In 1990, when Dr. Dharam Anand, Sakshi’s Co-founder (below centre), returned to India after working abroad for many years in public health, he found that millions of displaced farmers and rural poor had migrated to urban areas like Delhi in search of better opportunities and were living in abject poverty in unauthorized settlements which lacked basic facilities like water, sanitation, electricity, shelter etc.
Uneducated and poor, they scraped an existence as manual labor. Their children grew up malnourished and sickly and without education, followed in their parents’ footsteps. It was a heart-breaking situation.
Uniquely placed to help by virtue of his global experience in public health and education, Dr. Anand co-founded Sakshi along with Dr Mridula Tandon to help these forgotten and marginalized children and communities.
Since 1993, Sakshi NGO has been a beacon of hope, tirelessly dedicating itself to Education, Health, and Community Development. We believe that education is the cornerstone of progress, intertwining with health and community development to create lasting change. Our holistic approach addresses the diverse needs of underprivileged children and women, fostering socio-economic independence and self-sustainability.
In 1993, Sakshi began work in the area of Health & Hygiene wherein, supported by the United Nations and World Health Organization, Sakshi began to build toilets at MCD schools in the slums and educate children and communities about Preventive Medicine and Hygiene. This was critical to reducing the incidence of diseases and water-borne epidemics that frequently afflicted these settlements and resulted in high rates of child, maternal and overall mortality.
How We Have Headed Towards Progress
Working in the MCD schools, the Sakshi staff noticed the high drop-out rate of slum children. Sakshi believes that education is vital for the development of a child, enlarging her vision of the world and herself, instilling curiosity, awareness, values and a belief and ability to chart her own destiny.
Thus, supported by Government agencies, Sakshi began work in the area of Elementary Education, running Early Education Centers to care for the health and education of pre-school children and Non-Formal Education Centers and Remedial Classes to track down, motivate and equip drop-outs to rejoin the mainstream.
In 2005, Mr. Satish Tandon, who had assisted Dr. Anand’s efforts from the start, assumed leadership of Sakshi. A successful CEO of a multinational corporation himself, he realized that though health and elementary education are necessary first steps in the upliftment and development of slum children, something further is needed to make them employable and able to earn a regular and decent livelihood.
Mr. Tandon then initiated the vital Vocational Training project which today equips low-literate youth with marketable skills like computer training, beauty culture, proficiency in English etc that allows them to find jobs which double their previous combined family income and have growth potential, thus empowering them to break the Cycle of Poverty for themselves, their families and their future generations.
Supporting the Health and Education projects over the years was our growing work in Community Development: building awareness in slums about hygiene, the importance of education, girl child upliftment and women’s empowerment.
Sakshi is ably helmed by Dr. Mridula Anand Tandon, Dr. Anand’s daughter, a medical professional, a successful business person, and an integral part of Sakshi since the beginning.
OUR MISSION
We believe that the underprivileged population cannot free themselves from the vicious circle of poverty and benefit from sustainable development unless educated. Education reinforces children’s abilities to choose their future because it expands their vision of the world and of themselves. It is the key to unlocking the potential within each individual. Our mission as a leading NGO in India is to bring change at all levels.
OUR VISION- The Dream That Fuels Our Work
Since 1993, Sakshi has been working tirelessly and continuously towards the education and rehabilitation of children in the slum areas. Sakshi has primarily worked in marginalized communities which are in great need of educational and health facilities as well as in need of community development. Children living here usually stay out of school and many of them find work as rag pickers or construction workers or may drift into a life of petty crime.
Sakshi believes that the basic needs and rights of children are synonymous. Each child needs and has the right to adequate food, clothing, shelter, education, recreation, medical facilities, care, and love. Sakshi works to protect children’s rights and provide opportunities to help them achieve their full potential.
Once a child becomes a beneficiary of the SAKSHI program, he, along with his family, becomes part of the SAKSHI Parivaar. The family thus continues to be empowered by access to Social workers, Hygiene and Nutrition Experts, and programs that build skills for the financial independence of the child and his family. Currently offering our services in Delhi and the NCR regions, we look forward to becoming the Top NGO for Children welfare in India by protecting and supporting them in their right to education, health, and social upbringing. We actively work on empowering women and supporting them through education, vocation, and mental health support.
We actively work on empowering women and supporting them through education, vocation and mental health support.
Join us in our journey to create a brighter, healthier future for the underprivileged. Together, we are not just an organization; we are a force driving sustainable change and empowering generations to come.
Our Primary goals are:
- To open the doors of Primary Education for Under Privileged children
- To integrate children who are marginalized by poverty and lack of education into mainstream society.
- To provide low-literate or illiterate youth with the power to earn a regular and decent livelihood.
- To provide Health & Hygiene Services to slum children and communities.
- To provide Developmental Services to slum communities, primarily by empowering women and the marginalized, and building awareness about the importance of education and upliftment of the girl child.
- To facilitate mid day meals to under privileged children
- To Upgrade level of education through digital learning technology
- To open more Vocational training centre for underprivileged women and youth
- To work broadly in the field of water and sanitation
Our Principles
- Empowerment: Through health, education and community development services, we enable the poorest of poor especially children, youth and women to become empowered to help themselves, as opposed to being charity cases.
- “All-Round Care”: We provide for a healthy mind, body and soul. From medical attention to education to compassionate social workers and teachers who serve as guides & mentors.
- “Joyful Learning”: We teach enjoyably via role play, songs, essays etc for better retention, motivation & to ingrain a joyful work ethic in the children
- Sustainability: We start a new project only when we have resources to see it through.
- Commitment: in Employees, Partners, Patrons. We go wherever we are needed. We do whatever is needed
