Pooja Malla is a sponsored child. She lives with her parents, grandmothers and her six siblings. Her father, Narshimalu, is a tractor driver and her mother, Anithamma, is a homemaker. Through her sponsorship, Pooja and her family receive necessary support with education, health, housing and other major necessities.

“Pooja gets savings every year through her children’s savings account and we couldn’t be more grateful. It will be useful for our children’s further education,” explains Anithamma.

Pooja was born with a visual impairment, but she learned to read braille when she was in 2^nd grade. She is enrolled in the 4^th grade at one of RDT’s five Inclusive Primary Schools. Her goal is to study hard and become a lawyer someday.

“I love observing and studying the environment, which is why environmental studies is my favorite subject. I really like music, so I switch on TV and listen to a music channel everyday,” says Pooja with a smile.

Her sisters Harika and Rashmi also benefit from Pooja’s sponsorship. Like Pooja, Harika and Rashmi were born with visual impairments. Harika, the oldest child of the family, studies at RDT’s High School for Inclusive Education and is currently enrolled in the 9^th grade.

“I really like learning Telugu, it is my favorite language to learn. I like listening to stories through Youtube in the mornings. That is how I start my day,” says Harika.

Harika studies for a total of 5 hours a day and her favorite food is chicken. She aspires to be a district collector when she grows up because she wants to work for the people, just like RDT does. She enjoys playing skipping games with her sisters.

Rashmi is younger than Pooja and studies one of RDT’s Inclusive Primary Schools. She is currently enrolled in 2^nd grade.

“I enjoy listening to horror stories in YouTube. I find them very interesting. It has become my favorite past time since the lock down has started,” says Rashmi.

Rashmi is still learning Braille. “I am sure I will be able to learn Braille completely in few months,” she says proudly. “I am already half-way through it.”

Education in the time of COVID:

When the pandemic hit, all three girls had to return home and continue their studies remotely.

At first, Harika attended online classes on her family’s smartphone. Later, RDT provided her with a laptop, headphones, and a sim card so she could access the internet and data. Since then, she has been using her laptop to attend classes.

“The power is cut quite frequent in my village. Charging my laptop becomes a hassle because of which I lose out on some parts of the classes,” explains Harika.

“The lockdown had become quite boring for me because there are no fun activities here like in school. I attended classes in Doordarshan TV (a government education channel) and played with my sisters,” says Pooja.

Fortunately, Pooja and Rashmi haven’t lost any ground in their studies thanks to their tutor, Jai Simha.

Jai Simha is a special education teacher. He specializes in hearing and speech impairment, but he also works with visually impaired students. Before the pandemic, he worked as primary school teacher in RDT Primary Inclusive School in Kanekal.

During the lockdown, RDT wanted to supplement the classes that were already being broadcasted on Doordarshan, the Government education TV channel, and decided to start home tutoring program for primary school students. Since December 2020, tutors have been visiting students individually and helping them with their studies.

“I make sure to refresh basic concepts for the children since it has been a long time since they have been in school which is why brushing up their basics is important,” explains Jai Simha.

Jai Simha visits Pooja and Rashmi once in every seven days. He visits one child every day and spends around 5 hours helping them with their lessons.

“I travel 35 kilometers every day to teach children and I enjoy it,” says Jai Simha. “I feel content and happy with myself because I am contributing my time and energy for a good cause.”

Even so, the Malla sisters are eager to return to the classroom.

“I miss my friends at school. I couldn’t contact them because I do not have their numbers. I hope that school re-opens soon,” explains Pooja.

“I really miss my friends at school, I have no friends here in my village,” Harika concurs. “During lockdown, I spoke to them on the phone and exchanged emails with them. I am eagerly waiting for school to re-open.”

“I wish I could go back to school soon,” says Rashmi. “It has been over a year and I haven’t gotten a chance to meet my best friend Maneshwari”

Hard times:

The support from Pooja’s sponsorship has been crucial to the Malla family during this difficult time.

“Because of the lockdown, my income was severely hit,” explains Narshimhulu Malla, Pooja’s father. “We had to sell our cattle. We didn’t have sufficient food to eat and there was no means of generating extra income. That’s when we took some financial support from the Vikalungula Sangham and with that I was able to generate some income and support my family.”

The family visits the local hospital for common ailments and has never been to Bathalapalli Hospital. Even so, they are aware that Pooja’s sponsorship gives them access to medical care there if they ever need it.

It will take time for the Malla family to get back on its feet, but Pooja’s sponsorship will help make sure their lives get back on track. Even though only one child is sponsored, the whole family has benefited. Like ripples in a pond, one act of kindness can send reverberate through a whole community, transforming lives as it spread.