The Gandulbari Primary School is situated in the Hura bloc of the Purulia district West Bengal. Apart from the students’ studies, it pays attention to building awareness about personal hygiene. With the help of community organisations, it has created a proper sanitation infrastructure. The students are making good use of the facilities. Washing their hands well before taking their mid-day meals is the starting point of their daily hygienic practices. They follow their teachers’ instructions regarding this as carefully as they follow their lessons. The school received the ‘Nirmal Vidyalay’ (clean school) award in 2015. Here is a video report.

পুরুলিয়া জেলার হুড়া ব্লকের অন্তর্গত গুন্দলুবাড়ি প্রথামিক বিদ্যালয়।  খাবার আগে হাত ধোয়া থেকে শৌচকর্ম স্বাস্থ্য বিধানের সব কিছু অক্ষরে অক্ষরে মেনে চলে ছাত্রছাত্রীর। ২০১৫ নির্মল বিদ্যালয় পুরস্কার পেয়েছে স্কুলটি। স্কুলটি ঘুরে দেখে একটি বিশেষ প্রতিবেদন।

Source: khaboronline

In construction sites, women are mostly involved only as workers, but a Women Self Help Groups(SHGs) in Purulia district of West Bengal is breaking the stereotype and making women to build Toilets.

The story features the construction site of Toilet in Purulia. The owner of the place tells she is not ready to build a toilet in her home but after her Daughter compulsion and subsidised toilet scheme made her build the toilet she adds.

Women Masons Lalmoni Soran, says initially her husband was not supportive but that did not deter her from taking up this job. She managed to convince her husband and now he works along with her in the construction of Toilets.
A toilet per home increase the personal hygiene as well as the safety of the Children. It is important to attain the sustainable Developments in near Future.

The Group of women SHGs sensitizes the Villagers by doing awareness camp. Mrs. Mahato says that she being a protagonist witnessed the illness of not having Toilets at her home. After building a toilet at her place she now sensitizes people to construct toilets.

These Rani mestris not only construct toilet alone they ensure the safety and well being of the women in the society.

கழிப்பறை கட்டுவது தொடர்பாக புதுமையை கையாளும் மேற்கு வங்க மாநிலம் | செய்தித் தொகுப்பு

School begins early for Pompy Biswas, Nitraban Hazarika and Krittika Das as they don the hats of ‘swachh sevaks’ to check whether the water tank has been filled, hand washing area cleaned and soaps put in place.

The three students of Azara Keotpara Lower Primary School, along with their fellow mates, have set an example in Kamrup (Metro) district, near here, by taking upon themselves the responsibility of maintaining hygiene and keeping the environment clean, not just around classrooms but homes too.

At Sajjanpara Lower Primary School, nearby, children keep a check on their parents and relatives too. They take time out to impart lessons on cleanliness to their neighbours and other members of the community.

The Assam chapter of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, along with UNICEF, has piloted the cleanliness drive to ensure less absenteeism in schools, said Rajib Dutta, the project’s engineer for Kamrup (Metro) district.

“It is the schoolchildren who have become role models for the community at large by moving beyond the confines of the campus to take their cleanliness initiatives to their family and the extended community,” he said.

A UNICEF report had pointed out that there was consistent evidence that hand washing with soap at critical times – before eating, while preparing food and after using the toilet – can reduce diarrhoea risk by about 45 per cent, Dutta added.

Likumoni Das, a Class III student of Azatpara school, said they were keen on passing the knowledge they have acquired to their parents and relatives.

“After learning the basic rules of hand washing, we found out that our parents did not follow the methods. We have now taught them how to maintain hygiene,” she said.

The headmaster of her school, Kamal Chandra Goswami, said he has built separate toilets and hand-washing facilities for boys and girls.

“I am happy to see that students have become torch-bearers of the cleanliness drive here,” he stated.

The parents, too, have joined the initiative by donating soap cakes to the school.

“We are learning something new every day from our children. These hygiene practices have become a part of our daily routine,” Amila Das, a mother and member of School Management Committee, said.

Echoing similar sentiments, Subhan Chandra Bodo, the headmaster of Sajjanpara LP School, said it was the children who convinced their parents to install water filters at home.

“As part of the government and the UNICEF initiative, children have not just learnt about keeping themselves clean, they have also inspired parents and relative to build toilets and install water filters at home,” he added.

Sweta Patnaik, the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) specialist of UNICEF, said philanthropists, corporate houses, civic and faith organizations in Assam have been requested to join the drive to extend its reach to every nook and corner of the state.

“We have taken initiatives to mainstream ‘WASH in School’ programme through trainings of teachers and headmasters and orientation of School Management Committees members,” she said, adding that a “lot more” had to be done to ensure that maximum number of people benefit from the drive.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Students of Sajjanpara primary school are washing their hands in a group with a beautiful song before having their mid-day meal.

source: Business Standard

What could be the best place to go on Children’s Day? School, of course. And journalists who are participating in the SAWM Unicef Media Initiative, 2018, did exactly that. Today, along with Durba Ghosh (PTI, Guwahati) and Priyanka Tupe(Sakal, Pune), I visited two lower primary schools in Keotpara and Sajjanpur in Assam.

We met a bunch of boisterous children, full of life and energy. As we watched their assembly lines, physical training exercises, song-and-dance performances, it made me nostalgic for my school days. But these children are smarter. Most of them have already made up their minds on what they want to do in the future. To our surprise, this co-ed lower primary school has more girls than boys, and there’s no drop-out despite the economic distress their families face.

Our next stop was Sajjanpur Primary school. We found that the habit of hand-washing has improved their hygiene. Further, these children motivated their families to wash hands. How they influenced their parents to construct toilets at home came to us as an eyeopener on children’s role as change-makers. The students of this school mostly comprised of tribal kids from poverty-stricken families. Yet, no child has dropped out of school, and the founder president is proud of the fact. The school is situated in the arm of a hill. The scenic beauty is something to witness too. –  Anwesha Banerjee, Ei Somoy (Bengali Daily), Kolkata