UDAAN Child Development Centre

UDAAN, an educational programme in the Kissan Kunj slum area of Laxmi Nagar, began in August 2024. This programme supports 31 students, mainly school dropouts. They were prepared for the preliminary examination and had enrolled their names in the nearby government schools. A few children, who don’t go to school here, have their names enrolled in the schools in their own native places in Bihar, and they go to write the exams there at the end of the academic year.

Regular classes are conducted in two separate batches according to their age and class. The children are regular in the classes, and they have good progress, especially in English. Since the children belong to different classes, it is difficult to follow the school syllabus exactly. One of the students, Aditya Kumar, won the first prize in his class for his studies and good behaviour. Besides the school curriculum, the children observe national and international days of importance, learn songs, dance, drawings and speech both in Hindi & English.

Most parents in this community are migrant workers from Bihar, employed as daily wage earners or auto drivers, while women work as homemakers or maids. Living in cramped single rooms, they face significant economic challenges. Initially, these uneducated parents showed little interest in their children’s education. However, through frequent home visits and counselling, we raised awareness about the importance of education for their children’s future. Now, parents are thrilled to see their children benefiting from improved educational opportunities. The center is run in collaboration with Canossian Sisters. We are highly grateful to Mr. Anto, who supports us through Benevity and the payment platform ‘The UK Online Giving Foundation’.