This teacher from Uttarakhand walked an extra mile to provide good education to his students - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

This teacher from Uttarakhand walked an extra mile to provide good education to his students

Hindustan Times, Dehradun | BySuparna Roy
Sep 05, 2020 09:03 PM IST

From community support, to acquiring land for building a school, from monthly mother-daughter meetings, to promote education among girl child, Kandpal has always walked the extra mile to boost education.

Kewalanand Kandpal, principal of a government school in Bageshwar district, was honoured with National Teachers Awards 2020 on the occasion of Teacher’s Day on Saturday. He was awarded for his effort as a teacher, who left no stones unturned to ensure best possible education for all his students.

Kewalanand Kandpal
Kewalanand Kandpal

From community support, to acquiring land for building a school, from monthly mother-daughter meetings, to promote education among girl child, Kandpal always walked an extra mile to boost education.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

“It is a great moment that my efforts for merely 70-72 students in a remote village has been recognised at the national level,” said Kandpal.

He was given the award for demonstrating himself to being an inspirational and capable leader for his school by showing great ability to build community support for the school, bridge gender gap in enrolment and also successfully mobilising resources for land and infrastructure for the school.

“When I joined the Government Higher Secondary School, Pudkuni, in Kapkote block of Bageshwar in October 2017, there was neither road connectivity to the region nor a building for the school. I realised that people never questioned this. I started talking to the villagers and convincing them to provide land for building the school. I made them realise that if there is no building then the school will shift out of the village and merge with some other school nearby, thereby reducing access for children,” said Kandpal.

After creating awareness about the importance of education for almost a year, Kandpal, “saw a ray of hope from the villagers” regarding donating their land in around March 2019.

To ensure that girls do not drop out of school, he started monthly mother-daughter meeting, where female students would talk to their mothers and tell them that “they (the girls) did not want to get married early, and rather wanted to continue studying.”

“Soon after I had joined in 2017, two girls from class 9 had dropped out. When we tried to find out the reason, we learnt that one was getting married and the other had financial problems. We talked to the parents of the girl who was getting married and explained them that it is illegal. When the parents did not pay heed, we realised that it would be better if the girls themselves spoke to their mothers and told them that they want to study further,” added Kandpal.

Developing the infrastructure of the school, Kandpal also got donations, but made sure that the donations were in kind and not cash.

The Government Higher Secondary School, Pudkuni in Kapkote block of Bageshwar district is located around 29km from the district headquarter and at a height of 1834m.

Unveiling 'Elections 2024: The Big Picture', a fresh segment in HT's talk show 'The Interview with Kumkum Chadha', where leaders across the political spectrum discuss the upcoming general elections.Watch now!

Get latest news on Education, Bihar Board 12th Result 2024 Live along with Board Exam, Competitive Exam and Exam Result at Hindustan Times. Also get latest Job updates on Employment News
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Friday, March 29, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On