The mission of READS ("Rajabazar Education and Awareness Development Society") is to improve the situation of underprivileged children in some of the worst slum areas of Kolkata. The situation of the people living in these areas is extreme. Since 1998, this organization has been working with these slum children in an effort to give them a chance at a better life. The children READS works for do not have choices. They come from very poor families with many mouths to feed. Most cannot even satisfy their basic needs. They do not have access to clean drinking water, food or basic health care. The children of these areas are too poor so their families cannot afford to send them to school. Most of them have to work over 14 hours per day to support their families financially. The activities to obtain some money include begging, criminality, child labour or even child prostitution. There is no chance for them to improve their situation by themselves. READS wants to help improve their situation but also enable them to make life choices. READS is doing this by providing education and vocational training. Through education and training these children are being given the tools they require to build a respectable life for themselves in the future.
READS programmes:
School programmes
Currently, we run 10 schools in three slum areas with a total of approximately 500 children. We provide the pupils with basic primary education (mother tongue, English, mathematics). Furthermore, the older children are taught various practical subjects such as sari craft, tailoring, painting etc. This knowledge significantly improves their chances significantly to earn a living in the future.
Additionally, the children get a warm lunch every day and 100 INR per month. The children’s parents wouldn’t be able to allow our pupils to go to school without this small payment, as they are reliant on the money their children earn with child labour.
Orphanage at Garden Reach
READS has a girl’s orphanage in Garden Reach which is currently home to 30 girls and young women between 12 and 17 years. The girls living at this home are not just orphans, some come from very poor families who cannot afford to keep them at home – or who do not want to. In the orphanage in Garden Reach the girls live together, cook and eat together, have proper medical surveillance and psychological support from the staff and older girls. The orphanage is a short stay home where the girls are provided with education and vocational training so that after three years, when they usually leave the house, they are able to earn to go out into the world and earn a living for themselves. This home, like the schools for street children, seeks to empower these underprivileged members of society and give them a chance at making a respectable life for themselves.
Awareness Programmes and Counselling
To improve the situation of the people in the slums, they have to be informed about various threats and social problems. We show them how to handle difficult situations, make them aware of their rights and possible solutions. This is why READS organizes various awareness programmes in regular intervals for children and grown-ups in cooperation with other organizations. We also offer counselling connected to the most important issues. We particulary focus on topics such as children’s rights and child labour, trafficking, early marriage and drug abuse. Furthermore, we run workshops about topics like contraception, the social and economic status of women in India or health awareness including HIV/AIDS, clean drinking water and hygienic education. READS does this in an attempt to improve social responsibility in the slums, and thereby improve the situation of their society as a whole.
Events
READS organizes several events to celebrate certain occurrences. Every year, we give an award to the best social worker of READS or connected organizations to reward remarkable dedication for the needs of underprivileged children. The event includes a party with food and performances of the children who take part in our programmes. We also celebrate events like the Children’s Day and the Teachers’ Day.
The organization is also currently in the process of organizing a conference/ fund-raising event to generate greater awareness of the situation of children in the slums and gain support for the various projects READS is working on. The dates for the next event have not been set as yet, but the plan is for sometime at the end of September. The programme will include a talk and presentation but also a culture programme performed by the children.
Funding:
Currently, READS requires 21 Lakh per year to function. READS gets its funding from the central government. The organization receives 12 lakhs per year from the Union Ministry of Social Welfare and Labour to run all of its programmes. This amount is barely enough to ensure survival of its current projects let alone expand its reach further which is the ultimate aim of the organization. Often READS faces financial difficulties, a situation which is most acute at the present moment as the organization has not received any grant from the central government authority for the last 18 months. READS is always trying to generate funds abroad from sponsors and private donators and we are currently involved in some new initiatives for this purpose.
READS is currently looking into getting financial support from international organizations such as CRY and the European Commission. READS proposed a project for funding to the European Commission earlier this year, which was selected in the last two, however the money went to Ghana’s health project. Despite this however, READS received much praise from the European Commission who urged them to re-submit the project next year for consideration, as they believe we have a good chance at receiving the funding.
Our plea: Come and join us to support this cause....the cause for the uplift of these underprivilege children of our city......
READS programmes:
School programmes
Currently, we run 10 schools in three slum areas with a total of approximately 500 children. We provide the pupils with basic primary education (mother tongue, English, mathematics). Furthermore, the older children are taught various practical subjects such as sari craft, tailoring, painting etc. This knowledge significantly improves their chances significantly to earn a living in the future.
Additionally, the children get a warm lunch every day and 100 INR per month. The children’s parents wouldn’t be able to allow our pupils to go to school without this small payment, as they are reliant on the money their children earn with child labour.
Orphanage at Garden Reach
READS has a girl’s orphanage in Garden Reach which is currently home to 30 girls and young women between 12 and 17 years. The girls living at this home are not just orphans, some come from very poor families who cannot afford to keep them at home – or who do not want to. In the orphanage in Garden Reach the girls live together, cook and eat together, have proper medical surveillance and psychological support from the staff and older girls. The orphanage is a short stay home where the girls are provided with education and vocational training so that after three years, when they usually leave the house, they are able to earn to go out into the world and earn a living for themselves. This home, like the schools for street children, seeks to empower these underprivileged members of society and give them a chance at making a respectable life for themselves.
Awareness Programmes and Counselling
To improve the situation of the people in the slums, they have to be informed about various threats and social problems. We show them how to handle difficult situations, make them aware of their rights and possible solutions. This is why READS organizes various awareness programmes in regular intervals for children and grown-ups in cooperation with other organizations. We also offer counselling connected to the most important issues. We particulary focus on topics such as children’s rights and child labour, trafficking, early marriage and drug abuse. Furthermore, we run workshops about topics like contraception, the social and economic status of women in India or health awareness including HIV/AIDS, clean drinking water and hygienic education. READS does this in an attempt to improve social responsibility in the slums, and thereby improve the situation of their society as a whole.
Events
READS organizes several events to celebrate certain occurrences. Every year, we give an award to the best social worker of READS or connected organizations to reward remarkable dedication for the needs of underprivileged children. The event includes a party with food and performances of the children who take part in our programmes. We also celebrate events like the Children’s Day and the Teachers’ Day.
The organization is also currently in the process of organizing a conference/ fund-raising event to generate greater awareness of the situation of children in the slums and gain support for the various projects READS is working on. The dates for the next event have not been set as yet, but the plan is for sometime at the end of September. The programme will include a talk and presentation but also a culture programme performed by the children.
Funding:
Currently, READS requires 21 Lakh per year to function. READS gets its funding from the central government. The organization receives 12 lakhs per year from the Union Ministry of Social Welfare and Labour to run all of its programmes. This amount is barely enough to ensure survival of its current projects let alone expand its reach further which is the ultimate aim of the organization. Often READS faces financial difficulties, a situation which is most acute at the present moment as the organization has not received any grant from the central government authority for the last 18 months. READS is always trying to generate funds abroad from sponsors and private donators and we are currently involved in some new initiatives for this purpose.
READS is currently looking into getting financial support from international organizations such as CRY and the European Commission. READS proposed a project for funding to the European Commission earlier this year, which was selected in the last two, however the money went to Ghana’s health project. Despite this however, READS received much praise from the European Commission who urged them to re-submit the project next year for consideration, as they believe we have a good chance at receiving the funding.
Our plea: Come and join us to support this cause....the cause for the uplift of these underprivilege children of our city......
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