CRY's Campaign to Secure Happy Childhood by Ensuring Children's Right to Education

NEW DELHI, February 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

CRY- Child Rights and You, one of India's leading child right NGOs, through its intervention, has achieved enrollment of 425502 children in schools in the last year to ensure their secure future. This is a part of its 'Mission Education' Campaign which aims to enroll 503432 students in schools across their projects in India, by the end of March.

There are several reasons why children in India are out of school. Lack of schools, inadequate infrastructure, distance to schools, lack of teachers and gender discrimination are amongst the major reasons. According to the status of children report released by CRY, the national dropout rate at the elementary level is over 40%. The status of RTE survey by CRY reveals that lack of basic infrastructure is a major roadblock in children's education. For instance, 11% schools did not have toilets and 20% had no safe drinking water.

However, with streamlined efforts, significant impact can be witnessed. Take the case of Seema. Seema had never seen the inside of a classroom, until CRY intervened. The transformation from working in a tea-stall to receiving quality education was achieved by a CRY supported project in Bihar, India. Discussion with her parents, advocating the need for educating their daughter bore fruit and Seema was enrolled in a school with dreams of becoming a teacher. In north India, 60kms from the suburban Dwarka in Delhi, CRY partners fought with local trust and authorities for months to get a school built for 213 children of the village, when there had been none.

Susan V, AGM, Global Operations, CRY, says, "When a child is able to go to school, he sets off a cycle of positive change. An educated child stays away from early marriage, avoids exploitation and becomes strong and independent. As children grow, they are able to make better choices for themselves and influence the communities they live in."

To support the Mission Education Campaign, view http://www.cry.org/microsite/missioneducation2013/index.html

About CRY

CRY - Child Rights and You is an Indian NGO that believes in every child's right to a childhood, to live, learn, grow and play. Over 30 years CRY has partnered with NGOs, communities, government, media to help create a movement that addresses the root causes that deprive children of their rights. For more information visit us at http://www.cry.org.

Contacts: Manoj Sharma, +919811135420.