New Patliputra Central School

Our school is out in the Bikram area, specifically around Raghopur and Patut. It’s a bit of a drive from the main city, so things are a bit slower and quieter here at New Patliputra Central School. Most of the students come from the nearby villages and farms. You’ll often see bicycles lined up against the wall outside. We don’t have many fancy gadgets. We use a lot of chalk and talk a lot. The building is simple, mostly one floor with a few extra rooms we added on later when we needed more space for the older kids. The courtyard is where everything happens—morning prayers, sports, and just hanging out during the break. We have a few trees that give us some relief from the sun. The teachers here really know the students’ families because everyone lives in the same few clusters of houses. If someone is missing from class, we usually know why before the day is over. It’s a very practical sort of place. We fix our own fences and sometimes the older boys help move the desks around. We don't have a big website or a social media team. We just open the gates in the morning and do our work until the afternoon. It’s a good community. The air is a bit fresher out here than in the middle of town, which is a nice change for those of us who travel in to work every day.