Ashok Leyland’s Road to School (RTS) initiative has continued to expand steadily over the past year. Leyland’s RTS received the Chairperson’s Award 2024 at the businessline Changemaker Awards last year. At that time, RTS was active in five States benefiting 2,400 schools and over 2.3 lakh students. Today, the programme has scaled to eight States, with new inroads in Jharkhand, Rajasthan, and Meghalaya. To date, RTS has reached 3,000-plus schools and more than 4.8 lakh students and continues to showcase improvement in literacy and numeracy levels by 20-30 per cent, marking clear progress towards the long-term goal of reaching one million children by 2030.
The growth of RTS has been complemented by the Road to Livelihood (RTL) programme, which extends support to over 200 high and higher secondary schools. In AY 2024–25, while the RTS programme worked for the holistic development of primary and middle school children, the RTL programme delivered structured interventions that have become critical to adolescents’ education and career pathways. This included psychometric assessments for grades 10 and 12 students followed by one-on-one counselling sessions, helping them make informed decisions about higher education and vocational opportunities. Career Guidance melas brought together alumni, industry professionals, educators, and community members, giving students valuable exposure at a decisive stage in their lives.
Alongside this, students were trained in digital literacy. They participated in adolescent well-being sessions on menstrual hygiene and substance abuse conducted by volunteer medical experts. To strengthen communication skills, Spoken English sessions were introduced in partnership with The Hindu’s STEP programme. Eighty-five per cent of Grade 12 students in Tamil Nadu have pursued higher education of their choice after receiving career mentoring. This stands against India’s national Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education at 28.4 per cent (AISHE 2021–22) and Tamil Nadu’s GER at 47 per cent. Among Grade 12 students pursuing higher education, 57 per cent have chosen Science, 26 per cent Commerce, and 17 per cent Arts.
Ashok Leyland’s focus on holistic development extended beyond classrooms, shaping stronger families and communities. In collaboration with local governance bodies and organisations working in the communities, nutrition support reached women and malnourished children, children were brought back to school and youth trained for livelihoods. Around 838 women accessed skilling programmes, paving way for financial independence. Also, 35 villages achieved open-defecation-free status, 220 households-built toilets, and community forests were nurtured.
More than 214 regular medical and 73 eye camps brought healthcare closer to people, while enrolment drives led to 39,223 community members access vital government schemes. These multi-layered efforts disrupted the norm — going beyond school-based learning to build community resilience and capacity.
Together, RTS, RTL, and the social development interventions represent an integrated pathway - ensuring children enter school, continue learning, transition into higher education or work, and are supported by healthier, more resilient communities. Looking ahead, the programmes will continue to prioritise underserved schools and communities that require sustained support. The focus remains clear: to steadily expand access, deepen impact, and move closer to the milestone of reaching one million children by 2030, says the company.
Published on September 21, 2025