Efforts by NPL helped in improving education level in villages: finds social audit
Kanwar Inder Singh/ royalpatiala.in
A special social audit conducted by the Institute for Development and Communication, Chandigarh, has found that the initiatives taken by the Nabha Power Limited, which operates the 2×700 MW Rajpura Thermal Power Plant, have brought considerable improvement in the level of education in various villages of Patiala and Fatehgarh Sahib districts.
As per the report, initiatives taken by NPL under its corporate social responsibility (CSR), not only helped improve the performance of students in subjects like English and Mathematics, but it also helped increase enrollments in the government schools.
The report categorically stated that this is due to the better infrastructural facilities and teachers provided by the NPL in the government schools.
Chief Executive Officer of Nabha Power Limited, Athar Shahab, said, “Promoting formal education, especially in the rural areas, is one of the primary objects of CSR initiatives undertaken by NPL. We have a dedicated team of volunteers, who are constantly working to raise the education level in the villages and the results are quite encouraging.”
Photo by Anu Albert
He said, “NPL is committed to work closely with local panchayats to strengthen the existing education facilities in the government school by upgrading infrastructure and providing required equipment.”
As per the stats, last year, NPL introduced 11 teachers in 10 government schools in various villages in the two districts, which has now started showing results.
Initially, 276 students were provided academic support in English and Mathematics subjects. This encouraged other students to join government schools prompting a significant rise in enrollments and retention.
NPL also undertook major renovations projects in more than 30 government schools and provided furniture in around 20 schools. During the pandemic, around 100 students were engaged for online classes. Scholarships were given to meritorious students from economically weaker sections to pursue higher studies. NPL also came up with a dedicated building with activity rooms for specially abled children in Rajpura.
Besides, NPL provided library support to the government schools and made available hundreds of books in the English language. To develop the interest of the students in sciences, NPL gave science kits that enabled the students to grab the basic understanding of the subjects.
Various schools were also provided with projectors to enable the teachers to use audios and videos to impart quality education.
December 31,2020
