Kids use mighty pen as weapon

NEW DELHI: Young kids have taken the mighty weapon in their hand to bring about a change in the society. Yamuna, a children's newsletter that hopes to bring about change in society by highlighting the relevance of Gandhian values, marked its fourth anniversary on Monday
 
Its 50 child reporters across the world aim to achieve their goal by using the pen as their weapon.

A quarterly newsletter brought out by school children, Yamuna is a vent for their opinions on various issues, their thoughts and their fantasies.

Supported by the Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti (GSDS), the colourful newsletter has contributions from children living as far away as Brazil, Nepal and Italy, as well as by kids in Shimla, Raipur and Delhi within India.

Monday also saw the launch of Yamuna's Hindi version.

Yamuna was born June 4, 2003, on the centenary of Mahatma Gandhi's journal "Indian Opinion" brought out in South Africa and is funded by the Indian government.

"We launched Yamuna and named it so because like the ever-flowing Yamuna River that is getting polluted day after day, our society too is getting polluted. This newsletter is a platform for children to voice their opinion and work towards cleaning the polluted society," said director of GSDS Savita Singh.

And the young reporters have taken up and written about several topical issues.

"We have written articles on child abuse, women's empowerment, violence against women and importance of education. We research the topic thoroughly before writing on it," said 13-year-old Alphy Geever, a smart Yamuna reporter.

"We have also interviewed personalities like Amartya Sen, Shabana Azmi and Sharmila Tagore and delved into topics like the importance of film censorship. Sometimes, with the pressure of studies, it becomes slightly difficult to handle this work as it has to be handled responsibly, but we manage," Geever added.

Siju Thomas, another young reporter, recalled an incident while he was reporting on poverty.

"I had gone to this slum to report about the poverty stricken families. After two-three visits, a boy came up to me and asked whether my reporting about their condition would help them in anyway. I didn't know how to respond," said Siju solemnly.

Though the newsletter is currently circulated within a private circle - among members of GSDS - the committee has now decided to distribute it among schools too. 

Amna Mirza, a post graduate student of Delhi University and the students coordinator of Yamuna, said the experience had been enriching and had taught her more than she could have taught the kids.

"When we were working on an issue on violence against women, I was touched by the way kids think. They have absolutely no doubts, they think straight and in a very sensitive manner," Mirza said.