Category: Press Releases

Nutrition for better literacy to 5000 underprivileged children

Mumbai : Smile Foundation and three times Michelin-starred Chef Vikas Khanna joined hands to create an exciting and unique charity cookout – ‘Cook for a Smile’, in which 12 top corporate leaders took a day off from their busy lives to don Chef’s toques and re-create their favourite recipe with the sole mission of supporting Smile Foundation’s ‘Nutrition for Better Literacy’ campaign.

Each corporate leader was joined by the junior master chefs from Smile Foundation at the event which was presented by Hyatt Hotels and held at Grand Hyatt, Mumbai. PepsiCo, Kitchen Aid and CNBC TV 18 also lent their support to the initiative.

Arjun Bafna, Managing Director, Seven Islands Harley-Davidson; Tejbir Singh Sawhney, CEO, Hindustan Colas Ltd.; Manoj Chacko, CEO, Kuoni Business Travel, Kuoni India; Sharavan Kumar, CEO, Children’s Film Society India; David Mansfield, Area Director & General Manager, Grand Hyatt, Mumbai; Amarendra Kulkarni, CMD, General Instruments Consortium; Dr. Ramen Goel, Ex-President, All India Association for Advanced Research on Obesity; Nityanand Shetty, Managing Director, Essen Vision Software Ltd.; Archana Kochhar, Founder & CEO, Archana Couture; Mohit Jain, Regional Director, Asia Pacific, Kitchen Aid; Vishal Gondal, Founder and CEO, GOQii Inc. and Arun Chatterjee, Vice President- Depositary Receipts, BNY Mellon India, participated in ‘Cook for a Smile’ and supported the cause.

Funds raised from the initiative will be used to provide education and nutrition to 5,000 children for one year. Chef Vikas Khanna has also joined Smile Foundation as a Goodwill Ambassador for its ‘Nutrition for Better Literacy’ campaign

Mumbai : As hosts of the Golden Jubilee Inter IIT Sports Meet, IIT Bombay launched Mashal, the first ever pan IIT social initiative, at Open Air Theatre, IIT Bombay, for the betterment of the primary education scenario in the country.

Renowned actor Shreyas Talpade personally endorsed Mashal and was present at its kick-off during Aquatics Meet, to handover the Inter IIT Torch to the captains of all the IITs, and to assign them the responsibility of conducting Mashal runs at their campus. Mashal was officially launched during the Opening Ceremony of the Aquatics leg of the Inter IIT Sports Meet, on September 30, 2014. The mascot of the Meet is a leopard that goes by the name Chhawa. A model of Chhawa holding the Inter IIT torch was unveiled by the guest of honour Virdhawal Khade, the country’s fastest swimmer.

The first run in the series has been flagged off, and runs at other IITs will follow subsequently. The IIT Bombay student fraternity showed excitement and eagerness to participate in this ‘run for a cause’ and over 1000 students are expected to participate in the mini-marathon.

Shashank Srivastava, General Secretary, Sports Affairs of IIT Bombay, said “We have been organizing long distance running competitions in the institute regularly, but Mashalhas met with an enthusiastic response we haven’t seen before. Athletes and non-athletes alike are going to run for this noble cause.”

Based on the number of people participating, funds will be generated by the sponsors Flipkart and Gionee and donated to Smile Foundation, a national level development organisation, the official charity partner for this initiative. Smile Foundation will utilize these funds in its Mission Education programme supporting primary education of the underprivileged children in our society. The Organizing Committee decided to raise funds through runs which will take place in all 16 IITs. The Inter IIT Torch that symbolizes bringing light into the lives of the children will be sent to all the IITs and the students will run with the torch.

Santanu Mishra, Co- Founder and Executive Trustee, Smile Foundation said, “We believe that unless members of the civil society are involved proactively in the process of development, sustainable change will not happen. Smile Foundation has always strongly felt that this society can be a better place to live in only when each individual works towards a developed society. I would like to thank IIT Bombay along with the whole fraternity for supporting our children.”

Asmit Jain, Events Head of the student organizing committee, said, “Mashal started off as an idea to unite the IITs towards one noble purpose, and with the help of Smile Foundation we are now seeing it materialize on a scale we hadn’t expected before.”

Smile Foundation, a national level development organisation, is conducting an innovative series of Teachers’ Training and Capacity Building programmes across India. Education of children, when they are the first generation learners, depends solely on the levels of training and passion of the teachers. It helps the children stay in the education centres, increase their learning, prepares them to get mainstreamed in reputed schools and also helps the children to cope with the teaching methodologies prevalent there.

