Monika Arya knows that dropping out of education is not always a choice. Sometimes it happens because a family cannot afford it, sometimes because a child does not know what opportunities exist, and sometimes because circumstances make continuing school feel impossible.Her own journey through education was interrupted for years. Today, she works in Jharkhand’s Khunti district to help tribal children avoid similar breaks in their education.
An education journey she had to fight for
Arya grew up in Karoda Hathi village in Shamli district, Uttar Pradesh, in a large family. She studied at her village government school until Class 8 before moving to Dehradun on a scholarship. A keen debater, she completed Classes 9 to 12 at Ram Pyari Arya Kanya Pathshala Inter College.After Class 12, however, pursuing college became difficult. Family opposition and responsibilities at home created major obstacles. With her father’s support, she eventually found a way to continue travelling to college from her sister’s home.She completed her first year but did not finish her degree at that stage. Work, marriage and relocation to Jharkhand followed, keeping formal education on hold for nearly 12 years.Eventually, Arya returned to education and completed an MSc.That experience became important to the work she would later undertake.
Helping children stay before they drop out
In Torpa block of Khunti, Arya encountered communities where many children are first-generation learners. Families may have limited knowledge about scholarships, career options and educational pathways.Economic hardship adds another challenge. Teenagers can be lured by employment opportunities in cities, creating risks of unsafe migration and exploitation.In 2021, Arya founded Sambhav Trust, focusing on education, child protection, adolescent empowerment, career guidance, scholarships, sports and safe migration.The organisation has worked with Anganwadi workers across 95 villages, supported Village Level Child Protection Committees across 16 Gram Panchayats, and reached around 5,000 school-going children through child-protection initiatives.
Making education and opportunities visible
Arya’s work also focuses on what happens inside the education journey. Sambhav Trust has provided career guidance to more than 1,000 government-school students in Khunti and connected 150 vulnerable children with the Sponsorship Programme under Mission Vatsalya.Scholarship-awareness programmes have reached 10 universities in Jharkhand, while 80 children of vehicle drivers have been connected with the Muskaan Scholarship.Arya is also developing after-school learning centres across five villages for Classes 6 to 8, with a focus on English, Science and Mathematics. The aim is to address learning gaps before students reach the transition to Class 9, when declining confidence can contribute to disengagement from studies.
Building communities that can protect children
Her approach goes beyond keeping children enrolled. Arya wants parents, local workers and community institutions to understand children’s rights and recognise risks such as exploitation, abuse and unsafe migration.She also believes children should participate in village-level decision-making and have opportunities to raise issues affecting them.Her long-term objective is for communities to become capable of supporting children without depending permanently on an outside organisation.Arya’s journey gives that mission a deeply personal dimension. She once had to find her own route back to education after years away from formal study. Today, she is working to ensure that children in Jharkhand’s tribal communities have someone to help them find that route before they are forced to leave it.
