Sitting in the front row beside her grandmother and talking excitedly to everyone was Ashwathy, whose dream turned into reality on Thursday as V.S. Achuthanandan, Leader of the Opposition, handed over a symbolic key to her newl home at Malayanam, near Malamukal, at an event organised by the Government Vocational Higher Secondary School (GVHSS), Vattiyurkavu, from where she completed Class XII.
The students and staff of GVHSS set an example by building a home for the differently abled Ashwathy and her grandmother.
The perseverance and hard work of the 60 National Service Scheme (NSS) volunteers paid off and the students were able to raise around Rs.1 lakh by selling printed New Year greeting cards; setting up food stalls during school arts festivals and other cultural events in the school; and selling agricultural produce grown on the school terrace; besides chipping in from their personal savings.
The students also lent a helping hand during the construction of the house.
The staff and members of the PTA also contributed to the fund.
The construction that began in December last was completed in April, 2015, with the help of generous builders and shop owners.
Channelling students’ energy into such projects will contribute towards character building and will prevent them from engaging in antisocial activities, said Principal of GVHSS S.V. Ratish, who oversaw the project along with M.A. Abul Nissar, NSS Programme Officer.
Various initiatives
‘A home for your classmate’ is one of the many ventures taken up by the NSS unit as part of the golden jubilee celebrations of the institution that aims at building a house every year for a financially disadvantaged student.
Mr. Achuthanandan honoured K.K. Shibin, a staff member of GVHSS who won first place in this years’ United Nations Environment Programme’s logo contest.
The event also saw the distribution of furniture to selected students under the M. Shivakumar Memorial Charitable Trust.
