Guwahati: A group of university students in Assam organized a children’s program on April 23, to add color to the spring festival and new year celebrations of Bihu in the northeastern Indian state.
The Swastyayan program of Assam Don Bosco University (ADBU) provided the platform for children from all over Guwahati, the state’s commercial capital, to celebrate and showcase their talents at Keotpara, a village on the fringes of the Deepor Beel bird sanctuary, in Azara Gaon Panchayat.
In the community event entitled Life-skill Education and Awareness Program, over three hundred children participated from schools of Azara locality, as well as two Snehalaya homes for street children at Dhirenpara and Beltola.
Children from Snehalaya participated on this joyful occasion, as Brother Hopna Tudu, an ADBU MSW student and program coordinator based at Snehalaya.
“You need to have strong belief in God, self-belief, hard work, sincerity, and perseverance, in order to succeed in life,” said Chef Guest at the event Director of Snehalaya Salesian Father Thaddeus Kujur encouraging the gathering of deprived and under-privileged children.
Fr Kujur also enthralled the children with a dexterous presentation of his magical skills.
“Use of creative art is essential while educating children. It brings out the best in them,” said elated Hiren Das, a local teacher and village elder of Keotpara, present at the program as a guest of honor expressing his satisfaction.
“The two-hour long colorful program was filled with performances of dances and songs by children of Snehalaya and participants of Swastyayan,” said Hopna Tudu, a student coordinator of Swastyayan, organizing the event.
“A lively circus show in the end, by Snehalaya students, was the icing on the cake, though,” added Famara Sangma, another student coordinator.
Swastyayan, a commitment, is an ADBU project with three components — Evening tutorial classes, Community Counseling Center. and Life-skill Education and Awareness Program.
Since its inception of the program in 2013, the university’s students, faculty and staff have been voluntarily giving free tutorial classes to needy high school children from the villages of Azara, Garal and Dharapur Gaon Panchayats.
In order to augment the life-skills of the children and young people, sessions on personality development, career choices and creative arts are conducted regularly. A free-of-cost Community Counseling Centre has also been made available to the families in need.
“These activities are our humble attempts towards enabling neighborhood communities to be strong and resilient,” said Victor Narzary, teaching in the Social Work Department and coordinating the project.