Prime Minister Narendra Modi has showered praises on a teacher from Markapur revenue division in Prakasam district for donating his retirement benefits for educating girls and bringing down the dropout rate among girls.
The selfless act of Ram Bhupal Reddy, a retired headmaster of the Zilla Parishad school at Yadavalli, near Giddalur, was appreciated by the Prime Minister during his monthly radio programme ‘Mann Ki Baat’ on Sunday.
Without keeping the savings for himself and his wife, the teacher had deposited ₹25.71 lakh at a post office to open Sukanya Samridhhi Yojana (SSY) accounts for 100 girls aged below 10 hailing from remote villages in the area where the school dropout rate among students was high.
Every quarter, the interest amount of ₹41,000 on the deposit would be equally distributed and credited to the accounts of the girls till they attained the age of 21.
All through his teaching career, Mr. Ram Bhupal Reddy had been doing his bit like paying fees, arranging snacks and buying clothes for poor students. His services were recognised in the past by the State government too.
“It was agonising to see many girls dropping out of school as their parents could not afford to educate them. It was then that I decided to do whatever I can to help such students,” he said, while accepting the felicitations at a function held by Bharatiya Janata Party’s(BJP) Giddalur unit president Ramanjaneyulu and party youth wing district president K. Vishnuvardhan Reddy in Giddalur on Sunday.
The situation has changed for the better in the region with people changing their mindsets, BJP district president Sirasanagandla Srinivasulu added.