Ananda Marga

Primary School

Ananda Nagar, India

By Dada Gurudattananda

Ananda Nagar is located in a tribal dominated area of Purulia district of West Bengal State, in the eastern part of India. Ananda Marga School, Central Ananda Nagar, was started in the year 1963 in a thatched house with a vision to bring educational consciousness and development among the local impoverished people. Over the last 48 years of dedicated service by the Sannyasis (monks) and LFT teachers, this institution has greatly improved the quality of life among the villagers. Dada Gurudattananda, the present Principal, has been serving in this school for last 22 years. At present the school has 250 students enrolled from grades K-IV. Apart from local villages, some students from other states and 40 boys from our children's home also get education from this school. Subsequently 34 schools were started by Ananda Marga in other villages surrounding Ananda Nagar to serve the children from those areas who cannot come to central Ananda Nagar easily.

The school is situated in a complete natural and picturesque setting in the country side, far away from the bustle of city life, giving the children a conducive environment for being close to nature. Apart from regular subjects Stuvol (Student Volunteers) training and Vratacarii Camps are regularly held in this school for character building, developing service spirit, and developing volunteer and leadership qualities among the students. Art and music workshops are conducted to develop their aesthetic qualities. Cultural functions and excursions add to increasing and expressing the inner potentialities of the children and widening their imagination.

Neohumanism is the base of our curriculum. The Ecological Garden (PASAKA) near the school serves as a practical learning centre for the children. The annual magazine "Aruna alok" of the school carries poems, arts, stories of our children and articles from teachers. It gives ample inspiration for their budding talents to express their creativity. Meditation is a regular feature in our school bringing holistic vision and oneness among the children.

This school has served as a beacon of light and has brought great change in the lives of the local people. The children that have graduated from our school have attained great success in their lives and are serving the society in various capacities as engineers, medical doctors, professors and research scholars in India and abroad.

Ananda Marga School

Kulu, India

The Ananda Marga School in Kulu has 94 students and goes up to 10^th grade. Kulapati conducted a teacher's training for 16 teachers August 10-12^th. The training emphasized Neohumanism and the AMGK Standards for NHE schools, utilizing group discussions to facilitate learning, which was new for the teachers. Dr. Pathik gave a class on how to introduce environmental education to children, based on first hand instruction he had received from Shrii P. R. Sarkar.

He emphasized the importance of practical knowledge of farming as well as flora as fauna and the importance of teaching being alive with hands on learning.

Ananda Marga School

Burdwan, India

Burdwan is one of the oldest and educationally advanced towns of West Bengal. Our school, established in a humble way in 1967 in an old temple, today runs in our own building with over 500 students from grades K-IV. Because of its high standard of academic achievement and performance, well educated families send their children to our school. The present teacher-in-charge, Sukumar, is a very dedicated and creative educator who always strives to improve the quality of the teaching standard in the school.

Apart from the excellent academic record, the school is successfully providing a congenial environment where children learn moral values, leadership qualities, service spirit etc. Aesthetic and cultural development is an integral part of the curriculum. Annual sports and cultural programs always draw huge number of viewers. Students from our school always participate in the district level programs and stand out for their praiseworthy performance.

In the beginning of each academic session, teachers organize a "Freshers" Welcome Program where the new comers are given a warm welcome with cultural events. It is a very interesting and inspiring program for the students and their parents as well. A very innovative quiz competition program is organized for the parents where they learn about Neohumanism, Ananda Marga and the founder of NHE, Shrii P. R. Sarkar.

Teachers and students together care for the flower garden in the court yard of the school. The teachers regularly organize nature trips and excursions for the students and the guardians, where the children get to learn a lot about mother earth and nature. Teacher-guardian relations plays an important role in development of the school here.

A children's home is attached to the school where parentless children get scope to feel a part of the school family. They get love and care of all.

Our school is known in the town for the dedicated service of the teachers, their neohumanist outlook and spiritual values. Morning meditation is a special attraction for the entire school.

Students graduating from our school have placed high in the society and are serving in various capacities. Dr. Shubhanshu Cakraborty, once a student of our school, is a reputed surgeon now in the locality. He sends his children to our school too. He is known for his kind-heartedness and service quality. Thus our school has been creating service minded and dedicated citizens who care for others and work for collective wellbeing.

Ananda Marga School

Chennai, India

The Ananda Marga School in Chennai has about 150 children and goes up to grade 7. Didi Ananda Pradyota is the principal.

ERAWS School Mumbai

(on right) Up to 7th grade – primary.

Adruta Children’s Home

Bhuvaneswar, Orissa, India

Dr. Aditya Mohanty, professor of philosophy at Utkal University, Orissa and his graduate students, founded RAWA Academy and established several children's homes collectively called Adruta Children's Home, providing homes for a total of 400 children. Besides the children's home at Bhuvaneswar which is exclusively devoted to the cause of girl children in distress, there are other units of Adruta Children Home at Rayagada, Balangir, Angul, Puri, Keonjhar, Sundargarh, Dhenkanal and Mayurbhanj.

Adruta Children's Home was established to give a home to unclaimed, deserted and parentless children in Odisha. About 44% of the population of Odisha live below the poverty line. About 36% of the populace are illiterate and the per capita annual income is a meager $178.06. The plight of a girl child is still worse, since parents, at large, consider a girl child as a liability. The illiteracy rate of the females in Odisha is staggering 55.69%. But even these shocking statistics do not adequately describe the dismal state of affair of the girl children who are orphaned, deserted and unclaimed.

Adruta came into being in 1998 with the induction of Purnima, who has, in the meantime, grown into the stature of a national artiste in Odissi Dance. Since then, Adruta has grown into a model home drawing the attention of the people in the locality. There has been no looking back even though there have been intermittent constraints and handicaps due to the absence of regular inflow of funds from governmental and non-governmental agencies. Generous help of like-minded people and organisations, dedication and commitment of the cadres, and lots of Grace have helped the organisation to live through thirteen eventful years with success and satisfaction. Nitai Dhall and Hemant Basudev are providing assistance to put the institution on the path to sustainability.

Adruta Children's Home was awarded the Memento of recognition by Dept. of Women and Child Welfare, Govt. of Odisha in the year 2005-06. The orgranization received the Excellency Award-2006 on 29th August, 2006, at New Delhi, in the field of social action.

The ongoing activities of the Children's Home are monitored by Dr. Sagarika Mishra, Superintendent and Miss Supriti Mohanty, Secretary, backed by a band of committed volunteers who work as caretakers, cooks, etc. Together they provide a Neohumanist daily lifestyle for the children. In addition to attending school for academic learning, the children receive home instruction in yoga and mediation, values, the arts, sports and vocational training.

Regular sessions in Yoga and Meditation early in the morning and evening, help the children keep themselves physically fit, mentally afresh and spiritually elevated.

Spiritual stories and talks are organized every Sunday to infuse the sense of cardinal values like love, mutuality, tolerance, service and sacrifice in the mind of the children so that they grow into efficient as well as ideal persons in future.

Painting helps a child to gain self-esteem and confidence. It provides an excellent source of personal relaxation and psychic therapy. It allows them to associate creativity with every aspect of life, not merely on the canvas. While painting they cultivate aesthetic awareness of the beauty of nature.

Music helps the children in pain management, and to ward off depression, promote movement, ease muscle tension, and etc. Special classes in Vocal and Instrumental music are held for the children of Adruta home.

Training in Classical and folk dance is given to the residents of Adruta as it provides physical agility, strength and endurance to the children.

For more details, you may visit their website at: http://adrutachildrenhome.org/website/photo-gallery.htm

 

Back to top