Akshay Petikas seek crowd fund to develop schools

A donation box, named ‘Akshay Petika’, was installed at Rajkiya Uchh Madhyamik Vidyalaya in Kasimpur, Dholpur, on Tuesday by the district collector Suchi Tyagi during a small function.

The box was put to prompt people to donate money for the development of schools, said district education officer (DEO secondary), Hukam Chand Gupta.

By the end of the day, ₹41,000 had been collected. “Almost everyone present at the function, the collector, the other officials and the common people, donated money. Even students made contributions of Re 1 and ₹2,” said Gupta.

The decision to install donation boxes in government schools was first taken by the Rajkiya Uchh Madhyamik Vidyalaya in Saipau. They installed an ‘Akshay Petika’ (which means a box from which funds never exhaust) in May this year. The aim was to crowd fund for development of government schools.

“Next to the box were a board urging people to donate whatever they could. Chhoti chhoti raashi se badi raashi banayenge, school ka vikas karenge (From the small amounts we’ll make a big amount, use it for the school’s development), the board read,” said the DEO.

The Dholpur district education officer said that the school education directorate (secondary) in Bikaner loved the idea and ordered that it be replicated in all schools across the state. The orders for installing the box were sent to all schools in June.

“It was done with the idea of involving the community in development work and creating a sense of ownership among them towards the schools,” said Nathmal Didel, director, secondary education.

The funds collected will be sent to the district collector, who will register it under the Mukhyamanti Jan Sahbhagita Yojana, and send back 1.5 times the amount back to the school.

Under the scheme, if the community generates, for example, ₹40, then the government will add ₹60 and eventually ₹100 will be given back to the school to carry out developmental works.