Prize Day 2025: Celebrating Achievements, Transitions, and New Beginnings at Jan Seva

The Prize Day of Jan Seva—a unit of the Society for Indian Children’s Welfare—was celebrated with great enthusiasm on 10th December 2025, marking the successful conclusion of the Academic Year 2025. The occasion held special significance as outgoing children from both ECCEC and UDAAN were formally recognised while preparing to step into mainstream schools across Kolkata for the next phase of their academic journeys.

The day was filled with joy and a deep sense of fulfilment for the teachers and caregivers who have devoted themselves wholeheartedly to nurturing the growth, care, and development of the children. The programme was graced by the presence of our Chairperson, Ms Jyothi Bhatia; Vice Chairperson, Mrs Shirin Dastur; Board Members Mrs Sarita Dhir, Ms Alpana Kumar, Mrs Supriya Bhowmik; and Secretary, Ms Sheela Adige. Their encouragement and support added warmth and meaning to the celebration.

A special highlight of the Prize Day was the felicitation of adult students who successfully completed their courses at Jan Seva. They were honoured with certificates and mementos, acknowledging their perseverance and achievements. The event was gracefully anchored by Mrs Twisha Ganguli, Project Coordinator, Jan Seva, while Ms Anindita Sengupta, UDAAN Coordinator, efficiently coordinated the proceedings.

The celebration became even more memorable for the children with the generous support of the Satikanta Guha Foundation, which provided warm winter clothing to ensure their comfort and well-being during the cold season. We were honoured by the presence of Mrs Rajashree Biswas, Principal of Garden High School, and Mrs Indrani Das, Administrator, who personally distributed the winter clothes. For children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, these thoughtful gifts brought immense happiness and bright smiles, especially among our crèche children.

The programme commenced with the ceremonial lighting of the lamp by Mrs Jyothi Bhatia and Mrs Rajashree Biswas, symbolising hope, growth, and new beginnings. Several of our generous donors were also present to share in the joy and pride of the occasion.

As we bid farewell to the outgoing batch, emotions ran high. These children joined Jan Seva soon after the pandemic in 2023 and have spent the last three years learning, growing, and thriving with us. It was heartening to see them confidently step into the next chapter of their lives, having secured admissions in reputed mainstream schools across Kolkata, including Kamala Chatterjee Girls’ School, Chittaranjan High School, Murali Dhar Girls’ High School, Tiljala Balika Vidyalaya, Lake Girls’ High School, Tiljala Boys’ High School, Merium English Medium School, Grooming Valley High School, Siler Point School, and others in both Bengali and English medium.

A vibrant cultural programme added colour and cheer to the celebration, featuring an opening song, a skit on screen-time awareness, a recitation, and a delightful dance performance by the special needs children of UDAAN.

During their time at Jan Seva, the children developed essential life skills such as discipline, punctuality, healthy food habits, classroom etiquette, personal hygiene, and toilet training. They also built strong academic foundations in reading, writing, and object recognition, along with exposure to extracurricular activities including singing, dancing, recitation, and drill. Parents expressed heartfelt gratitude for the progress their children made, often requesting continued education at Jan Seva. It was a particularly proud moment for UDAAN, with seven children receiving prizes at the Annual Prize Distribution Ceremony for the first time this year.

Soumyadeep Ghosh, Ankush Halder, Ananya Routh, Sreetanu Bera, Ayush Mondal, Pitrijit Pal, and Subham Naskar joined UDAAN with speech impairments, learning disabilities, and certain behavioural challenges. Over two to three years, they received specialised education along with occupational and speech therapies, enabling them to overcome their difficulties to a great extent. Today, they are placed in mainstream and special schools, where they have adjusted well and continue to do well.

From the ECCEC programme, a total of 38 children graduated—28 gaining admission to Bengali medium schools and 10 to English medium schools. Watching our “little feet” move forward with confidence, courage, and hope was both emotional and immensely rewarding.

We extend our warmest wishes to all our outgoing children and hope they continue to shine as they step into a brighter and promising future.