Thank You For Your Support!
Magic Bus' work in this community is made possible with the support of our donor, Avijit Agarwal.
Thank you, Avijit!
About Delhi
Prem Nagar is a slum located in Zakhira, in north-east Delhi. Indralok is the closest city, and people commute to and from Indralok by bus or metro.
Very few residents own their own homes, and most live in rented accomodation. It is an industrial area, and most residents here are employed in factories nearby that make rubber and plastic bags. Prem Nagar has a number of small-scale industries, and a number of residents have started small industries in their houses.
Only a few houses have constant access to water through pipes installed by the government. The rest have to depend on handpumps in the area or water tankers that visit periodically.
The area does not have a functional drainage system and residents are forced to resort to open defecation. This fouls up the environment and spikes the rate of vector-borne diseases.
Prem Nagar, Zakhira, is not known to be very safe for girls and women, and most residents don’t allow their daughters to leave the house.
Impact
Magic Bus is working around delivering these key messages to the children:
- Reading and writing are equally important for both boys and girls
- It is important to attend school regularly
- Playing is crucial to overall development
- One needs to be attentive in the classroom
- Boys and girls can play and work together
- One should keep their surroundings clean and never litter
- Personal hygiene – for instance, cutting nails and bathing every day – is as important as communal cleanliness.
- Recently, a painting competition was held for around 120-130 children. Approximately 50-60% of them were girls.
- And a Youth Development meeting was held in May.
Faces of change
There are two types of sessions, one is held in schools and other in communities. School sessions are held every day. Community sessions are held twice a week, on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Approximately, 30-40 kids attend these sessions. Magic Bus sessions here last for two hours and are divided into three parts:
- Warm up: The development goal is introduced using interactive activities
- Main activity: The development goal is reinforced using sports and activities
- Review: A discussion is facilitated to draw parallels to real-life situations and sum up the learning objectives.
