Taking swimming pools to schools
Taking swimming pools to schools
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Dust-filled drill sessions might soon take a backseat for the kids in the city schools. It is time for the kid..

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Dust-filled drill sessions might soon take a backseat for the kids in the city schools. It is time for the kiddies to learn some basic water survival skills during the drill period.In case you are scouring for swimming pools in your schools, the Kerala chapter of Rashtriya Life Saving Society (RLSS) will literally carry water to your schools. In a first-of-its-kind initiative, portable swimming pools are most likely to be introduced in selected schools in the city by RLSS as part of its swim and survive campaign.The programme will be launched with the support of a financial grant allotted to RLSS, Pune, by Australia Sports Outreach Programme (ASOP). The grant worth five million dollars has been allotted to four other organisations in India apart from RLSS for the promotion of community sports. "RLSS has been allotted ` 45 lakh by ASOP. Kerala will be the key area of the swim and survive campaign being conducted by RLSS. Initially, the activities will be shaped with focus on the city. We are working on the list of schools in the city where portable swimming pools can be introduced,’’ says R Anilkumar, secretary, RLSS, Kerala chapter.Children aged between 7 and 10 years will be given training on water survival skills with portable swimming pools during their physical education session. The three-month training will have twenty sessions each and will aim at equipping the child to acquire basic swimming skills. The initial funding has to be met by RLSS and as the programme progresses, the fund allotted by ASOP will be streamlined to spread the reach of the programme.The training will be conducted using pools - made of thick vinyl - measuring 30 by 12 feet; approximately 400 square feet. The scheme has been inspired by a similar scheme successfully implemented in Bangladesh, Thailand and Vietnam. Portable pools introduced in Bangladesh by International Drowning Research Centre has already taught over one lakh children."It was the frequency of drowning accidents in Bangladesh that resulted in the launch of portable swimming pools in schools. We have a similar situation here also. Unlike the rural kids, the children in urban areas do not have enough swimming pools to familiarise themselves with water. With the introduction of portable swimming pools in the city, schoolchildren can pick up swimming along with other skills,’’ says Anilkumar.Once the programme proves successful, the concept will be introduced in other parts of the State as well. RLSS is currently building a team of trained lifesavers to implement the programme. ‘’We would also want to take this to the rural areas. But it all depends upon the outcome of the initial phase,’’ adds Anilkumar.

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