NDTV raises over 7 crores for Sachin's Support My School

To create basic infrastructure in 142 government schools across the country

September 21, 2011:

The NDTV Coca Cola 'Support My School' Campaign saw a tremendous response as people from all walks of life joined in to create awareness and raise funds for the improvement of basic infrastructure across government schools in India. Students, professionals, NGOs, corporate and numerous celebrities joined Sachin Tendulkar in the 12 Hour LIVE Telethon telecasted across the NDTV Network Channels on Sunday, September 18, 2011 generating over Rs 7 Crores which will be utilized to give Indian children a better tomorrow.

With the funds generated through the 'Support my School'  Telethon, NDTV and Coca Cola along with CAF & UN-Habitat will reach out to transform over 142 school across the length and breadth of the county providing Sanitation, Sports  and Recreation Facilities and improvement in their overall infrastructure and environment.

Delighted with the tremendous response received for the initiative, Dr.  Prannoy Roy, Chairperson  NDTV Group said, “65 years after Independence we still haven't been able to provide separate toilets for girl students in most government schools. As a next step, we now pledge to visit each Chief Minister, to urge them to provide in their next budgets Rs. 50 crore to Rs.100 crore for creating basic infrastructure in government schools.”

Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar, who spent almost nine hours on the show giving valuable tips to batches of Mumbai school students and repeatedly appealing for donations, made a personal contribution of Rs.10 Lakh on behalf of his children Arjun and Sara.

Supporting Sachin's pledge the Coca Cola-UNHABITAT together donated Rs.1.35 crore, while Nita Ambani on behalf of the Reliance Foundation contributed Rs.1 crore making the campaign a huge success. Additionally, American school children also donated 13.48 Lakhs through H2O for Life.

Bollywood celebrities such as Sanjay Dutt, Govinda, Imran Khan, Boman Irani, Darsheel Safary, Gulshan Kumar, Neha Dhupia, Dia Mirza, Raageshwari, along with the campaign ambassador Sachin Tendulkar took centre-stage to reach out to millions of viewers to generate maximum funds for the cause.

The 12-hour long telethon, featuring stories from rural India, innovative formats, a special Coke Studio edition and scintillating performances was telecasted Live on all NDTV of channels from 9am to 9pm. As part of the Telethon, Nita Ambani, Boman Irani and Govinda visited a few Government schools in Mumbai, where the children not only learnt something new, but also showcased their dancing talents. The Telethon also witnessed an hour long Walkathon by over 100 school children in Kochi in support of the cause. Sachin Tendulkar also hosted 'Sachin ki Paathshaala' cricketing sessions where he interacted with young cricketers across the country via satellite. An 'All About Sachin' quiz was also undertaken where 4 schools participated. Each school team also included Sanjay Dutt, Dia Mirza, Raageshwari and Vikram Chandra with Boman Irani and NDTV's Sonali Chander hosting the quiz.

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