Nagpur, February 28 A dilapidated school in a village in Nagpur district, Maharashtra, received a complete makeover and was transformed into a well-equipped and modern learning facility through the efforts of a group of young entrepreneurs.
This school, run by the Zilla Parishad, is located in Nagazari village, a tribal area in the Hingna taluka. A total of 95 students, from Class 1 to 8, including those from the 'anganwadi' center, are studying in this school.
Young entrepreneurs, under the aegis of Nagpur Round Table 83 (NRT-83), a charitable trust working towards education for underprivileged children, carried out the work through crowdfunding.
Prateek Minocha, Chairman of NRT-83, said, "This newly-inaugurated school building is the first modern structure in the tribal village of Nagazari. Firstly, we demolished the old structure, which was unsafe and in poor condition, and constructed a colorful, fully-ventilated, state-of-the-art school designed to accommodate nearly 200 students, complete with a children's play area."
The new school has three well-furnished classrooms, modern desks, and separate washrooms for boys and girls within the building, significantly improving hygiene and accessibility, he said.
Minocha said that the project also saw participation from the tribal village community and assistance from the local government body, encouraged by the consistent efforts of NRT-83 and its implementation partner, Bridge The Gap Foundation.
Vinayak Mahamuni, CEO of Nagpur Zilla Parishad, said that this collaboration shows how public-private partnerships can transform and uplift rural education.
"Together, we will ensure that every rural child gets the best education and no one is left behind," he said.
Dhruv Sharma, Secretary of NRT-83, said that Phase-I of the project was completed at a cost of Rs 40 lakh, raised through donations, innovative fundraising initiatives, and corporate social responsibility (CSR) contributions.
