We Aim To Bridge The Digital Gap And Empower Women: Newgen Software's Priyadarshini Nigam

In an interview with ResponsibleUs, Priyadarshini Nigam, Director and Head – CSR at Newgen Software, spoke about the company’s CSR initiatives, including NDDP, women empowerment, digital literacy, and more.

The NDDP program, under the CSR initiative, has digitally empowered over 3,800 government schoolgirls, with 2,500 of them receiving smart devices. How has this access to technology changed the students’ learning and confidence levels?
The Newgen Digital Discovery Paathshala (NDDP) is the flagship CSR initiative of Newgen CSR. The Digital literacy program aims to bridge the digital gap between students of the less-privileged class and the privileged class.

Thus, since the inception of NDDP, Newgen has adopted two government-run schools, with 3,800 students, in the vicinity of the company office, in Okhla, New Delhi.

Newgen has set up state-of-the-art computer labs in both schools. The NDDP facilitators use fun and interactive ways of teaching. Students are shown AVs and PPTs on various topics in their syllabus. Rote learning is discouraged. There are quizzes, debates, news reading and many other activities to engage the students. The purpose is to make the students interested in education and learn to use the devices for everyday studies, research and self-learning.

In addition, NDDP facilitators conduct online classes in the afternoons to improve the learning abilities of the students. 

Also, to enable students to attend online sessions, Newgen CSR, till date, has digitally empowered 2500+ students by providing them with tablets/smartphones along with regularly recharged SIMs.

Access to technology opens up the dimensions for the less privileged students by acting as a tool to utilise the digital medium for education. The student beneficiaries with the device no longer remain confined to the school curriculum. They are excited to explore the online medium and gauge understanding of various topics.

Every year, our feedback mechanism has captured improved classroom participation and academic performance of the students. Their curiosity and thirst for knowledge have pushed them towards self-learning. The NDDP students now regularly use Google, YouTube Kids, etc. to understand curriculum topics. The improved awareness and information on varied contemporary topics and world scenarios have led to improved confidence among the beneficiaries.

Your narrative often goes ‘beyond business’, toward a digitally inclusive India. Looking ahead, what is your vision for unlocking the full power of CSR in education, nutrition, women’s empowerment, and digital access?
The various programs of Newgen CSR are structured to fulfil the aim of bridging the digital gap, providing nutrition, empowering women and reaching the remotest corners of the country with our implementation partners. All our programs are highly customised and tailored as per the needs of the beneficiaries. The core vision of the digital education program- NDDP is to create a level playing field for the less privileged students and help them be at par with their contemporaries. Therefore, having experienced success with the digital literacy program for students, today we are confidently working with their mothers. A summer workshop that began to make the mothers digitally literate has culminated, in the last two years, as a full-fledged program to empower women. A skill development centre has been set up to make them financially independent. Mental-health sessions again were the need of the hour. Today, we have a holistic program for the women, where the beneficiaries are dreaming and looking forward to a better life and self-worth.

At present, the CSR programs through implementation partners are reaching over 1 lakh beneficiaries for computer and digital literacy.

Newgen has been transporting the hot, nutritious mid-day meals for children in rural areas since 2018, through its partnership with The Akshaya Patra Foundation. In the fiscal year 24-25, more than 1.7 million mid-day meals were served to 12,000 students of Baran and Nathdwara in Rajasthan, Nellore and Mangalgiri in Andhra Pradesh, and Lucknow, Vrindavan, Mant, Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, and Puducherry.

Over time, apart from nutrition, some other major positive impacts have been observed:

• School Attendance: The daily attendance has increased in a solid manner. Offering nutritious meals has become a valid incentive for students to go to school on a regular basis, especially those children from poor homes.

• Student Retention: This program has positively influenced a considerable decrease in dropouts. More students are making it through the courses now with the assurance of one good meal a day, and hence, retention levels from class to class have also increased.

• Learning Outcomes: Better nutrition means enhanced concentration and energy as well as active engagement in the classroom. Teachers have reported increased focus and participation of students and academic performance, indicating a positive shift in overall learning outcomes.

Overall, the mid-day meal initiative has not only addressed hunger but has also become a powerful enabler of education, helping bridge social and economic barriers to learning. The program particularly benefits low-income families (75% earn below ₹20,000 monthly), where the mid-day meal serves as a crucial incentive for school attendance and helps bridge educational gaps where parental involvement might be limited due to economic constraints.

Through your remedial and holistic education programs, more than 10,000 students have been supported. How does this deeper educational support translate into long-term student outcomes?
The CSR partnerships for remedial, holistic and digital education are very strategic. We have KHUSHII and KK academy as our partners who have been implementing the projects in the interiors of different regions, benefiting over 10,000 students. The Delhi-supported schools under KHUSHII are the MCD feeder schools for the CSR’s NDDP Program. KHUSHII has also helped us reach the remote areas of Ramgarh, Uttarakhand. KK Academy has been implementing a holistic education program for the students in Lucknow.

These programs are reshaping the trajectories by ensuring children stay in an institution (school), learn better in a conducive environment, grow with confidence and step into adulthood with the skills to thrive. These efforts will enable the students to bridge foundational learning gaps, effectively enhancing their comprehension and knowledge retention. Also, ensures academic excellence and equips students with essential 21st-century skills. Below are some of the long-term outcomes of the program that will make them future-ready.

