India Library Project

Project Overview

This project started during the summer after 8th grade and is still going. I collected donated books from around my neighborhood and sent them to India.

Timeline

• 2023 - Started ideating the project as an 8th-grade class assignment.
• 2024 - Brought the project back and gathered the first big collection of books.
• 2025 - Worked through the shipping logistics and sent the first wave to India.
• 2026 - Got the books set up in a village in Punjab after they were delivered.

Milestones

• Collected 100% donated books.
• Shipped to India.
• For schools without funding to get English books.
• Shipped over 400 pounds of books.
• From over 45 houses.

Project Description

This project began as an idea for a required 8th-grade assignment. The proposal got rejected, but the idea stuck with me and I wanted to actually do it, not just write about it for class. I had to put it aside at first, but I kept thinking about it.

In 9th grade, I brought the project back. I designed and printed flyers and handed them out around my neighborhood to spread the word. Donations started coming in pretty quickly. What started as 25 books grew to over 250 books in about three months. Seeing the neighborhood get behind it pushed me to keep going.

The next big challenge was figuring out how to ship the books to India. When we first went to a shipping store, they quoted us more than $25,000, which made the whole thing feel impossible. Instead of giving up, we kept looking and found a service that could send the books for $100 per box. That made it doable. In the first wave, during 2025, I sent over 400 pounds of books to Punjab, India. Here are the boxes getting loaded for the international courier:

After more than 3 months by sea, the books finally arrived. My grandparents in Punjab were there to receive them. I've been working with them to set up a temporary spot where the kids in the village can read the books I sent.

We are still collecting books and working to send more donations. If you want to support this project or contribute, please email me at zoravar5000@gmail.com.

Flyer