School from Daramdin is the second greenest school in Sikkim

NEW DELHI: A government school at Boormajra in Punjab’s Ropar district, a rural school in a remote corner of Sikkim and one school each from Delhi and Noida have been adjudged the “greenest” in the country by the Centre for Science and Environment.

These schools were conferred the Green Schools Awards-2007 at a ceremony organised here on Monday. The awards -- been given out since 2006 under CSE’s Green Schools Programme -- were presented this year by National Council for Education Research and Training (NCERT) director Krishna Kumar.

The top award this year was bagged by the Government School at Boormajra for the second time. In 2006, the school had beaten all other contenders in the race by presenting remarkably precise audit documents. The data also reflected the effort that the school community -- with limited resources -- had made in managing its water. The school was reusing almost 50 per cent of the spillage from taps to irrigate the school grounds. 

“In 2007, the students and teachers of Boormajra have outdone themselves. They have produced minutely detailed information, not only on water but on land, air and energy, as well. The award has gone to it because the school has been able to grasp the real message that the Green Schools Programme seeks to promote,” said Sumita Dasgupta, Coordinator of CSE’s Green Schools Programme.

The awards have been instituted to help students understand and practise sustainable use of natural resources and look out for new and more innovative ways of managing them.

Added Ms Dasgupta: “The winner this year has truly played the role of a model green school, proving beyond doubt that plentiful resources or elitist status are not the ingredients that make true leaders.”

The second position has gone to the Government Secondary School at Daramdin in Sikkim.

Meanwhile, of the six short-listed schools in Delhi, Apeejay School in Pitampura has emerged on top. It has bagged the overall third position as well as the top spot in the Best Students’ Team Category. The school’s team has earned the honours for its meticulously prepared biodiversity register -- which is a feat in itself considering the school’s location in extremely crowded West Delhi.

Vishwa Bharati Public School in Noida has received the Best Teachers’ Team Award. Under the Green Schools Programme, schools across the country carry out a rigorous self-audit on environmental practices within their own premises, following a set of guidelines outlined in CSE’s Green Schools manual. The schools have used the manual in their environmental studies programmes and as an activity in the eco-clubs.