“If you educate a man, you educate an individual. But if you educate a woman, you educate a nation” – this phrase may be overused, but no one can refute its importance, especially in India where we are fighting against low female literacy rate. Girl education is a noble cause that calls for our attention and support. Fortunately this cause is gaining attention from all walks of life and we have many good Samaritans who devout their mind and heart to this cause.
One such person is V S Parthasarathy, Group CFO & Group CIO, Mahindra & Mahindra. Fondly known as Partha, he facilitates Mahindra Group in accomplishing its vision of ‘being amongst the Top 50 most admired brands in the world by 2021”. He is also a member of the Mahindra Group’s supervisory board called “Group Executive Board”.
Besides his professional achievements, Partha, also runs for a cause that he believes in passionately. Since the past seven years, Partha has been running in the Mumbai Marathon raising funds for Nanhi Kali (‘little bud’ in Hindi). This is an empowering initiative that was initiated in the year 1996 by the K. C. Mahindra Education Trust (KCMET) with the aim of providing primary education to underprivileged girl children in India. Anand Mahindra, the current chairman of Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., founded Project Nanhi Kali with a strong belief that educated women would not only contribute to the economy but also issues of population and social evils like the dowry system and child marriage would reduce as more women are educated. 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.
Says Partha, “I took up the challenge of educating the Girl Child, #NanhiKali. I made a choice to walk the talk and chose to ‘Run’ for a cause. I strongly support this cause, as I believe it is a means of helping children to learn and grow independently and be able to write their own futures.”
Last year, Partha collected Rs. 72,65,379 at Tata Mumbai Marathon 2018. This amount helped in educating 1722 Nanhi Kalis! After a gratifying response with last year’s campaign, this year he has set for himself a new challenge – to raise a crore of rupees to educate more than 2500 girls.
If you would like to donate to this noble cause, please click on this link
