Government schools in India have a certain reputation, of not really being good in terms of education, faculty, facilities and more.
Although several programmes have been started by the government to better the situation, like mid-day meal plans and all, reports coming out and showing the true reality of what is happening has proven them to not exactly be a success.
But, perhaps this initiative by a small organization in Lucknow might allow students to not only realise good hygiene but also practice it.
It is not something hidden that the students attending government schools are usually from less well-to-do homes that don’t necessarily have all the facilities there.
And especially when the place are 2nd tier cities like Lucknow and all, many families that send their kids to government schools have to make do with the bare minimum and in all this, sometimes basic hygiene can suffer.
What Is Happening In Lucknow Schools?
A campaign called Innovation For Change (IFC) is trying to bring some much-needed change to the government schools in Lucknow with their latest campaign being targeted at making the hygiene of the students a priority.
According to sources, in a government primary school in Sarojini Nagar, after the morning prayers, students are asked whether they came after taking a bath.
Those who answer in the negative are then told to take a shower with the help of a hosepipe that is available on the school grounds along with towel and soap being given to the students to clean themselves up with.
While the boys take their shower without their shirt or trousers, girls are taken to another location in the school and only have to wash their hair. After that, their ears, nails, and nose are checked too in order to make sure everything is clean.
IFC is behind such steps and comprises of 5-6 college students with Harshit Singh, a student of Masters in Social Work at the University of Lucknow heading it as President.
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Need More Such Initiatives
This is not all that IFC has done for students at this particular school, where recently they also raised 1.5 lakh rupees through donations in order to get proper furniture for the kids.
The secretary of the IFC, Vishal Kannojiya who is also a final year student at MSW at the Shakuntala Misra University stated that, “We are not here to interfere with the teaching process, which is mostly being done by para-teachers. We carry out parallel activities in the school to ensure that students remain healthy.”
Which is a great example of public participation and trying to work towards bringing change without waiting for someone else to do it.
What this also does is release some of the pressure from the over-worked teachers and staff of the school who might not exactly have the proper support or help from other authorities.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: Hindustan Times
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