Sameera Reddy at 'P&G Shiksha Diwas' Event at Hyderabad

‘P&G Shiksha Diwas’ Provides a Platform for Sameera Reddy to Teach

~ The children at P&G Shiksha School, Hyderabad, learn interesting facts with their new teacher on P&G Shiksha Diwas ~

~P&G Shiksha has built and supported over 220 schools across the length and breadth of the nation ~

· Now in its 9th year, P&G Shiksha stems forward with a vision of empowering underprivileged children with access to education
· Actress Sameera Reddy celebrated ‘P&G Shiksha Diwas’, and pledged her support for the program’s cause of empowering marginalized children with the Right to Education
· P&G Shiksha has helped educate over 385,000 children till date, building and supporting over 220 schools across India

Medak, 21st March 2013 : Having impacted the lives of over 385,000 children in 2012, P&G’s signature CSR program P&G Shiksha is back this year, steaming forward with the motto ‘Padegha India, Badhega India’. On the occasion of P&G Shiksha Diwas, the talented actress Sameera Reddy drew considerable interest in her endeavour to motivate and teach the children at P&G Shiksha School in Hyderabad. On the occasion, the actress turned teacher used several fun tactics to involve the children in active learning. Reddy engaged her students in a rapid fire round, to pique their interest in a range of subjects such as History, Geography, Science and General Knowledge.

The actress also shared her vision of empowering underprivileged children with access to education, and together with P&G urged consumers to join the program’s drive by purchasing P&G products such as Tide, Pantene, Olay, Ariel, Pampers, Duracell, Head and Shoulders, Vicks, Whisper, Gillette Mach 3 and Oral B. These purchases enable the company to channelize part of the sales proceeds towards education for underprivileged children.

P&G Shiksha aims to build more schools in 2013 to increasingly focus on providing the right education infrastructure in India. While India’s literacy rate stands at 74.04%[1] in 2012, the country is staggering behind the global average of 84%[2] literacy. Alarming studies like the 2012 Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) compiled by Pratham, Non Governmental Organization working towards education to the underprivileged children in India, also revealed that more than half of all children in Std. V are at least three grade levels behind the ideal goal.

Even more alarming is the fact that though enrollment in the 6-14 age group continues to be high, the proportion of out of school children has increased - especially among girls in the age group of 11 to 14[3]. These shocking facts propel P&G Shiksha in its 9th year to come back with an even stronger commitment - to empower and provide underprivileged children with access to education.

At the P&G Shiksha Diwas, a firm P&G Shiksha supporter Sameera Reddy said, “This is my first year associating with P&G’s Shiksha, and I am glad to be a part of it, because I strongly feel that education is a basic right to be provided to all children. It is heartening to see a P&G Shiksha school at such close quarters. It has helped me witness how a movement like P&G Shiksha facilitates education for underprivileged children, by empowering its consumers to contribute towards the cause through the purchase of P&G products. I am also delighted to hear that P&G Shiksha not only empowers underprivileged children with access to education, but also provides mid-day meals and better sanitation facilities that have helped to bring down the dropout rate at these schools. It is a proud moment for me, to be associated with such a noble cause. Today, at the P&G Shiksha School, not only did I discover a teacher in me, but also had a lot of fun teaching the kids who are the future of India.”

P&G Shiksha has been successful in impacting 385,000 children thus far, in association with leading NGOs - Round Table India (RTI), Save the Children (STC) and Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA) amongst others. NGO Round Table India spearheads the identification, establishment, completion and maintenance of RTI Shiksha School projects in the country as a joint partner bringing onboard expertise in building schools as well as contribution towards funds.

P&G Shiksha has over the years received generous support from many thought leaders and celebrities such as Anupam Kher, Dr. Kiran Bedi, Rani Mukherjee, John Abraham, Abhay Deol, Sushmita Sen, Kareena Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan, Sharmila Tagore, Konkona Sen, Neha Dhupia, Soha Ali Khan, Lara Dutta, Preity Zinta, Jacqueline Fernandez, Jatin Das, Shaan and many more.

P&G Shiksha also allows consumers to share in their support. This can be easily done by buying any P&G Product such as Tide, Ariel, Pantene, Olay, H&S, Vicks, Whisper, Gillette, Oral B, Duracell or Pampers in a particular quarter , and part of the proceeds will go towards children’s education.

With a motto of ‘Padhega India, Badhega India’ - P&G Shiksha believes that the secret to a brighter India lies in the quality of education of our children.

About P&G Shiksha: P&G Shiksha is an integral part of P&G's global philanthropy program. Launched in 2004, P&G Shiksha has grown immensely, with the help of strong support from consumers. This year, through P&G Shiksha, the company aims to build more than 220 schools across the nation to give more children the invaluable gift of education with a focus to build more schools in the years to come.