Chandigarh: Mewat in Haryana is known as one of the most backward regions in the country, but one teacher here is providing a glimmer of hope.
From reducing the rate of school dropouts to encouraging more girls to attend schools, 54-year-old Basruddin Khan, an elementary school headmaster in Nuh district, has been working relentlessly since 1993.
His efforts have now been acknowledged by the government and he was conferred the National Teachers’ Award this year.
Khan, who teaches math and science, started his career from a government school in Jharpuri in 1993. “When I joined Jharpuri, then under Gurgaon district, I had only 20 student. I taught the students during night hours too and after 19 months there were 57 student enrolled in the school.”
Two years later, Khan joined a school in Saroli, Punhana which had 96 students. With his relentless efforts for 18 years, the number of students in the school rose to 638 in 2013. He used to hold extra classes during night hours for weaker students.
With 56 per cent literacy rate, Mewat is educationally backward. Expressing hope Basruddin Khan says, “Mewat is backward due to lack of education. If we educate more and more people, Mewat will improve”.
Khan also worked hard to bring more and more girls to school. When he joined the school in Siroli village in 1995, only one girl was enrolled in 10th standard. Today there are about 50 of them.
Khan is presently posted at Government Middle School in Tappan village. Like Jarpuri and Siroli, the school strength was mere 78 when he joined. Today, it is 600. Despite being a senior teacher, Khan says he takes eight classes a day.
And if that wasn’t enough, Basruddin Khan even roped in an NGO to invest around Rs. 1.7 crore for uplifting education in Mewat.
Khan’s efforts has also made his colleagues proud. “Mewat is a backward area. Niti Aayog has kept it at the bottom of the list. A national award is a major achievement not only for Mewat but for the whole of Harayana”, said Abdul Majeed, Block Education Officer, Nuh.
Khan believes that teachers are detrimental for the nation’s development. “A teacher should treat the kids as their own and work hard on them. The parents also must do their bit and send the kids to school regularly,” he said.
The award winning teacher also says that due to low attendance, students are not able to perform well academically.
Comments
0 comment