Child Rights and You
Indian nongovernmental organization focused on advancing children's rights through community programs, institutional partnerships, and public-policy advocacy.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Child Rights and You, commonly known as CRY, is an Indian nongovernmental organization working to improve the rights, welfare, and life chances of children. Founded in 1979 by Rippan Kapur, an Air India purser, the organization initially operated under the name Child Relief and You and was conceived as a means of supporting local groups working for children's welfare. Rather than concentrating only on direct relief, CRY developed a model based on providing partner organizations with funding, technical assistance, and organizational support. Over time, CRY moved from a primarily welfare-oriented approach toward a broader child-rights framework. Its work addresses four linked areas: education and children's right to development; health and nutrition and the right to survival; safety and protection from abuse, exploitation, child marriage, and child labour; and child participation, including the right of children to express their views and take part in decisions affecting them. The organization works with parents, teachers, Anganwadi workers, community groups, children, local nongovernmental organizations, and district and state authorities. This combination of grassroots implementation and policy advocacy is intended to change both local practices and the systems that shape children's lives. CRY has worked with local NGO partners across Indian states and has reported reaching millions of children through its programs. Its intervention model typically involves strengthening community institutions, improving access to schooling and public services, supporting child-protection mechanisms, encouraging birth registration and documentation, addressing malnutrition, and helping communities identify and respond to risks faced by children. The organization also uses public campaigns to bring issues such as child labour, gender discrimination, child marriage, menstrual health, education, and children's mental health into wider public discussion. A significant part of CRY's advocacy history is its participation in the Voice of India campaign through the National Alliance for the Fundamental Right to Education. The campaign sought a constitutional guarantee of free and compulsory education for children and contributed to the policy environment that preceded India's Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. CRY has also participated in international and national child-rights networks, including Girls Not Brides and the National Action and Coordination Group for Ending Violence Against Children. The organization has maintained a public-facing communications and fundraising presence through campaigns such as #YellowFellow, #LearnNotEarn, #ItsAGirlThing, #NotYet, and #PooriPadhaiDeshKiBhalai. Some campaigns were developed with corporate or brand partners, including a 2021 initiative with The Body Shop India concerning menstruation, menstrual stigma, and education. During and after the COVID-19 period, CRY highlighted the effects of school disruption, poverty, isolation, and trauma on children, as well as the importance of mental-health support. CRY's present identity is therefore that of a child-rights organization combining partnership-based development work with public education and policy advocacy. It is not a conventional commercial product brand: its principal offerings are programs, research, campaigns, technical support, and opportunities for public participation and donation. Publicly available material identifies its founder and broad areas of work, but does not establish a complete current executive roster, headquarters address, or corporate ownership structure.
History
Child Rights and You was established in India in 1979 by Rippan Kapur, an Air India purser who sought to create a practical mechanism for improving children's welfare. The organization was originally called Child Relief and You. Its early model emphasized support for local voluntary organizations rather than building a large centralized service-delivery structure. CRY supplied partner groups with financial resources and technical assistance so that they could address children's needs within their own communities. This partnership model allowed CRY to work across different social, linguistic, religious, and caste contexts. Its activities gradually expanded beyond relief and welfare toward a rights-based understanding of childhood. In this framework, children are entitled not only to immediate assistance but also to education, health, protection from exploitation and violence, and meaningful participation in decisions affecting them. Kapur died in 1994, but the organization continued to develop its network and advocacy role. CRY's program architecture came to focus on four principal areas. Education corresponds to the right to development and includes access to school and efforts to reduce exclusion and dropout. Health and nutrition correspond to the right to survival and include work against undernutrition and barriers to health services. Safety and protection address child labour, child marriage, abuse, exploitation, and other threats. Child participation recognizes children's agency and their ability to contribute to community and institutional decisions. The organization works through relationships with parents, teachers, Anganwadi workers, community groups, children, local NGOs, and public authorities at district and state levels. This gives CRY both an implementation role and an advocacy role. At community level, it supports changes in behavior and local institutions; at system level, it promotes stronger public investment, better services, and legal or administrative measures that prioritize children. One of CRY's notable advocacy efforts was its participation in the Voice of India campaign as part of the National Alliance for the Fundamental Right to Education. The campaign called for free and compulsory education to be recognized as a constitutional right. CRY's contribution formed part of the wider civil-society pressure that helped create the context for India's Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, enacted in 2009. CRY has also participated in child-rights forums and networks concerned with child marriage and violence against children, including Girls Not Brides and the National Action and Coordination Group for Ending Violence Against Children. Its public campaigns have addressed child labour, girls' education, gender stereotypes, child marriage, menstrual health, and the social importance of a happy childhood. In 2020 and 2021, it drew attention to the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on children's education, mental health, and exposure to vulnerability. In July 2020, CRY launched a Bal Sanrakshan Samiti handbook in Mumbai. The publication was designed as a practical guide for the functioning of child-protection committees at village and ward levels, reflecting the organization's focus on strengthening local protection systems. CRY remains an active Indian child-rights NGO working through local partners and public advocacy. Available reference material reports work with 102 local NGOs across 19 states and impact reaching millions of children, although current program figures and organizational leadership should be verified against the organization's latest official disclosures.
