Mr. Deepak Jolly, Vice President, Public Affairs and Communications, Coca-Cola India and South West Asia along with Chief Guest Mr. Akon Bora, Minister of Social Welfare & Prison; Mrs. Nimi Baruah, Block Elementary Education Officer; and Mr. D. Vijay Kumar, Head – Corporate Partnerships, World Vision India dedicated the Government L.P. School, Markang in Upper Amri under Season 2 of the Support My School campaign.
The school is one of eight schools which have been revitalized in Guwahati under Season 2 of the Support My School campaign. Principals of all 8 schools were felicitated at the event.
Total investment by Coca-Cola and Support My School campaign partners to be the tune of Rs 70 lakhs for revitalization of sixteen schools in Assam
The school has been revitalized with contributions from campaign partner World Vision who joined the campaign at the launch of Season 2 in San Francisco in August, 2012.
Revitalized facilities include access to safe drinking water, separate toilets for boys and girls, promotion of physical sports and recreation
The Support My School campaign recently celebrated completion of 200 schools under the initiative

Guwahati, 1st August, 2013: The Support My School campaign, an initiative to build happy, healthy and active schools for students in rural and semi-urban areas, reached its target of revitalizing 8 schools in Guwahati, marked with the dedication of the Government L.P. School in Markang. The school has been provided facilities such as access to safe drinking water and separate toilets for boys and girls under the campaign. The Support My School campaign recently commemorated completion of 200 schools touching the lives of over 80,000 students.

Coca-Cola and along with Support My School campaign partners will invest nearly Rs 70 lakhs for revitalization of sixteen schools in Assam.

The Government L.P. School, Markang has been revitalized with contributions made by campaign partner World Vision. The school was dedicated to the children and the community by Mr. Deepak Jolly, Vice President, Public Affairs and Communications, Coca-Cola India and South West Asia along with Chief Guest Mr. Akon Bora, Minister of Social Welfare & Prison; Mrs. Nimi Baruah, Block Elementary Education Officer; and Mr. D. Vijay Kumar, Head – Corporate Partnerships, World Vision India. Principals of all 8 schools revitalized under this season were felicitated at the event for their efforts and support towards the campaign.

According to Mr. Akon Bora, Minister of Social Welfare & Prison,” It is a moment of pride for Markang LP school and its students that Coca-Cola in collaboration with World Vision has made this school more approachable. Today the school has proper sanitation facilities, fencing and a playground thanks to the efforts of these two organizations.”

Speaking about the project, Mr. Deepak Jolly, Vice President, Public Affairs and Communications, Coca-Cola India and South West Asia said, “At Coca-Cola India, we have our eyes set on the future and this helps us stay connected to the communities and ecosystems we operate in. These are crucial to any organizations operations and continuance in the long run. We believe in working along with our communities to build a model of sustainable development to grow collectively instead of sporadically. This has been our prime motivator in executing the Support My School campaign. The completion of 200 schools under the campaign is a milestone very close to all our hearts. We look forward to reaching evermore students, schools and regions as we move headfirst towards reaching our goal of over 250 schools under Season 2.”

Launched in January 2011, the Support My School campaign aims to create a happy and healthy environment in schools for children across India by providing basic amenities such as access to water and proper toilets for girls and boys, enabling them to study in a cleaner, healthier and a more holistic environment. Since its launch, the campaign has touched the lives of nearly 80,000 students across 200 schools. The campaign is expected to reach 350 Schools by end of 2013.

Dr. Jayakumar Christian, CEO & National Director, World Vision India says about the campaign, “At World Vision, we are committed to assuring opportunities for employment and value based leadership for all students across rural and semi-urban India. This partnership with the Support My School campaign has helped us further this cause in a tremendous way. The campaign has reached out to some of the most remote areas in the country, helping us impact more lives. Every school revitalized under the campaign brings us closer to our goal of providing the children of this nation with a holistic school environment where they can learn and grow.”

Thanking the campaign partners, Mr. Kudeswar Rahang, Head Master, Government L.P. School, Markang said, “The Support My School campaign has given our school a new lease of life. It has been a wonderful experience to be chosen under this campaign as our students today have a much better learning space to study and develop. The facilities provided under the campaign will benefit our students for a long time to come. Thank you Coca-Cola, World Vision and all campaign partners for this opportunity.”

About Support My School Campaign

Coca-Cola India joined hands with NDTV to launch Support My School in association with UN-Habitat, Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), Pearson Foundation and Tata Teleservices. It undertakes the following core activities:

Provision of improved access to water
Appropriate sanitation facility for girls and boys
Improvement in the overall 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.

Education in rural India suffers from several issues where lack of sanitation is a key reason for absenteeism and dropouts amongst students. This is especially noted in young girls who are forced to quit as they enter adolescence due to a lack of clean and functional toilets. Children are also likely to fall sick more often without clean water to drink or to wash hands. Support My School endeavors to eliminate this basic concern by spreading the initiative across the country with the help of campaign partners to execute the same.

About Coca-Cola and Citizenship

The Coca-Cola Company has always placed high value on good citizenship. At the heart of business is a mission statement called the Coca-Cola Promise — “The Coca-Cola Company exists to benefit and refresh everyone that it touches.” This basic proposition means – that the company’s business should refresh the markets, protect, preserve and enhance the environment and strengthen the community. Coca-Cola India provides extensive support for community programs across the country, with a focus on education, health and water conservation. For further information on Company’s India operations and its products, please visit www.coca-colaindia.com

About World Vision India

World Vision India is a Christian humanitarian organization working to create lasting change in the lives of children, families and communities living in poverty and injustice. World Vision serves all people regardless of religion, caste, race, ethnicity or gender. Spread across 174 locations in India, World Vision works through long-term sustainable community development programmes and immediate disaster relief assistance.