MUMBAI: Sonal (Name Changed) is an activist and she is only 12 year's old. She is a member of the "Little star children's group" from Shahbad dairy that works towards educating children on protecting themselves against abuse. Like the other members of the group, she has been working with other children from the basti who are yet not associated with the children group.
She is a part of Aarzoo – a movement, a promise to fulfill dreams of countless young girls from the lower income group familiesby facilitating guidance and resources to supplement their dedication and enthusiasm. In association with 'CRY - Child Rights and You', and as a part of its corporate social initiative, HTC Corporation, a leading innovator in mobile and virtual reality technology, has launched the initiative ‘Aarzoo: ek wish har aarzoo poori karneki’ in India.
The initiative brings together HTC and CRY in an effort to create education and basic training opportunities for the girl child from the under privileged sections of our society. As a part of this initiative, beginning February 2017, HTC will, for a period of six months, contribute part of consumer sales proceeds towards delivering an on-ground impact on girl child education for 1500 girls through CRY.
‘Aarzoo’ aims to bring positive changes in the lives of the under-privileged girls by giving them the opportunity to learn whilst working towards recognizing, promoting and protecting their rights. In order to build mass reach and awareness and establish connect it will involve the use of Digital consumer connect campaigns as well as on ground activation via events and activities. HTC employees will also join the drive by donating their time towards the cause – volunteer for CRY. The initiative will culminate with a large children festival in Delhi.
HTC president-south Asia Faisal Siddiqui said, “According to DHS data around the world, female literacy rates are improving but India ranks 38th among the 51 developing countries for which comparable data is available. Indonesia, Rwanda, Ethiopia and Tanzania - all rank higher than India. I would like to reiterate our commitment towards providing quality education and enable better prospects for the girl child in the country."
Child Rights and You (CRY) regional director- north Soha Moitra said, “Educating a girl child is the first step towards transforming society and we are extremely glad that HTC is championing this cause and supporting us in making education accessible to every child. We believe this initiative will go a long way in empowering girls and bringing them into the mainstream.”