The Telegraph School Awards for Excellence 2023: Honoured schools, teachers, students and parents

The roll of honours at the IIHM presents The Telegraph School Awards for Excellence 2023, 28th edition, in association with Adamas University Kolkata and The Bhawanipur
Education Society College

The Caring Minds Award For A School That Cares• Future Hope, Rowland Road, Calcutta• Anirvana Gacher Iskul, near Farakka, Murshidabad
• Star Mission Academy, Lake Gardens, Calcutta
• AUM Foundation, Alipurduar
• Calcutta Emmanuel School, Golf Green, CalcuttaThe Somak Datta Endowment

• Laxmi Murmu Smriti Sishu Vidyalaya, Bankura

The Anand Paul Memorial Award For Social Service• Chowringhee High School, Calcutta
• Don Bosco School, LiluahThe Surrendra Paul Memorial Award For Courage• Adrija Gan, Ramakrishna Sarada Mission Sister Nivedita Girls’ School, Bagbazar
She is among the first 10 girls in class and this after she has been fighting cancer and has had close to 100 chemotherapy sessions.• Nishtha Thakker, AksharShe was born with a rare hereditary disease that affected the development of hair, teeth and nail and her condition has left her with none of the three. She has reduced vision in one eye but despite all odds, Nishtha scored 82 per cent in ICSE.• Ananyo Chanda, Delhi Public School, Howrah
A Class I student, Ananyo had a congenital heart problem. So far, he has been to the operation theatre 11 times, including an open heart surgery and installation of a pacemaker.• Amrita Ghosh, St Xavier’s Institution, PanihatiThe second wave of Covid pandemic took away her father, mother and grandfather within a period of seven days. But Amrita fought on and scored 95.4 per cent in Class X boards.

• Naman Chandak, Don Bosco School Park Circus

The boy got into depression and ended up harming himself. But he restarted his life and is now doing stand-up comedy and has founded his own club.The Sonika Chauhan Award For Courage
• Arifa Khatun, Kolkata Mary Ward Social Centre, Entally
A crusader against child marriage, Arifa is an active child parliament leader in South 24-Parganas. Arifa’s mother passed away when she was two and her grandmother is trying to fulfil her daughter’s dream of educating her child.• Solanki Banerjee, Aditya Birla Vani Bharati, Rishra, Hooghly
Hospital visits and medicines became a part of her life because she could not sleep, once for 25 nights straight. She went to Vellore for treatment in September 2022 but appeared for Class XII board exams in March 2023 and secured 87.6 per cent.• Debosmita Das, St Paul’s KG & Day School, ShyambazarHer mother died and her father went away. She was brought up by her maternal grandparents — a rickshaw puller and domestic help. Because of constraints, they took her to a home.The Ambuja Neotia Award for Excellence in Maintenance and Eco-Friendly Initiatives• Delhi Public School Megacity, Kalikapur, Calcutta
• Santamayee Girls High School, Purulia

Sumita Mitra: The Somak Dutta Endowment for the North East Calcutta Social Welfare Organisation. Mitra is the force behind the group that provides mid-day meal to 2,200 students in 14 non-government schools.
Thank You Bondhu Award
• Satyaranjan Dolai: A security guard at Jagat Mukherjee Park, Dolai started a library in the park.• Hasan Ali Sekh: Man behind a library and coaching centre for underprivileged students at Ashina village in Falta, South 24-Parganas. The centre, West Bengal Society of Ashina Yubak Sangha and Gramin Library, also provides stationery and exercise books to needy students of 15 villages in the areaScholarships Section 1The Dr Ashin Dasgupta Memorial Scholarship• Suvranshu Sardar, Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya, Narendrapur

The teenager’s father is a van driver and his son has secured first position in higher secondary in the state.

The Dr. Amiya Kumar Bose Memorial Scholarship

• Hitesh Samanta, Calcutta Medical College & Hospital
Hitesh’s father is a mechanic who is barely able to earn enough for the family. The boy is studying medicine.
The Dr Krishna Roy Scholarship

• Silky Basak, Panihati Balika Vidyalaya
Silky is in a wheelchair and uses a pipe to relieve herself every three hours. She is a fighter and has passed Madhyamik.

