Government High School in Sadhugarh, Punjab Revitalized as part of the campaign

Sardar Parminder Singh Dhindsa, Hon’ble Minister for Finance & Planning, Punjab Government, dedicates the school to the children at a ceremony today

  • Infrastructure at the Govt. school revitalized to provide students with better access to sanitation, water and playing facilities under the Coca-Cola Support My school campaign
  • Round Table India partnered in the implementation of the initiative
  • Espranza Innovations, an IT company in partnership with Lenovo, donated 40 tabs to the school with iSceula, a software aimed to improve the level of school education in India using technology.
  • More than 600 schools revitalized, impacting close to 200,000 students across the country and 2800 students in 9 schools in Punjab under Support My School

1000 schools to be revitalized under the campaign by 2017

Ludhiana/Chandigarh, October 15th , 2015: Coca-Cola India and partners Round Table India, UN-Habitat’s multi partner program for Happy, Healthy and Active schools – Support My School, which is closely aligned to the Swachh School campaign, announced dedication of new amenities at Government High School  in Sadhugarh, Punjab as part of its goal to revitalize 1000 schools by 2017. The school was dedicated to the teachers and children today during a ceremony presided by Sardar Parminder Singh Dhindsa, Hon’ble Minister for Finance & Planning, Punjab Government and Ashish Sethi, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Kandhari Beverages Limited. The other dignitaries who were present at the ceremony included  Sanjay Rawal, Business Service Director-IT, Coca-Cola India; Suman Voora, President, Round Table India, Maninder Singh Bajwa, Founder Esperanza,  Surinder Kumar Madan, School Principal among others.

As a part of the initiative, the existing school infrastructure at the Government High School was revitalized to provide the school students with better access to sanitation, water and playing facilities. Espranza Innovations, an IT company in partnership with Lenovo, donated 40 tabs to the school with iSceula, a software owned by them aimed to improve the level of school education in India using technology. These tabs will help school children learn in an effective & efficient way with help of technology. Additionally, Espranza software will also be installed in the computers labs for students to use it.

On the occasion Sardar Parminder Singh Dhindsa, Hon’ble Minister for Finance & Planning, Punjab Government said, “Development of education & amenities for school children is a very important part of our Government’s growth plan. We are continuously working towards providing of various facilities to school children. But we still need to improvise a lot. We thank organizations like Coca-Cola & appreciate their Support My School initiative which has helped children in many schools like Sadhugarh. Together we need to build on the efforts of SMS initiative whose results we can see today in the form of Sadhugarh School”.

Sanjay Rawal, Business Service Director-IT at Coca-Cola India said, “Coca-Cola India and its partners through its SMS initiative are working towards developing better and sustainable societies through participation of various stakeholders and providing basic civic amenities to children in school is a cornerstone of that endeavour. In the last 4 years, Support My School has grown from being an initiative to a campaign that has more than 100 partners in 22 states across India impacting nearly 200,000 children in 600 schools and by 2017 we hope to complete 1000 schools. All of this has been possible only due to support of partners and NGOs that worked on ground to make it happen.”

Maninder Singh Bajwa, Founder Esperanza said,“ We are delighted to be part of the SMS campaign. We hope that through the Lenovo tabs isecula software, students will be able to learn more. It is a small beginning on our part and we hope that we will be able to reach out to more and more students along with SMS campaign in near future. We would like to thank everyone involved in the initiative and congratulate them for the successful campaign.

Suman Voora, President, Round Table India, said, “Along with Coca-Cola, it gives us immense pleasure in terms of what we have achieved in terms of improving lives of children in Government schools of Punjab. Our volunteers have always been inspired & encouraged by the SMS initiative which aims to address society’s most significant & basic needs like drinking water, hygiene & education. We will continue to provide our support to SMS initiative as we have done in the past”.

Sharing his views, Ashish Sethi, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Kandhari Beverages Limited, said, “SMS campaign presents a unique opportunity for all stakeholders involved to contribute to the society in a constructive approach. KBL is delighted to be part of such initiative where the improved water, sanitation, hygiene & education facilities will directly progress the lives of many school children. We look forward to extending our association with many more schools in the future in Punjab”.

Across several studies in India it has been noted that education suffers from several issues, one of the key reasons being lack of sanitation resulting in absenteeism and dropouts.  The Support My School campaign began as a response to several studies, especially, having noted it in young girls who are not comfortable using school toilets due to lack of cleanliness and hygiene. The campaign has helped in creating awareness and interest amongst various stakeholders highlighting the urgent need for more initiatives that improve schools and help children lead better lives.

Support My School is a WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) initiative that aims to improve basic amenities in government schools like separate toilets for boys and girls and access to water. The Campaign is also committed to developing the overall infrastructure like playground and a clean environment to encourage a holistic learning environment. The campaign, in its first 4 years, has already revitalized 600 schools in 22 states across the country impacting nearly 200,000 students. Of this, the campaign has positively impacted more than 2863 students in nine schools across Punjab itself. The schools were revitalized with contributions of nearly INR 5 lakh per school. The Schools revitalized under the campaign have served as model schools in several districts and have led to enhanced community engagement and higher emphasis on attendance and enrolment. Going forward, Support My School will now scale up its effort to touch 1000 schools by 2017 under the initiative.

About Support My School Campaign:

Coca-Cola India & NDTV launched Support My School in association with the UN-Habitat, Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) in 2011. It undertakes the following core activities:

  •  Provision of improved access to water·
  • Appropriate sanitation facility for girls and boys
  •  Improvement in the overall school infrastructure and environment
  •  Provision for sports and recreation facilities and
  •  Recharging groundwater through rainwater harvesting

With such necessary amenities in place, schools are able to provide a cleaner and healthier environment more conducive to learning.