Thari Girls Bike to School

Thari Girls Bike to School

It is a curious sight in Malanhore, Tharparkar, where every morning girls in billowing chadors bicycle to school and enter the yard on their new transport.

Their teachers say it has increased punctuality and numbers of girls attending classes. While these girls had to face dry, hot desert winds, they now breeze in on bikes.

Although cycling is not a new phenomenon in this modern era. But in a village with ancient taboos like Tharparker, seeing girls participate in such activities is like a breath of fresh air.

The Thar Educational Alliance channeled the funds provided to them, to the girls to encourage them to attend schools.

Their teachers say that riding bicycles has not only boosted the self-confidence among the girls but has also encouraged cooperation among them.

District Tharparker desert in Sindh lacks many basic facilities, including significant challenges in education for girls. It has a literacy rate of 38%, with the rate for women barely reaching 20%.

Now, women’s rights activists hope that the girls will surmount social taboos and help usher change.