Junior) Biju Patnaik College Of Education

Out here in Govindpalli, Malkangiri, things move a bit slower than in the big cities. That’s where you’ll find the Junior Biju Patnaik College Of Education. We mostly deal with students who are looking to become teachers later on. It’s a quiet area, and the college building sits right in the middle of it all. We have students coming from all over the district, some of them traveling quite a distance every morning just to get to their classes. The classrooms are basic, but they serve the purpose. We have desks, blackboards, and a lot of books piled up in the small library area. It gets quite warm in the afternoons, especially during the summer months, so we try to keep the windows open for whatever breeze we can get. The staff here are mostly local people who understand the challenges students face in this part of Odisha. We don't have any big advertisements or shiny posters. People usually hear about us from their neighbors or relatives. It’s a practical place. We spend our time going through the syllabus and preparing for the exams that come around twice a year. Sometimes we have a little function in the common area, but mostly it’s just about the daily studies. It’s not a glamorous life, but it’s what we do here in Govindpalli. The gates close early in the evening once everyone heads home and the sun starts setting over the trees.