Each of the three-day training programmes is residential in nature and has been scheduled for all four regions of India. The modules include Pedagogical Skills, Library Management and Computer Teaching.

The first programme for North India was held in New Delhi which included 37 teachers and instructors from 23 grassroots NGOs from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Chandigarh & Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi NCR.

The training programme for West India was held in Mumbai which included teachers from 23 NGOs from Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa.

The training programme for South India and East India are being held simultaneously between 10th and 12th of March, 2014 in Hyderabad and Kolkata, respectively.

“Quality of learning for the small children, who could be first generation learners, begins with a passionate and skilful teacher who creates interest in the classroom. If we expect a child to learn effectively, our teachers have to create that interest and excitement. This effort of ours complements the Right to Education (RTE) Act where Smile Foundation would like to see 20,000 children to be mainstreamed in reputed schools and help them build a bright future,” says Mr. Vikram Singh Verma, Chief Operating Officer, Smile Foundation. He adds, “Teaching should be creative, engaging and effective especially for the underprivileged children. When teachers apply simple yet right methodologies such as story-telling, use of colourful library cards etc. for better use of the libraries, it creates interest amongst the children in studies and enhances their learning.”

Wilde Ganzen, the Dutch international development agency, is supporting Smile Foundation in conducting this first series of teachers’ training and capacity building programme which has been designed to take advantage of the Right to Education (RTE) Act.

Bengaluru : Bengaluru Football Club extended its support to the ‘Mission Education’ initiative of Smile Foundation today. With an aim to raise awareness about sending every child to school, the players of Bengaluru FC interacted with the children and gave them various tips and secrets of playing football which left the children with big smiles on their faces.

Star Players of the club along with Ashley Westwood, Head Coach, Bengaluru FC, invited a team of 12 children of Smile Foundation to their home turf to play a game of football. After a brief football match, the players motivated the kids to perform well in their studies so that they too can have a bright future.

“As a goal is important in football, sending every child to school should be the primary goal of our privileged society. Education can ensure the children to be champions in their life. We are glad to get engaged with Smile Foundation’s Mission Education initiative,” said Mr. Ashley Westwood, Head Coach, Bengaluru Football Club.

Mr. Vikram Singh Verma, COO, Smile Foundation said, “Smile Foundation believes that education is the most effective tool that can help the less privileged children come out of the vicious cycle of poverty, ignorance and suffering. Our children can build a better future and play an active role in nation building with the power of education. Smile Foundation is pleased to get Bengaluru Football Club’s involvement in the cause of Mission Education.”

Smile Foundation has benefitted over 200,000 underprivileged children across 26 states of India so far. In Karnataka alone, 2700 children, mostly first generation learners, are currently enrolled in Smile Foundation’s Mission Education programme and preparing themselves for a brighter future.

About Bengaluru Football Club

Formed in 2013, Bengaluru Football Club is owned by the JSW Group and plays its home games out of the Bangalore Football Stadium. A club of and for the fans, Bengaluru FC is committed in its endeavour to be a dominant football force in India and Asia.

New Delhi : Unprecedented floods caused by uninterrupted heavy downpour wreaked havoc in Jammu & Kashmir, unleashing death and destruction of property, making the floods the deadliest since Independence. The surging waters have 10 districts namely Srinagar, Anantnag, Baramulla, Pulwama, Ganderbal, Kulgam, Budgam, Rajuri, Poonch and Reasi leaving lakhs of people marooned. While many have been rescued with painstaking efforts of the Army, Air Force, police and administration, thousands still await help.

Smile Foundation, a national level development organization, was on the ground immediately after the disaster and has completed its first phase of operations, which were focused on emergency rescue and distribution of humanitarian supplies including food, powered milk, biscuits, water, chlorine tablets, ORS packets, school bags, stationeries etc. to children and families. Villages Malke Chak, Surya Chak in Jammu and Lasjan, Soitang, Shahgund, Gulshan Muhallah, Gondi boon and Kaniyari in Kashmir regions in J&K were covered.

In the second phase of relief operations, Smile Foundations’ Disaster Response team on ground is focusing on providing relief materials and comprehensive healthcare to the flood victims. As the regular supply of ration has been cut off, Smile Foundation is providing a minimum stock of ration to families. The snowfall in Kashmir is expected to start very soon. As most of the people have lost their belongings, the organisation is equipping them with bare minimum woollen and blankets for the winters. The number of hospitals affected in the floods is huge, causing a severe healthcare crisis. Moreover, sand depositions, inundation of water into the shelters, and accumulation of filth everywhere has left the valley a breed ground of diseases for the survivors. To address the healthcare needs of the people, Smile Health Camps are being organized across the affected villages.

