From The Beginning
ETASHA, short for Enabling and Training Adolescents for a Successful and Healthy Adulthood, is a Non-Government Organization established in January 2006 by Dr. Meenakshi Nayar. The Society was established to provide job-linked training and placement to youth from low-resource communities. Dr. Nayar’s inspiration to start ETASHA came from a career guidance workshop she conducted in a resettlement colony in Delhi, where she recognized the immense potential of these young people. However, she also saw the challenges they faced, including limited training opportunities and financial constraints, which prevented them from accessing organized-sector jobs.
Drawing on her experience in Human Resource Management in the corporate sector, Dr. Nayar understood the importance of soft skills in the job market, which these youth lacked. This led her to establish ETASHA with the purpose of bridging the gap between resource-poor youth and the organized sector, connecting them for mutual benefit.
Since its inception, ETASHA has expanded its focus from youth to working with adolescents, older women and since 2019 to focusing on the entire community. This is based on our experience and learning that sustained employment in the formal sector requires a major shift in the mind-set of the young person, which can only be sustained with support from parents as well as all other influencers in the community. So, the mind-set of the community needs to change and targeted interventions need to be undertaken for the purpose.
Over the years, we have also expanded our reach to several communities within Delhi as well as peri-urban and rural communities in Haryana. Today, our programs have reached over 100 villages in Haryana alone. Our programs and offerings have also multiplied. They include career guidance for adolescents, women entrepreneurship, digital literacy for men and women, job-linked placement programs for a range of jobs for youth, entrepreneurship opportunities to youth, as well as capacity building for other development sector organizations. All our programs focus on both technical and personal development skills, aiming to empower individuals to become self-sufficient to lead dignified, productive lives.
Explore ETASHA’s milestones and discover our impactful journey of making a difference in the lives of those we serve.
Empowering India
since 2006
2004
- Operations commenced with Project Ummeed, supported by Aparna Society at their Centre in Molarband. ETASHA implemented a 3-month-long program called "Customer Service and Work Culture" (CSWC) with a focus on placing individuals in the retail sector.
2006
- ETASHA formally registered as a Society under the Society Registration Act.
- First Career Development Centre (CDC) set up in Madanpur Khadar.
2008
- Project Lakshya, a 2-year project supported by Tech Mahindra Foundation, implemented in Madanpur Khadar and NOIDA.
2009
- Collaborated with EduServe Consultants to reorient Career Guidance material for underserved communities, adding careers with short education and training periods. ETASHA also translated the content and process to address Hindi speaking individuals.
2010
- Implemented Project Aakar sponsored by the UNODC to provide career guidance in specialized institutions in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh.
- Second Career Development Centre started in Tigri, South Delhi.
- Project Vayu, an intervention in Government-run Industrial Training Institutes, completed in ITI, Gurgaon.
2011
- The UN ‘International Year of Youth’ was truly a fitting year in which many organizations including Barclays Shared Services, Tata Capital, Nippon Paint, Accenture, All People Be Happy, and Asha for Education sponsored job-linked training programs for youth.
- Rinox Kaufmann supported the design and development of a new website, expanding ETASHA's reach.
2012
- ETASHA won an award for best use of ICT by an NGO working in Sustainable Development in South East Asia.
2014
- Received an unexpected award of Rs. 25 Lakhs from Mr. Kumar Mangalam and Mrs. Neerja Birla in celebration of their 25th Wedding Anniversary to support Skill Development for Employment program.
2015
- Efforts to promote girls' enrollment in job-linked training and employment yielded exceptional results, with the percentage of girls enrolling increasing from an average of around 29% over the past five years to an impressive 58%.
2016
- Introduced the Ecosystem Approach in project implementation.
- Introduced programs for adolescents.
- Dr. Meenakshi Nayar recognized among the top 12 women transforming India by Niti Aayog.
2017
- Project Protsahan started in Janauli based on the ecosystem approach that recognizes the need for a change of mindset regarding work, career, and life for sustainable youth employment, involving parents, family, teachers, and community elders.
- Women Entrepreneurship Program launched in Mangolpuri with support from Sapient.
2018
- ETASHA awarded the 'Most Promising Program for Women Entrepreneurship' by CAUSEBECAUSE.
- Focused on deepening community engagement through a wide range of programs, including Career Melas, Skill Competitions, Certificate Ceremonies, Awareness Rallies, and Family Days. These initiatives were conducted in each of the three urban and one rural communities where they operated.
2019
- Project Spreading Wings, a 3-year project supported by the BT Group, launched in November. The Project was located in the peri-urban community of Pataudi and its neighbouring villages extending to cover Hailey Mandi, Farrukhnagar and around 120 villages.
2020
- Amidst the impact of COVID-19 starting in March 2020, ETASHA’s focus shifted to relief and rehabilitation efforts. Assisted over 200 families in earning a livelihood through mask-making activities, supported by IDFC First Bank. These masks were distributed to people within the community.
2021
- Received generous support from individuals to help rebuild after COVID-19.
2022
- Adapted to the changed world by rewriting SOPs, redesigning programs, and developing the CH App. The app provides low-cost, individualized access to systematic, bias-free career guidance for high school students in a digitized process.
- ETASHA awarded the 'Outstanding contribution to social consciousness' award by CSR world day.
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