Pritam Singh, cabinet minister for Panchayati Raj, Rural Engineering, Sports and Youth, Government of Uttaranchal, speaking during the inauguration of RLEK school at Seedi village, Block Chakrata, District Dehra Dun, remarked that for the first time women in such large numbers where seen at a public gathering and sitting on the dais with the officials and speaking openly about their problems. He commended the efforts of RLEK in bringing the women together through formation of self-help groups for improving their economic situation and fighting for rights based development of Jaunsar-Bawar region. He also assured the community people that steps would be taken to improve the education system of this region since only education can bring awareness in the community people and the future generation about their rights and towards uplifting themselves.
The initiatives of RLEK, showed a new dawn for the children of Seedi/ Barkoti villages as it was instrumental in opening a Primary school in Village Seedi.
This school, one of the chain of RLEK schools, has been built with the Financial support from Japanese Government and RLEK providing the infrastructural support. The school is fine example of community's participation, as the community people have donated the land and the school built by NGO. Two more schools have and are being made in Village Gaichwan and Village Ludgyon of Phateparbat Belt of Uttarkashi District. In Fact another School in Village Dhaura near Lakhamandal, District Dehra Dun is also being constructed for the children who are primarily from the SC/ST community.
The local community people, comprising mainly of the women from Self-help groups have formed a School Managing Committee, which will monitor the performance and manage the functioning and maintenance of the school.
The school will be run by the teachers, supported by RLEK and will have classes up to class V. The focus of this school would be to promote Quality Primary education especially for the young Girls and for SC/ST children, and to make teaching innovative and interesting for the children to sustain their interest. The construction and functioning of these schools in the remote regions has a special significance as the UN has designated the Year 2002, as the year of the mountain and this is "the policy of RLEK to reach the unreached and to include the excluded".
RLEK is running a project on Sustainable Development in 100 villages of Uttarkashi, Dehra Dun & Tehri Districts, where the capacities of the community people are built and they are mobilized into self-help groups and people's organization for negotiating with the regional authorities for right's based development in their regions.
Shahji, Block Congress president emphasized that the community people would have to come forward to combat the corruption, which is prevalent in the region and not to cast vote to those who were trying to buy votes. He said it was time that the right capable person should be allowed to contest for the elections. Mr. Surat Singh, President of the Kastkar samiti (people's Organization) Lakhamandal-Quansi, asked that the road connectivity of the region should be improved especially the road from Lakhamandal to Chakrata. The Health Infrastructure also needs to be overhauled along with enough personnel for delivering services, as this region does not have adequate facilities and have to travel long distances to reach Vikas nagar for proper care & treatment. Ms, Laxmi one of the representative of the women's Federation "Sathini" also requested that the primary school education for the young children should be improved otherwise they would be forced to hold a protest rally. BDO Chakrata, Tehsildar and other local officials were present at the inauguration.
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