From 50 children to 110 villages: How Yernagudem natives gift education to rural kids
Andhra Pradesh: “Education can become a burden when a family has limited resources,” says Paturi Namratha Siri, a Class 5 student from Yernagudem village in Andhra Pradesh.
Her story is familiar to Bethala Veera Swami, 58, who grew up in the same village. Born in 1968 to daily-wage agricultural labourers, Swami studied from Class 1 to 10 in the village, went to DNR College in Bhimavaram and later mechanical engineering at Osmania University, Hyderabad (1986-1990). He now works as a lead contracts engineer in Abu Dhabi.
In 2010, during a visit home, Swami and childhood friends discussed giving back through education. On January 13, 2011, they registered the Pragathi Association for Rural Development, later known as PARD INDIA.
The first programme launched in August 2011 at Government MPP Special School in Yernagudem, where Swami had studied, with 50 children from Classes 4 and 5.
The flagship initiative, After School Education Programme (ASEP), runs from 3.30 pm to 5.30 pm, six days a week, offering two hours of guided learning in Maths, English, Science, moral education and computer skills, plus reading, sports, drawing and debates. It addresses a gap where parents working as daily-wage labourers return late and cannot help with studies.
“Poverty remains the biggest barrier to education,” Swami said. “For families living on daily wages, education can feel like a luxury.”Other programmes followed. The Village Knowledge Centre Programme (VKCP) began in August 2012 after Swami contributed Rs 8 lakh to set up a centre with 15 computers. It has delivered 33,999 hours of IT training to 538 children.
The V-Kid Scholarship Programme (VKSP) launched in July 2014 supports orphans, children of single parents and economically disadvantaged families from Class 1 through graduation. The V-Kid Knowledge Boost Programme (VKKB) offers merit-based scholarships.
Vamisetti Ganesh from Devarapalli Mandal, whose parents are daily-wage workers, secured fifth place in the VKKB exam in 2017 and received Rs 800 annually for six years (Class 6 to 10). He is now pursuing graduation.
Yangala Uma Maheshwari from Gopalapuram, who lost both parents, said the organisation provided emotional and academic support beyond scholarship.
What began with 50 children has spread across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. As of March 31, 2026, PARD reports work in more than 110 villages, 116,841 direct beneficiaries, 90,494 V-Kids supported, and 492,567 lives touched through education, healthcare, nutrition and community empowerment. ASEP alone has provided 569,419 hours of free education to 3,165 children across 79 villages.
The non-profit now aims to reach 20,000 children across 150 villages by 2030 and provide more than eight million hours of free education, including STEM projects and AI-enabled literacy.
Namratha, who once struggled with subjects, now says she wants to become a district collector.
