The Indian Express              10.09.2013

Teachers feted by Mayor

Nair was one of the 50 teachers feted by Mayor Sunil Prabhu on the occasion of Teachers' Day.

"I enjoy teaching children and watching them grow. Every pupil is unique with his or her own talents," said Nair, an Amboli resident who has been teaching at the school for 27 years. The school caters to 675 primary school students in English and Marathi mediums. Nair regularly encourages her students to participate in extra-curricular and recreational activities such as puppet shows, dramatics and elocution competitions.

For instance, ahead of the Ganesh festival, the students of the school were assigned to mould Ganesh idols from clay to inculcate in them the importance of celebrating such festivals in an eco-friendly manner.

Every year, BMC selects teachers from across its 1,296 municipal schools to be presented with the Mayor's award on Teachers' Day. The 50 teachers were chosen this year based on a set of norms prescribed by the civic administration. The candidates were further shortlisted by a board of award-winning teachers headed by Manoj Kotak, chairman of the education committee. The winners were chosen based on experience, school academic record and contribution to social causes.

Instituted in 1971, the award comprises a cash price of

Rs 10,000, a certificate and a gold medal.

This year, apart from the 50 regular awards, the Mayor also gave a special prize to Nitin Yadav, 48, who has helped the Mumbai Police in nabbing many suspects as a sketch artist, including in the recent gang-rape case at Shakti Mills. A graduate of J J School of Arts, Nitin Yadav teaches drawing at Chembur Education Society School.

In the past four months alone, Yadav, a Kurla resident, has helped solve 12 cases.