On the Ground in Pune: Our Partnership with Ashraya Initiative for Children
Some commitments you can make from a boardroom. This one I needed to make standing in Chandan Nagar.
Over the past several months I’ve traveled to Pune more than once, walking the lanes of this community, sitting with families, and spending time with the children Ashraya serves. On one visit I watched a group of them present their own survey reports on gender equality, holding up hand-drawn pie charts and speaking, unhesitatingly, about equal opportunity for boys and girls. These are children whose families were told for generations that they did not belong. Watching them claim a stage and a voice is the reason I keep going back.
Ashraya Initiative for Children (AIC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2004 that works with vulnerable street and slum children in Pune. Its approach is holistic, bringing education, health, and emotional development together, with a particular focus on families from India’s De-Notified and Nomadic Tribes, among the most marginalized communities in the country.
Starting July 2026, the Sinha Foundation is beginning a three-year partnership with AIC in Chandan Nagar. Together we’ll reach roughly 2,400 residents: about 180 children, 200 youth, and more than 2,000 rag-pickers and daily-wage laborers from De-Notified Tribe (DNT) families.
Over these three years, the work will concentrate on:
- Education: academic support and skills-development programs that close the grade-level gap and open real pathways to employment.
- Health: medical programs and regular health screenings for children and families.
- Community: programs to prevent substance abuse and to advance gender equality, the very theme those children were presenting on stage.
What I want to be clear about is that this is not only a grant. I intend to stay personally engaged, in the field, in the planning, and in the execution, as this community’s transformation unfolds. The most meaningful philanthropy I’ve been part of has always been the kind where you show up, listen, and keep showing up.
To the children and families of Chandan Nagar: I’ve seen what you carry, and I’ve seen what you’re capable of. We’re honored to walk part of this road with you.
A note on De-Notified Tribes: under the colonial Criminal Tribes Act of 1871, the British branded certain communities as “born criminals.” Independent India repealed that law in 1952, “de-notifying” these tribes, yet many DNT families still face deep social stigma and economic exclusion today. Meeting them where they are is central to this partnership.