Education and Health for Women's Empowerment

Rukhsar

“My mother wants me to have a job. She always wanted to work but she never could. I am going to make her proud.”

15-year-old Rukhsar is probably not the only girl who wants to fulfill her mother’s dreams. Her mother Mussarat has always been encouraging her to focus on education. She could never work because she had to be busy with household chores before and after marriage. She has till date never sought any help in household chores from her daughter.

As a result, Rukhsar performed outstandingly. She has excelled ion studies and is equally good in co-curricular and got scholarship under Swabhiman programme. She wants to become a teacher when she grows up and encourage other under privileged girls like her to chase their dreams.

Shalu

“My father does not understand English but he loves to hear me use it.”

A temporary driver struggling for the survival of his family of six, Shalu’s father never thought of enrolling her in school. But only one meeting with Mission Education project coordinators was enough to convince him that education could be his daughter’s way out from the life of poverty and drudgery.

Shalu studied at the Mission Education centre for 10 years and because of her hard work and diligence was successfully mainstreamed to a prestigious private school in Delhi. She was also awarded a scholarship under Smile Foundation’s Swabhiman programme to complete her education free of cost.

Presently, Shalu is aiming to get admission to a reputed college in Delhi University and study child psychology. She regularly visits the Mission Education centre where her journey started and spends a lot of time with the younger children there – helping them, playing with them, teaching them.

Neetu

“I was sick for the longest time and had lost all hope of giving birth"

Due to her husband’s repeated demands and the constant pressures from her family for a child, Neetu had conceived four timers in two years but was unable to give birth due to her failing health. The family did not seek any good medical help and she kept on suffering. Neetu had lost all hope when volunteers from Swabhiman came to know of her condition.

They immediately sought medical advice for her and repeatedly counseled her husband, making him realize his responsibility towards her well being. Neetu began paying attention to herself, taking a healthy diet, and in no time started blossoming again, with her husband by her side.

She is six months pregnant now and ready to experience a happy motherhood.

Shahid

“I never realized that girls were equal to boys until now.”

Shahid had grown up in a society which believed that boys were superior and girls were only fit to be married and bear children. Shahid himself is the father of three girls and kept on pushing his wife to conceive again hoping for a boy this time. Shahid’s wife was very young when she got married and after three children coming at close intervals her body could not bear the stress anymore and she began to keep sick.

It was only after the street plays and counseling sessions conducted by team Swabhiman that Shahid came to know that girls are as able if they are nurtured and educated properly and the health of his wife could improve if proper measures are taken.

Shahid is now the proud father of three beautiful daughters and has big dreams for them.