Promotion of Education
At Dabur, we believe that education is both the means to a better life and a key to ensure overall development of the society. Our Education programmes form a key pillar of our development agenda. We have been working towards identifying and removing barriers to education for those most in need by creating a better learning environment for children in the hinterland. Our Education programme operates on 3 pillars:
• Helping underprivileged children, women gain literacy
Our volunteers and development professionals work towards sensitising people living in urban and semi-urban slums on the need for education and encouraging them to enrol their children to formal schools. Our non-formal education centres, called Gyan Deep Kendras, provide basic education to out-of-school underprivileged kids between 6 and 14 years of age. On completing the basic education at our centres, these kids are linked to formal schools. We also operate Remedial Education Centres, called Gyan Arjan Kendras, to address many of the unique challenges weaker students face, besides running Adult Literacy Centres to provide basic literacy to unlettered rural women.
• Improve overall Learning Environment in rural schools
We have also been investing in improving the infrastructure in schools to uplift their learning experience under the programme, called Adarsh Paathshala. The development work includes:
- Construction of separate Toilet Blocks for Boys & Girls, and even Teachers.
- Construction and Repair of overall existing infrastructure i.e. school buildings, boundary walls, class rooms, floors, kitchens, play grounds etc.
- Complete whitewash of the school building as well as painting of all doors & windows.
- Ensuring uninterrupted supply of good quality potable water within the school premise.
- Separate Drinking Water & Hand Wash Stations where students can drink water and clean their hands before and after having their Mid-Day meal.
- Distribution of Fans, Almirahs, Dustbins, Desk-benches etc.
- Building as Learning Aid (BaLA) Paintings on classroom and school walls to raise interest in children by the means of entertainment and visual appeal.
• Build skills that foster employability and inclusive economic growth
We understand that education drives social mobility, helping more people play a part in society and enter into the job market so they can build better lives for themselves and their families. Dabur has been working to help rural youth build skills that foster employability and inclusive economic growth. We have been operating Computer Literacy Centres in rural India, along with NIIT Foundation. A community library was also set up in a village in Hapur district of Uttar Pradesh to help local youth get access to quality education material and prepare for competitive exams.
17 schools revamped in 5 states in 2020-21
4,250 Students gained access to better overall educational environment
70 Students studying at our Remedial Education Centres
27 students are enrolled at Computer Literacy Centre in UP