At Asha for Education (Asha), our projects are driven by extraordinary individuals who dedicate themselves to transforming lives. Amit Rajbhar, Chakrapanpur, Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, is one such remarkable individual. His tireless efforts to educate and uplift underprivileged children in villages near Varanasi embody resilience, compassion, and an unwavering commitment to making a difference. This is the story of how Amit’s journey in education, rooted in his deep conviction to help the most vulnerable, led to the founding of Bal Vikas Kendra, a beacon of hope for children in marginalized communities.

Amit’s journey as an educator began in 2005 at Asha Samajik Vidyalaya(ASV), a school fully supported by Asha. Amit, who started his career as a classical singer performing at events, was drawn into teaching by chance. Although his expertise lay in the performing arts, he embraced the challenge of teaching subjects like Math and English. His work as a teacher not only enriched his students’ lives but also fueled his own growth. However, the meager income from teaching forced Amit to take on additional jobs—performing at events and farming on inherited land—to support his family.

A turning point came around 2009 when the Govt of India passed the Right to Education Act (RTE), mandating that every child must be enrolled in a school near their place of residence. The RTE had a ripple effect on local industries, such as the silk weaving business which employs a large number of people in and around Varanasi and in which household children used to provide a helping hand for the family business. As the number of students in the now RTE-compliant ASV school swelled, Amit diversified into teaching other subjects as well as training other newly hired teachers.

Travel through the rural roads lined with lush green fields in these parts and it’s hard to miss the numerous brick kilns dotting the landscape. Almost all laborers working at the kilns are migrants from poorer neighboring states. These migrants live on the kilns with their families, usually far from the nearest schools, so none of their children go to a regular school. Amit’s long standing goal was to target these children as they belonged to the most marginalized section of the society.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, as schools shut down, children from various backgrounds, including those enrolled in school and those not, began to interact. Amit observed that the children who were enrolled were starting to forget the things they had learnt in school. Seizing this opportunity, he started teaching a small group that consisted of a mix of children from his neighborhood and the nearby brick kiln. This soon grew to 60 children and he had to enlist help from his wife, who taught younger kids while Amit focused on the older ones. Not long after, he managed to hire another teacher for the older kids and start a new teaching center at the nearby kiln. Unfortunately, the pandemic’s calamitous effects reached Amit. It was during this life-threatening experience he made a resolve to himself that if he were to recover, he would quit all of his other jobs and dedicate himself full time to help the laborers’ children. Fortunately, he did recover, and in 2022, he quit his teaching position at ASV and invested ₹40,000 of his own money to build a center on his own small farmland. Bal Vikas Kendra was born.

Soon, the word spread and he found support from a group of teachers in nearby schools, enabling staffing and expansion of the center. The center now had an additional outdoor area with a shed to accommodate more children during monsoons. CLE Trust, a Bangalore based non-profit, provided a laptop and volunteers who taught online classes. A generous donation from a volunteer at CLE trust helped furnish the large room at the center. Today, Bal Vikas Kendra has a large classroom, a smaller room, a shed, and a sanitary facility.

Amit’s ability to rally support and make the most of limited resources highlights his exceptional leadership and resourcefulness. The Asha Kaithi center, in collaboration with Asha Boston chapter, realized his potential and has not only supported his center monetarily, but has also steadily handed him increasing responsibilities of supervising nearby learning centers at brick kilns, and the library at Dhanapur. About 170 students are currently enrolled with the number expected to grow to 250 in another month. Amit supervises a total of 16 sites and approximately 350 children, ensuring every site is visited at least once a week. He also conducts teacher training and regular update meetings for managing the centers. Lately, he has also been involved with the education centers in the neighboring Mirzapur district where the primary target population is from the marginalized Musahar community.

Amit’s story exemplifies how a single individual, driven by passion and purpose, can create lasting change in the lives of countless others. At Asha, we are proud to support Amit’s efforts and recognize the profound impact of his work. His story reminds us that transformative change is possible when dedication meets opportunity. We hope his journey inspires you to join us in supporting the mission to uplift underprivileged communities through education. Together, we can continue building a brighter future for the children who need it most.