Few years ago, I remember reading an article on the water crisis in interior Maharashtra. It was a time when farmer suicide was at its peak. Villagers were struggling to get just a bucket of water that they needed to make last for an entire week. Both state and central governments were struggling to ease the water crisis with no adequate infrastructure in place and no foresight in previous projects.
The article however was not about the water scarcity in the villages. It was about girls who were studying engineering in nearby city colleges. With rising debt thanks to the water crisis, farmers could simply no longer support their children’s higher education. Many of these girls and some boys as well had to drop out and return back to their village. Their dreams came crashing down bringing them back to reality. A harsh reality of absolutely no financial security, no job and no family support.
It was so heart-breaking. Here we have parents that want their children to study, become someone someday who can take care of themselves. The children determined as well to not just be a burden to their parents but also to be genuine contributing members of society and yet there was nothing that could be done.
I remember thinking this was the real impact on India’s future with the water crisis. Underprivileged children who are unable to complete their education. Families toiling hard for the most basic of amenities to stay alive. These children had no choice but to drop out and help in their struggling family farms or pick up any job in the unorganized sector working for peanuts. With enormous pressure on public welfare programs, it was a giant step backwards for India’s society as well as economy.
Back then it was actually the first time I had thought of starting a non-profit organization that seeks out such children that had to drop out or simply could not apply for college due to any kind of financial pressure and help them complete their entire education.
Fast forward to March 2020 and currently the whole country is in a lockdown thanks to the Covid-19 Coronavirus.
Unfortunately though, I feel once again history is repeating itself when it comes to education for India’s underprivileged students.
Most daily wage earners are now under such tremendous pressure that higher education for their children is least of their concerns.
In fact parents of one of our students in the mentorship program wanted to run away to their village as they were scared of both getting infected with the virus in Mumbai and about making ends meet with income drying up completely. This despite the fact that their son’s 10th standard board exam was still pending. They just didn’t care whether their son would be able to complete his pending exams. All they could think about right now is to stay safe and how to manage the family’s basic daily needs.
I can just foresee with the ever increasing number of people being infected with the virus, the current lockdown is going to last a whole lot longer than anticipated. With that, the number of families who are on daily wages both in rural and urban areas of the country increasingly panicking with an uncertain future and depleting financial resources.
You cannot really blame these families thinking higher education is a luxury that they cannot afford any longer. They need all hands on deck. Every member of the family needs to earn and contribute as much as they can. So here again, we will have a situation where many students will start dropping out. Those just passing their 10th or 12th board exams won’t even bother to apply to any colleges. While this may help the underprivileged families in the short-term, the long-term negative impact on Indian society will be enormous.
We desperately need the deprived children of our society to complete their entire education and become responsible, contributing members for any genuine transformation and growth in our country. We do not want a large section of our population growing up frustrated at their precarious situation.
This is why we as the privileged members of our nation need to take a stand and resolve to help children from financially struggling families to fulfil their dream of simply being a well-educated human being. Someone who is neither a burden to their parents nor to the society in general. A person who can live a life of dignity.
For myself, I am grateful that today I am part of the Shona Seva Foundation and I resolve to seek out such children, be their mentor and guide and ensure they complete their education with both financial as well as emotional support.
I hope there will be others who will join me in my quest and support not just the educational dreams of a child but also strengthen the future of our country.