Who we are
AltEd is an education initiative operating under the aegis of DPML Learning Foundation, a Section 8 non-profit company based in Kolkata (CIN: U85500WB2024NPL270303). We began our work in December 2022 and operate from Kolkata and Bengaluru.
Our mission is to make media and information literacy available and accessible to all individuals — especially young adults and children — empowering them to become well-informed individuals and citizens.
Why media literacy
Our information ecosystem is broken. Organised disinformation, online scams, hate propaganda, cyber-bullying and data theft have weaponised the systems through which billions of us access news, education, and each other. In the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2024, respondents in India ranked misinformation and disinformation as the country’s top risk, out of 34. Those most acutely affected are the least equipped: children, young adults, and marginalised communities.
Media and information literacy is the antidote — and in India, almost nobody is teaching it as a sustained, curriculum-based subject at school level. Read more about what MIL is →
What we believe
- Mindset transformation, not just skills. Fact-checking tricks and safe digital habits are not enough. We work for a deep orientation: how we access and process information, why we believe what we believe, and how the media economy shapes both.
- Critical thinking with empathy. Literacy without empathy is hollow. Our classrooms treat them as inseparable — the ability to recognise another person’s feelings is as much a media-literacy competency as spotting a fake story.
- Constitutional values and gender justice. Our practice of informed digital citizenship is grounded in the values of the Indian Constitution.
- Decentralisation. We build teaching-learning practices that partners can own and adapt. Sustainability comes from capacity handed over, not programmes hoarded.
Our journey
- December 2022 — AltEd begins operations in Kolkata. Focus-group discussions across schools to understand how children consume media.
- 2023 — Pre-pilot MIL programmes at Batanagar Boys’ High School and the Naba Disha community centre (Kolkata Police/Vikramshila). Grade-specific curriculum design begins.
- 2024–25 — Scale-up: 309 classes in a single year across schools and community organisations in Kolkata and beyond. First residential teacher-training workshop. Flagship event Misinformation Matters at GD Birla Sabhagar draws 200+ educators and civil-society leaders.
- 2025–26 — 1,575 individuals reached in one year across 7 states. New assessment tools: baseline surveys piloted with 165+ students. The Bengaluru chapter launches.
Registration
AltEd operates under DPML Learning Foundation, a Section 8 company registered in 2024 (CIN: U85500WB2024NPL270303). Annual reports are published on the Reports page.