Small Hands Of Hope. Street Children Start Their Own Bank

A story of a bank in India run by and for street children. An initiative by a social service organization has led to bank which offers loans to poor children to start up small businesses and teaches them to become self-reliant.

At an age when other children put in their pocket dime and cents into a porky piggy bank, these bunch of kids are running a bank all on their own. But then again, these bunch of kids are different from the regular sorts. They are the deprived class, the street kids...you might say straight from a Dicken's novel. No gargantuan glass tower, no fancy facades, but the idea and the purpose is noble enough. Welcome to the The Bal Vikas Bank, or Children's Development Bank (CDB). This is a unique initiative by a New Delhi-based NGO or Non Governmental Organization, Butterflies. Street children make up a small percentage of the population in India and other Asian countries (and also elsewhere). They are scattered amongst rag pickers, shoe shine boys, workers in tea shops and small eateries which abound in the cities.  In a world of deprivation of their own, they feed on morsels and later-drugs. The vision behind the bank was to inculcate a sense of saving in street children, for whatever little they earn from odd jobs gets spent on vices like alcohol, tobacco and drugs.

The program began in 2001 and as Suman Sachdeva, project development manager of Butterflies says,

"The Children's Development Bank is not a stand alone programme. Since it's run by and for children, it inculcates in them a sense of responsibility. And it also brings them on the path of education since one can't be expected to maintain ledgers and passbooks without being literate."

So in a way, it motivates these young children to seek out more for themselves by way of a better life through direction, education and hope.  They have been trained by volunteers from HSBC Bank, these children in the age group of 12-14 number about 1700 in Delhi alone. It has caught the imagination and is slowly spreading its wings in places away from Delhi too. Delhi has four counters. It has presence in Calcutta, Srinagar and Leh (Places within India) and the model is gradually getting exported to Afghanistan, Nepal and Bangladesh, while talks are on with Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Here's how it works.

The bank opens everyday from 6 pm to 8 pm; timings are usually fixed according to the children's convenience, because they are usually working in their jobs throughout the day. To open up an account, a child has to first fill up an application form. He is then given an account number and a passbook. The minimum opening balance required is Rs 20. The interest rate an account holder gets on his savings is  3.5 per cent. If a child deposits money everyday for 11 months he gets a bonus, which acts as a motivational factor. In case a member wants to take a loan to start a new business, a street educator or bank promoter helps him draw up a business plan. The application is then forwarded to the loans committee that quizzes the applicant on his skills, his budget, where he plans to run the business and other details. The period of repayment is discussed. Once the committee is satisfied the proposal is okayed and money -- 20% of the member's savings amount -- is credited to his account. With the CDB's help, street children who usually start out as rag-pickers have now begun selling tea and plastic toys on handcarts, and set up other small enterprises. This has not only ignited their entrepreneurial skills but also has given them confidence and self respect. It specially helped girls to empower themselves.  They have started tailoring or embroidery shops, and protected themselves from being pushed into prostitution.

The membership of CDB comes to an end when a child turns into an adult. Then he has the option of transferring his account into any of the other mainstream banks.
Their are certain rules which are followed. Pickpockets and drug addicts are not allowed to become members. And loan requests to start cigarette or vice related shops are not approved. It is also mandatory for adolescent boys who take loans to continue their schooling. Most BVB members are part of the National Institute of Open Schooling and continue studying whilst running their businesses. Also, plans are underway to send some of the children into some of the specialized training schools to augment their skills.

A truly path breaking effort which deserves to be lauded. This is an example of how things can be moved along and improved if society applies itself to use it's latent potential.

Note: According to a recent estimate of the International labor Organisation (ILO), more than 120 million children between the ages of 5-14 are employed as full time laborers around the world. A good number of such children labor in the most hazardous and dangerous industries. In India itself, it is estimated that there are at least 44 million child laborers in the age group of 5-14. More than eighty percent of child laborers in India are employed in the agricultural and non-formal sectors and many are bonded laborers. Most of them are either illiterate or dropped out of school after two or three years. In spite of legislation against any form of child labor, the problem persists.

Also, published by me in DigitalJournal.com

A Story of Redemption, Thug Turns Over New Leaf

Taking inspiration from Mahatma Gandhi's life, a hardened criminal turns his back on crime and redeems himself. A remarkable story of life transformation. My article is taken from a recent newspaper report.


