Bengaluru, 3
rd September: As a commitment to ensure all children have access to their basic rights,
Namma Metro is supporting child rights NGO Save the Children through a week-long campaign,
‘Making Child Rights Reach Every Child’. A week of ‘Artivism’ to be celebrated at the Rangasthala
Auditorium, Rangoli Metro Art Center, MG Road was inaugurated in presence of Smt. Kalapana
Kataria, Executive Director, BMRCL, Karnataka; Sri NM Chandrasekara, Senior ManagerKarnataka and Tamil Nadu, Save the Children; Sri Akshay Soni, Executive Director, Saamuhika
Shakti, The/Nudge Institute and 9 child photographers who have been trained under the aegis of
Save the Children
Namma Metro has dedicated spaces in 5 prime metro stations (MG Road metro station,
Baiyappanahalli Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Stn., Majestic, Maysuru Road and Krishna Rajendra
Market) to create awareness on the rights of the children and the role of the Metro commuter if
they find any children in need of care and protection. They are also equipping these metro stations
with clear messaging on Child Rights, Prevention of Child Marriage, Child Labour, on Right to
Education and the power of partnership.
While addressing the audience, Smt. Kalapana Kataria, Executive Director, BMRCL, Karnataka said,
“We are happy to join hands with Save the Children for a collaborative campaign, ‘Making Child
Rights Reach Every Child’ with a clear messaging on the rights of the children and how one can
support when a child is in need of care and protection. Namma Metro is committed to make a
difference in the lives of the children and people at large. Having a strength of a huge connectivity,
we feel it’s important to extend our support to the organisations like Save the Children spreading
the messages across.”
Sri NM Chandrasekara, Senior Manager- Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, Save the Children mentioned, “Ten
children from the waste-picker community of Bengaluru have been trained in a 2-day photojournalism
workshop in December 2021 under the H&M Foundation funded Saamuhika Shakti project of Save the
Children, photos captured by these children reflect their perspective of the world they live in and also helped
them understand civic infrastructure, social and economic issues they face. The children in waste-picker
communities have to contend with extreme poverty, face poor living conditions, and lack avenues for
expression. Photography provides a ray of hope for the children to access their right to play, culture, and
arts
Akshay Soni, Executive Director, Saamuhika Shakti, The/Nudge Institute said, “Saamuhika Shakti
is a first of its kind initiative in India, where seven implementing organizations including Save The
Children have come together to enable waste pickers to lead secure and dignified lives and to have greater
control over their own life outcomes.
The collaboration with Namma Metro feels like match made in heaven – just as the operation of the
Bengaluru metro has led to the reduction of an enormous amount of carbon dioxide in our environment,
the waste pickers Saamuhika Shakti works to support also have an amazing impact on the environment.
Every year they save nearly 400,000 tons of waste from going to our landfills and help recycle it instead.
We look forward to a long and fruitful association.”
Starting from 3rd Sept, a special awareness drive through video displays will also carry messages
raising awareness on child rights in all Bengaluru Metro rail.
About Save the Children
Save the Children (Bal Raksha Bharat) has created possibilities for over 1.1 crore children in 18
states of India with them to ensure that their voices are heard and their issues are prioritised. We
ally up with the governments, other NGOs, and India Inc. to implement innovative solutions and
lasting outcomes to achieve concrete results for children living in marginalised communities.
About Saamuhika Shakti:
Saamuhika Shakti is a collective impact initiative, the first of its kind in India, where seven
implementing organisations have joined forces to enable waste pickers to have greater agency to
lead secure and dignified lives, with a specific focus on gender and equity. This project is initiated
and supported by the H&M Foundation, and The/Nudge Institute serves as the backbone.
For Media queries, please contact:
Rupali Goswami
8879630835
Rupali.goswami@savethechildren.in
