One small beginning

I was studying for my examinations. It was March. I saw two teen-age boys and a girl carrying a heavy load. Wrong Guess! Not of books, bu...

I was studying for my examinations. It was March. I saw two teen-age boys and a girl carrying a heavy load. Wrong Guess! Not of books, but of bricks and sand. These children were younger than me just about eight or twelve years and were working as labourers with a PCMC contractor making underground passages for the laying of electric cables.

My heart sank and I pondered about how these kids were made to work at so young an age and that too with our government8217;s permission 8211; it was effectively paying them for the work! At such instants I feel that all the government8217;s plans and policies to improve social conditions especially for children are nothing but just ironies. The government makes plans, puts up policies, appoints committees, provides finance, but these facilities just doesn8217;t reach the people they are intended to.

The questions are 8211; where are the flaws and how can they be overcome? The probable answer would be a lack of social awareness8217;. People in our society aren8217;t really aware and upright about their duties. Also, how far will the government be able to look after these things? That is why, ultimately it comes to society and citizens 8211; we8217;. We should see and take care that everything in society is right, within the laws and worth living.

The kids I saw would rather have carried their school bags instead of sand and stone.

From this day I decided to do something as a social creature. But alone I could stand now where. Then I came to know about an institute named CRY short for Child Relief and You. I was curious to know more about the institution, so I wrote to them and received a positive reply. I got what I was looking for. I became a volunteer for CRY.

India is a rich country with poor people. Amongst these poor people there a number of children who are regularly exploited and who don8217;t how to rectify the situation. Therefore, In 1979 seven friends made a simple decision to pool in Rs 7 each and change the lives of India8217;s underprivileged children. Led by Rippan Kapur, their goal was to enable deprived children to realise their full potential. The only resources they had were Rs 50 and a dream with the firm belief that each one of them could make a difference in the lives of Indian children. This was how CRY began.

An Indian Dream Spreads8230;.

CRY emerged as a link between those who needed support and those who wanted to give it. Today, 17 years later CRY has become a movement for children8217;s rights with operation in Mumbai, Delhi, Calcutta, Chennai, and Bangalore.

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The question often asked is, 8220;has CRY really made a difference?8221; The answer is 8220;yes8221;. People like you have helped transform the lives of the future of India. Yes, there8217;s still a lot more to be done, but together we can achieve a lot. Because every day counts for the children. As Gabrielle Mistral puts it so simply
8220;Right now is the time, his
bones are being formed,
his blood is being developed
and his senses are being developed8230;
to him we can8217;t answer
tomorrow; his name is Today.8221;

Come! Be a part of it as I did and be a cautious citizen. CRY counts your support because after all it8217;s a children8217;s story. And children8217;s stories should have happy endings.