Asha for Education

The rehabilitation and education of at-risk children born in the red light area of Baruipur, West Bengal. In the absence of this shelter, these children had no hope of a normal childhood and grew up to inevitably be ensnared in the vicious cycle of the sex trade. They now are being brought into the mainstream with formal education, care and nurturing.

In the remote village Baikunthapur of South 24 Parganas girl children and women were often deserted and became victims of exploitation, torture and violence. The condition of the children, particularly the girl children was equally distressing. Very few of them could get chance to go to school. In the year 1974 five women of this village were thrown out of their in-laws' house and two other women committed suicide driven by the torture in their in-laws house. This prompted Mrs. Pritilata Das and some other sensitive women to form a group called NISHTHA. Their aim is to empower women and children.