Increase in Eco Club funding to govt schools boosts environment education | Mangaluru News – The Times of India

Mangaluru: The Eco Club funding for govt schools in the Dakshina Kannada increased this academic year, enabling campuses to expand environmental education through practical, outdoor learning activities.Funding for high schools has been increased from Rs 5,000 to Rs 25,000 per school, while higher primary schools now receive Rs 9,000 each, up from the earlier Rs 4,000. Teachers said the enhanced grants helped schools move beyond classroom-based instruction and organise hands-on programmes focused on ecology, sustainability, and local livelihoods.

Schools reported using the additional funds for visits to farms, trekking expeditions, and tours of nearby industries to help students observe environmental practices and resource use in real settings. Teachers said such exposure improved students’ understanding of concepts like biodiversity, food systems, sustainability, waste management, and conservation, while also building interest in environmental stewardship.At Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat Higher Primary School, Bokkapatna-3, Eco Club activities expanded to include additional vegetable cultivation in the kitchen garden, a poster-making competition, and awareness programmes. “With the increase in funding, we are now able to conduct twice as many programmes,” said headmistress Dresil Lilly Menezes.A teacher from a high school in Bantwal said students were taken to farms and beekeeping units, adding that the activities helped students learn beyond regular academics and connect lessons to everyday life.Sumangala S Nayak, deputy project coordinator, Samagra Shiksha Karnataka (SSK), said schools are provided with a timetable to conduct specific activities each month, and that schools across the district implemented the plan with positive outcomes. She said activities are audited at the end of the academic year and uploaded online.Some schools, however, raised concerns about delays in fund disbursal. A high school teacher said the grant reached the school account only in the last week of Jan, limiting the ability to plan activities from the start of the academic year.