New girl’s school at Pune’s Bhide Wada to have 19th-century architecture, advanced technology classes

The historic Bhide Wada, the building where India’s first girls’ school was started by Jyotiba and Savitribai Phule in 1848, will be redeveloped as a national monument and will house a girl’s school. The work on expanding the Bhide Wada will commence soon. The seven-storey structure will have five floors reserved for the school which will have all the modern amenities. The school will be run by PMC, and the basement will house shops, which are already located there.

Professor Hari Narke, former head of the Mahatma Phule chair in Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) shared his insights on the proposed monument at the Bhide Wada. Last week, after conducting a meeting with officials, Chhagan Bhujbal, minister of food, civic supplies and customer protection announced that a school for girls will be started in Bhide Wada.

According to Professor Narke, the proposed school will have an appearance of the 19th century Bhide Wada and will be the centre of advanced knowledge. “We aim to have a school which will groom the opinion makers in the 21st century. Topics related to advanced technology such as artificial intelligence and programming will be incorporated. The school will prepare girls to pursue higher education from any reputed world university such as Oxford, Cambridge and Harvard,” Narke. He was also present at the meeting held by Bhujbal and deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar with the officials, wherein the officials were asked to expedite the process to develop the national monument at Phulewada and memorial of Savitribai Phule.

Narke said that there is also a plan to install memorials of other associates of Mahatma Jyotiba Phule who helped the couple start the school at Bhide Wada. “Bhujbal suggested that every student must know the history and legacy of the school, hence, memorials of companions from Brahmin and Maratha communities who helped start the school will be constructed. We are also planning to display the social reforms that took place in the 19th and 20th centuries through pictures in the rest of the area,” he said.

Currently, the school is in a dilapidated state after it was shut down almost 15 years ago. The redevelopment will be done by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). The plan to redevelop Bhide Wada as a national monument has not taken off due to issues related to opposition from shop owners, who run their business from the premises. Ajit Pawar has told the administration to hold a meeting regarding rehabilitation of commercial occupants and residents living in the building and chalk out the land acquisition process and settle the matter amicably.

According to Narke, construction work of the monument is expected to start in early 2022.

Amenities at Bhide Wada school

- 19th-century architecture

- Memorials of companions who helped Phule start the school will be installed

- A section on the history of social reforms of the 19th and 20th century

- Classes on advanced technology