As a response to the damaged healthcare facilities in the state, Smile Foundation will be deploying mobile hospital units in the affected villages, besides conducting regular health camps, until the said facilities are restored. In addition to healthcare, education of the children has come to halt with the destruction of schools. Smile Foundation will be extending their support to camp schools, till the educational infrastructure of the valley is reinstated.

Smile Foundation’s Disaster Response Programme

Smile Foundation, with its welfare interventions focused on children and their families, responds to the call of humanity in times of such calamities under its Disaster Response programme. From the Tsunami in 2004, Kashmir earthquake in 2005 to the Uttarakhand floods in 2013, Smile Foundation has acted promptly to reach out and respond to the immediate needs of the disaster affected people, while also maintaining a sustainable approach to help them rebuild their lives by facilitating their education, healthcare and livelihood.

Some of the calamities during which Smile Foundation has initiated disaster response are the Tsunami, the Kashmir Earthquake, the Maharashtra floods, the Bihar floods, the Uttarakhand floods and now the Jammu and Kashmir floods.

An Initiative by Smile Foundation to raise support for education of the girl child

Mumbai : Smile Foundation, a national level development organization, showcased the 5th edition of its charity fashion show ‘Ramp for Champs’ today at ITC Grand Central, Mumbai. With a special focus on education for the girl children, funds raised through Ramp for Champs will be utilized through Smile Foundation’s national programme named Mission Education. Ramp For Champs had a robust line-up of 45 participating achievers and personalities from all walks of life and 17 responsible brands who came together to celebrate the very best of fashion and creative talent.

Speaking on the occasion Mr. Neeraj Agarwal, Executive Director, Corporate Communication, LIC India, said “Education is every individual’s birth right, more so for the girl child in India who is marginalized by all standards. In India most of the girls fail to enrol in school, and those that do are likely to drop out by the age of 12. The event promises well for the cause, and we are privileged to be associated with Smile Foundation.” The event started with a very special performance by singer Shweta Pandit who captivated the crowd with her melodious voice followed by a dance performance by Sandip Soparrkar who mesmerized the crowd with his electrifying moves.

IAM Foundation joined hands with this movement and Ms. Susmita Sen, Former Miss Universe and a renowned philanthropist came forward to support the cause and encouraged all the people to act and make a difference. Expressing her support to the cause, she said, “IAM Foundation is glad to be associated with Smile Foundation, having similar beliefs it was only a matter of time we came together. Girl education and Girl safety are the most prominent issues in India today and that is something we wanted to throw more light on so that more people become aware and work towards eradicating it.”

Star designers Archana Kochhar, Ken Ferns, Salim Asgarally ,Salima Lalani and Sonaakshi Raaj, extended their support to the cause by showcasing their special collections not with the models but with their muses who were their celebrity and high profile clients. The show was directed by ace choreographer Rashmi Virmani.

India based fashion designer Archana Kochhar has great fellowship for fashion and is feasting her clients through three operational prêt stores in Mumbai. Born in the fashion hub of India, Mumbai, Archana Kochhar has diverse proficiency for designing and creating excellent outfits. Her muses for the show had eminent personalities from all fields like acting, singing, chefs, working women to homemakers. Her power list consisted of Amrita Rao, Betty, Hanan Zafri, Chef Vikas Khanna, Monisha Jaisingh, Biba Gurha, Rashmi Ganatra, Sobha Lakhani, Anu Anju, Shweta Pandit and Amrita Arora.

Trained extensively at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising and the University of California in Los Angeles, Salim Asgarally is one of India’s few formally trained fashion designers. Having trained in the west, his collections reflect an international spirit in style, silhouette and drape, while retaining an Indian sensibility of colour, texture and embellishment. His label is worn not only by fashionable women in India but across the globe. His muses were Aroona Bhatt, Gajara Kothari, Shristi Arya, Soni Razdan, Shaheen Bhatt and Veena Bakshi.

Salima Lalani is a Mumbai based fashion designer who started her career with her mother. She initially started her business in Lucknowi Kurtas. She also built her NRI clientele while living in Sydney and launched a store overseas called ‘De-Chic’. She currently operates out of her flagship store based in Mumbai. Her muses for Ramp For Champs were Sophie Premji, Vinisha Tulsiyana, VJ Andy, Sarita Madhavan, Dr. Mugdha Raut, Shama Sikander, Claudia Ciesla and Deepika Singh, who all were all smiles supporting the cause along with Salima.

