CRY - Child Relief And You

Background
CRY is an Indian Trust for Indian children. Founded in 1979 by the late Rippan Kapur, CRY embarked on its mission when 7 Indians met in Bombay and decided that something had to be done about the underprivileged children in India.

The CRY movement has gathered momentum with the support of over 100,000 people and organizations, disbursing Rs. 520 million to child development initiatives, and changing the lives of one million children in India by 2004.

CRY is guided by the United Nations Charter of Child Rights of 1989 that states that every child has a right to survival; right to protection from exploitation, abuse and neglect; right to development through education; and right to participation with respect for children's views and freedom of expression.

Activities
Currently there are 10 projects that are supported by CRY in AP, of which 9 are rural and 1 is urban. CRY operates through direct action, networking and policy-influencing, as well as capacity-building. That is, they support organizations that work at the grassroot level, as well as influence state institutions for policy reform and implementation.

Volunteer Opportunities
There are many ways in which you, as an individual, can support CRY. Purchasing CRY cards, sponsoring a child, providing mailing lists, or helping them get in touch with other organizations that would support their cause are some such ways.

Individual cash donations are eligible for 100% tax exemption. Interested volunteers can get in touch with Nirmalya Chakrabarty at the Hyderabad office.

If you decide to drop into their office, you might have some trouble locating it. Unlike some NGOs that believe in festooning their office with company literature, CRY's office is uncomplicated and self-sufficient, with only the essential infrastructure. This only reiterates the fact that fanfare does not necessarily make all the right people sit up and take notice; but an impassioned plea certainly does.