State-run school students take up rowing as part of summer project
Kolkata: Over 100 students from state-run schools in the city are learning to row this summer as part of the summer project, thanks to an initiative by the Calcutta Rowing Club in collaboration with the Paschim Banga Samagra Shiksha Mission (PBSSM) under the School Education department.
The Summer Rowing Coaching Camp, organised by the Calcutta Rowing Club, began on May 17 and will run until June 15. Held at Rabindra Sarobar, the camp offers free training six days a week, from 6:30 am to 8:30 am. Students aged 11 to 18 who can swim and have parental consent are participating.
“Exposure to banks, post offices and local artisans has always been part of our summer project. Now, we’ve taken it a step further with rowing — an Olympic sport — giving students a rare and valuable experience,” said a senior official from the School Education department.
“Rowing is practised only at Rabindra Sarobar in Bengal. Our club, founded in 1858, is the first in India and the oldest in Asia,” said Chandan Roy Choudhury, honorary secretary of the Calcutta Rowing Club and president of the Bengal Olympic Association & Bengal Paralympic Association. “We started this camp 16 years ago to offer free training to schoolchildren. With PBSSM’s support since 2024, we’ve been able to reach schools across the city. This year, we received over 125 entries and about 110 students are actively participating.”
PBSSM also provides financial support, including travel and breakfast for the students.
Now in its 16th year, the camp has seen a sharp rise in participation from government-run schools, particularly since PBSSM came on board in 2024. Students are now enrolling from across the city — from Bagbazar Multipurpose School and Duff High School for Girls in the north to Jadavpur Vidyapith, Beltala Girls’ High School and Binodini Girls’ High School in the south.
“The department’s involvement has boosted the camp’s popularity,” said Roy Choudhury. “Earlier, we mostly reached out to nearby South Kolkata schools and teachers. Now, thanks to the School Education department, students are joining in from North Kolkata, Behala and other parts of the city.”
At the end of the camp, all participants will receive certificates and 30-40 promising rowers will be selected for year-round training. “Last year, 10-12 stayed on and some of them have already represented Bengal in sub-junior and junior national events,” Roy Choudhury said.
