DIKSHA CARE

All the projects supported by Diksha are exclusively targeted towards children. However, they span a wide range of focus areas. The broad areas of our current focus and the corresponding projects in each category are outlined here.
Diksha selects the child development projects without any discrimination based on gender, caste, religion, political affiliation or language. We follow an exhaustive evaluation process which includes quantitative metrics like the number of children impacted, the cost per activity or cost per child and qualitative measures such as the impact on the local community, structure and long term sustainability of the organization. diksha's main focus areas are:
1. Education
2. Vocational training
3. Care for physically and/or mentally challenged children
4. Rescue and rehabilitation of children in vulnerable conditions
Even though projects funded by Diksha work on specific focus areas, most of them include healthcare, nutrition, recreation, awareness and community mobilization as vital components in their day to day functions.
1. Education: We believe that education is the key to unlocking the potential of children and for breaking the vicious cycle of poverty. Hence, about 50% of our resources go towards education. A large number of our funded projects are imparting education in different ways, each responding to a specific need in their respective communities.
o Pre-primary Education: With the motto of "catch them young", children are encouraged to develop school-going habits. Otherwise the children of poor parents working as day laborers are likely to drop-out. Diksha supports Vidyarambam (Mirzapur) that has developed a scalable model in starting pre-primary centers and prepares thousands of children to go to school. Another project we support is Baikunthapur Tarun Sangha-BTS (Bihar) which reduces the burden on daily-wage earning parents and older siblings by providing child-care centers.
o Primary and Secondary Education: In places where the government school system has failed or is non-existent, several projects have started primary education centers to ensure basic literacy skills. Examples are Alamb (Delhi), Rachana (Maharashtra), Visakha Rural Development Society-VRDS (Andhra Pradesh) and Sevalaya (Tamilnadu). Rachana, in particular, has gained tremendous expertise in the approach of integrated development of children and is rapidly developing into a resource center for other organizations as well.
o Bridge Schools: In communities where there are already a number of out-of-school children, some projects have started Bridge Schools. These help the children to "catch-up-quick" and get them mainstreamed into the regular school system. Examples are AWARD (Andhra Pradesh), Verala (Maharashtra), Swami Vivekananda Vani Prachar Samity (West Bengal) and Door Step School (Maharashtra).
o Support Structure to Children: Some projects help the children by providing tuitions, school fees, uniforms and moral support. They ensure that children do not drop out of mainstream schools due to lack of resources at home. Sharada Kalyan Bhandar-SKB (West Bengal), Aasman (Maharashtra), Hope Foundation (Karnataka) and Gugle Trust (Maharashtra) are excellent examples in this category.
o Support Structure to Schools: In several parts of India, the government schools have good infrastructure but lack motivation due to insufficient community involvement. Citizens in these communities have taken this up as a challenge. They are supporting the schools by funding additional teachers, facilities, computers and field trips. This approach is resulting in the reduction of drop-out rates of children from these schools. In this category, Diksha is funding Gandhian Organization for Rural Development-GORD (Andhra Pradesh), a Mobile Science Van by Association for India's Development-AID(Tamilnadu) and Children's Toy Foundation (Maharashtra).
o Residential Education: A few of the more experienced projects like Bhagavatula Charitable Trust-BCT (Andhra Pradesh) have taken up residential education for underprivileged children. Diksha is proud to be supporting their efforts to completely transform the lives of those children.
2. Vocational Training: Many of our projects - Alamb (Delhi), Rajasthan Mahila Kalyan Mandal - RMKM (Rajasthan), Sebama Foundation (Tamilnadu) and Odanadi (Karnataka)- have vocational training as a significant component of their overall approach to development for older children. Income generation skills such as tailoring, embroidery and mechanic work help them stand on their own feet and break the cycle of poverty. These children would otherwise have to turn to more desperate measures for a livelihood. At Diksha, we source our own holiday greeting cards from RMKM.
3. Physically and/or Mentally Challenged Children: Children with special needs face significant hurdles because of a lack of community awareness of their needs and rights. Diksha has taken up the cause of these children and is supporting RMKM (Rajasthan), Janmadhyam (Delhi) and Shrishti Special Academy (Karnataka). Apart from providing education and training through special teachers, they are doing a great job in awareness generation and sensitization of the general public about the needs of these special children.
4. Children in Vulnerable Conditions: Certain groups children of sex workers, children in bonded labor - are particularly vulnerable. Diksha is supporting projects that are focused on this segment of the population. Odanadi (Karnataka) and Guria (Uttar Pradesh) are protecting such children by providing shelters, education and vocational training for alternate income generation. Action for Welfare and Awakening in Rural Development-AWARD (Andhra Pradesh) and Health Education Adoption Rehabilitation Development Society-HEARDS (Andhra Pradesh) are fighting the issue of child labor through community mobilization and education with bridge schools. Pratidhi (New Delhi) is highlighting the issue of sexual abuse of children by partnering with the Delhi Police, sensitizing the public about this issue and helping the affected children and families with counseling.

Donate
Events
Volunteer