Freepathshala — A Bridge to a Brighter Future

Freepathshala is a bridge school for children of construction workers, providing them with a free educational foundation that enables them to reach their full potential and progress towards leading meaningful, empowered lives. Founded in 2015 with just 28 students and one centre, Freepathshala now operates 10 + 1 centres and after-school support centre in Gurugram, reaching 550+ children each year, with over 300 students already transitioned into formal schools.

Since 2017, we’ve been a registered NGO with 12A & 80G certification, enabling tax-exempt donations. The founder, Roshan Rawat, is supported by the school principal and teachers, along with a team of advisors in the areas of finance, strategy, donor engagement and public relations.

Children learning at a Freepathshala park-based centre

The Need for Bridge Education

India experiences large-scale seasonal migration, with nearly 140 million rural poor moving to cities and industrial areas for work. In rapidly growing cities like Gurugram, many migrant children are excluded from the formal education system due to lack of access and stability.

While migrant families aspire to educate their children, systemic challenges—like frequent relocations (44%), lack of nearby schools (37%), child labour (15%), and caregiving responsibilities (14%)—often prevent them from doing so. This leads to a violation of the Right to Education (RTE) and leaves thousands of children vulnerable.

Freepathshala bridges this gap, bringing education closer to the construction workers’ children and helping them integrate into the formal schooling system.

Bring Education Closer to Every Child: Ensure that no child is excluded from learning due to lack of access by making education available right where they are.
Support Family Stability: Empower and assist families so children can continue their education without disruption caused by frequent relocation or financial hardship.
Facilitate Transition to Formal Schools: Help children move from bridge schools into the formal education system, and stay there, by providing academic and emotional support.
Build a Community-Driven Movement: Engage local residents, volunteers, and institutions to scale Freepathshala into a collective movement for inclusive education.

1 – “A Study on Access to Education by Children of Migrant Workers” – Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation (via Rural India Online)