Children from Metros welcome Nanhi Kalis from rural towns back-to-school with 3M’s unique program

~3M partners with Reliance Smart to promote girl child education ~

It’s a common question asked to every child in a Metro city – “What do you want to become when you grow up?”. Through good education system and good mentorship from their parents, these children get great exposure to all the right facilities to help them pursue their dreams.

However, did you know that 70% of the girls who are studying in remote towns also want to pursue higher studies, and 74.3% of those girls want to work after studies and have a specific career in mind*?[1]Every child is curious and deserves an education. Project Nanhi Kali managed by K C Mahindra Education Trust is one of the largest community programs imparting education to underprivileged girl children in India. The project provides academic, material and social support that allows a girl child to access quality education, attend school with dignity and reduces the chances of her dropping out.

National, June 25 2019: To strengthen their commitment to support early stage education to the girl child, 3M India has come up with a unique program in partnership with the K C Mahindra Education Trust and Reliance Smart stores. The programme, called “From You to Her”, is all about a child in a Metro city wishing a Nanhi Kali good luck for the new academic year, with a gift of a hand-made craft, and a personalized message.

To execute this, 3M India is organizing craft camps across select Reliance Smart stores during the Back to School season this year. Crafts made by metro city children at these camps, with their personalized messages will be sent to girls in Nanhi Kali schools in Maharashtra as a welcome-back-to-school gift at the start of the academic year.

As a continuation to the gesture, the Nanhi Kalis will send back their hand-written ‘thank you’ notes, which will be given to the children who participated in the craft camps.

It is the endeavor of all three organizations to promote a feeling of empathy and one-ness with girl children pursuing education in rural areas of India, by providing this unique platform for children living in Metro cities.

Apart from the greetings during the ‘Back-to-School’ season, 3M India has also committed to contribute Re.1/- from the sale of every 3M stationery product that is sold from Reliance Smart stores across Faridabad, Mumbai and Bangalore towards education of the girl child.

Commenting at the launch of ‘Back-to-School’ program, former MD of 3M India,Ms. Debarati Sen, who forged the 3M-Nanhi Kali partnership said, “In order to truly raise the awareness on the significance of girl child education, this year, we decided to extend this program to our consumers as well. We are delighted to partner with Reliance Smart who have enabled us to take this initiative to hundreds of households in India.” Ramesh Ramadurai, MD, 3M India also added, “The back-to-school program aims to create a path towards a more empathetic society and we are committed to nurturing education for disadvantages girls through our partnership with Nanhi Kali”

Trustee & Executive Director, K C Mahindra Education Trust, Sheetal Mehta commented:“Education is not just about reading textbooks and writing exams. It is the means to holistic growth of the society and for that, it is of utmost importance to educate our daughters as well as we do our sons. At Project Nanhi Kali, we strive to keep the educational support to our girls as interesting and innovative as possible, with our Yellow Tablets and fun group activities. We are delighted to partner with 3M for their ‘From You to Her’ initiative which will keep our Nanhi Kalis enthused, and at the same time, help imbibe a sense of empathy in the young minds of those from more privileged backgrounds.”

Commenting on the partnership Mr. Damodar Mall, CEO, Reliance Retail Value Format (Grocery Retail) said, “Our stores are significant members of the community they are located in. Working along with the 3M team to invoke awareness and participation amongst our citizen customers about education of the girl child, makes us proud”.