Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke launched the 'School Thik Karo' campaign to improve the condition of government schools, and kicked it off from his own native village in Maharashtra's Hingoli. First repair works began at the institution, and now, Dipke announced that the school received its first-ever computer system.
Dipke launched the school improvement campaign on Independence Day, which he had announced a couple of days earlier, saying that government schools in villages have been "neglected and ignored" over the last 80 years and alleging that no work has been done on them.
'School Thik Karo' campaign
Deep Dive
What is the 'School Thik Karo' campaign launched by Abhijeet Dipke?
Why did Abhijeet Dipke emphasize the need for improvements in government schools?
How did the local panchayat respond to the issues identified at the school in Santuk Pimpri?
The CJP chief visited the Zilla Parishad (district council)-run school in Santuk Pimpri village to kick off the 'School Thik Karo' campaign, where he inspected and flagged a lack of basic amenities. Dipke also alleged that the school had broken windows, clogged toilets and inadequate seating.
"Even after 80 years of Independence, our govt schools still lack basic amenities. I spoke to the Sarpanch of my village, who has assured that the Panchayat will resolve all these issues within a week. Change is possible when we come together and act. #SchoolThikKaro," he said in a post on X.
'Repair, benches, and first-ever computer'
{{/usCountry}}"Even after 80 years of Independence, our govt schools still lack basic amenities. I spoke to the Sarpanch of my village, who has assured that the Panchayat will resolve all these issues within a week. Change is possible when we come together and act. #SchoolThikKaro," he said in a post on X.
'Repair, benches, and first-ever computer'
{{/usCountry}}Repair works at the school began soon after Dipke's visit to the institution. Santuk Pimpri Sarpanch Vijay Puri told reporters on Monday, "Abhijeet Dipke came to the school and checked its amenities. We have started working on them (infrastructure gaps). (Damaged) windows are being changed, and defunct CCTV cameras are being placed. Puri also said that new window frames and round-the-clock water supply in the washrooms, were also being worked on.
On Tuesday, Dipke once again visited the school in his village and revealed that they have received their benches.
"Kids in my village have got the benches in their school!!! This is probably one of the biggest and happiest moment in my life. Thank you to all the staff and people from village who made this possible!" he wrote in a post on X.
In another post, the CJP chief shared a video, saying that the first-ever computer arrived at his village school. He said, "When the government fails, people step up! Change is possible."
In the video, Dipke is heard telling the students about the computer, urging them to use the resources for learning purposes.
‘Drunk’ principal removed at Limbala village school
Earlier on Sunday, Dipke had revealed that his villagers repeatedly complained about the principal's alcoholism at the government school in Hingoli's Limbala village, stating that senior authorities failed to take any action towards it. He had warned that if the principal wasn't removed by Tuesday, he would join the villagers in protesting the matter.
He even shared a video of the principal sleeping in the classroom after getting drunk.
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"The principal must be suspended immediately! How can a drunk principal run a govt school? This is a serious safety concern for the children, especially little girls," he wrote on X.
On Tuesday, Dipke announced that in a first big victory for the Limbala villagers, the "alcoholic principal has been suspended."
However, the CJP founder said the villagers would continue protesting until their demand to recruit two more school teachers is met.
Volunteers from the CJP also conducted audits in schools across Assam, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh as part of the 'School Thik Karo' campaign.