Malkangiri is a small naxal affected district in Odisha that is only known for its backward state. WIth help from “Bada Didi”, a young female volunteer led movement to increase the awareness about menstrual hygiene and security in Malkangiri district, Jayanti and a group of girls in the town have been trying to bring awareness to multiple issues like child marriage, lack of education systems etc. They have started a small library in Malkangiri to encourage reading and develop education awareness for the kids in the nearby villages. Apart from managing the library space, they have also started conducting tuitions for the kids in the village. This has brought much needed awareness to the community who have started contributing to the book collections. With this initiative they aim to educate and empower the youth of the town, especially the girls who don't have a platform to grow.

An attempt at eradicating the stigma around menstruation with the help of red color. They begin their journey with playful rangolis(colorful art on floor) and try to reach the girls living in nearby villages.

Educating girls about the various opportunities around the world, making them understand life beyond the village. A major driving force of the support group is to make the girls ask questions about what they want to do in life, what they want to achieve, what they can do to make those dreams happen. Many girls still don't know what they are capable of and with this initiative they hope to introduce them to various things.

Some of the girls had the opportunity to go out and get educated and explore other options. But many girls in the village are still very unaware and don't know the value of education. They try to reach remote parts of the district and connect with these young girls and try to understand the restrictions and problems faced by these girls. They spend time with them to try and come up with solutions.

They started this initiative to bring hope and meaning to the lives of the girls in the district, to bring about a change in the norms. It is a step towards a brighter future for the girls who have been made to believe there is no future. So far, they have crossed many hurdles and obstacles to reach the point they are at but that has only fortified their vision to do the right thing.

After facing a lot of backlash from the people in the village, they have taken all decisions independently and come so far. No matter what obstacles they face, they also find a way to overcome them and they hope to continue to do so.

Their biggest hope is to educate the girls and make them aware of the opportunities outside the district. They want to change the existing system of patriarchal society and give voices to the girls.

When they discovered that it was not easy to set up a library in all parts and it was difficult to get everyone to visit, they started setting up remote libraries on the side of the road so everyone passing by could drop in.

The aim of the library is to encourage reading and develop education awareness for the kids in the nearby villages. This has inspired more girls to join this movement.

They have also started a tiny library on the side of the road which caters to all ages groups. The library attracts kids of the village to read children’s stories.

The library on the side of the road caters to all ages groups to read books in regional languages. The library houses academic books, a selection of novels, poems etc.

They have a collection of autobiographies of freedom fighters and philosophers through which they hope to inspire the people of the town to take steps towards development and progress.

Kids from the village drop in during nightfall to catch up on bed time stories. The library on the side of the road is mostly open round the clock so anyone who wants to read can visit at convenience.

Library on the road that is open to everyone during the day. Little kids from the local slums come to visit the library on the way to the tuition to read books on freedom fighters and philosophers like Mahatma Gandhi, Vivekananda among others.

The road side library also attracts women from the village who come shopping at the nearby market. They visit to browse books for children and also for books on recipes and women’s magazines. They also sometimes take the books home and return it.

Many students from the college started visiting the library during the lockdown. They continue to come read books that are not available in the college library and quite enjoy the collections in this space.

People who have migrated to nearby towns come to visit the library after hearing about it.

Women from the village heard about the collection of old novels they read during their childhood come over to check out the collection. They discover many Odia novels etc that are not available anymore.

A local fast food seller who set up shop nearby visits the library. The women in the town are eager to learn and pass by the library everyday to check out the books on poetry and old novels.

The library also attracts teachers from nearby schools. They are very appreciative of the initiative and guide them on the collection to store and the give suggestions on how to encourage kids to learn more.