Mangaluru (Karnataka):Self-sufficient will not be an overstatement if it is attributed to this government school in Karnataka. This upgraded government school in Dakshina Kannada district has purchased a bus with the revenue it earned through the sale of areca nut grown on its land.
The school, which has a history of 112 years, has 4.15 acres of land. In 2017, the school development and monitoring committee (SDMC), teachers and villagers planted 628 saplings of areca nut, which had set in motion its ambitious plan for purchasing a bus.
"The areca nut started yielding from last year. The farm of the school is outsourced to local people through which the school gets Rs 2.50 lakh income annually. The school has now bought a pre-owned 26-seater bus, costing Rs 5 lakh, to bring students from distant places to the school. The maintenance of the bus would be managed by SDMC from the income of areca nut farm," said the school headmistress A Saroja.
The school has 118 children, mostly belonging to poor families. Some of them come from far-off places and they would be benefited by the school bus. Puttur MLA Sanjeeva Matandoor flagged off the bus on Saturday last and lauded the efforts of villagers, school teachers, and SDMC. An additional room has been sanctioned for the school and a concrete road would be laid to the school soon, Matandoor added. (with Agency inputs)
