A New Beacon of Education - Utkal Gaurav International School Shines Bright in the Remote Village of Berunapadi, Odisha

"Eastern spiritual values alongside western efficiency" is the main motto of the school, based upon the ideals of Jagadguru Paramahansa Yogananda. Paramahansaji had started a "How-to-Live" school in 1916-17 to give all-round training to the young lads who would mature into manhood with values and at the same time become stalwarts in their professions. "I find it enlightening that education is now more than just memorising facts and figures," said celebrated devotional singer Anuradha Paudwal, who also visited the schools inauguration earlier this month. The founders organised a special dedication service where Sri Naveen Patnaik, the Chief Minister of Odisha, oversaw the proceedings and several big names from the power circles of Mumbai, Hyderabad, Delhi and Mumbai.

From Odisha, the Chief Minister was also represented by Mass Education Minister Sri Sameer Ranjan Swain and Chandrani Murmu, MP Keonjhar. Among other high-profile attendees, the function was attended and supported by renowned film director AR Murugadoss of Ghajini fame, alongside film producer Salil Chaturvedi of Mumbai. The Mumbai contingent of supporters and attendees also included actors Gurmeet Chaudhary, Saurabh Pandey, and Asha Negi and singers Sonu Niigaam, Anup Jalota, Kavita Paudwal and Jubin Nautiyal.

In a short span of 45 days, UGIS is blossoming and expanding with Noted playback singer Jubin Nautiyal laying the foundation stone ceremony of the secondary block building and centre for arts, meditation and sports. The school will boast a state of the art sports complex for both indoor and outdoor sports including squash, tennis, table tennis, badminton, basketball, football, hockey & cricket. Highlighting the importance of education and good value system in a child's life, Jubin shared, "It is encouraging to see Dr Sethi come back to his roots and contribute to enriching the lives of the underprivileged children by gifting them a free world school where they will learn the importance of education, discipline and follow their passion to better their and nation's future."

"In the name of my Guru Sri Paramahansa Yogananda, we want to create an environment where students can explore their spirituality and develop a sense of purpose and meaning. By combining spirituality and education, we hope to help our students become well-rounded individuals equipped to make a positive impact in the world," said Founder Dr Pradeep Sethi, unable to hold back his emotions on a crucial moment in history for his village and his people.

In line with the ideals of Paramahansa Yogananda, the founders foresee that a model world civilization can become a reality much faster in this new information age. Therefore, the founders are determined to replicate the academic standards of Universities like Stanford and Harvard alongside the ancient spiritual values enshrined in Indian ashrams.

For more details of the school, please visit utkalgaurav.org/Our-school.html.