Posted by Ish Prasad on Aug 15, 2020
 
In the destitute villages of Bodhgaya region of Bihar state of India, where normal children are considered by their parents as assets and those with mental health issues as liabilities, Bodhi Tree Special School was established with a clear vision to bring about attitudinal change.  The school, through its very limited resources, offers help to approximately 1,000 families, as well as assists with the sanitisation of village hutments.
 
If you would like to help this project, donate at    All donations above $2 are tax deductible in Australia.
 
This project has been transferred to Rotary Williamstown
 
COVID-19 is having a significant impact on the management of the school, as the children are expressing their frustration to the pandemic response in the form of violent behaviour. A great video highlighting the work being done at the school during this current COVID-19 crisis has been sent by the school’s Director, Dhirendra Sharma and can be seen below:
 

Currently the school looks after 70 mentally challenged children and is being fully funded by approximately 40 individuals mainly from Melbourne through committed $100 monthly donations. Through the Rotary Club of Albert Park and its registered project status with Rotary Australia World Community, $14,000 has been donated to the school towards sustaining it for the current quarter.   By providing these children with education and integrating them with normal children, the school is fostering a sense of equality and at the same time, stopping at-risk children from being soft trafficking targets.

If you are interested in donating to this project, the RAWCS project link is: https://donations.rawcs.com.au/71-2016-17

Alternatively you can contact the Project Manager, Ish Prasad, Rotary Club of Albert Park, (M) 0423 663 694

Email: ishwsh@gmail.com