While most kids are busy attending online classes or developing one skill or the other, Tisya Singh, a 14-year-old from Bengaluru, not only dedicates her time towards developing skills but also manages to gather funds and donate essentials to the poor and needy during the current lockdown. For the past 20 days, she has been busy gathering funds, making entries in an excel sheet and coordinating with grocery store owners. While many are doing what they can for their community, what makes her initiative so unique is the transparency she maintains. Tisya explains, "The process of donating for groceries or essentials is very simple. I created an Excel sheet where I enter the name of the person, their contact number and the amount they have donated. Individuals or groups who want to donate for essentials need not pay me. They can pay the grocery store owners directly through various digital platforms and send a screenshot of the transaction to me as well as the owner. This way, they know that the money has been used for the right purpose."
So, what does this list of essentials include? It includes one kg of rice, half a litre of cooking oil, toor dal, wheat flour, salt, vegetables like potato, onion, tomato and so on. Tisya provides 40 such packets every day which are picked up by the policemen of that particular area and distributed to the people. "Each packet costs Rs 580 but as it is for a noble cause, the grocery store owners give each packet for Rs 400. The delivery of these packets is completely taken care of by the police officials. We have been coordinating and working closely with them from day one. Every day, they pick up these grocery packets from my house and distribute them in their jurisdiction."
When we ask Tisya if she has been getting enough funds, she says, "Yes, a lot of the funds are being contributed by people. Initially, I was spending my pocket money but when I reached out to family friends, our apartment society and my school friends, they were ready to help. Most of them directly pay the grocery stores. As groceries for one day come up to `16,000, some individuals collect the money and donate it together." Apart from this noble work, Tisya has been attending online dance, guitar and piano classes. "I plan my day and tasks so that I miss out on nothing. This also helps me ensure that the lockdown days are no different from regular days," she concludes.
Face of an online platform
Tisya Singh is the Brand Ambassador of KidsChaupal, an online platform that helps kids enhance their skills
As Tisya is an all-rounder, KidsChaupal decided to make her the face of their platform:
- Tisya has completed Grade 2 in keyboard with merit and Grade 1 in guitar with distinction from Trinity College London
- She has completed the White Ball grade in billiards from CSPA (Cue School by Pankaj Advani)
- She has a black belt in kung fu and has won four gold medals, two silver medals and two excellence trophies during the Bangalore City Inter-Club Kung-Fu Championships held in 2016 to 2018
