Parents of children living in slums are being counselled by a city NGO so that their girls and boys continue with their studies and do not give up midway.

The counselling also includes an effort to minimise the gender divide that exists in most families where the boys and their demands are prioritised over the girls’.

The sessions have yielded early results and in some cases, the mothers are speaking up for their girls, said a counsellor of Calcutta Rescue, the NGO that started the initiative.

Teachers have noticed a change in the attitude of the parents.

Earlier, the parents would not be keen on online classes but now, when they step out, they leave their phones behind so the children can attend classes, the head of the NGO’s education wing said.

“Most of the children are first generation learners and some of the mothers have been subjected to violence at home. We ask them if they would want the same plight for their daughters or if they want them to become financially independent and not be subjected to any atrocity,” said counsellor Suchandra Chatterjee.

The counselling is mostly for mothers but the NGO tries to include fathers, too.

“The gender sensitisation has worked in some cases. We have seen mothers telling their sons not to take the phone with them when going out because their sister has a class,” Suchandra said.

She said that while the mothers have been able to change their attitudes, the resistance comes from the grandparents whose thinking is still “primitive”.

The counselling started some time back but because of the need for it and the results it has yielded, Calcutta Rescue has decided to make it more regular and rigorous.

Counsellors also orient the mothers to look for signs of disturbance among their children, which could be due to abuse, and report it to the teachers.

“We have to keep in mind the mental health of our children and for that it is essential to orient the parents. Many of these children are exposed to abuse and need to make their mothers aware of it,” said Ananya Chatterjee, the school administrator at Calcutta Rescue.

“The best part is we have been able to retain our children. They have not dropped out, barring a few exceptional cases who have migrated to their native places,” she said.

The counsellors also ask parents to ensure regular attendance among the children. The adolescents sometimes use phones to play games or watch videos instead of attending classes.

“Despite the phones being recharged by us, the children are not attending classes while their parents think they are because they are sitting with the device. These are also issues we have to address,” said Ananya.

Suchandra said there was a need to build confidence in the parents’ because there was a tendency among the children to take them for a ride since they do not know how to read or write.