GE India honoured with 'Friend of VIDYA Award'

New Delhi, Oct 14: VIDYA, a volunteer-driven NGO, celebrated its 22nd Founder's Day here today and presented the 'Friend of VIDYA Award' to GE India in recognition of the long-standing mentoring support provided by the company's employees.

VIDYA has been educating and empowering the underprivileged women and children through integrated programmes and runs bridge courses in Delhi and Mumbai to help children complete their schooling through the National Institute of Open Learning.

Rashmi Mishra, Chairperson, VIDYA says, ''The VIDYA-GE association started way back in 2000. Ever since, the overwhelming support and encouragement of the GE team has taken the programme forward by leaps and bounds.'' Over the past seven years, GE India employees have volunteered their time to provide mentoring support to these students to help them realise their full potential by exposing them to a different dream. Currently, 200 students are enrolled in the programme.

The award was presented to Mr Scott Bayman, President and CEO, GE India. ''The VIDYA-GE partnership is a true reflection of how an NGO and a corporate can come together to make a huge and positive impact on the lives of those who are lesser privileged,'' he said.

Since its inception, around 10,000 children and more than 20,000 women have benefitted from VIDYA's programmes dedicated to educating and empowering the underprivileged and bringing about progressive social change.

Children from the slums face great hurdles in completing their schooling with virtually no parental guidance and a mounting pressure to start earning a living. Such children are assigned mentors by the NGO who guide and encourage them.

In addition to mentoring, GE provides financial support through GE Foundation, vocational training and helping students find meaningful employment, supplies midday meals as well as facilitates extracurricular activities such as painting, music, dance and organises educational trips and picnics.

UNI