In Giranchaur, 15 or so children used to gather under a tree with their slate boards to get education from Mr Krishna Prasad Nepal. That was how Mahakali Secondary School started off in 2031 BS (1974 AD). The school was named after Goddess Mahakali, who is worshipped by the villagers belonging to Tamang and Brahmin communities.

With generous financial support from the communities, the school was upgraded into lower secondary level. After a few years of financial struggles, the school had enough number of teachers and it decided to provide education till Grade 10. The first batch of students (20 students) appeared the SLC examinations in 2068 BS (2011 AD).

Currently, 230 students are studying in the school. A total of 14 teachers are involved. 3 TFN Fellows have been placed since 2071 BS (2014 AD) and because of their teaching in the school all the students passed in 2014’s SLC examinations. SMC and PTA are actively functioning. Most of the students are from the village itself so they don’t have to walk for more than 20 minutes and there is no hostel facility. 12 students per year is the dropout rate.

There is no hospital facility in the area. Mobile phone services are available. Facility of drinking water is satisfactory; there are reserve tanks and spring water is available. Toilet facility is good too. The school lacks a playground, library, Science lab and Math lab. The computer lab has 6 computers. Desks/benches are available for all the students and all the classes have access to whiteboards. Estimated annual budget is Rs 30,00,000. Government contributes 86.67% of the budget, community contribution is 10% and VDC contributes 3.33%. The school hasn’t been receiving much help from other organizations.

Number of students who appeared in the SLC examinations in the last three years and pass percentage:

Year No. of appeared students Pass percentage 2071 BS (2014 D) 20 100% 2070 BS (2013 AD) 29 86.21% 2069 BS (2012 AD) 25 72% 2068 BS (2011 AD) 20 55%

The village is about 35 km away from Kathmandu. You can reach there either by a private vehicle or you can take a public bus that goes up to Sindhu khola. A little bit of walking will be required after that. Once you get there, don’t forget to ask the students about the story behind the name of their village “Giranchaur”. You will get to hear a very interesting one!

Earthquake Impact

The office building has been damaged. Most of the neighboring houses are also damaged. Fortunately, no teachers/students lost their life. There are 6 rooms in block building, 4 rooms in TLC and 4 rooms are under construction. Out of the 9 classrooms, 2 were damaged.

Save the Children has supported the school with water tank.