NRI’s efforts bring life back on school campus

As the strength had fallen to just seven, this two-room Government Elementary School at Salh Kalan village of Banga was set to be closed till a few years back. As the news reached UK-based septuagenarian Shaminder Singh Garcha, he immediately announced that this won’t be the case.

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“It was my temple of learning, where I had attended my first five classes. I could not see it getting ruined and shut. It was then that I announced that I would be willing to spend Rs 40 lakh or so with the help from other NRI brethren. And here I am, having spent over Rs 1 crore on the building. We have raised seven plush classrooms and the student strength has already touched 60,” Garcha said proudly.

He said the state government had also contributed about Rs 20 lakh. “IAS officer Krishan Kumar had visited the school earlier had declared the building unsafe. So, we had to raze the old building and start construction all over again. Everything came up as per the government specifications,” he said.

He said the school had just two teachers. “There is another government school in the adjoining Salh Khurd village, just about 500 yards away. It has about 25 students and two-three teachers. My suggestion to the common panchayat of the two villages and the Education Department has been that the two schools could be merged as this would reduce expenses — with common staff of four teachers for 85 students. This would help ensure better teaching as well,” he highlighted.

He added, “I have proposed to the panchayat that the NRIs’ organisation Seva Trust UK could set up a dispensary in the Salh Khurd government school. We are already helping rural women learn skills in sewing and computer education.”

Garcha has another proposal for the Salh Khurd school, “There is no playground for children in Salh Kalan or Salh Khurd villages. There is a ground in Salh Kalan village. We can help the government develop it for sports activities of youth of both the villages. We shall soon take this proposal to the government.”

Garcha shared his own journey, “I had moved to Bedford in 1966. I am living a retired life for the past 10 years. Both my children are in UK while my wife and I are spending are time in our hometown Banga, trying to repay whatever we can to our state.”