Page Under Construction
Child Development
INTRODUCTION
Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world“. Keeping that in mind, DISHA has always chosen ways to empower the million lives of those who are underserved.
For over two decades, DISHA has passionately worked at the grassroots level with coastal and fishing communities in West Bengal, fuelled by a powerful belief—nurturing children is the foundation for sustainable development. In 2015, we launched Ananda DISHA, a community-led co-curricular initiative that supports children from marginalized families in coastal Purba Medinipur.What started as a small effort to restore lost childhoods has evolved into a vibrant program that offers academic and co-curricular support, including drawing and yoga.In response to the increasing demand for quality education, we started providing academic support in Mathematics and English in 2021, to address the challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. We also launched a dedicated unit for adolescent girls, addressing menstrual hygiene, early marriage and gender-based violence—empowering them to become agents of change.The soul of the program lies in the community itself. Local women—many from marginalized backgrounds—are trained as child mentors. Our teaching team is made up of local youth, building a deep sense of engagement and ownership. Today, this initiative has expanded to South 24 Parganas, Jalpaiguri & Jhargram continuing to grow with the strength and spirit of the communities we serveFrom dance to drawing, math to mentorship, we empower children and adolescent girls to rise, dream and lead: Rooted in community. Powered by compassion: We’re not just building skills—we’re building futures.
OBJECTIVES
The objective of this work is to ensure that these children are growing up in a healthy environment, there is no dropout from schools, the right to education is implemented, the mid-day meals are served at schools, social evils like gender discrimination, child marriage, and child trafficking are eradicated, and the children’s families have basic awareness on health and nutrition of the children.
ACTIVITIES
- AGE
- CLAP
- ANANDA PATH
- HEAP
EVENTS
ACHIEVEMENTS
Over the past seven years and counting, this work has led to significant positive developments not only among the children but also among their parents, family members, and formal educators in the primary schooling sector. Some of the key achievements are:
- The local children from these 10 villages, through their increasing and enthusiastic participation in our classes and events, have been steadily acquiring abilities and skills way beyond what are available in the village primary and even post-primary schools.
- As a break from the common practice in these socio-economically backward coastal blocks of West Bengal, the government schools in this region have begun to focus on extra-curricular activities because of our work here.Â
- Through continuous campaigns, we have generated active awareness on issues like the rights to education and child health, not only among the children but also among their parents, family members, friends, neighbours, and other community members. As a result, social evils faced by children such as abuse, neglect, insufficient provision of nutrition and healthcare, dropping out of schools, gender discrimination, child marriage, child labour, and child trafficking can now be effectively eradicated at the community level in this region.Â
- As a direct outcome of our activities, school dropout rates have become zero in all 10 villages. There have been no instances of child trafficking, child marriages, or child labour in or from these villages, and there has been some improvement in terms of child mortality as well. Our visits to the beneficiary families have confirmed that discrimination against girl children has declined in these villages. For example, the discriminatory practice of feeding boys more than girls during mealtimes has stopped.