- 2021
Girls' secondary education campaign
[1]The #PooriPadhaiDeshKiBhalai campaign promoted completion of secondary education by girls and explained its social and economic importance.
- 2020
Bal Sanrakshan Samiti handbook launched
[1]CRY introduced a practical handbook for village- and ward-level child-protection committees in Mumbai.
- 2019
Girls' rights and child-marriage campaigns
[1]CRY ran #ItsAGirlThing to challenge stereotypes affecting girls and #NotYet to raise awareness of child marriage.
- 2018
#YellowFellow campaign launched
[1]CRY launched a public-awareness campaign encouraging people to wear or display yellow socks as a symbol of support for children's right to a happy childhood.
- 2018
#LearnNotEarn campaign
[1]The campaign used World Day Against Child Labour to encourage support for schooling rather than child labour.
- 2009
Right to education legislation enacted
[1]CRY's participation in the Voice of India campaign contributed to the civil-society advocacy environment surrounding India's Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act.
- 1994
Death of founder Rippan Kapur
[1]Rippan Kapur died, after which CRY continued its development as a child-welfare and child-rights organization.
- 1979
Organization founded
[1]Rippan Kapur established Child Relief and You, later known as Child Rights and You, to support children's welfare and local organizations working with children.
Products and positioning
CRY positions itself as an Indian child-rights organization that combines grassroots work with systemic advocacy. Its approach emphasizes partnerships with local NGOs and communities, while also seeking changes in public policy, institutional behavior, and social attitudes.
Nonprofit development program
Community child-rights programs
CRY works with local NGO partners and communities to improve children's access to education, health and nutrition, protection, and participation. Activities may include mobilizing parents and community groups, strengthening local institutions, supporting access to public services, and helping identify children exposed to exclusion, labour, early marriage, or other risks.
Publication and training resource · 2020
Child-protection committee handbook
The Bal Sanrakshan Samiti handbook is a practical resource intended to explain how child-protection committees should function at village and ward levels. It reflects CRY's emphasis on building local systems capable of identifying protection concerns and coordinating responses.
Marketing campaigns
- 2021#PooriPadhaiDeshKiBhalai
India
A national campaign promoting completion of secondary education by girls and explaining the benefits of girls' education for families, communities, and the wider economy.
Outcome. Advocated continued schooling for girls and greater public recognition of its long-term value.
- 2021The Body Shop India partnership
India
A campaign supported by The Body Shop India addressing menstruation, menstrual stigma, menstrual health, and education for girls and women.
Outcome. Expanded public discussion of menstrual health and the effects of shame and inadequate information.
- 2020#NotYet
India
An International Women's Day campaign focused on child marriage and encouraged resistance to marriage before girls are ready and legally eligible.
Outcome. Raised awareness of child-marriage risks and the need to protect girls' education and childhood.
- 2019#ItsAGirlThing
India
A National Girl Child Day campaign intended to challenge stereotypes and restrictive assumptions associated with girls.
Outcome. Used public communication to promote more positive and equal perceptions of girls.
- 2018#YellowFellow
India
A public-awareness campaign for children's right to a happy childhood. Participants were encouraged to wear yellow socks or incorporate them into creative photographs and social posts.
Outcome. Reference material reports that the campaign reached approximately 17 million people in India.
- 2018#LearnNotEarn
India
Run around World Day Against Child Labour, the campaign urged citizens to support children's education and oppose situations in which children must work instead of attend school.
Outcome. Raised public awareness of child labour and the importance of schooling.
Brand decisions
1979
Adopted a partner-based support modelStrategyBackground
The organization was created to support local groups working for children's welfare in India.
Action taken
CRY provided local NGOs with funding and technical assistance rather than relying solely on centralized direct service delivery.
Aftermath
This approach became a foundation for CRY's later grassroots and systems-advocacy work.
- Shift from welfare relief to child-rights advocacyStrategy
Background
CRY developed beyond its original welfare-relief orientation as debates about children's legal, social, and developmental rights expanded.
Action taken
The organization combined community programs with public-policy advocacy and campaigns on education, health, protection, and participation.
Aftermath
CRY became identified with a rights-based, partnership-led model of child development.
Recent events
- 2021
CRY highlights children's mental health during the COVID-19 period[1]
Campaign · Other
The organization drew public attention to the psychological effects of the pandemic on children, including disruption, stress, and trauma, alongside wider concerns about education and access to care.
CRY participates in advocacy for a constitutional right to education[1]
Regulation · Other
Through the Voice of India campaign and the National Alliance for the Fundamental Right to Education, CRY advocated free and compulsory education for children. This work formed part of the broader policy movement associated with India's Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009.
Sources4 sources
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