Additional DEO of Ganjam to receive Mukhyamantri Sikhya Puraskar

Berhampur: Additional district education officer (ADEO) of Ganjam, S Dhananjaya, will receive the Mukhyamantri Sikhya Puraskar on Teachers' Day on Friday, for the second year in recognition of his exceptional efforts in the field of education during his tenure as the BEO of Bhanjanagar.

Dhananjaya will be honoured with the ‘block education officer award' at the state-level felicitation ceremony, which he also received in 2023.

"Excited after being selected for the Mukhyamantri Sikhya Puraskar," said Dhananjaya, dedicating the award to his parents and teachers who work hard sincerely and honestly for the betterment of students. The receipents of Mukhyamantri Sikhya Puraskar are selected after evaluating several aspects of a BEO's performance, including administration, enrolment efforts and innovation.

During his posting as BEO in Bhanjanagar from Aug 2018 to April this year, he initiated several projects aimed at environmental protection and tree plantation. In 2018, he introduced the ‘4G (Go for Ganesh to Make Green Ganjam)' concept in at least two schools to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi.

From idol making to immersion, children from two schools in Bhanjanagar and Jagannath Prasad blocks adopted eco-friendly practices to celebrate Ganesh Utsav. They crafted idols using clay and natural colours and immersed them in buckets of water instead of natural ponds.

In 2023, Dhananjaya also launched ‘My Selfie, My Sapling' initiative to encourage students to participate in plantation drives. Under the initiative, students were urged to plant saplings, take selfies with them and post the images on social media to inspire others to join the drive.

In the past one year, his team also undertook efforts to enrol children. "Around 215 children enrolled in state open schooling after their parents were convinced through door-to-door visits in various villages," Dhananjaya said.