Posted: 10/05/2008
On May 9th 2008 Asha climbed another rung of the ladder of its achievements in ensuring a brighter future for the slum dwellers of Delhi with the first career counselling session for slum children.
40 enthusiastic children, determined to make it big in life despite their humble beginnings, assembled in the meeting hall at Asha to meet Mr. Dinesh Tiwari, a Career Counsellor and the Assistant Editor of Hindustan Newspaper, who had agreed to conduct this session. Dr. Kiran Martin, the Director of Asha, who has constantly been a source of encouragement and motivation to the slum children, also counselled them. These children had just finished school and were considering different career prospects.
To start the session, Mr. Tiwari told the children that a combination of hard work, determination, focus and knowledge was the key that would unlock the door to opportunity for them. Different colleges, admission tests, courses and their scope, how to fill forms and where to get them from, and many other questions raised by the children were discussed. The session lasted over 3 hours.
On being asked if the session was helpful, children stated that it was a real eye opener for them. Shankar, from the Kanak Durga slum, who liked to work on computers, realised after the session that the Bachelors in Computer Application (BCA) course was the ideal course for him. He was a little concerned about how he would pay for the course though. Fortunately for Shankar and many others, however, Asha has been able to serve as a liaison between banks and slum dwellers. Banks will now provide educational loans that will cover educational expenses for the children.
This week the children will explore possibilities, visit colleges, read career related magazines and employment newspapers that Asha will provide at the resource centres in their slums. They will note down any questions that come to their mind and will discuss them in the next session on 15th May.
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Over the last years I've learnt so much. Now I'm studying at Delhi University, and I'm hoping to be a journalist. Thanks to Asha, I have the kind of life and opportunities that most people in slums would never dream of.
Usha, Ekta Vihar
