5 girls of Ganga-Jamuna are IGNOU students
Nagpur.
Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) has come forward to help those women/ girls who could not complete their studies for various reasons, and who are keen to pursue their studies further. In its drive recently launched, the IGNOU is not only in search of such women but also motivates them to continue the education which was left out by them, and also provides financial assistance.
The National Open University is focusing at the rural areas where the better prospects of education are not available, or the women cannot study due to familial liabilities or poverty. According to observation made by IGNOU director of Nagpur centre, P Vishwaswaroop, women have more inclination to study than the boys, but they remain helpless due to burden of responsibilities.
IGNOU is now trying to bring such women to the main stream of education and also providing the financial assistance for this purpose. Citing an example, Vishwaswaroop says that as many as 25 girls and women of Yerla village in Katol tahsil of Nagpur district are pursuing higher education through open university (IGNOU), in addition to doing their routine work. Similar example is there at Gadchiroli district where more than 100 women are taking higher education through this open university.
Not only this, the IGNOU has provided admission in different courses to 5 women of Ganga-Jamuna locality, which is infamous for sex-workers. Vishwaswaroop says that his team visits every place and appeals to the left out/ dropped out women and girls to pursue higher education through IGNOU. His motivation is bringing many left out women to the mainstream of education, and such women find a renewed interest in the field of education.
Recently, a seminar was organized at the Army Wives Welfare Association and the NCC where women were apprised of academic courses of their interest, and the IGNOU received a good response in this connection. It is worth mentioning here that after President Pranab Mukherjee’s advice to all universities to develop educational scope for masses, the IGNOU’s Nagpur centre has adopted three villages to promote education. Such villages are Pipla, Besa and Bela on the outskirts of Nagpur city. Various centres of IGNOU across the country have adopted as many as 47 villages so far, he informed, adding that the credit of initiatives taken in this regard goes to Nagpur centre of IGNOU.
