Kerala school takes up vegetable cultivation to feed villagers
PATHANAMTHITTA: Headmaster, teachers and non-teaching staff of a government school here have been doing cultivation on their school premises to give away vegetables to poor families, as a means to help them during the pandemic. The pandemic has smashed the livelihoods of many people and the people of Edamuri, a place in Pathanamthitta, are no exception. So, the headmaster and teachers of Edamuri Government Higher Secondary School have started farming to serve scores of poor families in the area. The non-teaching staff, parents and villagers also have come forward to help the teachers.
“Our school is having around 3 acres and over one acre of it was remaining useless since it was covered with bushes and creepers. Our school earlier used to spend its funds for clearing the bushes and creepers. But after they were cleared, bushes and creepers again appeared within a three-month gap. So, our school headmaster, Sunil Sir, shared the idea of doing cultivation in this land and the school management committee wholeheartedly welcomed this idea. We have cleared the land with the support of our Krishi Bhavan and MGNREGA workers,” said Binish Philip, a teacher of the school.
“During Covid-19 lockdown time, we got free time. So, we conducted cultivation of different kinds of vegetables, tubers and bananas. Krishi Bhavan officials have given seeds, manures and technical support for the cultivation free of cost. The teachers, who are staying in and around the village, used to come to school for taking care of the plants. Teachers Bineesh and Lincymol PR, non-teaching staff Aravind Mohan R and Balan P spearheaded our cultivation.
We have mainly done the cultivation of spinach, brinjal, ladies finger, chillies, cauliflower and peas. Besides, turmeric, banana and tapioca are also being cultivated by us,” said Sunil K, headmaster of the school. “The majority of the students of our school are from tribal families. We are giving all the vegetables to these poor families. This cultivation is teaching us new lessons during this Covid-19 time,” the teachers said.