AGAINST ALL ODDS, PURSUING EDUCATION THROUGH A PANDEMIC
Little Rayyan lives in Mumbai’s poorest area: the M-East ward. His 10 member family lives in a one-room hutment. Life in an unauthorized slum community means that they are deprived of all the government basic facilities such as water, electricity, or sanitation facilities.
Back in their village in Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh (UP), Rayyan’s parents did not have the privilege of education. But his father knew Mumbai offered job opportunities for everyone. So 15 years ago, Rayyan’s family moved to Mumbai to earn a living.
As a daily-wage laborer here, Rayyan’s father earns Rs. 8000/- each month, out of which a huge amount goes towards their electricity bill, water charges, and other expenses. This is largely because they are at the mercy of private vendors who often charge arbitrary rates for these basic necessities.
Rayyan’s older siblings were studying in neighboring municipal schools but Rayyan was out of school when we first met him in 2019. His family was waiting for him to turn 6 before they could enroll him into Class 1 at the nearest free municipal school. They had no other choice. Private schooling for nursery to senior kindergarten was way out of their budget. This choice meant that Rayyan was losing out on the crucial years of early childhood education. His formative and foundational years were being spent playing on the streets of his slum community.
When our community workers informed Rayyan’s parents of the transformative power of early education, and our Beacon Learning Center inside their slum community that could educate Rayyan for free, they enrolled him with us. It was then your donations that not only provided for his education but additionally gifted Rayyan with daily nutritious meals, health assessments, dental checkups, lunch box, stationery, books, school bag, and much more.
But little Rayyan was not happy. He would peep out of our classroom window and cry as he would see his friends playing on the streets. He was unhappy about having to come to class regularly! Our community officer continued to counsel Rayyan and his family on persisting with education.
As days went by, Rayyan started to attend classes regularly and surprised us in his class assessments too! His teachers say, “Rayyan has amazing grasping power and picks up new concepts with great ease.”
In March 2020, when the first lockdown hit India, Rayyan’s father, who was the sole earning member for the ten-member family, couldn’t go to work anymore. Daily-wage labourers like him who were working in scrap yards, zari factories, and at small construction sites were the worst affected by the multiple lockdowns of the last 1.5 years. Rayyan, who was doing well in his studies in our physical classrooms, couldn’t attend classes anymore, as we too were closed by the pandemic.
Rayyan’s family’s world stood still. Feeding a 10-member family with no source of income seemed impossible. They feared hunger more than the coronavirus.
It was generous supporters like you who came to their rescue with groceries every month from April last year to date. Thanks to your support, Rayyan is even able to continue his studies online right from his home!
Rayyan was able to stick to his education throughout the pandemic. He completed an entire academic year online with Vision Rescue, and now he is enrolled in our Senior Kindergarten!
