1. With a view to strengthening the relationship with the community and in conformity with one of the missions of our college, which reads “To create good future citizens for the country with competence, commitment, conscience and compassion”, of late we have adopted 5 villages namely Banamalipur, Jagannathpur Part II, Bankaberia, Pairachali, and Srirampur to carefully augment villagers’ quantitative and qualitative aspects. Depending on the need of the people of these respective villages, we organize some consciousness programmes in those villages to make them aware of health-related and legal issues. We also have just begun to develop the skill of the villagers so that they can become cognizant of developing vermin compost mainly to build an environmental consciousness amongst the rural people.

2. With a view to render the teaching-learning process more student-centric, several departments of the college have laid emphasis on the vertical as well as the horizontal expansion of the infrastructure of the college. We also use to award the achievers with medals and scholarship to encourage and motivate them to higher learning. Most importantly, we regularly waive off the tuition fees of the economically underprivileged students. Different departments of the college regularly conduct special remedial classes for the backward learners.

1. With a view to strengthening the relationship with the community and in conformity with one of the missions of our college, which reads “To create good future citizens for the country with competence, commitment, conscience and compassion”, of late we have adopted 5 villages namely Banamalipur, Jagannathpur Part II, Bankaberia, Pairachali, and Srirampur to carefully augment villagers’ quantitative and qualitative aspects. Depending on the need of the people of these respective villages, we organize some consciousness programmes in those villages to make them aware of health-related and legal issues. We also have just begun to develop the skill of the villagers so that they can become cognizant of developing vermin compost mainly to build an environmental consciousness amongst the rural people.

2. With a view to render the teaching-learning process more student-centric, several departments of the college have laid emphasis on the vertical as well as the horizontal expansion of the infrastructure of the college. We also use to award the achievers with medals and scholarship to encourage and motivate them to higher learning. Most importantly, we regularly waive off the tuition fees of the economically underprivileged students. Different departments of the college regularly conduct special remedial classes for the backward learners.

BEST PRACTICE-I

TITLE: Environment consciousness among students and people in Contai  Municipal area.

OBJECTIVES:

1. To preserve and promote local biodiversity- breeds of birds, animals and plants.

2. To Prepare People’s Biodiversity Register (PBR).

3. To maintain data medicinal plants/resources used by local vaidhya
4. To advice State Biodiversity Boards on matters related to local biodiversity.
5. To conduct the Project on “Dune Biodiversity Restoration – Educational Park”.
6. To conduct the Seminar and Awareness Programme on Biodiversity.
7. To conduct the workshop on “Bee-Keeping” for training the Self Help Group.

THE CONTEXT: Conserving biological diversity involves restoring, protecting, conserving or enhancing the variety of life in an area so that the abundance and distribution of species and communities provide for continued existence and normal ecological functioning, including adaptation and extinction. Today our biosphere is in danger of extinction for a variety of reasons like lack of conservation in ecological planning and destruction of natural habitats.

One of the most environmental issues today is the conservation of biodiversity. Therefore, Biodiversity Management Committee of Contai Municipality jointly with Prabhat Kumar College, Contai protects and enhances biological diversity, while continuing to meet people’s needs for natural resources.

THE PRACTICE:

1. The use of plastic bags is avoided
2. Motivated to use jute bags or cotton bags
3. Use of renewable energy
4. Plantation of trees and green grass
5. Arrangement of Seminar and awareness programme
6. Hands on Training to the SHGs on “Bee – Keeping”

EVIDENCE OF SUCCESS: The use of jute or cotton bag is increased. As well as the plantation is increased by the local people. Improvement of solid waste management as well as formation of Bio-Club in school has been occurred.

PROBLEM ENCOUNTERED:

1. More interested people are required in doing this activity.

2. More budget provision is needed.

3. The gap between local people and management

4. Ignorance and less interest in eco – friendly environment

BEST PRACTICE-II

Title of the Practice- COMMUNITY AWARENESS AGAINST ARSENIC POLLUTION OF DRINKING WATER AND ITS MITIGATION PROCESSES.

