Rajasthan has one of the lowest literacy rates in India, at 66.11 percent.[1] Of the thirty-one districts of the state, Alwar has a slightly better literacy rate of 70.72 percent.[2] But the female literacy rate of the entire district is only 56.25 percent. The primary opportunities for education in rural areas are the government schools. But many government schools in the villages of Alwar district lack adequate infrastructure and resources to provide a conducive learning environment to children. Sanitary facilities are not in proper functioning condition. Most have no clean drinking water facilities on school premises.

Other requirements for improvement include boundary walls, classrooms, roofs and windows, leveling of playgrounds, and having structures for play.

S M Sehgal Foundation initiated transformation work of government schools of Alwar district in 2016 in partnership with institutions with a CSR mandate. The aim of the work was to transform the lives of schoolchildren by providing them with access to clean drinking water and sanitation (WASH) facilities, a safe and conducive learning environment, and digital and life skills awareness trainings. As of 2022, fifty-nine schools have been transformed in Alwar district, with the active support of community members, gram panchayats, and the Education Department of the government.

The project team was approached by the school administration, gram panchayat and the School Development and Management Committee (SDMC) in September 2020, to undertake transformation work for the Government Senior Secondary School, in Khareda village, Umrain Block, Alwar district of Rajasthan. This village is located 28 kms from the district headquarters.

After receiving the request letter in October 2020, the project team visited the school campus to evaluate the basic requirements in the school. The team observed the lack of facilities such as toilet, drinking water, furniture, and other infrastructure gaps in the school premises. The students, especially girls, were reluctant to attend the school due to lack of water and sanitation facilities. The school had 402 students at that time, comprised of 232 girls and 170 boys.

To fulfil the needed requirements, S M Sehgal Foundation approached PNB Housing Finance Limited (PNB HFL) in March 2021 to conduct the transformation work as part of their CSR initiative. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, to see the actual condition of the school, the PNB HFL team conducted a virtual tour of the campus. The project was then approved by them in partnership with S M Sehgal Foundation.

The school transformation work was initiated in August 2022 along with the formation of Village Development Committee (VDC), to ensure the sustainability aspects of the project in the future.

Eight VDC meetings were conducted to clarify their role, responsibilities, and participation in the school transformation work. The major role of the VDC was to monitor the improvement work regularly, and to ensure the long-term sustainability of the infrastructure developed by the project post completion.

The transformation work was initiated in August 2021 and completed in March 2022. During this period, various facilities are created for the students, which included, WASH, furniture for better seating arrangements, play equipment, land-leveling and beautifying the campus, and creating educational paintings per the concept of Building as Learning Aid (BaLA).

Swachhata Vahaini, a toilet unit comprised of eight toilets and four water closets, was constructed especially for the convenience of girl students. Two soak pits were constructed for addressing the issue of wastewater disposal and for promoting water management for safe sanitation. A rainwater harvesting system with the capacity of two lakh liters of water was developed to address the school’s daily requirement.

The community was happy to see that the enrollment of students increased due to these improvements, from 402 to 732 (an 82 percent total increase) comprised of 401 girls and 331 boys. This demonstrated that students are more willing to come to school and study if the proper facilities are available. Earlier, due to the lack of facilities, students used to take admission in schools in the nearby villages of Prithvipura and Bijwar, which are around four to five kms away from Khareda village.

As an integral component of the project, INR 377,300 was collected as the community contribution for improving the school by the villagers. Of this, INR 235,000 was contributed as “in-kind” contribution toward the repair of the old toilet block for boys (comprised of twelve water closets and five urinals) for improved sanitation, along with refurbishing two existing drinking water stations to meet the drinking water requirements of the schoolchildren. The remaining amount collected, INR 142,300, was deposited in the VDC bank account for the future maintenance of assets after completion of the project.

Every single household of the village contributed in the community contribution fund. Because of this, everyone in the village has a sense of ownership, understanding that this is their school, and they have to take proper care of it.

This intervention project showcased a long‑term sustainable solution for providing quality education to village children. The results also motivated the school principal and teachers to work hard and bring out the best from the students.

Girls are finally getting quality education without having to go out of their villages; they can have proper sanitation and drinking water facilities within their school.

Ms Nirmala, school principal, says, “When I first joined the school, the condition of the premises was very poor. The classrooms would get flooded with water, and the floor area was broken at many places. Now we have a transformed school, along with better sanitation facilities. Our entire village feels extremely positive about the change. The students have also become motivated and are now more aware on aspects of improved sanitation and cleanliness.”

Surendra Singh Yadav, schoolteacher, says, “I have seen that the students have become more enthusiastic about studies and are regularly attending the classes. The school campus has now become beautiful and lively. Nowadays, the students do not want to go back to their homes even after the school timings. We, as teachers, are very happy to see this transformation, and are proud to be a part of the school.”

[1] See https://www.census2011.co.in/census/state/rajasthan.html#:~:text=Literacy%20rate%20in%20Rajasthan%20has,literacy%20is%20at%2052.12%20percent

[2] See https://education.rajasthan.gov.in/content/raj/education/en/school-sec-education/literacy-continuing-education/Literacy_Scenario/Districtwise_Literacy_Rate_of_Rajasthan.html