A campaign for the protection of the girl child that started a month before Rakhi has been able to raise funds for the education of 135 girls for a year.
An NGO that works with 800 children in the Sunderbans started the campaign, which centred around the festival of Rakshabandhan, so many of these girls would not drop out of school because of the financial condition of their families.
The fathers of most of these girls are farmers or migrant labourers and the mothers roll bidis or do odd jobs.
For most of them, the education of their children is not a priority, said the founder of the NGO.
“When we bring the children to school, we have to ensure that they come to school regularly. We have to create an education space, provide them with teachers and support,” said Satarupa Majumdar, founder, Katakhali Swapnopuron Welfare Society.
“We started this campaign in July and it ended on August 31. We have been able to raise Rs 15 lakh,” said Majumdar.
The focus is on the education of the girl child, many of whom have to fight child marriage, trafficking, abuse and the lure of elopement, said a volunteer with the NGO.
Their parents are ready to get them married instead of send them to school, said the volunteer.
“Our mission is to spread quality education to enable every child to have a safe and empowered life in difficult areas. Through this campaign, we emphasised on the education of girls as the life of a girl child is tough and vulnerable,” said Majumdar.
Swapnopuron has been supported by SVP (Social Venture Partners) India in the campaign to ideate, create awareness and raise funds.
The money will help the six-year-old daughter of a bidi worker. Her father, a woodcutter, was paralysed after an accident. For the girl’s mother, the rising expenses of medicines for her husband and the responsibility of earning a livelihood do not leave much scope to think about her daughter’s studies.
Swapnopuron runs English medium schools in seven locations in the Sunderbans.
The main branch, a school for nursery to Class XI, is in Hingalganj.
“Parents send their boys to school till the age of 14-15, after which they want them to start working because that brings money to the house. The girls are married off. These are the circumstances under which we have to work to ensure that we can get the children to school and keep them there,” said Majumdar.