750 Girls, 3 Toilets: Fight for their right to an education and an environment where they can learn

I started volunteering with CRY about one month ago, and it's opened my eyes aplenty already. I've been working with the Volunteer Action team here in Delhi and I've met several other volunteers who initiated or started various public action groups at CRY. I am impressed. I am impressed that at relatively little financial cost to an NGO, people are making a difference. I am impressed that there actually are plenty of us that want to make a difference. I am impressed that CRY never turns volunteers away but instead utilizes their passion and skills to do good.

I went to an MCD primary school where a group of volunteers in partnership with the Principal of the school have really turned things around: there was no sweeper in the school because the MCD had not employed one - children were trying to keep the school clean themselves instead of studying. There is  now a sweeper, thanks to the Principal and the volunteers,  There also weren't enough teachers at this school (there still aren't) but the situation has improved with the recruitment of more teachers, again thanks to the Principal and volunteers and I'd like to give special mention here to Ms. Sony who lives in Dakshinpuri where this school is located. Ms. Sony works for ActionIndia, and dedicates a great deal of her time and energy to ensure children where she lives have access to the education that is their right. She's one of the many unsung heroes in India working towards a better future for generations to come and CRY is thrilled to team up with her in an effort to improve MCD schools.

Children at MCD Primary School (No.1) along with the Principal in Dakshinpuri
Photograph By: Madhureema Sen, CRY intern

There are still problems at this school: 750 girls attend this school in the morning and for all these children there are just three toilets. This does not lend itself to a clean environment which every school should have. I know Ms. Sony and the other volunteers from the Dakshinpuri Public Action Group are helping principals in several schools to make the kind of improvements that will encourage attendance and allow students to flourish. This fight needs more of us, so no matter which colony or neighbourhood you live in - look around, get out of your comfort zone, ask questions, and do more. It's frustrating to make changes - they move slowly; building relationships and trust takes time. But one person can make a difference..... they can start a movement that surpasses their own vision.

By: Priyanka Jhala, CRY Volunteer, Delhi

A call for action...

My internship at CRY was something which can be referred to as a perfectly proper and professional experience. The butterflies hovering inside my stomach before joining CRY, thinking about what exactly is going to happen and what all work I will be told to do, flew away exactly after my orientation session taken up by my mentor, Ms. Leena Prasad

I was assigned to make a photo feature in terms of Right to Education Act and its impact on Delhi’s slum children. My excitement almost touched the sky after hearing that I have to go to the various CRY supported slum areas and click pictures. What could be more exciting than this?

But all the differences in my own thought process rushed in as soon as I visited the areas to click pictures. I wonder what could be the reason which brings such a lot of differences and inequality in our society. Children not going to school and those who are going to school are equally in a bad shape as they are being subjected to differences in terms of gender gap, castes, class and race.

India, as we all feel great about (or at least I used to feel till joining my internship) for being a totally democratic country and every citizen enjoying their rights, if not according to the Constitution, at least through humanity, is diametrically opposite when I actually visited the slum areas.  The problem is so deep-rooted that sixty-three years after attaining independence a major part of the society is still stuck where it was long back. Girl children being avoided and deprived, whereas, even if the male child is getting more importance, his family either hasn’t got the means to educate him or the means provided by the government is violated.

Photograph by Soumyajit Roy at Dwarka , South West Delhi 

What exactly can we do about it? Is it the middle class mentality to shrug their shoulders off saying, “the problem is too deep-rooted you see...What can we do about it? We belong to the middle class after all”. This is what I learnt from my internship. It’s not about belonging to any particular social strata. It’s about standing up and making a change. Can we stop thinking about what the government is meant to do wait comfortably for good? Can we not join our hands for the respect of humanity and make a change?

By: Soumyajit Roy, intern, CRY - Child Rights and You

A step towards a better tomorrow...

At times, a small incident, a 5 second conversation, an 8 yr old child can make you realise the harsh realities of life. While interacting with the Children at the Taimoor nagar slum area, I was still unaware, untouched by the truth…until I met her. A small girl peeped at me while she helped her mother make rotis. My eyes caught her. I went inside; her mother smiled at me and offered rotis. “I am full, Kaki!” I replied. As her mother went inside, in an attempt to have knowledge about what future the girl dreams for, I asked the girl, “So, u tell me, what is the one thing that you would like to change in your life?”  The Girl stared at me for some time and then replied, “I would exchange my parents with yours, and then I would have everything that you have!” Her answer just shot back at me like a bullet. I stood up and left the place. 

Photograph by Madhureema Sen at Taimoor Nagar slum area

Her words left me wondering. Is it really my credit that I am now a PG student doing my masters in Advertising? Should I really take pride in flaunting all the latest gadgets that I have? No! The answer came from within. I should rather be grateful to god, my parents, and most of all my destiny. I have been fortunate enough to be born out of rich, well established and educated parents. I had the privilege to enjoy all my rights, all the luxuries of life…by chance! Had I been born in the dingy lanes of Taimoor nagar, things would have been totally different. Sometimes mere statistics don’t touch us…but to witness a live situation where you can actually relate to the statistics of the 34% of the girl population dropping out from schools for poverty, child marriage, caste and gender discrimination, is impactful.  


At CRY - Child Rights and You, I got a chance to be aware of such ultimate truths. Most of the time, we neglect our responsibility by blaming the government and the system. It’s high time we stop the blame game and do our bit. I, as a CRY volunteer, tried to convince and make the parents of the Taimoor nagar slum area aware of the benefits of education – how it would help their children shape their future, how education changes one’s perspective and life style, how it could help them build a better tomorrow. The effort lies not only in getting children admitted to schools, but to retain them in schools and decrease the rate of school drop outs and that can be ensured only when the parents of the dropped out children are convinced about the benefits of education. Getting a child admitted to a school is no doubt a change that we make in the system, but the focus should be on a permanent change by making sure that the child doesn’t drop out from his/her school. Work not just for development but a sustainable development… a change that stays and creates a better tomorrow.

If a few hours from my life, few convincing words to create awareness can make an impact in the system and help at least shape up the future of one underprivileged child, then why not? If I could make a difference, then why not You? Rise! Be the changemaker…

By: Madhureema Sen, Intern, CRY – Child Rights and You