Mahatma Gandhi would have been a happy man. This is a story of salvation we hardly get to hear or see in our profligate times. What chance would you give a hardened criminal with 18 cases of extortion and assault registered against him? It would seem none. But Laxman Gole gave himself one chance when his 19th arrest came calling. A Class 7th dropout from school it's an all too familiar story. He took to the streets and to crime at the young age of 16. It started with a razor assault on a drunkard and soon his reputation preceded him. He rapidly established himself as a slum lord of a locality participating and abetting extortion and other severe form of gangland crime. The prick of conscience can be very powerful it seems. On his 19th case, Laxman Gole confessed his crimes. He was convicted for two years and emerged from the experience as a changed man. His transformation from a gangster to reformed citizen came about through a copy of Mahatma Gandhi's autobiography gifted to him during one of his stints in jail. He immersed himself in the works of Mahatma Gandhi, learnt to read and write in Hindi, English and Urdu. He also started teaching his fellow inmates, who now write letters of gratitude.

Today, Laxman Gole is a free man. He has been hired as a full-fledged volunteer with Bombay Sarvoday Mandal, a 50-year-old charitable trust which promotes Gandhian values. T R K Somaiya, Sarvoday veteran manages the foundation. He has played a significant part in Laxman's changeover. He regularly sent him Gandhian literature when Laxman was in jail. His mentor today hopes to channel that same spirit which changed a self into work that can change others. He plans to send Laxman to all the prisons of Maharashtra, India as living proof of what a person can become.

"In all these years I have worked for this organization, I have never seen a more positive change taking place," said T R K Somaiya, who manages the organization. "I think we must support him. We are now ready to bear all his expenses and fund his further education too."

The story does not end here. Today, Laxman Gole is preparing to appear for the Class 12th exams from the Indira Gandhi Open University, New Delhi. His journey has started and he hopes to inspire others along its way.

Also published by me in Digitaljournal.com

Free Your Fears Fire Your Potential

They say that we are born with only two fears -

 The fear of falling, and...

 The fear of loud noises.

The rest of our fears are 'learnt' as we walk along life. When I look back at my life, this four letter word has been a self inflicted stumbling block. Yes, nothing less than self inflicted because most of my fears have been the product of my own over working imagination. Lack of self belief and an abject dependence on the status quo had paralyzed my desires and self-motivation.

"Fear makes the wolf bigger than he is."
---- German Proverb

Telescoping back I remember my two biggest fears. Fear of public speaking and my ultra fear of water (Brought about by "Jaws"). These two fears I later learnt are shared by the majority of mankind. Universal fears. But at that point of my life I was not really concerned about the rest of mankind. It was me alone with my fears. Providence took care of the first fear in Business College, when I had to give weekly presentations in front of a 100 odd audience. I did botch up the initial five to six at the lectern. My legs shook more vigorously than my mouth...but gradually with persistence, courage and with the knowledge that I couldn't get any worse than I already was, I started to improve. It took time and lots of missed grades but by the second year, I had made the lectern my ally. I was no Winston Churchill but I was no turkey either.

The second of my fears took a little longer. In my 30th year, I put all my trust (and my life) in my instructor and completed two laps of a fathomless neighborhood pond. This achievement was more treasured for me because it was a deliberate attempt to conquer my fear.

Both times, I have realized that those two fears weren't monsters at all. I had made them bigger than they actually were. My imagination was the compost on which the fears had fed. Today, I take a formulaic approach towards my other sowed fears.

If my imagination can make the fears a gigantic fiend perhaps a change in outlook can make them friends. I have thus started to reframe the other fears that come along.
I ask myself a few questions...in the answers lies the neutralizer for the fears.

1. What am I so afraid of?
2. Is this fear stopping me from becoming a more self confident person?
3. What’s the worst thing that can happen if I attempt this?
4. What’s the best thing that can happen?
5. Looking back at my life 20 years from now...will I feel regretful and wish that I should have done this?
6. Has anyone else faced the same fear and come out on top? If they can...why can't I?

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.
- Eleanor Roosevelt

To overcome a fear, all we have to do is to realize it’s their and do the thing we fear anyway. I am sure I wasn't born with a lot of derring-do, but then I wasn't born with fear too. So why let it be a speed breaker on my life's path. And why let it be one in yours. So try to free your fears and set fire to your potential.

To sum it all up here's some wisdom from Jane Addams -

Our doubts are traitors and make us lose the good we often might win, by fearing to attempt.

If you have conquered any of your fears do comment and let me know. Perhaps, it will be a continuing inspiration for me.