOs in the region.

Many people like to subscribe to the paper online and they are sent soft copies of every issue.

[caption id="attachment_51781" align="aligncenter" width="4272"]

Batuni reporter Tanzeem sharing a story with the team[/caption]

Photo credit: Vijay Kumar of CHETNA

All the children attend school or tuition classes in the morning hours. After 2 pm they are free to do their work for Balaknama. Since all the reporters are below the age of 18, they do not get any remuneration for their work. Once the children attain the age of majority, they are given a choice to either continue to support the paper on a salary basis, to work with CHETNA, to undergo higher studies, or to take up any other job. The Balaknama team would like their stories to be read and heard by a larger number of people, with a view to getting help for these street children. You can subscribe to the newspaper by writing to balaknamaeditor@gmail.com

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About the author: Aparna Menon is a freelance writer, writing for various newspapers for the past 10 years. Her main fields of interest are wildlife, heritage and history. A keen traveller, she loves to read and write and does a lot of art work too.