Naresh Polisetti — a for PhD. (Biotechnology) student of Hyderabad Central University, now a scientist in Germany and Anitha Ravala — a software engineer in the US, armed with an MCA from Osmania University have a common goal. The like-minded duo connected through social media and in a bid to do something for their villages in Guntur and Chittoor, adopted a government school each in both the places in 2012.
“We heard that government schools were shutting down due to lack of minimum strength (23). I studied in a government school before my eventual success. I believe education is the most significant aspect for anybody’s livelihood, and so, I adopted the school in my village,” Naresh explains. Anitha reveals, “Women empowerment is possible only with education — it helps them grow and work independently. I studied in a government school and value the significance of basic education. When I wanted to contribute, I met Naresh and joined him.”
Ever since they adopted the schools, things have changed. “We first cleaned the school premises, levelled roads and coloured the buildings. Earlier, the strength was less than 10. Last year it was 25. Also, we have been providing the school kids with new bags, books and stationery, drinking water, water bottles, furniture, rest rooms, etc. every year,” Naresh reveals, adding, “The response from the villagers has been good, and this academic year, the count has gone up to 30.”
Nonetheless, Anitha says the journey was a challenge. “Since we live abroad, monitoring the work is difficult. We depend on volunteers to compete tasks and it is time-consuming. Some head masters didn’t give us the permission to adopt. Also, convincing concerned officials wasn’t easy. Villagers initially resisted, but after seeing the school getting a makeover, they were convinced and started sending their kids. We have now identified meritorious students and are giving them scholarships for higher education.”
