Tuesday, December 25, 2012

ASCENDING ACADEMIC HEIGHTS FOR SOCIAL COHESION


AUM
 ASCENDING ACADEMIC HEIGHTS AT BEMETARA, C G
                                    By Brigadier Chitranjan Sawant,VSM
CG stands for Chhatisgarh, a State that was carved out of Madhya Pradesh a little over a decade ago and has been famous for its tasty and fragrant rice all over the world where rice is eaten. Now a new feather has been added to the State’s much feathered cap in the realm of education of the new generation . With a view to achieving new academic excellence, the Chhatisgarhi boys and girls needed a modern GURUKUL where the Acharya  cares for his Shishyas and alround development of their personality. Unfortunately none existed.
Chhatisgarh, as the name suggests, was a region where numerous rulers of small principalities held sway and were proud of their Forts, the wild life and jungles and their produce of rare varieties of rice and allied grains, not forgetting their poor relation, coarse kodau, that was of immense dietary value to diabetic men and women. Notwithstanding the sylvan surroundings and perfect peace and tranquility that the jungle offered, the biggest by-product of the natural VAN SAMPADA, a GURUKUL or a RISHIKUL was conspicuous by its non-existence.
With the coming to power of the Bhartiya Janata Party and Dr Raman Singh as Chief Minister of the State, a new push to and advancement of SHIKSHA OR EDUCATION that has a fusion of the ancient and the modern values of life was but natural. Thus the seed was sown and in due course of time it germinated in the form of a secondary school named ACADEMIC HEIGHTS PUBLIC SCHOOL, Bemetara just two years ago. As of now only day scholars attend the classes but the day is not far off when the institution will have a hostel and a 24-hour a day contact between the Faculty and the students.
SECOND ANNUAL DAY
This weekend I have had the privilege of coming in close contact with the Principal, Shri Bharat Bhushan, members of the staff and students of the primary level up to the VIII class. I had a fleeting hi and  bye with Shri Ashok Singh, an eminent educationist and shubh chintak of the fledgeling institution currently celebrating its Second Annual Day. It is the dynamic personality of the Chairperson, Bhawana Ji who looks after the administration from the managerial angleand her husband who is just a call away to lend modernity, that lend a helping hand in shaping policy at higher echelon. The Management remains in close contact with the Principal, more as a help and never as a hindrance, through Counsellor, Vineet Rajoria who is a young MBA with modern ideas for education of the new generation. It is the perfect coordination among the Management, the Principal and the Staff that has an impact on the growth of students. This positive aspect of running a new school is worth emulating. 
Celebrations of the Second Annual Day were indeed a Gala Affair. The school presented its talented students on stage who gave a performance of which a professional theatre company would be proud. Histrionics is yet to be introduced as a subject but even the tiny-tots of the junior wing comprising nursery and KG classes took to stage like fish to water. The teachers were present in the Wings to boost the morale of students on stage. The Greenhorns felt confident and faced a large audience comprising parents, relatives and guardians of performing students without a hitch.
I was told by Bharat Bhushan Ji, Principal, that the School Management is spending a large amount of money in making the Annual Day Show a grand success. After all it is the mouth to mouth publicity of events in the school that bring a good or bad name to the school. On the persistent request of the student community, the Principal, Staff and the Management agreed to invite Meiyang Chang, the famous Indianised singer  of Chinese origin of Bollywood  fame whose pronunciation of Hindi words is as perfect as that of a Prayag-born Indian singer. He gave a performance on stage for a couple of hours and enthralled men and women of all ages. Of course, the fat purse of money presented to him as his honorarium defies an intelligent guess.
“ If Music be the food of love, play on…” so said Shakespeare, the famous playwright of the English language. On the stage of the Academic Heights Public School, there was surfeit of it. The students and their parents or guardian enjoyed every moment of the show. Histrionics was in play too. Meiyang Chang walked across the aisle, down the stage to talk to the audience and have them involved as singers of a chorus or two. The CC camera caught and projected this impromptu performance on the giant screens placed for the convenience of guests and they enjoyed it. “” Paisa Wasool”, I do not know but the Gen X would not have enjoyed the musical performance so much if only local talent was called to grace the stage.
The prize distribution to students from different classes was held before the musical show. It was a delight to see small children come up the stage, receive their prizes for excelling in one aspect or the other, and walk back clutching the prizes lest a competitor who missed making the grade came from behind and snatched it. Fortunately, training in culture and behavior given by the school academic staff held them in good stead and nothing of that sort happened.
FUSION OF ACADEMICS AND SPORTS
Academic Heights Public School pays attention to its students achieving excellence in the academic subjects. Indeed it will help them in excelling in the competitive examinations both at the State level and at the Centre level. Nevertheless for achieving an all round development of personality, it is necessary that students excel in sports and games too. The school had also organized a Sports Day a day after the cultural show. BACHPAN – the small children’s wing of the Academic Heights made a debut right at the beginning. The march past was perfect and the students of that tender age were performing as well as an adult athlete.
After a fierce competition in various disciplines and sharing the prize giving ceremony, the Sports Meet was declared as closed. Thus the one-day event came to a close.
The thirtysix fort region is indeed proud of its martial tradition. It is hoped that the Academic Heights Public School will give another opportunity to the government and citizens of Chhatisgarh to be proud of the Academic Excellence and for breasting the tape higher, faster and stronger by students of the Academic Heights Public School, Benemtara, Chhatisgarh. May Param Pita Parmatama bless them – One and All.
Brigadier Chitranjan Sawant,VSM
UPVAN  609,  Sector 29,  NOIDA – 201303.
Email:  sawantg.chitranjan@gmail.com            Phone:  9811173590.
                                                                  

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