Sambhav Nepal

History
Established in 1988 AD (2045 BS), Jalakanya Primary School is in Ghyapinthok village of Arupokhari VDC of Gorkha district.Gurungs were the main ethnic groups living in this area. Since the political conflict started in 1995, there is no any clear effort from the government for the academic as well as physical development of this school.The degraded state of the school led to greater problems of enrollment as parents refused to send their children to Jalakanya. Moreover, the region is predominantly Gurungs and Tamangs who are traditionally inclined to join the military due to their robust build. The school, therefore, required immediate attention for its survival altogether. Convincing the parents was still a challenge because of their below-average income and they rather have their children working in the farms.

Location
Jalakanya primary school is located in the Northern part of the Gorkha district; Arupokhari Village Development Committee ward no-3Ghaypinthok village. You can travel there only by road. A local public bus from Kathmandu leaves everyday from morning 6.30am till 11.00am to Arughat.

Once you arrive in Arughat Bazar you travel towards west by climbing the stairs at the top Arughat Bazar and then across the bridge and Stull khola (Stull River) you will ascend up, to reach the village, the hike will take you around 2.5 hours all the way up. At first you will reach Dharapani Lower Secondary School at Dharapani Village, from there it's another 1 hour walk to Jalakanya Primary School.

Drinking Water
Drinking water supply for the school and use in the toilet needs to be installed in order to maintain a high level of sanitation. The school children, staff and volunteers will directly benefit from this facility.

Mini-Library
The school would benefit greatly from a small library, no bigger than a rackful. We are aiming to attract students to have the habit of reading books from very early ages. The library would also have coloring books, story books and puzzles appropriate for primary-level students.

Furniture and Fencing
Currently, there is no fencing in the perimeter of the Jalakanya. Keeping the safety and security of the toddlers in mind, Sambhav Nepal plans to fence the area in the near future. Most of the furnitures need repairing while some are worn out beyond repair. We plan to address this problem once we have the required financial resources.

Sambhav Nepal has proposed a project for the infrastructural development of Jalakanya Primary School. This project is under operation and continues until 2013 AD under the financial aid of Ray and Pam Sleap from Sydney, Australia. Before Sambhav Nepal intervened in its reform, the school was in a very poor physical condition. Especially during monsoon, the damaged roof would leak profusely, leaving a pool of water inside the class. The walls were damaged and the desks were worn out, giving students no option but to sit on the floor.

Between 2009 and 2011, the interior and the exterior of the building was concrete-plastered and painted, while the furniture, the blackboards, the doors and the windows were replaced. Sambhav Nepal also supplied the students with free stationery materials during this period.



Since Jalakanya School and Sitala School have had similar infrastrucure problems, Sambhav Nepal handled both the schools at the same period to reduce the overhead costs.

Jalakanya Today
Pictures of Jalakanya Primary School after the renovation work carried out by Sambhav Nepal.