Lighting the Path for Slum Kids

Times News Network, Times City, page 3.

Jaipur: Going over the bumpy road near Tila number 1 in Jawahar Nagar, one is bound to be surprised by voices reciting English alphabets inside a gurdwara. A quick look inside introduces a group of students learning English, mathematics and the basics of science.

The children are neatly dressed, with properly cut and oiled hair and trimmed nails. They seek permission to enter the class, wish each other in English, and keep strict discipline.

The change has been made possible by a group of young professionals: Naresh Kadel, a businessman, and Pooja Koolwal, a post-graduate in mass communication. They started a social organisation, Pahel Sanstha, in 2017. Helping the less fortunate stays on their agenda. On weekends they train the children in etiquette, hygiene and moral values.

“It all started when we came across some government school kids who, even after spending 3–5 years in the schools, could not read and write,” recounts Kadel.

A School inside a Gurdwara

Earlier, in their individual capacity, they donated clothes, books and stationery. After working with different social ventures they decided that educating a child would transform a life completely. “After hands-on experience with different social ventures, we zeroed in on setting up a school for slum children,” said Koolwal, who teaches English there.

Two volunteers who joined later, Avinash Khandelwal, a management student, and Gaurav Agarwala, a businessman, counsel senior students.

Finding a place was difficult until they came across a gurdwara in the middle of the Jawahar Nagar slum. It was equally difficult to convince parents to send their children, because most were already going to government schools. The volunteers hired local educated women as teachers. “This worked as the number of students increased,” said Kadel.

What the Classes Have Achieved

The classes now have around 80 children between the ages of 6 and 16. A dozen children who had never been to any formal school are now in good schools.

Ranjeet, 7, son of a rickshaw puller, had never been to a school. He now recites nursery rhymes fluently. He has been coming for two years and is ready to join a school.

The photograph with the report is captioned “Doing their bit: Pooja Koolwal and Naresh Kadel at the school.”