Delhi: “Slums to Harvard” campaign launched to educate slum children and beggars

In a bid to educate and provide skill training to children living in slums and those who have been forced to beg, New Delhi District had launched program--"Slums to Harvard."

This initiative works under the slogan "Slums mein Hai dum". The idea behind the initiative is that children from slums and poor families also have talent and possess dedication to study and learn new things. They can excel in their felids if given proper guidance and mentorship along with access to resources is provided to them.

The campaign has been started under the supervision of SDM Dr Nitin Shakya and his team Faiza Naz, Badal Rout, Jayprakash, Megha.

Under the campaign besides teaching the are children are also taught dance, cooking, painting training, etc. All this is free of cost and with the support of philanthropists and support of several NGOs. 

It is a pan-India campaign. College students, professionals, and other experts visit camps every Sunday at different areas to teach and guide these children.

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Talking about the campaign, Dr Shakya told Republic TV, "The idea is to harness the calibre of these children living in slums. They also have the potential to compete in the real world. Under this campaign, we are providing them mentorship and right guidance. Every Sunday we organise classes in different Centres. And our classes are not only restricted to education. We also provide extracurricular activities training."

"We also invite experts from different fields. For example, if someone wants to join the Army, we help them by making them meet personnel from the forces. This is how we are planning to guide them," he added.

Further elaborating about the plan to accommodate beggars in the campaign, Dr Shakya said, "In the case of aiding children who have been forced to beg and have no access to education, we also try to teach them skills, so that in the future they don't have to resort to begging and can earn a living through their skills."

"We want to ensure that these children can make something out of their lives. Everybody has potential, it needs to be harnessed. We aim to make them ready of the real world when they grow up," he added.

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