Hyderabad, August 14: Bhumi, a non-profit organisation involving a few thousand volunteers in association with the Hyderabad district administration will build toilets-cum-bathrooms in government schools on August 14 and 15.
The construction works would be taken up at the Government High School, Nampally, Government Sardar Vallabhai Patel Primary School, Asifnagar, Government Boys High School, Bowenpally, Government Girls High School, First Lancer and Zilla Parishad High School, Kukatpally.
On Saturday at 10 p.m, a candlelight vigil and freedom pledge to build nation would be administered by Assembly speaker Kiran Kumar Reddy at Vijayanagar Colony Hockey grounds. City police commissioner AK Khan will attend the function. On August 15, volunteers will undertake cleaning of the Gandhi General Hospital and a plantation programme.
Addressing a press conference here today, Hyderabad district collector Natarajan Gulzar hailed the role of Bhumi in coming forward to develop sanitation in government schools.
He announced that NGOs willing to take up such welfare initiatives were welcome. “If NGOs can contribute 20 percent, works would be taken up at the earliest and the building name would be given as per their choice. If they provide us the funds, we will carry out pucca works without compromising on the quality. Even contractors to whom the work is allotted would be under our control and they would look after the future maintenance as well,” he said. The construction of toilets and facilities for clean drinking water in government schools would be completed in six months, according to Gulzar.
Bhumi founder president, Mujeeb Khan said the project called ‘Freedom under Construction’ was a citizens’ movement started in 2006. Every year on occasion of Independence Day,a 24-hour building marathon is taken up by our volunteers, who spend few hours each in building the nation.
In the last four years, 2,500 Bhumi volunteers have built 23 government school classrooms, eight bathrooms and planted 2,300 saplings.”We celebrate the Independence Day by making meaningful contribution to the nation,” Khan said.
–Agencies