Phules' legacy in tatters! India's first all-women school lies in shambles

The inside of the Savitribai Phule allwomens school in Pune Not many are even aware of its existence in spite of it being located in the heart of the cityPune Oxford of the East and on the verge of becoming a smart city mdash thats Punes description for you So then you can imagine the shock that the authorities seem least bothered about the poor condition of the countrys first allwomen school which Pune has the distinction of housingCritical conditionFounded on January 1 1848 by Savitribai and her husband Jyotirao Phule at Bhidewada in Budhwar Peth the structure is in a shambles While government authorities repeatedly avoid answering questions on why nothing has been done yet not many are even aware of its existence in spite of it being located in the heart of the city The premises takes up 1480 sqm of the plot measuring 2500 sqmOn January 3 Savitribais 186th birth anniversary was observed And to pay tribute to her even Google made a doodle Its just her hometown that doesnt seem concerned Anyone paying a visit to the school premises will be able to see its pathetic condition walls crumbling pillars already down and lying haphazardly a wooden staircase broken partially empty liquor bottles strewn about etc The area is spruced up just prior to any anniversary of either Phule to avoid controversySavitribai Phule allwomens school in Punes Bhidewada in Budhwar Peth PicsMandar TannuIts sub judiceIn 1998 a local builder procured the wada and prepared a plan to make it into a commercialcumresidential area The 40 tenants staying in the area were promised possession of the new houses in 15 months Nearly 80 per cent of the work on the new building on the plot was done when the Mahatma Phule Rashtriya Smarak Samata Bhoomi Bachav Kruti Samiti was formed and it moved court against the new structure saying that a heritage building ie the school stood on the plot and hence nothing new could be allowed to come up The Pune Municipal Corporation then issued a stopwork notice to the builder Later the builder filed a reply petition which was rejected in 2006 he and the tenants moved the high court but for the last four years no hearing has taken placeAnger towards apathyPhules great granddaughter Neeta Hole 48 a Narhe resident said He owned a lot of property in Pune just like Tata and Birla But he sacrificed it all for social reform and yet his work has been buried under red tape In 2012 R5 crore was sanctioned for the structures restoration but the red tape showed up again and now the government claims that the work cant resume as the case is in court My only appeal is finish the work as its for the womens empowerment programme she addedPratima PardeshiProfessor Pratima Pardeshi a volunteer with Satya Shodak Prabhodhan Mahasanga who has been fighting for the restoration of the wada said The Phule couple struggled a lot But its only on January 3 that politicians and activists remember the wada and the school On every birth anniversary they claim that the school will be restored in a year but nothing happens just empty promisesOn the one hand the government clears all NoObjection Certificates for the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj which we are happy about no doubt but it should show a similar attitude towards the social reformers Mahatma Phule and his wife said Kalyan Akhade president of Savata ParishadHari NarkeHari Narke head of Mahatma Phule Chair Pune university and an expert on the social reformers life and ideology said The builder had claimed that there was no school at the wada So then we with the help of reference books submitted evidence that there wasMahatma Phule and his wife have sacrificed a lot for the cause of education but their presence is missing Pune prides itself on being an education hub but such an attitude is discouraging he ruedExpertspeakSenior lawyers SK Jain and Sunita Kinkar representing the builder have said that their petition prays for two things Our client is ready to settle the issue he is ready to restore the school building but the government needs to take appropriate steps It should grant him extra FSI for his upcoming structure as well as rehabilitate the tenants they added Despite repeated attempts Punes guardian minister Girish Bapat who is the MP of the constituency where the school stands remained unavailable for commentRs 5crAmount sanctioned for the structures restoration in 2012