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About Us |
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Relief Foundation is based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. India has the largest population of children in any country in the world. Each year, 27 million children are born in India. One third of these children live below the poverty line. A total of 75 million children suffer from malnutrition. There are 18 million street children, an estimated 30 million child laborers, at least 400,000 child prostitutes. 59 million children do not receive any form of education. Less than 7% of these make it to college. As a consequence of their social, economic, physical or mental condition, many of these children are criminalized, become delinquent and drop out of school. The primary cause of juvenile crimes besides neglect of children is lack of education and apathy among adults handling children. In order to prevent exploitation of children, the Relief Foundation was founded by members of SuDatta Adoptive Families Association in September 1998. In its early years, the organization provided counseling and direct support for children in Transit and Juvenile Homes. In 2001, Vidya Shankar, Chairperson of Relief Foundation, was appointed Chairperson of the Juvenile Welfare Board in Chennai, and in 2002, she became a member of the Juvenile Justice Board. Her growing involvement in the Juvenile Justice System helped Relief Foundation to better understand reasons behind juvenile delinquency and criminality and thus to develop new preventative measures. Today, Relief Foundation has developed into a small, cost-effective and powerful organization. It acts as the central hub of a network of other NGOs, schools, donors and volunteers. We mobilize a wide range of resources for the improvement of children’s lives. |
