Jamshedpur: For children growing up in financially vulnerable families, the road to school can be blocked by something as basic as admission fees, a uniform or a set of books. In Jamshedpur, Mission Prahaar is working to remove those barriers—one child at a time.Founded in 2020 by Ritika Srivastava, the women-led social initiative helps children from disadvantaged families enter the formal education system and remain there. The programme identifies children in and around the city whose parents struggle to meet the cost of schooling, and supports them with admission fees, uniforms, books and other essential materials.Mission Prahaar facilitates the admission of around 12 to 15 children every year in private and govt schools. Girls account for nearly half of the beneficiaries. The initiative’s focus, however, goes beyond getting children enrolled. It continues to support them after admission, with the aim of preventing dropouts and ensuring regular attendance.“By working with a limited number of students each year, Mission Prahaar seeks to provide individual attention to their educational needs and reduce the chances of them dropping out,” said Ritika.At its centre in Pursudih, the organisation also provides two hours of free tuition every day. Alongside academics, children are trained in self-defence — an effort aimed at building safety, confidence and discipline among both boys and girls.A black belt in karate, Ritika conducts the sessions herself. Over the past five years, more than 2,000 children have received self-defence training through the initiative.For teenager Saloni Ram, the classes have brought a renewed sense of confidence. She said Ritika’s training had made her feel empowered and better prepared to protect herself.“Our efforts may be small, but our purpose is big. Our dream is to ensure that no child is deprived of education due to financial difficulties,” Ritika said.Funding remains a constant challenge, but Mission Prahaar continues its work with limited resources. Its intervention may be modest in scale, yet for families struggling to make ends meet, it can mark the crucial difference between a child being pushed out of school and being given a chance to build a future.
