Child Rights Leaders Programme - CRY Invites College Students

The spirit of volunteering has been integral to CRY- Child Rights and You and in fact is in CRY’s DNA. We started out our work over 36 years back as an endeavour by the youths as we have always strongly believed in the huge potential of this segment in ushering positive change in the lives of underprivileged children

CRY is launching the Child Rights Leaders Programme nationally for the first time to encourage leadership on child rights in academic institutes.

The people selected under this programme will be the face of CRY on the concerned campus and as youth leaders, will spearhead various campaigns and issues that we undertake. This program seeks to create a buzz on campuses thus motivating college-goers to come forward and make a difference. For year 2015-16, the candidate will be expected to herself/ himself and also facilitate direct action on anti child labour, over and above many other activities and programmes

Elaborating on what students stand to gain from it, Soha Moitra (Director- Volunteer Action) says, “The select few who will be chosen for this year long programme and successfully complete the entire tenure will not only be duly acknowledged and certified by CRY, they through this journey will get huge exposure to social and specifically child rights issues, meet many like minded people and groups, see their work getting shared in varied public platforms, and have perspective and skill enhancement which will be a big bonus in their professional lives up ahead”

A little pilot of this programme was done in Kolkata last year. Rohini Bhowmik (from Gokhale Memorial Girl’s College), who was selected as one, says, “When I started volunteering in this role, I was not sure of the huge support that I was going to receive from my college authorities and my fellow students. Through different surveys and events that I coordinated, I and the team learnt how to communicate with children and their families about sensitive issues in an appropriate manner, understanding and being prepared for their reactions to it. Overall, it significantly improved my communication skills, patience, and initiative.”

Manisit Sil, an engineering student at Heritage Institute of Technology shared, “Through this role I have tasted both success and challenges; made great friends and have tried my best to help out the cause CRY has been working on for so long. I believe the experience of being a child rights ambassador in my college was liberating and priceless”

For this national programme this year, college students who are pursuing studies in these cities (and adjacent areas) can apply: Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Bangalore, and Chennai.

Those who are keen to be the face of change and believe in action to promote every child’s right to happy, healthy and creative lives, log on to www.cry.org to get necessary details and application procedure

Note to the Editor:

CRY - Child Rights and You (formerly known as Child Relief and You) is an Indian NGO that believes in every child's right to a childhood - to live, learn, grow and play. For over 30 years, CRY and its partners have worked with parents and communities to ensure Lasting Change in the lives of more than 20 Lakh underprivileged children across 23 states of India. For more information please visit us at http://www.cry.org/