Uninor, India?s fastest growing telecom operator and Goonj, a voluntary organisation working in the field of social empowerment, launched a book collection drive named ?Book a Smile?. As a part of the drive, book collection centers have been setup at over 100 locations, including Uninor stores, where people can contribute old books-educational/comics, usable stationary and magazines. Books thus collected will be distributed to children who may otherwise not be able to own a book. The ?Book a Smile? drive promotes awareness of the importance of books in a child’s life, encourages the habit of reading among children and families.
“Imagine if each of us with a book to spare participate in this campaign. Imagine the number of children who will receive a book that you don?t need anymore and imagine the impact it can have among kids who may not be able to afford a book of their own. I encourage everyone to step forward. Just one book will make a difference,? says Pooja Thakran, chief communication officer, Uninor.
?At Goonj we strongly believe that each one of us has a role to play in building the communities and lives we wish for ourselves. Book a Smile is thus a unique opportunity not just for Goonj and Uninor, who have come together to highlight the important issue of literacy, but for everyone who wants to do something meaningful for others. Here is a simple idea, but when it spreads and people take ownership, amazing things start happening,? says Anshu Gupta, founder director, Goonj.
The books collected under the Uninor campaign will reach deep interiors of rural and urban India through the network of Goonj and other partner NGOs.
The drive is part of a Uninor Employee led initiative Uninor Unites, a unique employee volunteering program of the organisation working with NGO?s towards children empowerment centric projects.
Since the launch of the campaign, over 100 boxes of collected books and stationery have been received. The collection drive will continue up to April 26, 2014 post which the collection will be handed over to Goonj for dissemination to the children.
