Mahindra Education Trust ties up with Rajasthan govt

The KC Mahindra Education Trust (KCMET) has entered into a tie-up with the government of Rajasthan to sponsor the education of 10,000 young girls in Udaipur.

The project will be implemented by KCMET in collaboration with its partner, Naandi Foundation, at the grassroots level. "Nanhi Kali" is a special project jointly managed by KCMET and the Naandi Foundation, aimed at providing education to the underprivileged girl child in India.

Expressing delight on this tie-up, Keshub Mahindra, the chairman of the KCMET and chairman of Mahindra and Mahindra, said: "The KCMET aims to provide education to the underprivileged girl child under the aegis of Nanhi Kali, and has till date supported over 15,600 Nanhi Kali, apart from providing more than Rs 13.55 crores in the form of grants, scholarships and loans to needy students. This tie-up with the government of Rajasthan is both historic and momentous as it cements the growing public-private relationship in altruistic projects."

The cost of sponsoring the education of an under privileged girl child per annum is Rs 1,800. The government of Rajasthan will bear 50 per cent of the cost.

KCMET has raised resources for this from the Mahindra Group of companies including Mahindra and Mahindra Financial Services Ltd for the remaining 50 per cent.

As a result of this partnership, 10,000 under privileged girls studying in class I to VIII in Udaipur will receive not only direct support in the form of uniforms, notebooks, etc. but also academic support under this project.

The KCMET is a part of the Mahindra Group, which has always been conscious of its corporate social responsibility (CSR). It is basically about managing business processes to produce an overall positive impact on society.

Recognising the potential that education holds for transforming lives for the better, the Mahindra Group has chosen education as its prime CSR focus area through initiatives like the Nanhi Kali project.

The group has also been involved in various CSR activities beyond education. In this 60th anniversary year, the group plans a thrust on CSR by which it can reach out and transform many more lives.

It has made a commitment to dedicate one per cent of its PAT towards CSR and has launched a unique kind of ESOPs called Employee Social Options, which will enable Mahindra employees to volunteer and involve themselves in socially responsible activities.

Project Nanhi Kali is a national girl child sponsorship programme and was incepted by the KCMET in the year 1996. Nanhi Kali project has been extremely successful with over 15,600 children so far supported under this project and aims to increase this number further and help mould them into socially responsible citizens.

Nanhi Kali is a participatory project, where any person (individual or group) can sponsor the education of a girl child by paying a sum of Rs 1,800 (approximately $50) per annum.

'Girls should get ten years of quality education' is the aim of the project 'Nanhi Kali'. Needy, underprivileged girls who are at the risk of dropping out of government schools either due to financial constraints or social conservatism, are identified and a special sponsorship is created for them that takes care of a range of their education requirements right up to improvement of the government schools they go to.

The KCMET was formed by late K C Mahindra in the year 1953, with an objective to promote education. It has undertaken a number of education initiatives, which would make a difference in the lives of deserving students.