Basantapatti, Rautahat
SHREE ANHOTILAL SECONDARY SCHOOL

Rautahat district, located in the central region of Nepal, is one of the most deprived districts in Nepal. Rautahat has a very high proportion of Dalits (untouchables) and marginalized ethnic groups compared to other districts, as well as the lowest literacy rate (42 %) of all districts in Nepal (women: 32 %, men: 51 %). The district’s schools are extremely overcrowded, with over 100 students per classroom being the standard.

Shree Anhotilal Secondary School is the only secondary school in the area. There is only one other school nearby, the Shree Paroha Basic School, which we have already been able to support through an extension. Many of the children who finish this basic school do not get a place in the already overcrowded SASS and thus have to finish their school education after only four years. In the past, the local government commissioned the construction of another school to counteract the overcrowding, but this was never completed due to a lack of funds. The sanitary facilities are in disastrous condition, the girls have to squat in puddles of urine to relieve themselves, there is no water supply.

SASS is an basic and secondary school, but it also serves kindergarten children through its Early Child Development program. The school classes range from grades 1-12 and the children and youth range in age from 4 to 18. Currently, the school has 16 classrooms with a total of 1,567 children enrolled. This is an average of 98 children per classroom, with up to 130 children sharing a classroom in some cases from grade 5 onwards.

At the end of 2021, thanks to Fair Styria, we were able to support the school with solid new furniture. This way, the children at least no longer have to sit on the floor during lessons. With the addition of another floor to the school, it can be expanded by four classrooms. In the future even more rooms would be possible. In addition, we are still looking for further donors in order to be able to finance a new hygienic toilet building as well. The local government will cover 20% of the construction costs to guarantee sustainability.