DEVI Sansthan Signs Multi-State MoUs to Strengthen FLN and Advance NIPUN Bharat Goals

Lucknow, India 22nd February 2025 – In a landmark step towards fostering collective action for foundational literacy and numeracy of children and adults, One Tara by DEVI Sansthan has signed multi state Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with leading educational institutes across 4 states at two-day Leadership Circle 2 which was held in Lucknow at World Unity Convention Centre. MoU’s were signed with key institutions like ABSSSS (Musabad, Lucknow), Vedanta Sanskarshala (Ludhiana, Punjab), NayaSavera (Gurugram, Haryana), and Golden Future Trust (Lucknow) which marks a significant step toward scaling impact-driven initiatives that promote education, healthcare, and livelihood opportunities for marginalized communities, particularly women and children. By leveraging the unique strengths of each organization, the MoU aims to standardize best practices, share resources, and implement scalable community development models across regions.

Leadership Circle 2 saw a lively panel discussion on “Policies to accelerate learning” which included Government representatives like Mr. Ashok Kumar Singh, Director, School Education, Jammu, Mr. Abhishek Verma, Additional District Commissioner, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, Mr. Abhishek Shukla, Basic Education Officer, Bhagwanpur, Uttarakhand and Mr. Padam Shankar Maurya, BEO, Malihabad, Uttar Pradesh.

*Mr Ashok Kumar Singh, Director School Education, Jammu shared*, “Improvement of literacy in the country is of most importance especially with the involvement of the students. When the students start teaching their parents who are Illiterate as per FLN, this will enable us to reach complete literacy. We face issues in terrain, access to schools, even shortage of staff, if students involve themselves with self-teaching or self learning, they will be in a position to help the younger students as well. Target of NIPUN is achievable, with concentration on education which will help the people survive in the real world. Teachers are irreplaceable and they are the key to India reaching NIPUN goals within the time frame. He also invited the team of DEVI Sansthan to Jammu to train his master trainers in the ALfA: Accelerating Learning for All pedagogy, a new way of learning.”

The Leadership Circle embodies DEVI Sansthan’s dedication to empowering educators and reshaping education through collaboration and innovation. This two-day event featured panels on the Policies to accelerate learning, FLN: The World’s best investment, and Best CSR Investment where experts explored through new findings and experiences, shared best practices and key insights, and discussed evidence-based strategies and tools to enhance rapid learning and more. The aim is to reach out to over 500,000 students in the next 5 years.

The series of MoU signings aligns with One Tara’s mission of empowering educational institutes and through innovative, evidence-based interventions while reinforcing the commitment of all partner organizations to sustainable social impact.

Day 2 of Leadership Circle 2, a panel discussion on “The Role of CSR in Promoting FLN” with Mr Kumar Anurag Pratap, VP and Head CSR, Capgemini, India, Mr. Khurram Naayaab, GM CSR for Vedanta group and Head-Governance for Anil Agarwal Foundation and Ms. Sherin Ali Global CSR Lead, WNS Global Services. *Ms Sherin Ali shared*, “CSR policies in India are stringent but if any company or NGOs are working within that framework, it is an easy process for a company to start their CSR initiatives. With the CSR policies of a particular company being available on website, it is easy for NGOs to reach out that particular company to be part of their CSR programs. SROI or Social Return on Investment is a key factor determining a project’s timeline. This enables a company to set standards, extend timelines, and to implement other CSR projects which can be implemented successfully.”

*Speaking on the significance of the 2-day event and the MoU signing, Dr. Sunita Gandhi, Founder of DEVI Sansthan and One Tara, stated* “We have come together to collaborate for a transformation in the education process. The multi-state MoU’s are just the beginning, we are uniting forces with like-minded organizations to amplify the need for FLN in the education sector. These partnerships are not just an agreement—it is a commitment to a brighter, more equitable future.”

For more information visit https://dignityeducation.org/rri/ | https://www.onetara.org/

About DEVI Sansthan: 

DEVI Sansthan (Dignity Education Vision International) is a non-profit organisation founded in 1992 and based in Lucknow. Collaborating with governments, NGOs, schools, and corporations worldwide, DEVI Sansthan is accelerating FLN for children and adults. The mission is to provide quality education for underserved populations by scaling a swift, effective and holistic pedagogy; in partnership with governments, schools & colleges, corporates, and other NGOs.