Dancing Rainbows NGO: Empowering Underprivileged Children

Dancing Rainbows NGO is not just an initiative, it’s the means through which we can make a difference in the lives of underprivileged and orphaned kids.

I’ll never forget the warmth with which a child embraces me.

NGOs are not only making a difference in the lives of these kids with their philanthropic activities, but are also creating awareness in our country about the need for education and healthcare services.

Here is a list of 10 NGOs working in India That Are Empowering Underprivileged Children.

1. Asha Trust

Asha has more than 400 chapters all over India and more than 11,000 volunteers helping them to reach out to 25,000 children each year across 6 states – West Bengal, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa; and Goa, by providing them with access to quality education at absolutely no cost or very minimal charges. These schools go beyond teaching just academics; they offer students counselling, recreational activities, life skills & vocational education.

2. Bal Asha Trust

This trust has built more than 100 preschools for children between the age group of 1-5 years in Andhra Pradesh. The aim is to provide quality education and care to underprivileged kids so that they can break out of the vicious cycle of poverty. While they are trained in basic reading , writing and arithmetic, their overall development is also taken into consideration, which includes providing nutritious meals, play equipment, hygiene kits etc. along with teaching them good values about respecting others and their property. They even conduct medical checkups for these kids once a year during their special school days where they invite doctors, social activists & other important personalities to make them understand the importance of making good choices for their future.

3. Chetana Foundation

Chetana currently works with about 10,000 children in Karnataka & AP by providing access to quality education at zero or minimal cost through its many initiatives like ‘Bal Shikshan Pods’ , ‘Asha Vidya Pods’ , ‘Anivar Aravind Schools’ etc. These are residential schools where underprivileged kids are given free accommodation, food and study material so that they can attend regular school while staying in school premises itself. They also take care of their overall development needs including medical checkups, free eye checkups and surgeries , but the best part is that they give them love and affection, which they get at home especially from their teachers.

4. CRY

CRY’s primary focus towards underprivileged children is on education through its many ground-breaking programs like ‘Mobile Crèches,’ ‘Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan’ APIE (Adult Partnerships in Education) etc. They have some very innovative initiatives for girls & women empowerment too like community based child protection committees, life skill development program etc. The two words about CRY that impress me most are “dignity of care” and “confidentiality.” It believes that for a child’s development, the environment in which it grows up is very important and CRY provides such an environment where dignity of care & confidence building are given priority. They don’t use the kids to publicize their programs or any external help; they don’t even ask adult members of the community for sponsorship. If anyone wants to help them financially , then people have to donate directly into their ‘Chetana’ fund through which all their projects are financed .

5. Global Campaign For Education

GCE actively works toward providing quality basic education to every child by making governments understand that investment in education leads to economic growth, poverty alleviation; and empowerment of women. They focus on 3 different types of education – early childhood, primary & secondary school education. Some of their successful campaigns include getting all girls in school in Afghanistan, ensuring free and compulsory education for all children in India etc. What I admire most about this NGO is that they don’t just work for the upliftment of a certain section or community of children but for all children belonging to any race or religion.

6. Help A Child Reach Its Full Potential (HACRP)

This NGO’s motto is ” Every child has the potential to be great” and it works towards realizing this by supporting programs which focus on child development, health & nutrition, education etc. HACRP directly reaches out to about 20,000 underprivileged children through such programs which not only focus on education but also provide vocational training like stitching, baking etc. They even give them some monetary assistance for their school uniforms & books as some families might find it difficult to support their child’s education due to various reasons. Apart from this they help them in tackling behavioral problems and improving their gross and fine motor skills with special activities like painting, clay modelling etc.

7. Indian Society For Sponsoring Education Of The Girl Child

Founded by the trust of Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam, ‘ISSE’ works for the betterment of girl child by supporting such projects which provide access to education, health & nutrition, and skill development. They have a very transparent system where they publish the list of all the children who are sponsored by different donors on their website so that the donor can know exactly where their money is going. Till date, they have supported more than 1,50,000 girl children in various parts of India and their target is to reach out to 5,00,000 girl children by 2020 .

8. Maulana Azad Education Foundation

This foundation was established in 1986 with an aim to provide scholarships and other financial assistance to Muslim students for pursuing higher education . The scholarship amount varies from Rs. 500- Rs. 10,000 per annum per student. The students must be between the age group of 10-25 years and residing in 18 different states and 4 UTs. They also provide them an option to pay their fee in installments if they wish to.

9. Oasis India

Oasis India is a pioneer organization that works exclusively for the empowerment of girls from low income groups who are unable to pursue education due to various reasons like lack of resources, societal pressure etc. They empower these girls by providing them with primary education, vocational training, life skills development program etc. Apart from this they even help them get admitted into regular schools if their educational qualification is not up to the mark or give them admission in nearby open schools.

10. Pratham

This NGO is probably the most well-known and renowned name when it comes to the field of education for underprivileged children in India. It was founded in 1994 with the vision that “Every child has the right to an education.” Pratham’s main focus areas include early childhood education, primary education, adult literacy etc. They work in various parts of rural and urban India and have reached out to more than 60 million children till date. Their motto is “Education for all” and they truly stand by it.

These are just some of the NGOs working hard for the empowerment of underprivileged children in India. There are many more such organizations doing commendable work for these children and we never know about them. This blog is just to create awareness of such organizations who are not only working hard but also making a huge difference in the lives of millions.

Dancing Rainbows NGO was born from the need to do something to empower underprivileged children in India. Dancing Rainbows NGO is such an integral part of my life and is one of the ways through which I can do my part to make a difference in the lives of these kids.

Dancing Rainbows – NGO focuses on sheltering, caring and educating underprivileged and orphaned kids. We have volunteers who are kind enough to take out time to help us out. And, I donate a share of my earning from my mixed media art purchases towards my NGO, besides food, clothes, study materials, etc.

Do your part to help make their world a better place!

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