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Site Visit – June, 2008
Vasundhara Public Charitable Trust (1995)
Rural recostruction and Education Project
Village: BibavneDist: SindhudurgaState: Maharashtra
Vaishali Tendolkar
Vasundhara Projects in Progress
• Science On Wheels (SOW) – Mobile Lab• Eureka Hall (Science Center)• Sky Gazing Program• National Talent Search & SSC Merit
Project• School for Sand Lifters Children• Misc – Medical camps, Watershed
devlpmt programs, Small cottage industry
Science On Wheels (SOW)
Objectives –• Motivate students to perform hands-on
science experiments• Involve students in inquiry sessions
(heuristics)• Develop problem solving capacity• Sky gazing & understanding earth better• Math applications
SOW Mobile Lab
Geographic Reach of SOW
• Covered 90 primary schools & 60 secondary schools, each twice a year
• Spread over 90 villages in Sindhudurga• Free of charge to schools• Paid teachers and staff – creates
employment• Teachers leave after training – a issue, but
they get developed to contribute to society
Visited Pangran Primary School
SOW Issues
• Very limited reach (Only twice a year)• Teacher turnover very high (low salaries)• No library, no books, no computers• Devgadh Region way too far to reach
(more than one mobile lab needed)• Different approach – teaching to learn &
explore – takes more time – school teachers often don’t cooperate
• More funding will help resolve most issues
Eureka HallObjectives –• Serves as a science center and mini-planetorium for
schools & general public• Displays scientific exhibits / experiments / models• SOW existence totally depends on Eureka Hall• Intensive training for selected students in Math &
Science on-site• Field trips & Science camps - Students stay on
Eureka Hall for days • Invite Scientists and Mathematicians • Students trained for National Talent Search (NTS) &
International Olympiad (Math)• Hands-on science experiments to boost science
curiosty• Sky gazing & understanding earth better
Eureka Hall Building, Bibavne
Eureka Hall Issues
• Leased building– doesn’t fulfill basic needs e.g. One restroom for boys/girls/staff, same space used for living overnight, limited room- can’t add more experiments
• New 6 acres of land in Nerurparpurchased – 50+ lakhs total expense, around half is funded
• Much bigger Eureka Hall, Boys & Girls hostels, Office, Library, Computers, etc.
• Almost all of the issues of SOW apply
Eureka Hall
Eureka Hall
Contacts Established • Mr. Ramesh Kacholia – Mumbai based retired
businessman, now devotes most of his time to social & humanitarian work – established ‘Mumbai Group of Friends’ who fund about 30 big projects in India
• Mr. Rajeev Vartak – Mumbai based. Plans, develops, coordinates, and implements educational projects for Vasundhara. He trains the teachers for SOW and Eureka Hall
• Mr. C. B. Naik – Founder of Vasundhara. Based in Nerurpar in Sindhudurga district. Devotes all of his time for Vasundhara.