Mumbai Garba event draws 175 women for rural education programmes

Around 175 women gathered for Garba, prayers and an awareness session at the Mumbai Women’s Committee of Friends of Tribal Society’s Garba Mahotsav on October 15.

The committee said it organised the event to raise funds and awareness for children in rural and tribal communities. The programme opened with prayers to Goddess Amba, an aarti and prasad distribution, followed by Garba performances. Ritu, described by organisers as the recently named Mumbai Garba Queen, attended as a judge, and participants received prizes in several performance categories.

Organisers presented the work of Friends of Tribal Society and its Ekal Abhiyan initiative. They said its Panchmukhi Shiksha programme includes primary education through Ekal schools, healthcare and hygiene awareness, village development, social awareness and value-based education.

Ekal Abhiyan began in Jharkhand in 1989 with 60 schools and now reaches about one lakh villages across India, the organisation said.