Our Journey

Our first founder is Chandni Di who herself started work-ing as a ragpicker and flower-seller at the age of 6. After the untimely demise of her father, the burden to support the family came on her shoulders and she had to do rag-picking and begging to support her family. Fortunately, at the age of 10, she joined an NGO called “BADHTEY KADAM” and resumed her studies. Because of her hard-working nature and integrity, she became the regional secretary and eventually set out to become the national secretary of the organization.

Later, she became editor of a newspaper called Balak Nama. She worked in 4 states with around 10,000 street children and taught them about the importance of education and child rights. She became too old for the NGO when she turned 18, but this did not stop her zeal to work for slum children and her determination to uplift them. So she started her own NGO.

Dev Pratap, is both tragic and inspirational. He left his home at the age of 11 due to personal reasons. With a mere 130 rupees in his hand, uncertain about his future, he started rag-picking to earn a living, committing robbery at the Gwalior Railway Station, and became a drug-addict. He was even arrested for 14 days, but a stranger (Mr. Raja Parmar) came to his rescue, bailed him out, persuaded him to study and build a better future for himself. This was a turning point in Dev’s life.

He became a waiter and then the Assistant Manager in a restaurant in Goa and later, with his savings, opened up a mobile repairing shop in Delhi. He continued his career as a territory sales manager for a company. This promising career trajectory took a sharp turn after Dev’s mother’s death, which was a big shock to him and the subsequent depression compelled him to quit his job. He felt hopeless for a while but eventually found purpose in his life working wholeheartedly for slum-children.