Govt. school gets play area made out of discarded tyres, waste wood, and water bottles

Discarded tyres, waste wood, and water bottles are now providing some much-needed physical exercise as well as entertainment to children of this government school, with a play area being created out of them.

In this play area, class 4 student Sangamesh says he loves to balance and walk on the row of tyres placed on the balancing pole even as class 7 student Manjunath Madiwala Agasar says he likes to climb up the ladder and swing from two poles.

Sangamesh and Agasar are among the 250 students of Government Higher Primary School, Baikampady (Muslim), Angaragundi, in Baikampady Industrial Area, who now spend their breaks at the play area.

Apart from the balancing bar and ladder, tyres have been used to make a swing, a climber, and to create a chess playing area. Some lorry tyres have been used for children to jump. A vertical garden has also been created using discarded water bottles while cycle tyres are being used as hula hoop. Along with the new play area, the boys toilet was renovated using discarded distilled water cans as flush tanks.

Opened on November 5, the play area was conceptualised by Inchara Foundation, an NGO, with the help of Trigon, a wing of students of Sahyadri Engineering College and St. Aloysius College. UB Group chipped in with ₹1.5 lakh as part of its corporate social responsibility.

Preetam Rodrigues, executive director of the foundation, which has been working with the school for over three years, said the students were in dire need of a play area and a hygienic toilet for boys. “Having seen play areas being created out of discarded items, I presented the idea to Sahyadri college students, who came up with the design.”

Though happy with the new play area, headmistress Ravikala Shetty said the staff was struggling to protect it. “After school hours, people come into the play area and spoil it,” she said.