Albin Antony, a Class 9 student in Thiruvananthapuram’s coastal area, usually hates taking down notes. But on Sunday, September 9, he wrote notes the entire day. Albin was one of nearly 200 students who gathered at St Joseph’s Higher Secondary School to write notes for students in flood-ravaged Kuttanad.
“I am among those known in my class for not completing my notes on time. But I was happy to volunteer on Sunday. I felt so good to do something, which I hate, for others,” smiled Albin.
The programme was organised by Thiruvananthapuram’s Latin Archdiocese. “Students from Classes 8,9 and 10 gathered to write notes for Class 10 students of two schools – Government Higher Secondary School, Kidangar, and Government Higher Secondary School, Koduppunna, in Alappuzha district. The notes for all subjects, except Mathematics, were completed on Sunday. We’ll send them to the schools on Monday,” Father Dyson, manager at St Joseph’s Higher Secondary School, told TNM.
The drive, named ‘Koottukarkkoru Kaithangu’, identified the schools in Kuttanad where students lost their study material to the floods, and got in touch with authorities there.
“It was an expression of solidarity. We could have simply photocopied the notes or taken printouts of them. But children should learn how to help their fellow human beings. This was an act of love,” Father Dyson added.
He also thanked the students and teachers who took part in the drive, sacrificing a holiday. “Teachers read out the notes, and students wrote them down. So everyone played a major role in this,” he said.
Gopika, another student who took part in the drive, said this was a small contribution they were making to their friends. “When we saw the situation in flood-affected areas, we were pained. Though we wanted to go there and volunteer, it was not possible. So this our way of contributing to the relief. Textbooks can be bought again, but they will have to write notes themselves. So we thought it would be helpful to send them notes,” said, adding she and her friends would be more than happy to sacrifice another holiday to help affected students.
According to Father Dyson, the drive will continue to support flood-affected students and schools in different ways.
This article has been produced in partnership with Oxfam India. In the last 10 years, Oxfam India has delivered over 36 impactful humanitarian responses in India.Oxfam India is providing critical relief to the affected families and communities in Kerala: clean drinking water, sanitation, and shelter kits. Click here to help #RebuildKerala.