A 60-year-old farmer from the remote village of Piplodi in Rajasthan, India, has earned widespread admiration after donating his home to serve as a temporary school for village children following a tragic accident.
Mor Singh, who never received formal education himself, offered his two-room house to be used as an upper primary school after the local school building was rendered unusable due to heavy rainfall.
Currently, the space accommodates between 50 and 60 students, according to Singh.
“If I had not taken that quick decision, many children would have dropped out. The only other school is in a neighbouring village, which is a two kilometre (1.24 miles) trek in the hills. While the older students would have managed, the younger ones wouldn’t have,” he said during a phone interview with the BBC.
Rajasthan experienced its wettest July in nearly seven decades, with 285 mm of rainfall reported across the state. On July 25, a classroom roof at the village school in Piplodi collapsed, killing seven children and injuring 21 others. The disaster left the school inoperable and exposed wider issues of decaying infrastructure in the state’s education system.
Two days after the incident, Singh, along with his family—including his two-year-old grandson—relocated to a makeshift bamboo-and-tarpaulin shack a few meters away from their home. Despite the difficult living conditions, Singh said he was willing to make the sacrifice for the future of the village children.
It had taken Singh three years to construct the home, which he and his family had lived in for 13 years before offering it to the community. His decision has now drawn the attention of state authorities.
Last week, the Rajasthan state government awarded him 200,000 rupees (approximately $2,266) in financial aid as a token of appreciation. In addition, Piplodi has been designated a “model village” under a federal scheme, which will facilitate the development of new infrastructure including a school, healthcare centre, and playground.
“Building a new school in the village will take at least another one and a half years,” confirmed local official Ajay Singh Rathore.
Piplodi is home to around 90 families, most of whom belong to tribal communities. Singh emphasized the importance of education in improving their circumstances. “We are a poor community and have hardly seen any development. That’s why it is essential for these children to go to school, get an education and accomplish their goals,” he said.
His gesture has earned him the status of a local hero. Ram Dayal, whose daughter was injured in the school collapse and now studies at Singh’s home, praised him, saying, “He is a hero for the entire village.”
Another resident, Ram Kumar, echoed the sentiment: “If he had not offered his house for the school, many of the children would have dropped out. We all appreciate his gesture.”
