Taiwan donates Rs 30 lakh to Indian child-help NGO

In a repeat of a special gesture that Taiwan initiated in 2015, the East Asian nation on Friday donated Rs 29.79 lakh to Indian Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi's child help NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA).

Special Representative of Taipei Economic and Cultural Centre in India (TECC) Tien Chung-kwang handed over the cheque to Sumedha Kailash of BBA at a special ceremony here.

Satyarthi was also present at Friday's ceremony.

The latest donation, equivalent to around $42,350, is the third from Taiwan to BBA in recent years.

During Kailash Satyarthi's first visit to Taiwan in 2015, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced a $50,000 donation to BBA.

The second donation of $45,000 was provided in 2016 and had been fully executed in the first half of the year.

Tien said the nearly Rs 30-lakh from Taiwan will be used for purchasing food and clothes, providing medical and transport support, and covering cost of informal education, sports and entertainment activities for the children staying in the Ashram in the coming months.

"Around 150 children are expected to benefit directly from the funds," a TECC statement stated.

On his part, Satyarthi thanked Taiwan for its generous assistance and said Taiwan is a sincere and long-term friend of BBA.

Satyarthi, together with Malala Yousafzai from Pakistan, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014.

According to BBA, more than 1,500 Taiwanese youths visited India to serve in Mukti Ashram (Delhi) and Bal Ashram (Rajasthan) over the last five years.

Tien said Taiwan, as a free democracy, has one of the most vigorous civil societies in the world.

"Under the (Taiwan) government's New Southbound Policy, Taiwan seeks to deepen its relationship with India in not only businesses and technology, but also culture, education, NGOs and people-to-people contacts," the TECC statement said.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen's New Southbound Policy (NSP) looks to deepen the East Asian nation's relationships with South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand.

--IANS

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