School built on sacrifice of Cuttack ‘chaiwallah’, sustained by daughter’s determination

Bhubaneswar: She left her high-paying job in Singapore, as well as her dream of learning Spanish and pursuing a career with an embassy in Delhi, to keep her father’s dream alive.

Every morning, when children from nearby slums walk into the modest Asha O Ashwasana school in Cuttack’s Buxi Bazaar, they carry more than school bags -- a dream nurtured by her modest tea-seller father who believed education could change lives.

Late social worker D Prakash Rao, fondly known as Cuttack’s ‘chaiwallah’, spent nearly every penny he earned selling tea to educate underprivileged children free of cost. When he founded Asha O Ashwasana in 2000, his mission was to ensure that underprivileged children had a school to go to, instead of drifting towards illegal activities and uncertainty. His untiring efforts had earned him a Padma Shri in 2014.

Years after his death by Covid in 2021, that dream survives through the determination of his daughter, D Bhanupriya Rao. Leaving behind a promising career in the hospitality sector, Bhanupriya chose to return home and take charge of the school. Today, she shoulders the responsibility of educating 90 children enrolled from pre-nursery to Class 4.

“This is more than a school; it is a safe space that offers hope to the children who come from underprivileged backgrounds as well as their parents,” said the 31-year-old who holds a degree in hotel management from IHM-Bhubaneswar.

When her father suffered a brain stroke and subsequently contracted Covid-19, Bhanupriya decided to take charge of the school. “My father had always wished that I run the school after him. My interest was in learning Spanish and working for an embassy, but when he left, the school became my first priority,” she said.

Asha O Ashwasana provides everything free of cost, from education to books and school bags to mid-day meals. But keeping the institution running has been an uphill battle.

Bhanupriya recalled how, after her father’s death, the family struggled to sustain the school despite assurances of help from the state govt. The promise remains unfulfilled. She has been running from pillar to post to get the school registered under school and mass education department. She had also met the chief minister, requesting his intervention in the matter.

“Three years back, my mother and I mortgaged our jewellery to keep the school running. With rising food costs, providing nutritious meals to 90 children every day is not easy,” Bhanupriya said.

Today, the school survives largely on contributions from Good Samaritans, whom Bhanupriya approaches every month, as well as a Hyderabad-based trust run by Odias that has been supporting the institution since Rao’s lifetime. The trust pays the salaries of the six teachers of the school, and funds an autorickshaw that transports children to free of cost.

Space remains another challenge. All classes function from just two rooms. Bhanupriya is hopeful after receiving assurance from Cuttack MLA Sofia Firdous that the issue of securing a larger space would be taken up with the district education authorities.

Despite the odds, Bhanupriya refuses to give up. “Because every lesson taught, every meal served and every child who walks through the school’s doors is a reminder of my father’s legacy,” she said.