It is very difficult for a village girl in Bihar to pass a matriculation (Secondary School). In case of 5 girls that we know have appeared for a Higher Secondary School Examination this year (University Education starts after this). This achievement is very high for someone from a very poor and lower caste background in a distant village in Gaya district of Bihar. We have their Brothers in contact with our Youth Project. They requested us throughout a year that their sisters who are at this stage needs support for further education, and to be rescued from getting wedded forcefully by the family after their schooling.
In Bihar Child marriages are still practiced. Having this outside atmosphere and their daughters are now 18 years old, parents feel tremendous pressure of getting them married. This is partly because of the social pressure and partly because it is not safe to have a girl of this age in the atmosphere where a lot of criminal gangs and forces are active in the region. Caste also plays a big part in this case; lower caste young girls are most vulnerable in social structure. If any such thing happens, it brings a bad name to the family and almost impossible life for a girl.
Therefore, we decided to help our friends in this case by bringing over their sisters to Maharashtra and take responsibility for their education. For this purpose we created a small project whereby we will take the full responsibility of their education for 5 years. We will provide them all the support that develops them into self-reliant individuals. We have started this project from the year 2011. Bihar Girls’ Graduation Project is now in assistance with “Udumbara” Singapore.
Brief Details About the project:
- Provide them a house to live.
- Get them into reasonably good colleges and pay for all the cost of Education.
- Provide additional support to develop their abilities and over all personalities.
- As and when they are ready, support them to find a job that would enable them to earn and carry on education.
- Bring them in contact with other girls who are from a well to do backgrounds and provide them a fulltime mentor who would looked after all they need in all the time that they are looked after by us.
- We would like to see that they are well educated and having their own source of income and take the atmosphere of education and higher human values in the families that will be getting married into.