05-11-2008, 12:25 PM
<!--emo&:ind--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/india.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='india.gif' /><!--endemo--> Urchins save the day with bank accounts
Nidhi Mittal | New Delhi
Starting the day at 6 am delivering milk and then trying to find work with tent companies till late in the night, 11-year-old Deepak has his hands full. He earns Rs 100 a day, but is heartbroken when the money is snatched by bullies "who spend it on alcohol and drugs."
Deepak could never think of saving his hard earnings to send some back to his family in Bihar -- till he got to know about the Children's Development Bank (CDB), a bank truly of, for and by children.
The CDB is an innovative venture to help get streetchildren save, tailormade to suit their cash needs for day-to-day survival and their vulnerability to the rigours of the street.
Not only do homeless children come to CDB to deposit money in their 'savings or current accounts', the person on the other side of the window is also a child from amongst them. Children have themselves decided the rate of interest they want on their money, which is 3.5 per cent.
Catering to children in the age group of 7 to 18 years, the bank has done well to teach them how to save. Initially, the children are taught how to budget, maintain accounts, cash, ledgers and passbooks by trainers from private banks like HSBC, which also provides the stationary to CDB.
The CDB also gives advance to 13-year-olds and above who want to start a business, making sure that the child has skills to run it.
Six branches of the bank in Delhi "cater to 2,000 streetchildren" and there are eight other cities where CDB operates. NGOs not just in India, but also in many other countries in South Asia, have adopted this innovative technique to help needy children. "We now have 8,000 members in South Asia, 33 per cent of them girls," says Suman Sachdeva, Development Manager, CDB.
The bank opens from 6.30 to 7.30 pm daily and children line up outside the small window on time. "I like doing all the ledger entries and advising other children how to manage their money, as in whether they should deposit it in savings or current account," says 13-year-old bank manager Intezaar.
Sanjay has the biggest bank balance in the Old Delhi branch with Rs 2,800 to his credit. Unavailable to talk, children say he hardly spends his money, except for the school fees.
A visit to any of these banks would prove how desperately these children want to lead a life that's very different from what they have now. "I want to work in a big bank when I grow up," says Amit, with a gleam in his eyes.
Nidhi Mittal | New Delhi
Starting the day at 6 am delivering milk and then trying to find work with tent companies till late in the night, 11-year-old Deepak has his hands full. He earns Rs 100 a day, but is heartbroken when the money is snatched by bullies "who spend it on alcohol and drugs."
Deepak could never think of saving his hard earnings to send some back to his family in Bihar -- till he got to know about the Children's Development Bank (CDB), a bank truly of, for and by children.
The CDB is an innovative venture to help get streetchildren save, tailormade to suit their cash needs for day-to-day survival and their vulnerability to the rigours of the street.
Not only do homeless children come to CDB to deposit money in their 'savings or current accounts', the person on the other side of the window is also a child from amongst them. Children have themselves decided the rate of interest they want on their money, which is 3.5 per cent.
Catering to children in the age group of 7 to 18 years, the bank has done well to teach them how to save. Initially, the children are taught how to budget, maintain accounts, cash, ledgers and passbooks by trainers from private banks like HSBC, which also provides the stationary to CDB.
The CDB also gives advance to 13-year-olds and above who want to start a business, making sure that the child has skills to run it.
Six branches of the bank in Delhi "cater to 2,000 streetchildren" and there are eight other cities where CDB operates. NGOs not just in India, but also in many other countries in South Asia, have adopted this innovative technique to help needy children. "We now have 8,000 members in South Asia, 33 per cent of them girls," says Suman Sachdeva, Development Manager, CDB.
The bank opens from 6.30 to 7.30 pm daily and children line up outside the small window on time. "I like doing all the ledger entries and advising other children how to manage their money, as in whether they should deposit it in savings or current account," says 13-year-old bank manager Intezaar.
Sanjay has the biggest bank balance in the Old Delhi branch with Rs 2,800 to his credit. Unavailable to talk, children say he hardly spends his money, except for the school fees.
A visit to any of these banks would prove how desperately these children want to lead a life that's very different from what they have now. "I want to work in a big bank when I grow up," says Amit, with a gleam in his eyes.