Veeramangala school in Puttur recognised as best PM-SHRI school in DK | Mangaluru News

Mangaluru: The DK ZP Govt Higher Primary School in Veeramangala, Puttur, which operates even on Sundays, was recognised as the ‘Best PM-SHRI School’ of Dakshina Kannada (DK).Dharmendra Pradhan, Union education minister, announced this during the Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Samagam 2025 in New Delhi to commemorate five years of NEP-2020. During the event, he announced about 613 Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India (PM-SHRI) best-performing schools, one from each district, 24 best KVS, one from each region, and seven best NVS, one from each region. In DK, Veeramangala School was recognised for meeting all parameters of the PM SHRI school. The district has a total of 17 PM -SHRI schools.Tharanath PS, the headmaster of the school, said that they were able to implement all parameters, including pedagogy and assessment, curriculum, beneficiary satisfaction, access and infrastructure, human resources and school leadership, inclusive practices, and gender equity, among others. “Our school was selected in the first phase, and in the last two years, we made progress in several areas with the help of teachers, students, parents, SDMC, and locals,” he said.Listing some of the initiatives adopted by the school, Tharanath said that they are a green school with best practices in science and mathematics learning, yoga, computer training, indoor and outdoor activities, a vegetable garden, a medical garden, sports activities, and an outdoor exposure programme. “Yoga training is one of our recognised programmes, where there are teams who participated in several events. Under the exposure programme, students visited paddy fields, arecanut farms, apiculture farms, and several places such as historical and science-related sites in the region. Students also actively participated in dozens of programmes jointly organised with the local community,” he said, adding that the open library of the school is open to all, including villagers, which is also a unique initiative.The school continues to work throughout the week, even on Sundays. Tharanath said that Sundays are dedicated to extracurricular activities such as dancing, school band training, Bharatanatyam, and Yakshagana. “It is a voluntary programme, and there is no force to attend it. Therefore, the school continues to open even on Sundays,” he said.The school currently has 169 students with eight permanent and five guest teachers. Ravichandra, president of the SDMC, said that the school was assessed by the ZP CEO, DDPI, and BEO. They later submitted the report to the govt for recognition. Lokesh SR, BEO, Puttur, said that the school has been actively implementing all programmes by involving all stakeholders. The recognition has given a much-needed push to do better programmes in the coming days.