Jalgaon: A soldier fighting at the border is not alone; the entire nation stands behind him. Expressing this sentiment of gratitude through their actions, girl students from Indira Gandhi Secondary and Higher Secondary School in Dharangaon, Jalgaon district, have been running a unique initiative for the past 31 years.
The students make rakhis by hand using their own pocket money and send them to soldiers stationed at the border. This year marks the 32nd year of the initiative. The students sent 1,500 Tiranga rakhis this year, and after receiving confirmation that the consignment had reached the border, they celebrated with joy.
Thirty-one years ago, the school’s then supervisor, Rajendra Padol, read an article highlighting a soldier’s perspective. He was deeply moved by the statement: “For us soldiers at the border, every day is the same; there are no festivals or holidays.”
Wondering what could be done for soldiers, he shared the idea of sending rakhis with Class 10 girl students. Responding enthusiastically, the students pooled money received during Bhai Dooj and other occasions to purchase materials such as wool, silk threads and decorative items to make the rakhis.
The school’s art teachers trained the students in making the rakhis. For a month before Raksha Bandhan, the students arrived at school an hour early with enthusiasm to make the rakhis, while their class teachers encouraged them.
Although Padol has since retired, he continues to actively participate in the initiative, driven by the same sense of gratitude. The students’ parents also support the initiative.
This year, 1,500 tricolour rakhis were dispatched to the Nashik Cantonment, from where they are sent to the border. The school celebrates whenever it receives news that the rakhis have reached soldiers from Nashik.
The joy is visible on the faces of the Class 10 students, while Headmistress Surekha Patil derives satisfaction from the initiative’s success. Deputy Headmaster AS Patil, Supervisor BP Patil, and class teachers RU Patil and AS Mahajan work hard to ensure the success of the initiative.
