Bunts Sangha’s S M Shetty International School and Junior College students visit Aarey Tribal Community

by Suman Gupta

October 2019, Mumbai: In comparison to the urban population of our country, the education scenario of the tribal community is rather disheartening. Trying to making a difference in this, Bunts Sangha’s S.M. Shetty International School and Junior College invoked a special committee in the Model United Nations program, which is a Student-Led initiative that provides its participants with a platform to deepen their understanding of world issues and think of practical solutions to solve them.

The special Committee in MUN-2019 was Social Impact, the purpose of which is to understand the obstacles faced by the tribal youth in completing their formal education. To this effect, a visit to the Aarey Tribal Hamlet was organized for the MUN students to interact with the people and gather data regarding the issues they faced. There were 25 students from different schools who participated in the Social Impact Committee.

As the students connected and learned from each other, they were able to witness first-hand the real issues impacting the tribal rather than watching edited and sometimes misrepresented views on mainstream media channels. The response from the tribal people was very warm and they were more than happy to share their routines, traditions, and issues with the students.

Education is one of the most powerful means of bringing about socio-economic development among tribes and it cannot be overemphasized.  Through the framework of a well-informed Committee, the students discussed, debated and expressed their point of view with a consensus on practical solutions. The Motto of the MUN conference was “Plus Ultra”, which means “further beyond” in Latin. The aim was to encourage the participants to think out of the box and come up with pragmatic solutions without limiting themselves to a narrow mindset with regards to understanding the socio-political landscape of the region.

Bunts Sangha’s S.M. Shetty International School and Junior College is a part of Bunts Sangha’s S.M. Shetty Group of Educational Institutions which was established in June 1998 in Powai. The MUN-2019 is amongst the many initiatives undertaken by the school that helps students to understand the importance of community service and social responsibilities.

The school provides international education that nurtures innovative, reflective and engaged global citizens. “Education is the only enabler that can upgrade the economic and social stature of the tribes. The students will continue to work on the association by organizing a Sports Day for the Tribal Children”, says Ms. Mildred Lobo, Principal.  Shri Padmanabha Payyade is the President of Bunts Sangha Mumbai and  CA Shankar Shetty is the Chairman of Powai Education Committee.