[Survivor Series] With support from Himmotthan, we could continue learning for students amidst COVID-19 pandemic

My name is Vinita Badshilia, and I am 37-years-old. For the last 16 years, I have been working as the Headmistress of the Government Primary School, Dola, Kotabagh block, Nainital. My school comes under a very difficult category of the Uttarakhand government. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, when schools shut down, the parents and I started worrying a lot about the children’s continuity of education as we hardly had any online facilities.

Initially, with support from Himmotthan — an initiative of Tata Trusts — we established an online learning platform. The Himmotthan team supported us with laptops, smartphones, and recharging the phones for parents. 

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When things got slightly better, I set up a reading corner in the village with the help of Shree Shubham Badhani — a library trainer from Himmotthan — where children from Dola and nearby villages started coming. With the help of the reading corner, I organised various book-based activities for the children. 

Gradually, as the situation improved after October 2020, Himmotthan helped us with new initiatives — including a community library called 'Reading Mela' — in the safety of the school premises.

Through this community library, along with the children, we tried to connect the village community with the library. 

Since the school reopened and children started coming back, I have named the school’s library corner the community library corner. In the monthly SMC meeting, parents and SMC members also read books while sitting in the community library corner. 

I believe the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in at least one positive outcome — a greater appreciation for the value of government schools and organisations.

As parents struggle to work with their children at home due to school closures, schools and organisations like Himmotthan played a critical role in growing public awareness in society.