Label Sonaakshi Raaj is synonymous with opulence, with an intention to create glamorous ensembles catering to women’s couture wear with a design philosophy that is distinctly feminine and refined. By combining tailoring with drapery, the garments are meticulously crafted to styles that are luxurious yet understated with strong emphasis on fabric, cut and colour. Her muses were the most beautiful women from the tinsel town like Amy Patel, Malvika Raaj, Soumya Tondon, Waluscha D’souza, Anita Raj, Krishika Lulla, Evelyn Sharma and Susmita Sen. All these famous women personalities extended their support to the cause and made many heads turn with their grace and poise.

The event was successfully supported by various partners. It was presented by LIC of India. Other valuable partners were IAM Foundation, Nerolac, Reliance Capital, Vatika Group, Indira Group of Institutes, Air France KLM, Amway, Jean Claude, Estrada, SoapBox, One Stop Makeover, Chandrakala Sanap, Telly Chakkar, ITC Grand Central, Dfashion.tv, Global Advertisers and Coca Cola. Chef Vikas Khanna was introduced as the Goodwill Ambassador for ‘Cook for a Smile’ – an upcoming initiative by Smile Foundation.

Towards a sustainable & inclusive economy

Addressing on the occasion, Mr. Vikram Singh Verma, Chief Operating Officer, Smile Foundation said, “Through Ramp of Champs we are aiming to bring trend-setters and celebrities together to bring some real and permanent change in the lives of the most deserving children. Education is the most effective tool that can help less privileged children come out of the vicious cycle of poverty and suffering, and transform into an empowered next generation.” He further added, “The privileged section of the society has to come forward and take proactive role in the process of development. We feel encouraged with the support and response towards the cause through Ramp For Champs in Mumbai and I thank all the responsible corporate, designers, celebrities and the guests who made this initiative a great success.”

About Ramp for Champs:

Ramp for Champs (RFC) is a charity fashion show from Smile Foundation. Ramp for Champs brings fashion designers, eminent public figures and corporate together to raise support for the cause of child education. Ramp for Champs Mumbai 2014 was the fifth edition, with the first one launched in Bangalore in 2011.

To know more about Ramp for Champs, Log onto- www.rampforchamps.com

New Delhi : As the popular saying goes, “Health is Wealth”, Smile planned to run a mobile hospital called “SMILE ON WHEELS” in Ashok Nagar, Madhya Pradesh to cater to the health needs of the rural underprivileged population, which have been ignored and neglected for long. The primary health objective was to ensure equal access of health services to all the community members irrespective of location and socio-economic standards of living. The focus group is the most vulnerable sections of the community i.e. women and children.

After its one year of operation, Smile on Wheels has catered its services to 20 villages of Chanderi Block in the district and it is showing many encouraging results. Women now form 56% of the total beneficiaries who came forward and received the services at their doorsteps. When women, specifically mothers are healthy, children grow up healthy, attend school and the whole family attains well-being, owing to their crucial roles and responsibilities in a rural set-up.

Apart from sanitation and hygiene issues, cases of severe malnutrition among children were observed. With the help of Smile on Wheel’s well trained doctors, special interventions on model hygiene practices and remedies for child malnutrition were launched in 11 select villages six months ago, which would be replicated in all the villages gradually.

Involving men and making them responsible to ensure that young mothers and children visit the mobile hospital are showing results. Rarely any of the households has toilets. However, awareness on good practice of hygiene and sanitation has reflected on the improved health profiles of the villagers, particularly children.

About Smile on Wheels

Smile on Wheels is a national level mobile hospital programme taking curative, preventive and promotive healthcare to the doorsteps of urban poor and underserved villagers benefitting 231,000 lives directly in a year through 19 projects in 265 remote villages and urban slums across India.

Pune : Smile Foundation, a national level development organisation, has pledged to liberate 19,000 children from the bondage of child labour and illiteracy and send and retain them in schools through its nationwide initiative ‘Mission Education’.

At present, more than 2000 children are enrolled in the Mission Education centres that are operational in Maharashtra region. There are 11 ongoing projects in the state, two of which are in Pune.

