Miqdad along with other students at the Hill Spring International School, Mumbai are raising awareness and funds to give footwear to children in the rural districts of Maharashtra. This footwear is made of discarded shoes that would have otherwise gone into landfills.
Miqdad Khorakiwala, a 16-year old studying in Grade 10 at the Hill Spring International School, Mumbai has started a campaign to provide footwear to the poor children in Maharashtra. His aim is to provide footwear to 100 students who walk barefoot to school daily.
Miqdad along with other students at the Hill Spring International School, Mumbai are raising awareness and funds to give footwear to thousands of children in the rural districts of Maharashtra. This footwear is made of discarded shoes that would have otherwise gone into landfills. The refurbished shoes will transform into comfortable and trendy footwear for thousands of children who walk barefoot to schools. This footwear is made by the Greensole Foundation. The cost of footwear including refurbishment & actual distribution is only Rs 199 a pair.
Miqdad Khorakiwala
Talking about his campaign, Miqdad said, “I am doing this crowdfunding campaign in partnership with the Mumbai based NGO, Greensole Foundation. They refurbish old and discarded shoes with a minimum carbon footprint. These discarded shoes are kept away from landfills and end up transforming the lives of students in rural areas. They also retail, upcycled footwear towards building a self-sustaining social venture.”
The lack of something as simple as footwear (along with school suppliers and toilets) is one of the principal reasons why children leave school. In the rural areas of Maharashtra, the schools are often far from their homes and many children must walk many kilometres to their schools. The walk is across roads, fields, narrow paths and is difficult and unsafe. In summers when temperatures shoot into the 40 and 45 degrees, it can be a nightmare.
Lack of footwear makes this incredibly difficult and often is a chief reason for them to leave a school. Walking barefoot also leads to soil-transmitted diseases and parasites. This leads to sickness and ill health.
The campaign aims to raise INR 20000 or more to give 100 plus rural students the gift of having footwear.
Watch the impact on students
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