The Visionaries

19

INCLUSIVENESS

Child Rights &You

HCLTech Grant Project:

UDAAN – Breaking Barriers and Rebuilding the Lives of

Bedia Girls

HCL

Grant

Recipient

Education,

2021

Girl children, 10-15 years old, from the Bedia community are at multiple risk and vulnerabilities

as the community is engaged in commercial sex as primary source of livelihood. e Bedia

community was historically a criminal-nomadic-tribe, and it has now been included amongst

the denotified-nomadic-tribes. Project UDAAN has been instrumental to break the cycle denial

of education, of social stigma because of the nature of their work and criminal history, and

the overall deprivation of Bedia girls. e Project works at identifying, engaging and tracking

vulnerable children for rights, education and social transformation in the community to save

them from the commercial sex industry. e Project also encourages alternate livelihoods

targeting households with vulnerable girls, building the agency of boys as well as girls through

life-skill sessions, and networking and linkages with government departments.

• Scaled up from 8 villages in 4 districts to 28 villages in 6 districts

• Reached more than 500 children and identified 250 vulnerable

adolescent girls who are at risk

• 437 children have been enrolled in the Child Activity Centers and

Digital Education Centres