News
Cycle distribution in Pune to help kids reach school.
An enterprising group of 15 businessmen from Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad under the name ‘Cause’, plans to collect old unused bicycles, refurbish them and pass them on to needy children from rural areas whose education is being cut short due to lack of transportation.
An enterprising group of 15 businessmen from Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad have come together with a unique ‘old-to-new’ initiative guaranteed to bring smiles to children.
The group, under the name 'Cause', plans to collect old unused bicycles, refurbish them and pass them on to needy children from rural areas whose education is being cut short due to lack of transportation.
"There are many people who have cycles lying around in their houses, which they have grown out of or no longer use. We are explaining to such people what a difference even a basic cycle can make to a child's future," said Amit Shah, one of the members of the initiative.
People simply have to inform the group about an unused cycle they wish to donate and the group arranges the logistics, repair work and distribution. "We have identified a place in Pune Camp where the cycles can be repaired," Shah said.
The seed of the idea came when Neerav Shah, heard from a clerk in his office that children in his village had dropped out of school because of lack of amenities or funds to travel long distances in buses to reach good schools. "He told me that since he was sponsoring his 2 daughters' bus fares, they were the only 2 children going to school. Others could not afford it or their parents did not have time to accompany them daily to schools. Also, most children are undernourished and hence motivation to spend the energy and money on travelling is low. I thought all children love to cycle. Why not give them their right of way," Shah said.
Word about the initiative has been growing through their personal acquaintance groups and on WhatsApp.
"We already have a database of students who can take help from gram panchayats and our own verification. We have started creating a list of student volunteers and are looking to tie up with NGOs," said Naresh Parekh, another group member.
In just a month, the group has managed to collect and refurbish around 50 cycles, and aim for 100 within the next month. The group wants to reach out to 10,000-12,000 children within the next 2 years.
Images used for representational purposes only