Shiksharth

Rebuilding Childhoods in Conflict Zones

In India’s forest heartlands, where armed conflict has shaped lives for decades, childhood has been one of its quietest casualties.

In regions like Sukma, Bijapur, and Narayanpur — schools were shut, teachers withdrew, and classrooms turned silent. Fear replaced curiosity. Learning became a luxury.

At Shiksharth, we’ve spent the last 10 years working at the grassroots, ensuring that even in the most remote and conflict-affected geographies, children get the chance to learn, play, and grow with dignity.

The Problem We’re Solving

Millions of children in India grow up in conflict-affected and adverse geographies—regions like Bastar in Chhattisgarh, tribal districts of Odisha, and parts of the North-East. Here, four decades of armed conflict, displacement, poverty, and systemic neglect have disrupted not only access to schools but also the very experience of childhood.

Children face:

• Broken schooling systems – Schools destroyed by conflict, frequent closures, multi-grade classrooms, and severe teacher shortages.

• Language and cultural barriers – Most tribal children speak mother tongues like Gondi, Halbi, Kui, or Sora, while formal schooling is delivered in state languages they don’t understand, leading to poor engagement and early dropouts.

• Foundational learning crisis – Less than 15% of children in some districts can read a grade-2 text or do basic subtraction, far below state and national averages.

• Psychosocial trauma – Generations of children exposed to violence and instability live with fear, disrupted family structures, and lack of safe spaces for play, care, and healing.

• Limited systemic support – Government programs often focus narrowly on infrastructure, leaving gaps in contextual pedagogy, socio-emotional learning, and community participation.

These challenges deny children their right to safety, love, dignity, and quality learning—robbing them of the Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs) that are essential for healthy development and long-term well-being.

At Shiksharth, we transform schools and communities into spaces of Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs) where children feel safe, loved, and able to learn. Our approach works at three levels:

1. Classroom – Contextual and multilingual teaching, FLN through project-based learning, STEM and ecology programs, and socio-emotional learning.

2. Community – Training local youth as Shikshadoots, engaging parents and SHGs, and supporting out-of-school children through bridge courses and learning centres.

3. System – Partnering with governments to strengthen teacher capacity, reopen and sustain 300+ conflict-affected schools, and introduce BaLA, libraries, and engagement calendars in schools.

Impact:

• 200,000+ children served across Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and the North-East.

• 1,300+ schools supported, directly reaching 70,000+ children today.

• 350,000+ children reached during COVID-19 through offline solutions in 14 states.

• Up to 90% growth in learning outcomes through contextual pedagogy.

Your Support is Needed — Now More Than Ever

We're launching this campaign to ensure every re-enrolled child has the tools, space, and support to continue learning joyfully.

For just ₹2,000, you can sponsor 1 child’s full year of learning.

What Your ₹2,000 Will Provide:

• Child-friendly classroom space

• Learning kit with age-appropriate math and language materials

• STEM kit to spark curiosity

• Storybooks and coloring books in local languages

• Essential school supplies — notebooks, crayons, pencils

• Atrained local educator who understands the child’s language, culture, and trauma

In a world where childhood can be stolen by violence, your support helps return it — one child at a time.Help us take these children — From Fear to Play.