Objective of the Practice- Arsenic contamination of drinking water ia a major public health problem not only in our state but also in many countries throughout the world. Arsenic contamination occurs by leaching inorganic arsenic into the underground water which, when used as drinking water collected through pumping the shallow tube well and after being consumed by mouth for 2-6 years, leads to cumulative toxicity in our body   by affecting the skin, lungs, Gi- system, CVS ,Neurologcal system and even our hemopoietic system, and by causing Arsenicosis. When the arsenic content in drinking water exceeds .01 mg per 100 ml of water and consumed regularly for 2-5 years at a stretch, it leads to arsenicisis  which is manifested by melanosis, keratosis, hyperkeratosis, ulceration of the feets, conjuctival congestion, pigmentation inside the mouth, recurrent cough and cold, gastro-intestinal disturbances, anaemia, restricted lung functions, and neurological deficit ultimately leads to carcinoma, lung, bladder, liver and skin carcinoma. Under such circumstances, we on behalf of NSS Probhat Kumar College, conducted mass awareness camps regarding arenic toxicity among the community as well as among the students of our college since 2016 till date. Moreover we have been testing the tube well water of all the wards of our Contai Municipality periodically. Results showed that all the tube wells of our municipality maintained the normal level of arsenic that is below .01 mg per 100 ml of water. It was performed by our NSS team in collaboration with a Medical NGO,  SwasthyaBhabna Welfare society of Serampore, Hooghly, authorized and authenticated for executing the task.

Contextural feature-  Arsenicosis is a major public health problem in 13 districts of West Bengal. The districts are affected as Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly, Burdwan, North 24 Parganas, South 23 Parganas, Nadia, Murshidabad, Maldah, Jalpaiguri, North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur and Darljelling (Few parts). With respect to that, our district, PurbaMdinapur still now is at the safe range but containment was not prevailed amongst us and for that reason we are committed to monitoring the status of drinking water in terms of arsenic toxicicty for the last 5 years through mass campaigning among the community as well as among our students, and by periodical testing of drinking water of tube wells of our municipality.

Challenge of the task is that there is no dedicated fund in our college to run the project for a long period of time and no local expert is available to detect the arsenicosis cases. We have to depend on the external Resource Persons who could afford too little time for the said project. Most importantly, our students are not well educated on this field to cope up with the very situation.

The Practice- i) 3-4 Seminars have been organized in our college for the students ‘ awareness regarding arsenic toxicicity of drinking water since 2016.

ii) Periodical water testing of Tubewell water of all the wards of Contai Municipality have been done.

iii) Mass awareness campaigning has been organized to educate the councillors of Municipality with proper knowledge and practices of the said project.

Constraint/Limitation- As we have no modern Laboratory facilities for testing water sample brought by the Councillors of the said municipality, we have to depend on external organizations like SwasthyaBhabna Welfare society, although they have the authenticity for performing the task and experience of conducting Arsenicosis camps in 350 villages of West Bengal and 40 villages of Sahibgaunj district of Jharkhand. We have Financial constraints for testing the water samples as well as we have no GLC Spectrophometry instruments in our Laboratory. Moreover, we have no expert resource parsons at our reach  to conduct the Seminar on the project. Hence, we have to depend on the external Resource Persons, and we have to bear all the logistic expenses for organizing the such seminars in our college for the students.

Evidence of success-  i) Still  Phtographs and Video Photographa of Seminars are enclosed.

ii) Periodical reports of water testing of the community tube well for drinking water are enclosed.

Evidence for Group discussion among the community and ward councillors are taken into account.

iv) Student-Teacher interactive session was held

v) Part of the Infrastructure development was initiated for further project works.

Vi) Manpower, trained to carry out water quality analysis.

VII) Capacity building of local NGO, Voluntary Organisations and Panchayats to tackle similar problem in the locality in the future.

VIII) A better inter­agency co­ordinated working atmosphere established for undertaking similar projects in the future.

IX) Rainwater harvesting structures created and to be implanted in due course.

X). Developed effective and qualitative IEC materials for creating mass awareness (such as posters, hand bills, booklets, visual display) were prepared and circulated.

Problems Encountered and Resources Required-

The present situation indicates that there is arsenic problem in the remote village of West Bengal. There are however other districts in West Bengal having the same geological and climatic conditions as found in six districts. The  problem  of arsenic in ground water is prevalent in vast areas of West Bengal putting millions of people living in those areas at risk  of arsenicosis. This is a great public health problem which has been accepted as a calamity. The problem is reversible and must take adequate measures for its preventions with no wasting of time. We have Financial constraints for testing the water samples as well as we have no GLC Spectrophometry instruments in our Laboratory. Moreover, we have no expert resource parsons at our reach to conduct the Seminar on the project.