Maharashtra: Ramshackle village school transforms into modern facility after makeover by NGOs

NAGPUR : A dilapidated village school in Maharashtra's Nagpur district was transformed into a modern facility thanks to the efforts taken by young professionals and businessmen. The primary school run by Nagpur Zilla Parishad at Sukali village of Hingna taluka underwent a major makeover after two NGOs found out about its poor condition, an official said. Catering to 200 students of Classes 1 to 5 from three villages, the school had only two classrooms and one non-functional washroom for the children, he said.

Nagpur Round Table-83 (NRT-83) along with Bridge the Gap Foundation came up with the idea to provide the best possible infrastructure and modern facilities to the school. The two NGOs found out about the school in January 2022 and decided to build it afresh with modern amenities, and after completion of legal formalities, the work started the very next month.

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The first phase was completed and the school was inaugurated on October 9. Talking to PTI, NRT-83 chairman Abhay Agrawal said, "For us, the task at hand was to transform the school, which only had one washroom and two classrooms." "In the first phase, we constructed the ground floor with three classrooms, which have desks. One of the classrooms has been made into a computer lab and it has a projector as well. The school now has separate washrooms for boys and girls in the building," he said.

Agrawal said the school was built at approximately Rs 40 lakh, which was collected through corporate funding and personal donations. The funds were collected using multiple innovative mediums at NRT-83 such as fundraisers, CSR donations from large companies and individual donors from Nagpur and across the country, he said.

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There are plans to construct additional classrooms and a computer lab in the second phase of the project, he added. "This is what the school wants and we will be working on getting grants and funds and accordingly, pursue the other works. We will be providing infrastructural and ancillary services," Agarwal said.

Meanwhile, Sukali village sarpanch Dinesh Dengre said the NGO Bridge the Gap Foundation conducts classes for science, maths and English speaking for students from pre-primary to graduation level in the village. "The two organisations together have built a beautiful school in the village with good infrastructure. People not just from our village, but even from surrounding villages are happy with the school’s transformation," Dengre said.