The Narayan Jagannath Vaidya Government Higher Secondary School at
Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
is the first government school established in
Sindh
Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...
. It was opened in October 1855 with 68 boys. The original buildings were replaced by the present ones in 1876. It was named after the visionary
Narayan Jagannath Vaidya
Narayan Jagannath Vaidya was the first deputy inspector of Sindh (currently in Pakistan). At the time, it was part of the Bombay Presidency. He was the brother of Lakshman Jagannath Vaidya. He belonged to the CKP community of Maharashtra.The Naray ...
after his death. The building was made of yellow sandstone, and is one of the 600 buildings listed as a heritage site.
In March 1916, the school had 1477 students, of whom 1350 were
Hindus
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
, 32
Brahmins
Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru o ...
, 10
Jains
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...
, 12
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
, 66
Parsis
Parsis () or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of Iran (part of the early Muslim co ...
and 7
Indian Jews
The history of the Jews in India dates back to antiquity. .
After Partition in Pakistan 1947, the Sindh Assembly convened in that building to carry out their meetings and tasks. Eventually they shifted and the building was converted back into a school. Unfortunately because it was a government school, it slowly fell into disrepair as the teachers neglected their jobs, the students failed to properly attend, the classes did not happen and the building fell apart. Its public infrastructure was never updated which meant its bathrooms were broken with no water, lack of electricity, and no janitorial/security staff to maintain the building.
In 2016, an MOU was signed between the Akhuwat Foundation and NJV High School with the understanding that the provision of funds would be utilized to restore the historic model school status of the institution. Under the leadership of the Akhuwat Director of Education, Mr. Uzair Qarni who was hired on a one year contract, the building underwent mass renovation including bathrooms, electricity, building repair, repainting, provision of water etc. Moreover, they redesigned the school's curriculum, planted grass for the playgrounds, and installed solar panels. They forced teachers to take the classes by keeping a daily diary of their lessons. The government staff were trained to use computers, trained to have their own emails for communication and learned to type. A computer lab was set up with laptops, each with Rosetta Stone and Khan Academy lessons installed in it.
Additionally, the students are provided with free transport, uniforms, food and snacks, and books.
Notable alumni include
Jamshed Nusserwanjee Mehta
Jamshed Nusserwanjee Mehta (7 January 1886 – 1 August 1952) was a Pakistani politician. He was the first elected Mayor of Karachi from 1933 to 1934, and is still remembered as the "Maker of Modern Karachi" (Baba-e-Karachi). He was also a nota ...
, the first mayor of Karachi in 1933
and more recently Yawar Malik, an under-18 national gymnastics champion.
References
* ''Gazetteer of the Province of Sind, B Volume I, 1919, Karachi District (p.37)''
External links
Dawn article* https://www.dawn.com/news/1191063
Schools in Karachi
1855 establishments in British India
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