Teacher who fought school demolition shapes future of kids

Arne Duncan’s quote “Wherever you find something extraordinary, you’ll find the fingerprints of a great teacher” holds true for Sanjeev Kalyan, head teacher of Government Primary School at Ghulal village.

Kalyan has not only reshaped the school building but also the destiny of thousands of little children, who would have been bereft of primary education had it not been for him.

His single-handed, constant and tireless efforts saved the school from being razed as it faced a threat of demolition under NHAI’s Ludhiana-Kharar six-lane highway project in 2018. Kalyan refused to vacate the school building and made all efforts to save the future of his children. His efforts finally paid off as the then Secretary, School Education, Krishan Kumar intervened and directed the Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner to bypass the school and realign the road.

After 11 long years of tiring labour, Kalyan finally got a building erected, which he could call a school, where the kids from nursery to class 5 would study, learn, enjoy, play and leave with flying colours by all means.

The attractive building, no doubt erected with the support of local philanthropists, enabled Kalyan raise the school strength from 50 to 116, covering not only Ghulal but also the surrounding villages as well. Further, an autorickshaw, bought with the help of the villagers, enabled children from distant areas come to school.

The school has bagged appreciation from the Education Secretary five times and the ‘Best School Award’ under the Swachch Vidyalaya category. A state awardee himself, Kalyan left no field unexplored by his kids, enabling them to grab state positions in academics, sports as well as extra-curricular activities. First to initiate cubs and bulbuls in his school, more than 50 students of Kalayan have won the national-level Golden Arrow Award till date.

Due to Kalyan’s sole efforts, the school has become much sought after by people, who want their children to be enrolled in the school.

Kalyan has transformed the walls of his school into learning aids. He has established a first-of-its-kind library with the financial support from NRIs. At present, one touch panel, two LEDs and two projectors are enough to help the kids prepare for the new world.

Even on a holiday, Sanjeev takes no rest. You can find the non-stop educator motivating the booster groups and at the same time providing remedial coaching to the potential learners on Sunday. “Not only till fifth standard, my responsibility goes beyond as I start giving them guidance from class 4 onwards for the Navodaya Vidyalaya selection test,” Kalyan shares.

Ludhiana