Indian community donates 300 fans to beat the heat of classes | Bulletproof stories
Affected by the heat experienced by students at Farm Primary School and Infant School amid the high temperatures, the Indian community in Jamaica will donate 300 wall-mounted fans to 70 schools.
The $1.8 million initiative will benefit schools such as the Farm Primary and Infant School in St James, Woodhull Primary School in Clarendon, Grove Primary School, Harbor View Primary School, Benedict Primary School and St Martin de Porres Primary School in the Corporate Area .
The effort was initiated by Gul Mansukhani, Managing Director of Pavilion Jewelers and one of the organizers of the donation.
“I was motivated to do this because of your article. While I was drinking my coffee, I saw a picture of a child holding a drink bottle trying to cool himself in the newspaper. I was really moved, so I quickly brought it to my wife’s attention. Where I come from in India, we didn’t have a situation like this Before. So I contacted business owners from the Indian community and we agreed to do this.
He was referring to an article published on The catcherThe front page on Tuesday, September 5, reported on students from the Farm Primary School and St James’ Infant School battling the heat, forcing a teacher to dip into her own pocket and buy a fan to keep her classroom cool.
Although it was his initiative, he noted that other members of the Indian community quickly supported the initiative.
“It was my idea, but I got good support from the business group. I actually want to make them big more than anything, and I don’t want to take all the credit,” Mansukhani said. The catcher.
The Indian national mentioned that he came to Jamaica with nothing and the country gave him everything, so he wants to return the favor.
Happy with the quick response
Richard Miller, principal of Farm Primary and Infant School, said The catcher He was thrilled by the quick response.
“Since the article from The catcher We talked about our challenges with the heat, and received calls that same day. We are pleased with this quick action. This morning we received a donation from 16 fans at Love Jewellers, from the Indian community in Jamaica. So we are grateful to them. “This will benefit us now, as eight classrooms will now be cooler to beat the heat,” Miller said excitedly.
It was a moment of relief and a moment of joy for the teachers and students once they saw the fans being delivered to the school.
Since the start of the 2023-24 academic year on September 4, institutions across Jamaica have been struggling to find strategic ways to deal with rising temperatures, which have been attributed to the effects of global climate change.
Harish Khemlani, CEO of Royale Jewelers in Kingston, is another entrepreneur from the Indian community who has joined the initiative, and says it’s been a great feeling.
“Knowing how good kids feel is a good experience to be a part of. I was watching the news and seeing kids going through that much heat in schools. Nobody wants to see kids going through that much heat in schools. They are basically our generations,” Khemlani said. “Future.”
According to reports from some schools, students feel uneasy due to the high temperatures, and some teachers have had to use their own money to buy fans to make the teaching and learning process more bearable in their classrooms, which are often poorly ventilated.
“I was thrilled when I saw the boxes with the fans,” said Angeline Downer, a second-grade teacher at Farm Primary and Infant School. “My classroom didn’t have any fans, so now it will receive at least one, so I’m grateful. This will make the children less anxious during the Hot days.
ashley.anguin@gleanerjm.com
