To honour the values of Swami Vivekananda, his birth anniversary i.e. 12th January, is annually observed as National Youth Day. Swami Vivekananda was a huge believer in youth, he was of the view that the youth could transform the country, shape their destiny and contribute to society. Since 1985, Swami Vivekananda’s birth anniversary has been observed as National Youth Day.
Child Help Foundation (CHF) shares Swami Vivekananda's belief and is committed to helping the youth realize their full potential. To help them maximize their values, CHF has designed various initiatives to help with their education, medicinal and nutritional needs along with others.
CHF’s primary goal is to ensure the health of the children. Through various fundraising campaigns, CHF has managed to save the lives of 3,949 children from terminal illnesses. School Health Programme addresses the health care issues in villages by conducting regular health screenings and providing free medicines and health check-ups.
Child Help Foundation’s Arogya Sadan serves to help underprivileged patients battling deadly diseases like Thalassemia to travel to Mumbai to seek treatment. The facility provides lodging, meals, and transportation along with other needs of the patient, family and their donor.
Child Help Foundation has also teamed up with Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Mira Bhaindar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) as part of Pradhan Mantri TB Mukht Bharat Abhiyan and distributes ration kits to tuberculosis patients monthly to strengthen their immune systems.
Education is also one of CHF’s main activities. 5,34,434 children have benefited from Quality Education programme. 10 Mini Science Centres have been established in many ashram schools in Palghar, Maharashtra, along with two in Bihar to help children learn science and maths through experimentation and practical means. Computer training centres have also been inaugurated in many schools to help children keep up with the modern age.
In collaboration with ISKCON, Child Help Foundation started ‘Aatmanirbhar Palghar’ to serve nutritious food in the district and end malnutrition in the process. The approach involves providing nutritious ladoos and barfis, conducting health check-ups, educating parents about the importance of a balanced diet, and recruiting and training Swasthya Rakshak Dampatis as project coordinators, health workers, and nutritionists to carry out these activities.
Child Help Foundation also conducts many workshops for children to educate them beyond the textbook. Sessions about self-defence, gendercide, and ARSH (Adolescent Reproductive and Sexual Health) are regularly conducted to help them learn about the world. Sessions about POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act) are held to educate children about the sensitive but crucial information about sexual harassment to protect them.
With all of these initiatives, Child Help Foundation is doing everything it can to help the youth and paying respect to Swami Vivekananda. Thank you for taking the time to read this article. Make sure to share this with all your friends and family members.