Pardada Pardadi: A Charity that teaches Health and Hygiene
Health and Hygiene are two things we take for granted in the western world. Plumbing for toilets is found whereever we go, clean water is available, and we have access to doctors should we feel ill. Rural India doesn't have all of those luxuries. In the villages surrounding Anupshahar, most families don't have toilets or piped water. Many don't know to brush their teeth or maintain a clean environment in their homes. This results in increased illness, and no knowledge of how to prevent it.
Pardada Pardadi believes that students can't be empowered if they don't have control over their own bodies. As a result, the school has instituted several health programs. First, it requires its students to maintain good hygiene, providing a toothbrush, toothpaste, and insisting on cleanliness (clothes and self). Second, it provides periodic Health Camps to give students (and the community) the opportunity to ask a doctor about any health issues they may have. Third, Pardada Pardadi began several programs, including the Toilet Program, which works to provide toilets in the homes of its students, and Rags to Pads, which creates cost-effective sanitary napkins for sale to students and women of the community.