•   Better preparedness for secondary and higher education

•   Greater ability to compete in scholarships, vocational, and technical training opportunities

•   Increased parental engagement, they become co-partners in their academic journey

•  Higher grade-level retention and reduced dropouts

•   Inclusion of STEM and Digital literacy motivates them to pursue STEM-based careers

•   Higher confidence in decision-making and self-expression

•   Mental well-being sessions developed emotional intelligence and healthy social relationships

•   Reduced risk of dropouts due to psychosocial issues

•   Healthier lifestyle choices from life skills, personality development and mental wellbeing support

Your recent skill centre in Okhla focuses on vocational and digital education for mothers. What shifts have you noticed in their personal growth and community involvement?
The Skill Development Centre not only provides vocational training but has helped mothers to build their digital abilities, behavioural aspects to manage mental wellbeing and improve their financial skills. We are in the initial years of our women empowerment program, and till date we have witnessed many beautiful journeys with the women beneficiaries. The major progress noticed is briefed below:

•  Better time management by utilising free hours of the day to learn a skill and develop a source of earning.

•   A feeling of healthy competition and understanding the importance of positive feedback has helped them improve the quality of the handcrafted products.

•   Meditation, tapping, and breathing have helped them channel and balance their emotions.

•   Improved confidence as they realised their strengths and skills and understood the applicability of the same.

•   Women are also propagating the significance of joining the centre. The mobilisation in the community for the second batch of women has been done mostly through word-of-mouth and encouragement by the existing trainee women.

•   Positive outlook towards the importance of education for their children, especially girls.

What strategies are you adopting to nurture women leaders internally?
Women leaders tend to be naturally empathetic. Newgen has an inclusive approach and to build and nurture women leaders, there are mentorship programs where senior leaders guide the potential leaders. There are online training programs which help the employee learn in a self-paced manner and improve soft skills such as critical thinking, decision making, people management, organisational and negotiation abilities, etc.

The work policies are also adaptable to help women balance their careers at different stages of personal life, like motherhood, caregiver, etc.

The hiring process is transparent and free from bias as well. Recruitments and performance evaluations are done clearly based on performance.

All these create a conducive environment to nurture young women employees into future leaders.

During CSR Week, Newgen employees volunteer in activities like STEM workshops and career sessions. How do these interactions benefit both the students and your employees?
The engagement between the Newgen employees and students has a substantial two-way impact. The encouragement and knowledge sharing by the employees during the various CSR events help the students. For instance, the interaction during the career mentoring sessions provides hands-on experience and vivid information from a professional in a particular sector. The feedback shared by the employees acts as a source of productive direction, information and encouragement.

On the other hand, for the employees, volunteering with the beneficiaries is an act of giving back, which adds a purpose to the engagement and makes it more meaningful for them. Additionally, connecting with the CSR programs helps the employees to get clarity about the company’s social contributions.

Your CSR programs span zero hunger, quality education, and gender equality. How do you align multiple initiatives to drive holistic outcomes for communities?
Newgen CSR’s team directly implements its flagship program on digital education and women empowerment for the communities around the office in the Delhi Okhla location. As accessibility is not a challenge here, complete program management is taken care of by the CSR team.

However, Newgen has always been keen to reach out to the interiors of the country and scale up to benefit larger numbers of beneficiaries. We have been working with established non-profits that include The Akshaya Patra Foundation, KHUSHII, KK Academy, Computer Shiksha, IAm Well-being and Each One Feed One, who support as implementation partners for the various programs on nutrition, holistic education, computer literacy, mental well-being, and skill training. Formalised programs with partner organisations help Newgen achieve quality outcomes even in the remotest zones. In the FY 24-25, we have reached 1.5lac+ beneficiaries through the various programs.

Newgen stresses that CSR isn’t about charity but about empowerment—building systems that enable people to thrive independently. Could you share how this principle drives the way you design and measure impact?
The CSR initiatives around student education, nutrition and women empowerment channel the budget through meticulous planning so that it benefits the community. Sustainable activities like imbibing habits of self-learning, creating awareness, and guiding beneficiaries to explore and find answers to their curiosities are implemented. Women of the skill development centre are also being trained on entrepreneurship so that they can build a source of income for themselves.

The impact or outcome of the CSR projects relies on the type of program. Quantitative approach is used to measure the tangible outcomes, and the qualitative approach suits better to capture the changes and growth among the target group. Inclusion of stakeholders like the students and the women is an important aspect which supports in designing the program further as well as gauging the impact.

When employees volunteer in your CSR initiatives, they often describe it as ‘reverse learning’. What lessons do they bring back—about resilience, optimism, and purpose—that strengthen the culture of responsibility within Newgen?
Reverse learning is an experience that helps the volunteer program of Newgen CSR. During any activity, the involvement of volunteers acts as a source of positive feedback, encouragement and learning for the beneficiaries. But it also has an added advantage for the employee volunteer.

Through volunteering, an employee gets the opportunity to understand the company’s social inclination and outlook on the various societal challenges and solutions that the company is offering. Witnessing the role of the company through a formal set-up of CSR imbibes confidence in employees, aligns them better with the organisation’s values and gives a sense of pride. Further, the interaction with the beneficiaries also gives the volunteer a boost of self-confidence. They return to their daily work life with a feel-good factor and stories that help them understand how to be resilient during challenging situations.

Many find their purpose in volunteering and take it up on a regular basis, not only within the company but around their community as well.

These learnings and experiences make volunteering an enriching activity.