Education India Project #1877

Send a Child in India to School for a Year

by Seva Mandir

Send a Child in India to School for a Year

Project Report | Mar 18, 2020
Protecting Shiksha Kendra Children from Covid-19

By Atul Lekhra | Programme Incharge

Namaste

The Coronavirus has brought unprecedented challenges to the world and effected the lives of thousands of people. At the time of writing, no cases have yet been reported in Udaipur as the Government ramps up preventative measures.

As an organisation, we are responsible not just for educating our employees about preventative measures and good hygiene practices, but also those who we work with, such as children in Shiksha Kendras (Seva Mandir’s Bridge Schools).

Hygiene practices, such as washing hands, are a weapon against Coronavirus. Proper hygiene practices have been are a regular part of Shiksha Kendras, so children already have the ability to combat this virus from the outset. They are being encouraged by the Shiksha Kendra teachers to use their knowledge to protect themselves and those around them. Without your support, this may not have been possible.

The Indian Government recently shut all schools until the 31^st of March, and Seva Mandir has followed their advice and closed all Shiksha Kendras. This was a major decision for the organisation, as the importance of education for these children is a priority. However, considering the severity of the ongoing situation, ensuring the children and their family are healthy is most important.

As the teachers are from the remote communities themselves, they are able to check in on the children and their families to ensure that they are ok, giving advice where needed.

Thanks to your support, you have given these children and teachers and the knowledge and tools to help prevent this virus from spreading in rural and tribal communities.

We have faith that the Rajasthan, India, and the world will be able to weather this storm as we have weathered many in the past.

Please ensure to follow your local authority’s advice on how to protect yourself and your loved ones.

Regards

Atul Lekhra and the Seva Mandir team

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Dec 19, 2019
Give the Gift of Education on this Christmas

By Atul Lekhra | Manager- Resource Mobilization

‘I owe everything to the Shiksha Kendra (Seva Mandir’s School) and my teacher. Without them, I would not have achieved what I did today’.

These are the words of Kokila, an ex-student of one of Seva Mandir’s Shiksha Kendra, who recently graduated from her 12^th Standard with one of the highest marks in Udaipur District. However, 7 years ago, just enrolling into a government school seemed like an unreachable dream.

Kokila was a student in one of our Shiksha Kendras located in her home village in the remote rural and tribal area of Kherwara, around 80km from Udaipur city, where the average daily wage per-capita is just $0.50c. Her parents struggled to look after their large family of 6 children, supporting them through subsistence agriculture (as with most of the families that Seva Mandir works with). In our working area, many girls are kept home from school and instead perform household chores. But Kokila didn’t let this deter her - she was determined to get an education.

Kokila excelled and she passed through the Shiksha Kendra with flying colours.

Since 2007, more than 12,500 children have graduated into government or private schools, but even with her success, Kokila’s family’s poverty prevented her from going any further; they just could not afford to pay her school fees and continue to support themselves at the same time. For Kokila, it felt that all was lost. Her education had given her basic literacy and an understanding of maths but most of all it had started a flame inside her to learn more.

Her Shiksha Kendra teacher saw that longing inside her and he was determined to get her back into education. He made regular visits with her parents, trying to persuade them to send her back to school. Eventually, his efforts paid off and they agreed. Kokila was soon enrolled into a local government upper-primary school.

7 years later, Kokila has exceed all expectations – even her own. She is now studying in her second year of university in Udaipur and, even though she is not sure what will come next, she has become an inspiration to the girls from her remote community.

Just as with Kokila, it is vital that we support children and ensure that they can receive a quality education and your donation this Christmas can help us do just that.

Donating just $60 will provide education to a child for 1 year, and as part of GlobalGiving’s Year End Campaign, we could be eligible for bonus prizes which would help send more children to school. But we need your help to get there.

You would also be supporting a programme that has been developed alongside the winners of the 2019 Nobel Prize for Economic Science! Prof. Abhijit Banerjee, Prof. Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer partnered with Seva Mandir over a number of research projects and helped to develop a camera monitoring system for our Shiksha Kendras that greatly improved attendance of students and teachers. You can find out more here https://bit.ly/2YUO9aJ.

We would like to thank you from the bottom of our heart for joining hands with us. Wishing you and your family a very Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Best Wishes

Atul Lekhra & the Seva Mandir Team

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Sep 18, 2019
Kanti - Excited to Learn

By Atul Lekhra | Manager- Resource Mobilization

Dear Changemaker,

Thank you so much for all your confidence and faith in our work. We are continuously working hard to make this world a better place for children, the first step for which is providing education, as it is an investment that pays the best interest.

Kanti is from a distant village in Kotra, living with his parents and 6 younger siblings. He was attending a Shiksha Kendra (Seva Mandir’s School), and, as the eldest, Kanti wanted to be a role model for his brothers and sisters, and encouraged them to learn. However, one day, Kanti and his siblings stopped coming to class. The teacher was concerned. He decided to visit Kanti’s parents to discover why he was not coming to school – but they were not there. Both of them had left to find work in a nearby region, leaving Kanti and his siblings in the care of their uncle. Unfortunately, the uncle did not want the children to learn – instead he wanted them to work on the family farm and look after the animals. The teacher immediately contacted the parents and informed them of the situation, to which they were dismayed. After a few days, Kanti and his brother and sister re-joined the Shiksha Kendra, full of excitement and happiness to be back in school and with their friends.

Kanti is now in Level 2 at the Shiksha Kendra and is improving his learning every day. His favourite subject is Hindi and he loves to read and write short stories. Thanks to the teacher’s concern and the parent’s tenacity in educating their children, Kanti is now able to see a bright future ahead of him.

This is just one story from the many successful people that we are working with. All thanks to our most generous supporters and well wishers like you.

We are also happy to share with you that three of our photos have been selected in GlobalGiving’s Annual Photo Contest 2019 and now we need your support to win the contest. I am sharing the links to our selected photos and, if you like our photos, you can vote and help us in spreading our work to the world. Please note that the last date to vote is September 20^th till 12:00:01 EDT.

Links:

1. https://bit.ly/2kPuYiP

2. https://bit.ly/2lWKUA9

3. https://bit.ly/2mfAP18

Thank you once again for all your support.

Regards

Atul Lekhra & the Seva Mandir Team

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