Aarav is five years and Ashish is four. They live with their parents and seven year old sister in a broken one room shanty pressed up against a railway track. Trains roar past day and night. Inside the home, there is little food, little care, and no sense of safety.
About a year ago, an Asha team member noticed the two boys wandering far from home, alone, asking strangers for food. They were dirty, hungry, and frightened. She brought them straight to the Asha centre, washed them, fed them, and held them as they ate. From that day, the centre became their refuge.
Every morning now, Aarav and Ashish wait outside the locked gate. Sometimes they arrive even before the centre opens. They sit quietly, watching the door, hoping someone will come. Their sister stays back at home. Many days, Asha team members bring food from their own homes so the boys have something to eat as soon as they arrive. Often, that is the first food they have had since the day before.
Home offers them little protection. Their father dropped out of school and struggles with alcoholism. He is often away for days and does not provide for the family. Their mother, Mamta, leaves early each morning to work long hours in a nearby junk factory and returns late at night. She is exhausted. There is no time or energy left to make sure the children are bathed, fed, or safe.
When Aarav and Ashish first came to Asha, their bodies told the story of neglect. Ashish weighed just ten kilos. Aarav weighed eleven. Both were far below what children their age should weigh. They were weak, tired, and frequently unwell.
When the Early Childhood Nutrition Programme began in the Mayapuri slum community a few months ago, Aarav and Ashish were the very first children enrolled. At the centre, they now receive a daily nutritious meal of porridge, boiled eggs, fruit, milk, and a traditional high protein Indian sweet. They eat with focus and joy, finishing every last bite. Their smiles come easily now.
Along with food, they receive regular health check ups, care, and a steady routine that brings calm to their days. Slowly, their energy has returned. Their bodies are growing stronger. They laugh more. They play. When they arrive dirty, the team bathes them, dresses them in clean clothes, and gives them the care and attention they rarely receive at home.
This work matters deeply because the first 1000 days of a child’s life, from conception to the age of two, and the early years that follow, shape everything that comes after. Nutrition during this window builds the brain, strengthens the immune system, and lays the foundation for learning, emotional security, and lifelong health. When children are deprived during these years, the damage is often permanent. When they are supported, the impact lasts a lifetime.
For Aarav and Ashish, this programme is not just about food. It is about safety. It is about being seen and held. It is the difference between being forgotten and being protected.
There are hundreds of children like Aarav and Ashish across Asha’s slum communities. Children growing up beside railway tracks, open drains, and unsafe homes. Children whose bodies and minds are at risk simply because no one has the means to care for them.
Through the Early Childhood Nutrition Programme, these children are being given what every child deserves. Nourishment. Protection. Stability. And a real chance to grow, feel secure, and begin life again with hope.
