Just three kilometres from the Line of Control (LoC), a government school with an enrolment of over 200 students in Mendhar sector of Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district, has witnessed major improvements – thanks to the local army unit that has come forward to help the youngsters achieve their dreams.
The endeavour of the Mendhar Gunners, under the aegis of the White Knight Corps, has been to bring the school at par with national standards, despite the school being on the LoC and amid the COVID-19 restrictions, said Jammu-based Army PRO Lt Col Devender Anand.
Government High School, Dharana, located in the serene hills of Mendhar, is far away from the hustle and bustle of Poonch city where children can easily absorb knowledge and grow in all aspects of life, he said. The students generally come from impecunious families whose primary occupation is daily labour, which had wide implications on the students like lack of exposure to the modern outside world, the officer said. Lt Col Anand said that the Mendhar Gunners, the local army unit on regular interaction with the locals, discerned the issue at hand and immediately sprung into action to assist.
"Our school is along the LoC but we are being provided with all those facilities that are available in all city schools, for example, we have a library with all kinds of study material and volleyball courts to play during our games period, which is something we all look forward to,” said 15-year-old Fathima, a student of Class IX.
The ambience of the school is best described as calm and spacious, with good amenities and utilities in a visually appealing landscape. The sprawling campus is lush green and welcoming. The process of teaching-learning unfolds with the tweeting of birds with a visual treat of butterflies and peacocks. Students can also take short treks in the orchards around the campus. The army officer said that the Mendhar Gunners carried out the beautification of the school by painting the walls with educative paintings and symbols of national pride.
He added, "Students being from the hilly area are sturdy and have special interest in sports. The army assisted the school with volleyball, kho-kho and badminton courts, along with the necessary sports equipment." Furthering this aim of motivating the youth to take up sports as a profession and to inculcate the value of sportsmanship, Lt Col Anand said that the Mendhar Gunners conducted various sports competitions for these sports. "Post the historic Olympic gold medal victory by Subedar Neeraj Chopra in javelin, students showed exuberance in picking up sports to represent both the state and the nation," he said.
"The army, through the Mendhar Gunners, is making all possible efforts to ensure that no barrier comes in the way of the education of these students while expanding horizons in all fields, like by putting up posters in the campus related to human body parts to generate interest in the subject of biology,” he added.
Referring to the recent landmark verdict by Supreme Court, shattering the glass ceiling, wherein girls were allowed to take the NDA examination for admission to the National Defence Academy, the army officer said that a motivational lecture to join the NDA was organised for the girls of the school with an aim to guide them to join the best military training academy in the country, which evoked great response by the girl students.
Students with clamor for soft skills were engaged with drawing and painting, dance and public speaking events, he said, adding that the students who stood out with their performance were rightfully rewarded, to motivate them to achieve greater goals. The events organised were based on the theme of national integration to groom the youngsters into patriotic citizens of the great nation, he said.
The Lt Col informed that the army also organised a medical and COVID-19 vaccination camp with an aim to provide basic medical facilities and free COVID vaccination to the local populace. The officer said that the army, maintaining its ethos and tradition, reached out to the far flung areas to provide all possible assistance to people.