The Vidya Mandir Society Scholarship

• Pinky Singh, Loreto House, Middleton Row
The daughter of a driver who earns Rs 8,000 for a family of five, Pinky scored 91 per cent in ICSE.

The Admissiontree Scholarship

• Arijit Das, Sarangabad High School, Maheshtala, South 24-Parganas
The Class VII boy lives with his 75-year-old grandmother in a thatched hut with no electricity. His father is serving a sentence at a correctional home. Arijit’s grandmother has no money to continue his studies.

The Nabarun De Inspiring Excellence Scholarship

• Rakhi Dolui, Gobindapur K. C. Uchcha Vidyalaya, Diamond Harbour, South 24-Parganas

She lost both her parents to Covid in 2021 and the Class XII student lives with her uncle and aunt who too have financial constraints.

The Keshav Rathi Memorial Scholarship
• Rupam Sarkar, The Calcutta Emmanuel School, Golf Green
The Class XII boy delivered newspapers to support his family during the pandemic.

The Bhawanipur Education Society College Honour For An Educationist
• Kajol Sen: The 90-year-old, a staunch Gandhian, a freedom fighter, is the founder of multiple schools, including the Majhihira Ashram Vidyalay and Loksebak
Sangha Buniyadi Vidyalaya, both in Purulia.

The Dr Mrs N B O’Brien Memorial Lifetime Achievement Award For A Teacher
• Meena Kak, Lakshmipat Singhania Academy, Alipore, Calcutta
She has been heading the Alipore school, first as principal and then as director, for many years. She was appointed by the CBSE to be on the inspection committee for schools applying for affiliation with the board.

• Debabrata Mukhopadhyya
A physics teacher, Mukhopadhyya was also the headmaster of Purulia Zilla School. He received the APJ Abdul Kalam Award for outstanding science teacher.

The IIHM Award for Excellence in Academics (CBSE)

• Lakshmipat Singhania Academy

• Shri Shikshayatan School, Lord Sinha Road, Calcutta

The IIHM Award for Excellence in Academics (ICSE & ISC)
• Calcutta Girls’ High School, Wellington Square, Calcutta

The IIHM Award for Excellence in Academics (Madhyamik & H S)
• Ramakrishna Sarada Mission Sister Nivedita Girls’ School, Bagbazar
• Patha Bhavan, Dankuni
The Exide Award For Academic Excellence By A Student

• Soham Das, Delhi Public School, Ruby Park, Calcutta

• Swarnava Chakraborty, Hariyana Vidya Mandir, Salt Lake

• Siddhartha Dugr, M.C. Kejriwal Vidyapeeth, Howrah
• Aishi Gangopadhyay, G.D. Birla Centre for Education, Ranikuthi, Calcutta

• Manya Gupta, The Heritage School, Anandapur, Calcutta

Scholarships Section 2
The Dr Srilekha Raha Scholarship

• Manashi Naskar, Entally Hindu Balika Vidyamandir, Calcutta
Manashi’s mother got critically injured in an accident in 2021 and her father is being treated for a recurring tumor. She lives in a home and has scored 95 per cent in Class IX and is now in Class X.

• Poulame Karar, Girindra Balika Vidyalaya, Bowbazar, Calcutta
Abandoned by her father at the age of two, she lived with her mother — a tailor — in a one-room house, until circumstances forced her to a shelter home. Undeterred, Poulame, in Class VI, is focussed on studies.

The Prof. Dr Madhab Bandhu Bhattacharyya Memorial Scholarship

• Priyanka Barman, Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay Government Medical College and Hospital, Uluberia, Howrah
The daughter of a fish seller, she scored 87.8 per cent in Class XII and is now studying medicine.

The MCKV Charity Trust Scholarship

• Abu Sama, Ramkrishnapur PDGM High School, Uttar Dinajpur
The son of a farmer who walked 10 km every day to and from school secured the second position in HS exams.

The Lakshmipat Singhania Education Foundation Scholarship

• Aditi Das, Rangabelia High School, South 24-Parganas Cyclones Amphan and Yaas impacted the livelihood of Aditi’s father. The girl chose humanities because science studies would have been expensive. But help came her way and she switched to science. She secured first position in Gosaba block in HS exams and is now studying math at Jadavpur University.

