Three months ago, 12-year-old Padma (name changed) was whiling away her time playing cards or begging, under the Ramurthi Pantulu Peta flyover. But today, she has learnt to read and write in Telugu and a little bit in English and also draw colourful pictures on her drawing board.
Not only Padma but about 35 children in the age group of 8-18 are also in the process of transformation, thanks to the collaboration of two NGOs – POWER (People’s Organisation for Welfare in Rural Environment) and UVCT (Urvi Vikram Charitable Trust).
Both NGOs have adopted the children who were orphans, rag pickers and children of daily wagers and migrant workers.
“They were into gambling, small time crime or begging. But today, they are in the process of learning skills and transforming their lives,” said Abdul Raqeeb, executive secretary of POWER.
After seeing a picture published in The Hindu, where the children were seen pouncing on volunteers who were distributing food packets during the first lockdown, the NGOs have decided to help them out. Of the 35 children adopted, about six are orphans and eight are girls.
Classes
“Initially, we focussed on providing food and nutrition to gain their confidence and improve their health condition. After a few days, we motivated them to join coaching classes, which are being held following the social distancing norms and other COVID protocols,” said Mr. Raqeeb.
“Most of them have not gone to any school or had any form of education, but today they are in a position to read and write a bit,” he added.
Skill development
Not only basic education, they were also being taught drawing and other life skills. The idea was to make them learn some skills such as tailoring or painting, so that they could make their own living in the future, he said.
This apart, the trainers from the NGOs were also creating awareness on various aspects such as COVID, child rights, child marriage, bonded labour and how to keep them safe, clean and healthy.
