Khanapur, Jangiganj / Bhadohi
In carpet knotting regions it is not rare to find hundreds of school-age children in rural villages without a single school nearby. One such region is around the town of Khanapur, which is located southwest of Bhadohi. The nearly 24,000 people in the 8 surrounding villages live from rug and carpet weaving and agriculture; their main livelihood is rice farming.
In 1998, Mr. Abdullah Ansari signed over a piece of land to CARE & FAIR India to build a school. Construction began in 1999 and on 21 August 2000, the Haji Saheb Ali School opened its doors for 400 children.
For many years, the English rug importer Hill & Co. Rugs has been sponsoring the school by paying for all of the operating expenses. Hill & Co. also financed the construction of two multipurpose rooms, which were added on to the school building in 2010. In these rooms the school’s computers and a natural sciences lab are located.
Two years later, in 2012, the school made a decisive step towards becoming more sustainable and independent. At the suggestion of Hill & Co., solar panels were installed on the school’s roof. The solar panels supply the entire school – including the computer rooms – with electricity, thus making the loud generators superfluous.
The Board of Education for the State of Uttar Pradesh (U.P. Basic Siksha Parishad) has officially recognised the Haji Saheb Ali School and its team of teachters. The local public health authority has also inspected the school’s hygiene standards.
In this school, CARE & FAIR was able to set up and implement its third Women Empowerment Program (WEP) in 2010.
Students ± 293
Teachers ± 10
Staff ± 5
Adult Education ± 30
Teachers ± 1
Staff ± 1