The Exide Scholarship

• Mir Md. Touhid, Silver Point School, Kasba, Calcutta
The boy’s father is a cab driver earning Rs 7,000 which is often not enough to meet the need for a family of four. The boy scored 92 per cent in Class X.

The DPS Megacity, Kolkata Scholarship

• Rikta Halder, Ghatiharania High School and Rinku Halder, Chuprijhora SNFP Primary School (both in South 24-Parganas)
Their mother, a widow, sells flowers and vegetables. Rikta is in Class VIII and Rinku in Class IV. Their paternal grandfather, who was the bread earner, is serving a sentence in a correctional home.

Dr Samar Bagchi Memorial Award For Enhancement of Popular Science and Environmental Awareness

Chandan Clemente Singh: Singh is a wildlife rescuer and environmental activist in Hooghly. He has rescued many animals but is most famous for rescuing snakes. He also raises awareness about snakes and their role in maintaining the ecological balance.

The Abhirup Bhadra Memorial “Thank You Baba-Ma” Award

• Sutapa Sarkar, mother of Arpan Sarkar, Guru Teg Bahadur Public School, Durgapur
Sutapa has played both parents to her son, who lost his father very early. Arpan scored 98 per cent in Class X to become the school topper.

• Jharna Dey, mother of Martha Dey, Loreto Day School, Sealdah
Martha is a student of Class II, has an elder brother who is unable to speak or hear, studying in a government school. They live in a slum near the railway station. Jharna, a single mother, works as a maid.

• Rashmi Prasad, mother of Ankita Prasad, Agrasain Balika Siksha Sadan, Liluah
Ankita lost her father at the age of nine. Rashmi runs a tea shop to sustain the family. Her support has led Ankita to score 99 per cent in ICSE.

• Dilip Singh and Prity Singh, parents of Yuvaan Singh, Indus Valley World School, Ajoy Nagar, Calcutta
In 2016, Yuvaan was diagnosed with a supposedly terminal disease DMD (Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy). But his parents have refused to give up. A sustained awareness campaign led by them has prompted policymakers into action and brought institutional support for patients and their families.

The FDDI Shining Star Honour

• Bina Pal, Calcutta Public School, Kalikapur
For 15 years, guardians have been handing over their wards to Bina at the gate. Every day, she cycles 10km distance up and down between home and school. A trained paramedic, she promotes healthy habits among children. Last year, she helped a mother of a 10-year-old student, suffering from a kidney problem, with catheters

• Ram Prasad Halder, Adamas International School, Belghoria, Calcutta
Fondly called Flower-kaku, the gardener has never
been absent since the first day of his joining. He introduces children to different plants.

• Ratan Sarkar, Silver Point School, Durgapur
In charge of security, Ratan travels 90 minutes to school each day. He reaches school at 7am every day, an hour before the scheduled time.

The Kalyan Bharti Trust Award For All-Round Excellence

• Mahee Singh, South City International School, Prince Anwar Shah Road, Calcutta

TTEF Award For Outstanding Talent in Sports

• Saparya Ghosh, Ashok Hall Girls’ Higher Secondary School, Sarat Bose Road, Calcutta

• Aditya Roy, South Point High School, Ballygunge, Calcutta

The Balrampur Chini Mills Award For Outstanding Talent

• Avinash Rai, St James’ School, AJC Bose Road, Calcutta

The Anirban Sinha Award for Outstanding Talent in Music

• Shounak Roy, St. Lawrence High School, Ballygunge, Calcutta
• Sreemoyee Acharyya, Mahadevi Birla World Academy, Darga Road, Calcutta

The Vidya Mandir Society Award For Excellence in Extra-Curricular Activities

• The Heritage School, Anandapur, Calcutta
• Shri Shikshayatan School, Lord Sinha Road, Calcutta

The Telegraph Award For The School of The Year

• Debkunda Sk Abdur Razzak Memorial Girls High Madrasah, Beldanga,

Murshidabad

• Birla High School, Minto Park, Calcutta

• Mahadevi Birla World Academy, Darga Road, Calcutta