Over 18,000 schools affiliated to Vidya Bharati are providing education and sanskars
to about 24 lakh students under the guidance of nearly 98,000
teachers. It is the largest voluntary educational organization not only in
India but in the world. Its work is progressing with the active support of
the society and has increased ten fold in just over twenty years since Vidya
Bharti was formally constituted. However, these gains are grossly inadequate
in the context of the vastness of the country and the educational needs of the
society. There is a limit to the human and financial resources of Vidya Bharati.
Still, it is committed to provide not only free education in the priority
regions inhabited by van vasi, backward and neglected sections of our people but also to provide
food, clothing, text books etc., because these people live under
conditions of acute poverty and deprivation where provision of even two square
meals a day is not always possible.
In
view of the above circumstances prevailing in the country and the society and
its limited resources, Vidya Bharati is unable to keep on opening more and more
schools. A nationwide plan has been drawn up to open a large number of Sanskar
Kendras (single-teacher-schools). These centres conduct informal activities for
imparting literacy, health-education, self-reliance, sanskriti, love for the
country and social harmony. Special efforts are made to contact and educate the
children who are unable to attend formal schools due to family circumstances or
non-availability of such schools near their localities. Then there are
children who attend formal schools but remain below standard due to adverse
family circumstances. An effort is made to provide specific coaching to such
children to bring them up to the requisite standard of their classes Songs,
story telling, games, role-acting etc. are the major activities for children’s
development and sanskar learning.
Sanskar
kendras of Vidya Bharati are organized in four different kinds of localities:
|
In
the backward and slum localities of cities.
|
|
|
In
comparatively affluent localities of cities where children usually go to the so
called convent or English medium schools. These children are, generally,
ignorant or ill-informed about Bharatiya Sanskriti. Therefore, Vidya Bharati has
organized Sanskar Kendras for these children also.
|
|
|
In
rural areas.
|
|
|
in
Vanavasi regions.
|
Along
with education and sanakar training of children attending the Sanakar Kendras,
efforts are made to contact their parents, guardians and other members of their
families and through various informal activities an effort is made to create
an awareness among them for a healthy, cultured life both for individuals and
for the society.
This innovative scheme of Sanskar Kendras was
launched in 1988-89 as a component of the memorial campaigns organized during
the birth centenary celebrations of Dr.Hedgewar. About 2000 Sanskar Kendras
have been established to date. Vidya Bharati has emphatically requested all schools to operate atleast
one sanskar Kendra. It is our earnest hope that the sanskar Kendra scheme will
be successfully implemented with the cooperation of social workers and other
members of the society.
|
