Govt school in Bantwal buys bus from areca garden income

Mangaluru: A 112-year-old government school in Bantwal has purchased a bus from the income generated from its areca nut garden where it had planted 628 saplings in 2017. This was the initiative of School Development and Monitoring Committee (SDMC), teachers and villagers. The areca saplings were planted in an acre of land at the upgraded government primary school, Mittur, Bantwal taluk.
The school has 4.15 acres, and most of it is cultivated. “The entire land was once uncultivated and considered barren. A few years ago, SDMC president Adam Mittur took the initiative to transform the school with funding from his own pocket. Now, it is a gamechanger, “said Sanjeeva N, assistant teacher at the school.
Saroja A, headmistress of the school, said the areca garden started yielding last year. The garden is outsourced to outsiders since the school is not able to look after it. Those who outsource will pay about Rs 2.5 lakh to the school annually for the next five years.
“On Saturday, we purchased and dedicated a 26-seater school bus to help students who come from far-off places. The cost of the bus was Rs 5 lakh and it was inaugurated by Puttur MLA Sanjeeva Matandoor,’’ she said.
Saroja said the school has 118 children, who come from poor families. Besides, they have to walk 2-3 km to reach school, and there is no public transportation. A few years ago, after SDMC realized the difficulty, it rented out three autorickshaws to ferry them. The school used to pay 75% of auto costs, with the remainder borne by parents.