– Ronita Torcato 

Hyundai Motor’s ‘ Project H2OPE’ (HOPE) initiative is providing clean drinking water facilities to students in 250 schools in remote, tribal and Naxal affected areas of Gadchiroli district in Maharashtra. 

Naxalism, a communist insurgency movement, is highly prevalent in economically backward and undeveloped Gadchiroli which boasts high forest cover (76 percent of the region) where the state government is trying to establish iron ore and steel mines. 

The South Korean multinational automotive manufacturer contributed Rs 5.5 crore towards the project in response to a call from Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for CSR initiatives to provide clean drinking water to schools in regions like Gadchiroli.

Hyundai implemented Project H2OPE in two phases: clean drinking water was provided to 100 schools in the first phase last year. In the second phase this year, water was provided to a total of 26,341 students in 150 schools including 35 in Aheri, 14 in Bhamragad , 32 in Dhanora , 39 in Etapalli , 14 in Korchi and 16 in Mulchera.

Reverse Osmosis (RO) units, water coolers, submersible pumps, borewells and six-layer storage tanks have been installed in the schools where awareness sessions were also conducted on water conservation and cleanliness, according to a statement from the Maharashtra government which recently distributed bicycles to girl students in Kawande , a remote village in Gadchiroli.

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has expressed the hope that the initiative will be expanded and that the clean water provided to students will “improve their health and education.”

Significantly, few women in the region have Aadhaar numbers or bank accounts. Fewer still have received their Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana (Chief Minister’s My Beloved Sister Scheme) stipends, a Rs.46,000 crore scheme promising Rs.1,500 monthly to 2.5 crore women launched last June just before the elections.

In Marathwada, nearly 2,500 teachers in high schools and colleges have not been paid salaries for the past three months.

Also read: Indian, local languages will be medium of instruction in coming years: Pradhan