Smile Foundation and Sevadham Trust have taken up a joint initiative in Maharashtra for integrated community development, focusing on children, mothers and adolescents, particularly those deprived and neglected in the society. The project intervenes in the slum clusters of Bibvewadi, Panmala, and Janata Vasahat, and benefits 200 children directly. The centre has facilities like computer centre, library, crèches and static clinics.

Saraswati Anath Ashram at Dopadi is another Mission Education centre under Smile Foundation that has 25 children in the age group of 5-16 years. All of these children are orphans who call the place their home. Now, they are moving towards a bright future with proper education and a lot of love and care. Adding more to their happiness are the new library and computer centre that have been introduced at the centre.

Besides these two centres in Pune, Maharashtra has nine other centres, namely Society for Human and Environmental Development (SHED), Sparsha Charitable Trust, Amcha Ghar, Zenith Education & Welfare Trust (Holy Mother English School), and Manav Sevak Educational & Medical Research Foundation in Mumbai; Bahujan Hitay Trust, Kalyan; Ajit Foundation, Barshi; Trilokya Boudha Mahasangha Sahayak Gan (TBMSG), Ratnagiri; and Gosavi Bahuuddeshiya Sanstha, Nashik.

Mr. Santanu Mishra Co-Founder and Executive Trustee, Smile Foundation, says, “Education is the key to lead a dignified life. Through Mission Education, Smile Foundation provides basic education and healthcare to underprivileged children, finally mainstreaming them to formal education. Mission Education brings underprivileged children to the fold of education who otherwise would have missed the chance of empowerment for another generation.”

Through Mission Education, Smile Foundation aims to address the issues relating to underprivileged children – the children who are ‘at risk’, mainly orphans, child-labourers, street children, and victims of poverty. Their parents being illiterate do not understand the benefits of education, thus unwittingly depriving their next generations of the chance to get out of the vicious cycle of poverty and ignorance.

To bring the children to school, Smile Foundation encourages their parents first, through rigorous counselling sessions. Once the parents allow their children to join school, efforts are made to make the school child-friendly, so that an environment conducive for learning is created. Unlike normal school-going students, these children are first generation learners, who find coping with textbooks difficult. Teachers are hence trained and introduced to new methodologies and tools that are used to make learning interesting and effective among the students.

Libraries are set up at the centres, so that inquiry learning, knowledge and confidence among the students are built. The libraries are stocked with story books, educational games and puzzles, so that the habit of reading among the children is promoted and they are introduced to a whole new world of imagination.

Through computer education programme, Smile Foundation makes efforts to enhance the quality of learning and match the same with recognised schools where the children are mainstreamed. Teachers are being given hands-on training to facilitate computer-enabled learning for the children.

”At present, Smile Foundation has 90 Mission Education projects functional across 21 states of India. Last year 87% of eligible children have been mainstreamed to reputed formal schools after successfully passing out from the Mission Education centres, further ensuring a bright future for them”, adds Mr. Mishra.

A Sensitization Campaign against Child Labour by Smile Foundation

Mumbai : On the eve of World Labour Day, Smile Foundation, a national level development organisation organised a sensitizing campaign at major locations like bus stations and public utility spaces to sensitize the privileged people and send an appeal to empower underprivileged children through education. Children and volunteers in Nagpur, Mumbai, Bhavnagar and Goa took out rallies, recited slogans, hoisted placards and banners to make people aware of the cause.

Although June 12th is celebrated as Anti-child Labour Day, Smile Foundation feels that when the attention of the whole world is focused on May 1st which is celebrated as Labour Day, there could be no occasion to raise the issue of childhood, and future, being wasted in the form of child labour.

Statistics reveal that India has 17 million child workers, the highest in the world owing to poverty, lack of equipped schools and growth of informal economy. Over half of the working children (54%) are in agriculture, and most others are employed either in construction (15.5%) or in household work (18%). About 5% are in manufacturing jobs, and the remaining (about 8%) are scattered across other forms of employment. Lack of awareness about the basic rights of a child leads to easy violation of laws meant to protect and empower children. Today Smile Foundation children and volunteers campaigned to fight against the practice of child labour and advocated for sending children to school.

“Smile Foundation feels that there is no better tool, but education to end child labour in the country and work towards providing basic school education to the less privileged children in the country. Through this sensitization effort, Smile Foundation wants to create awareness on the vulnerability of the underprivileged children in our society. Smile Foundation would like to appeal to the privileged individuals – Say NO to Child Labour, Say YES to School,” said Mr. Suryakant Narvekar, Smile Foundation’s Regional Head – West (CFC).