Platinum Jubilee celibration in Feb' 2009

Our hearty thanks to our MP Sri Ananta Naik, who went along with our past student Sri Ramesh Ch Sahoo (1988), on 22 Dec 2008, to Dr. Kalam’s place to seek the kind presence of our beloved Ex-President in our Platinum Jubilee function.
It appears our beloved past president is really interested to attend our function and hence he has indicated that he would soon let us know his availability in early February. The possibility of his coming in January 2009 is remote.

@ Bhubaneswar:
12 ex-students met in the Delta Guest house at Unit- VIII Bhubaneswar on 23 Dec 2008 under the guidance of our chief Patron for this function- Sri Suresh Ch Mohapatra, IAS (1978 Batch). Sri Aswini Behera, IRS also joined in this meeting along with other established ex-students of BBSR. Sri Sandeep Behera (1978) the organizing secretary for this function co-ordinated the meeting along with Sri Prashanta Sahoo (1978).
The silver lining is that the most organized batch- 1978- has stepped in whole heartedly to take this process forward and in that light the success of this function is almost a foregone conclusion!

Long live DNHS and the Alumni unity!!!

Your alma mater needs your efforts

• Please send your separate requests to the beloved former president to tilt the balance in our favor; as the very short notice given to him has come in the way of his coming to our alma mater.
  
  His e-mail id is: apj@abdulkalam.com

Invitation to Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

Old Students’ Association
D.N. High School, Kendujhar gada
Platinum Jubilee Celebration
1934 – 2009

To
His Excellency Bharat Ratna Dr A P J Abdul Kalam
Former President of India

Sub : Invitation to grace our Platinum Jubilee celebration as the Chief Guest

Most esteemed Sir,
We, the alumni of Dhanurjaya Narayan High School, Kendujhar, Odisha are going to celebrate our Platinum Jubilee in the year 2009. It has been our long cherished dream since your presidentship days - to invite you to grace this function as the Chief Guest.

Most humbly we request your highness to be kind enough to indicate a suitable date between January 12,2009 to February 10, 2009 to grace our function as Chief Guest.

It is quite pertinent to mention here that we plan to organize a science exhibition, by students from different schools and also dedicate a small garden, in the memory of this mile stone, in the annals of our alma mater, which have been planed keeping in mind the visiting green loving scientist seer, that our beloved past president is.

We, the organizers of this function were ignorant about the exact official procedures to avail your gracious presence and that has resulted in a shorter notice, for which we apologize profusely and fervently hope that, this technical inconsistency would not jeopardize our dreams of having His Excellency in our midst ; ours being a backward and tribal district and amongst the most neglected areas of the country.

With regards
Yours sincerely,


Nilamani Sahoo Dr. K.K. Behera
Secretary Chairman
& Head Master, D.N.High School & President , Old Student Association


P.S. : A line of your kind confirmation is solicited sincerely.

My Alma mater

A brief introduction of D.N.High School, Kendujhar, Odisha

Dhanurjaya Narayana High School is the oldest High school of Kendujhar, a tribal dominated district in the mineral rich hilly terrains of Odisha. The school traces its origin to late 19th Century, when it operated as a Middle English School. In CE1934 the school was enhanced to the level of a High School and named as Gibson High School, in the name of the then British Political Agent Mr. Gibson.  After Independence, Gibson gave way to Dhanurjaya Narayan and hence the name D. N. High School.

Where as, only 15 students passed out the matriculation examination in 1938, close to 200 students have the same honor in the recent years. In the last 78 years D. N. High School has crossed many milestones and has established its name as an educational institution of repute.

Some notable transitions have taken place in its medium of instruction and student composition.

Co-education:

Initially woman education was not prevalent in the society and hence there were no girl students. Things changed and parents enrolled their daughters in the 1940s. After establishment of a Girls High School in the close vicinity -in 1957- the administration decided to make this a ‘boys only’ school in 1963 and it continued as such till 1993. Sri Balaram Prusty, the then Head Master, worked hard to bring back the glory of the High School and besides undertaking some much needed renovations he re-opened the doors to the girl students in 1994 and since that time the school continuous to be a co-educational institution.

Medium of instruction:

In the same vain, the medium of instruction at the inception - in 1934 - was more inclined towards English. End of the British raj and rise of nationalistic feelings subdued this and Odiya became the only medium of instruction and regrettably the standard of the students fell in English. Even as a subject also it no longer enjoys its previous status. Concerned alumni have raised their voice regarding this ‘Odiya only’ policy and as it involves legislative changes, the talks of forming a peer group of such esteemed schools to wrest the past glories back, is in the air. For a brief while a plan to take D.N.High School to the next frontier of International schools was on the anvil.

Pertinent to note, D. N. High School enjoyed the status of a Zilla school- Premier District School- and was one of only thirteen such esteemed schools in Odisha. Changes in Government policies and practices have diluted such distinctions and privileges; yet the school continues to be among the finest Odia medium schools of Odisha.

A glimmer of hope, which promptly faded!

For some time – between 2005 to 2009, on the eve of the platinum Jubilee celebrations- the alumni of D.N. High School celebrated the annual function with the enthusiastic support of the school administration and hence the family of old students, staff and well wishers of D.N. High School was becoming more and more integrated. Alas the completion of the celebrations ended this bonhomie and again an eerie silence rules when we think of Alumni as a group. A few individual batches do celebrate their re-unions almost religiously but that in nowhere near being called an alumni group for their alma mater. They are more into their own fun and frolicking and at most they may be shedding some tears at the sad plight of the school.

How big are we?

In last 8 decades, the alumni of D.N. High Schools have reached most part of the globe and their imprints can be seen in all walks of life. The number of people who have passed out from this esteemed institution has reached the 7,000 mark and is proudly marching towards the five figures. The extended family, which includes all the associated staff, parents of students and ex-students, well wishers and spouses and children of ex-students; has became very big and substantial.

In this age of transience many changes have impacted D. N. High School and have brought about a situation, which calls for some out of box thinking and re-calibration of many things, which are central to existence and continuity of this school. The platinum Jubilee celebrations set such a process in motion.

One pertinent question:

We talk about corruption and make such heavy weather about it. But please think, if you forget your parents and let them die by degrees will that also not be considered as a form of corruption? Now, aren’t our alma maters stand in the same pedestal as our parents? So why are we so apathetic about our alma maters?

Hope remains:

Though the gross apathy of the alumni is not very difficult to understand- we do not have such a culture- yet very painful. Well, reminiscing about the cliché : “when everything looks bleak remember the future remains” I hope someday we’d bring about a change in this attitude and not only this school but most other state government run schools of Odisha would stand up and be counted alongside their counterparts- private schools. Please mull over it, will you?

Wish to communicate about the platinum Jubilee of DNHS (in Jan 2009)

We the alumni of D.N.High School, Kendujhar, Odisha are going to celebrate the platinum jubilee – 75th year of its foundation- in the last week of January 2009.

You are requested to pass this message to your friends and other alumni of DNHS and help re-unite the Diaspora.

Please act as the representative of your batch and help those who are out to compile a directory by furnishing/ advancing relevant date regarding you and other old students.

Sri Jhadeswara Mishra (1977 pass out) an old student, who is currently serving as an Assistant Teacher in DNHS, has been chosen to discharge the function of the treasurer for this celebrations and he is the main contact in the school. You can reach to him @ 9438191933