Aman Toto, a Class X student of a high school in a remote village in Alipurduar district, was worried till a few months ago that there was no science teacher at the institution.
“We were worried as unlike students in other schools, science classes were not held at our school because of the absence of teachers. We have only four teachers who teach other subjects,” said Aman, a student of Dhanapati Toto Memorial High School, which is located at Totopara in Madarihat block.
Members of Toto, a primitive tribe, live at Totopara. As of now, their population is around 1,600.
However, Aman and other students of his school have Ashis Kumar Roy, who takes science classes free. He is based in Siliguri.
“Last year, I came to know that there are 120 students at the school but there is not a single science teacher. That is why I decided to visit the school and hold science classes for the students on my own,” said Ashis, who is a teacher at Sri Narasingha Vidyapith, located near Siliguri.
He goes to Totopara, which is around 140km away, once or twice every month to take science classes.
“His voluntary teaching is immensely helping us. He teaches us in a very simple manner and advises us now to write answers or make sketches of life science,” said a student.
To reach Totopara, which is 22km away from Madarihat, one has to cross five or six rivers which don’t have bridges.
“During the monsoon, we had to wait for the water to recede as the rivers which flow in the area originate from Bhutan. At other times of the year, vehicles move through dry beds to reach the other side,” said Rupchand Toto, the head of Totopara-Ballalguri panchayat.
Gopesh Chakraborty, the teacher in charge of the school, was appreciative of Ashis. “He takes classes without any remuneration. It is because of him that students of higher classes can learn science subjects.”
Apart from teaching students voluntarily, Ashis has also taken the initiative for the socio-economic development of the residents of Totopara.
“I have provided dragon fruit saplings to the women and have trained around 50 of them on how to cultivate the fruit. It is an exotic fruit and can fetch a decent price in the market,” said the teacher.
He has also trained them to make organic compost so that no chemical fertiliser is used.
“Because of the climate and the nature of the soil at Totopara, dragon fruit can be a good cash crop for them. Cultivating this fruit does not require much skill and is easy to grow. I believe, in the coming days, it will be an alternative earning option for the women of Totopara,” said Ashis.