13-year-old Gurugram school girl gets Rs 50 lakh for anti-bullying app

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<strong>She is all but 13 who has made her parents and school proud. Meet Anoushka Jolly who has received Rs.50 lakhs from Indian entrepreneurs for her app ‘Kavach’ – an anti-bullying app – that she pitched at reality show “India Shark Tank” as its youngest contestant.</strong></p>
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Class VIII student of Gurugram's Pathway School, Jolly’s mobile application allows students and parents to report incidents of bullying anonymously, giving an opportunity to schools and counsellors to tactfully intervene and take action.</p>
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The seed of her decision to make this app was sown five years back when she witnessed a fellow student being mocked during a school event. Talking to the media she recalled: "I was attending the school annual day when my friends decided to bully the six-year-old girl who they found annoying. They walked up to her and started calling her names and laughed at her. Soon, I realised how common the problem is and saw many other children of my age being victims of bullying and losing confidence,"</p>
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This triggered her to launch a social initiative to halt bullying while providing a platform for students and parents to report anonymously.</p>
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Speaking about the 'Anti Bullying Squad (ABS)' Jolly informed that she started it with assistance from educational institutions, social organisations and experts and it has helped more than 2,000 students from over 100 schools and universities.</p>
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"I have been running the ABS digital platform for over three years with an aim of spreading awareness about bullying which leaves many scarred and desolated. The platform acts as a community where specialists come together to organise one-on-one sessions in schools against bullying," she told the media.</p>
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Working on the platform she realised that a large number of these incidents go unreported. ”So I came up with an idea of creating a bullying reporting mobile app 'Kavach' to anonymously report incidents.”</p>