Students encouraged to create environment-friendly campuses

The Education Department said it had launched a coordinated movement to encourage students to create environment-friendly campuses at the schools being run under the PM Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme.

Twenty-one government schools in the region are already undertaking various activities, following the guidelines of the Project Director for Smagar Sikhya. The officials concerned at other schools have also come forward to sensitise students about the causes and consequences of environmental degradation.

Energy efficiency, waste management, water conservation, nutrition gardens, environmental education, and spreading awareness among students by organising seminars and workshops by inviting experts were cited as the major avenues of the campaign.

Amandeep Singh, Principal, PM Shri Government Senior Secondary School, Bhogiwal, said a campaign had been launched to encourage students to adopt a sustainable lifestyle. Various elements of green school activities, including plantation drives, climate change-related hackathons, the constitution of eco and photography clubs, and vermicomposting pits.

“Having received instructions from the office of the district education officer, we prepared a roster of activities under the supervision of Prem Singh, who is also the district coordinator of the students police cadet scheme, for promoting practices to create an environment-friendly campus at our school,” said Amandeep, adding that students had shown an overwhelming response to the green school campaign.

Perusal of the communiqué addressed by the Project Director to all the DEOs of the state further revealed that a grant of Rs 58.25 lakh was released under the Green School scheme for undertaking activities at 233 PM Shri Schools for Rising India. Fifteen schools in Ludhiana district and six from Malerkotla are among the institutes that have received these grants. The programme aims to educate students about environmental conservation and sustainability.

Pollution control, climate change, the 3 Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle), biodiversity and water cycling techniques included issues highlighted by the environmental experts during seminars and workshops in the region.