An unusual sight greets people at the Charbagh railway station of Lucknow these days -- a group of underprivileged children attending classes and spending their free time reading books. This is a part of a new initiative by the Northern Railways (NR) under which destitute children are being educated, say officials.
“We have also established a library on the premises to inculcate reading habit in children. Helping kids from underprivileged communities get an education is a part of our social responsibility,” said Sanjay Tripathi, divisional railway manager, Lucknow, NR, on Friday. “The initiative has been launched in collaboration with the NGO ‘Chetna’,” he said.
The DRM said that among the key beneficiaries of the programme are children of the labourers engaged in various development jobs being carried out at the railway station. “We have asked the labourers to send their children to our classes and also to make use of the library facility,” said Tripathi.
He said the children were also being provided free-of-cost study material. “At present, there are around a dozen children who are attending the classes. This move will surely help these kids take more interest in their studies,” said the DRM.