Meet the always smiling Suniti (name changed) from Koderma district in Jharkhand. Her district was once known as the mica capital of India but the enactment of Forest Act imposed restrictions on mining in forest areas. Mica production soon evolved into a black market, where thousands of children like Suniti work under exploitative conditions and several harmful conditions to support their families. Indeed, she can hide a lot of pain in her smile.
She had lost her interest in education and had stopped going to schools, which were also closed during the pandemic. Her regular life involved going to the mines with her family to collect mica scraps. After sensitizing her family, she started coming to the bridge classes.
Along with her friends, she started coming to the bridge classes regularly. Here, she also got an opportunity to play many sports and also took part in several activities.
She loves being a part of all the activities in the bridge classes. She is a very active member in the children’s groups formed in her village.
She aspires to become a teacher and has started sharing her learning in the class. She was a very shy and quiet girl during the initial months. Now, she has been actively participating in all the activities along with voicing her concerns.
Along with all her friends, she believes that Education is a fundamental right for everyone and all should be entitled to it.
In her journey, she continues to inspire others to join her. She wants to spread the smile to hundreds of children in her community. She thanks everyone for bringing back the joy in her life.