The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : School gets a makeover

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Thursday, Jul 24, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

School gets a makeover

Nagesh Prabhu

Entrepreneurs contribute to BERT- 27 initiative

It has twelve
well-furnished
classrooms
Industrialists, realtors contribute Rs. 45 lakh

FAcelift: The Featherlite Pottery Town Government High School in Bangalore now has many facilities, including computers in classrooms

BANGALORE: From leaky tiled roofs to concrete ones; from floor to benches and desks; from dingy classrooms to well-lit ones; from stuffy environs to well-ventilated rooms with fans; And now, computers in classrooms. This is the slow and steady transformation of a government high school in a predominantly slum locality of Pottery Town in the city.

The 30-year-old dilapidated school building has undergone a makeover in less than a year, thanks to the initiative of 21 young and service-minded entrepreneurs.

Children of the economically backward sections in Nagawara, Tannery Road and DG Halli slums study in this high school, which is run by the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike. It is located on a four-acre plot, and a large portion of its land has been encroached. Primary and Secondary Education Minister Visveswara Hegde Kageri has promised to remove the encroachments and put up fencing.

Bangalore East Rotary Table (BERT)-27 took the initiative to construct a new building for the school under its project “Freedom through education”. “We built 12 classrooms and provided toilets and other facilities to students and teachers with contributions worth Rs. 45 lakh from industrialists and real estate developers. All the classrooms have been well furnished,” says Prasad R. Deshpande, chairman, BERT-27, who took the initiative to reconstruct the building. The Government contributed Rs. 20 lakh towards the endeavour.

Twelve classrooms were constructed to accommodate 243 children and 13 teachers. The school, which scored 62 per cent pass in the 2007 SSLC examination, offers both Kannada and English mediums. “When we started construction work, the school was in a dilapidated condition and basic amenities were missing. We convinced the local people about our project and told them that the school will change the careers of their children,” Mr. Deshpande said. “We are planning to have four more classrooms by constructing a third floor,” he said.

BERT is sponsoring midday meals for nearly 250 children at Jakkarayanakere School. It also conducts regular medical camps in various schools.

“This is our idea of corporate social responsibility,” Mr. Deshpande said. The Pottery Town school now has modern infrastructure, computer centre, library and toilets. The toilet block was sponsored by Bangalore East Ladies Circle 31 that has Megna P. Deshpande as the chairperson. “The number of students admitted to class VIII were 20 per cent more than last year. We can proudly compare the school to other private schools in the vicinity,” says headmaster Ashwath Narayan.

Featherlite Products Limited was the chief donor for the project, and the school was named “Featherlite Pottery Town Government High School” according to an agreement signed with the School Development Committee.

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