St. Joseph’s School, Khanusa
Unique Drive Towards Sustainable Development
The motto of the UN Sustainable Development Programme is to ensure that education is more holistic and has an ulterior motive than simple academic excellence. This ensures overall wellbeing, an end to poverty and promotes inclusiveness and gender equality. Towards this goal, amongst very many factors, care for the environment and a healthy lifestyle is encouraged. To foster innovative thoughts towards conservancy and a more sustainable environment across all ages and gender is what the UN advocates.
At St. Joseph’s School, Khanusa, under the astute leadership and a futuristic vision of Mr Peter Pullambra, the founder, has ensured that most of these goals have been attained; and for the rest, the school has ambitious plans to include means to steer towards the objectives as laid down by the UN Sustainable Development.
Before highlighting these initiatives, it is important to delve into the life of this gentleman, a visionary, Mr Peter Pullambra. A man with a humble upbringing and with the values to take each obstacle in life as an opportunity, Mr Peter has throughout life displayed grit, perseverance and an ever-optimistic outlook to reach where he has today. With solely the benefit of students in mind and to offer them a holistic education and a sustainable life, he began this journey which today can proudly stake claim to some of the best ever initiatives, unwittingly as part of the UN Sustainable Development.
A keen reader, during his early years, Mr Joy Pullambra once got his hands on Down to Earth magazine and had his first taste of eco-friendly initiatives. These inspired him enough to pursue Photo–Voltaics as his thesis work for the final semester in M Sc, (Applied Physics) from SPRERI (Sardar Patel Renewable Energy Research Institute), Vidhyanagar. Experience of a few months at SPRERI exposed him to the various initiatives they shouldered. These included BioMass Gasifiers, Bio–Gas plant, Solar Photovoltaics, Solar Thermal–Water heaters, Solar Food Processing, Solar Cooking and the like.
Quite naturally, Mr Pullambra had already been sufficiently inducted in the ways of sustainable developments and hence the fact that he would bring in such means in his own school, St. Joseph’s School, Khanusa, is no surprise. It is noteworthy to mention here that all these developments came purely as a consequence of his own dreams and desires of a holistic life for his students, which coincidentally matched several criteria as laid down by the UN.
Cattle farm for quality and hygienic milk for boarders (1995)
It started quite simple. Boarders at SJSK were always served milk for breakfast and dinner. But there seemed to be always an imbalance between quality and quantity. It was in 1995, that the school started with having a few cows and from there, there was no looking back. Students have only been served milk from their own farm cows. Green fodder is mostly used and is totally organic; other feed are largely from rain and canal fed areas. Milking is done by milking machines and the process is most hygienic.
Biogas cooking system (1998 & 2021)
To control the methane emission from their cattle farm and to use it productively in the kitchen, the school built its first biogas plant in 1998. However, after five years, it had to be closed due to maintenance issues. Now with reviving the cattle farm and making it sustainable, the school has constructed a new biogas plant of 45 m3 capacity and commissioned it on 27th March, 2021. Learnings from past experiences and mistakes, this time they are confident of using it to the best.
Solar Cooking System (1999 – 2006)
In the early nineties, a mission centre at Kalol, St. Xavier’s School, had installed a Solar Cooking System with the help of German benefactors. Impressed with this and with keen interest and help of Mr Thomas Philip, Scientist at SPRERI, the school installed two mirrors for their solar cooking system in 1998. This was successfully used till 2007 and now the same would be revived in a few months, as per the latest technology.
Organic farm to grow vegetables (2000)
It so happened in 2000 when the boys were doing some plantation on the newly acquired 10 acres of adjoining land, that they expressed their desire to have a small kitchen garden of their own. Small groups of 5-8 boys started growing different vegetables. With 30 minutes each weekday and a few hours each weekend at their own plots, the school was soon growing some vegetables along with fodder for cattle and in all this, with only a reasonable amount of pesticides and chemical fertilizers only when needed. This use of chemicals stopped completely in subsequent years. For more than a decade now, these plots generate a decent amount of vegetables and plenty of fodder.
Percolation pond in the farm (2005)
Seeing rainwater being collected on the farm and a massive runoff outside the campus, it was a fantastic idea to make a percolation pond in the farm, where every year it would fill up a couple of times during the monsoons. With the soil being sandy and loamy, the water would percolate fast and help in refilling the groundwater to a good extent. After the monsoons, the same would be used for growing vegetables and fodder.
Solar Water heating (2000 & 2017-18)
The school went ahead to install the first Solar Water Heater in 2000, but in two years it started giving maintenance issues because of hard groundwater. In 2017, the school began installing evacuated glass tubes based on Solar Water Heaters and now there is an impressive 2000 lpd capacity of Solar Hot Water Systems (4 units of 500 lpd each).
Rainwater harvesting system and storage for 2.5 lakh litres (2008)
SJS had a new hostel block in 2008 and groundwater was being used for all school needs. Seeing the flow of rainwater from the drains of the terrace during one of the rains during the construction period, the idea of harvesting it first took shape. This was immediately actioned by building an underground tank of 250,000 litres capacity which connected the terrace drain pipes to the tank. Every monsoon, the terrace would be cleaned very well and after flushing out the first few showers of rain, the rainwater would be diverted to the underground tank to be used. One good rain would suffice to fill up the tank. Plans are in place to build a few more tanks in future.
Percolation wells near staff quarters and hostel (2018)
After seeing success in harvesting rainwater, the school made two percolation wells at the staff quarters and one at the hostel when it was understood that making underground tanks would have to wait. Percolation wells are cheap to make and more are in plans with the aim to recharge the groundwater.
Through the above, SJS inherently prepares students to be self-sustainable, have a compassionate understanding of the environment and therefore from an early age transform into global citizens with hearts and minds towards building a sustainable future. And it takes one man with vision, courage and wisdom to bring these dreams to life.