The COVID-19 pandemic played a major role in deteriorating the education system in India – especially for the underprivileged kids, who couldn’t afford the latest technology to attend the online sessions. While the government is doing its bit to improve the situation, a young US-based NRI has decided to go out of her way to help these kids. Alisha Madhuvarshi, who was born in New Delhi and moved with her family to the United States when she was just two years old, has helped create libraries for orphanages and low literacy areas in Uttar Pradesh’s Auraiya district.
The 16-year-old, based in Texas, found herself learning both how to be an online student—and teacher during the pandemic. She began tutoring local students in math, first online and then, eventually, in person. Her students’ parents were asked for donations, and they gave nearly $1,000. The youngster used the funds to donate over 300 books, various study materials, and stationaries for underprivileged children of India. Not just that, she also managed to send sanitary pads and school bags to an orphanage located in rural Telangana. In 2021, the youngster donated books to New Delhi-based Sabki Pathshala run by Nitu Singh for underprivileged children.
Speaking about her work, Alish informed that before taking up the initiative, she spoke to her parents and a family friend about how to move forward. “When the quarantine hit, I had a lot of free time and I wanted to use it to do something productive and preferably be helpful to other people,” she said.
The success of these projects was the inspiration for what Madhuvarshi calls the Library Project. Its goal is to open 100 libraries in low-literacy areas in India. She said each library costs $500 to open and stock, and they have raised about $5,000 for the project.