(October 6, 2021) Over the past ten years, 29-year-old Nishita Rajput has changed the lives of over 34,000 Indian girls on her own. The Vadodra resident has so far raised approximately ₹3.8 crore on her own initiative to support the education of girls who are compelled to work as domestic helpers or in the workforce because of their financial situation.
“If we donate water, its impact lasts for four hours,” she said to Better India when discussing her decision to support education. Food has a 72-hour shelf life. However, the effects of education donations last for many generations.
Her charitable streak, incidentally, started when she was a youngster and accompanied her father to the streets of Vadodara to feed the homeless. Her father occasionally provided food, education, and shelter to orphaned children. The pivotal moment, however, occurred in 2010 when Rajput, who was then pursuing her master’s degree in human resources, was on vacation and noticed that their housekeeper had brought her young daughter to work with her. The 14-year-old girl was unable to tell the time, which baffled Rajput, who made the decision to try to change that. She started her project to assist in the education of 150 girls from underprivileged neighborhoods.Rajput makes it a point to educate parents about the value of educating their girls and promoting self-sufficiency in addition to funding their education.
In order to crowdfund the tuition for these girls, she first worked with nearby non-profit institutions in Vadodara and started reaching out to acquaintances. With her father’s assistance, Rajput established a system in which they would individually handle every transaction and make checks payable to the school the girls would be attending. Following that, donors would get frequent updates on the academic progress and performance of the students. She has raised a total of ₹3.8 crore to far and has impacted the lives of 34,500 girls around India.
