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  "Shanivari Vidnyanvari " (Science on Saturdays)  
 

This was the flagship programme of Marathi Vidnyan Parishad, specifically designed to promote science learning through low-cost, hands-on experiments. A key feature of this programme is peer learning, along with the capacity building of college students as science communicators.

The programme was conceptualized by Mr. Hemant Lagvankar, who also served as the Principal Investigator. Dr. Jayant Joshi, then Hon. Secretary of Marathi Vidnyan Parishad, was the Chief Coordinator during the initial four years, from 2016 to 2020.

 
  The programme was launched on a pilot basis in 2016–17 in around 12 schools in Nashik.Thirty senior college students were selected and provided with comprehensive training, along with an experiment kit. During the training workshop, the college students learned to create various learning aids and how to use them to explain scientific concepts.  
 

The trained college students students were divided into pairs, with each pair assigned to a specific school. Each group conducted 10 sessions of approximately two hours each, every Saturday, in their designated school. As the programme was held on Saturdays, it was named ‘Shanivari Vidnyanvari’. During these sessions, scientific concepts were demonstrated through hands-on experiments, enabling school students to grasp these concepts by performing the experiments themselves.

 
  The programme was closely monitored and regularly reviewed. It was found to be highly effective, with a notable immediate impact being an increase in student attendance. Many students began conducting similar experiments at home and even attempted to develop their own science experiment kits.  
 

Read Report of Pilot Program 2016-17

Read Report published in MVP Patrika

 
 
 
 
 
 
  Scaling up  
  The programme was scaled up in the year 2017-18 due to very good response from school and college students, teachers and also from parents of the students in the schools.  
 

The programme was obviously continued in Nashik for the second year and along with that the programme was started in Nandurbar and Mumbai. During the year 2017-18, the programme was carried out in 50 schools.

Read Report of the Programme for the year 2017-18 (English) | (Marathi)

 
 

In the year 2018-19, along with Mumbai, Shanivari Vidnyanvari was carried out at 11 different places in Maharashtra and at Nipani which is in Karnataka state.

The training workshops were conducted at three different places, viz. at MVP Vidnyan Bhavan, in Dhule and in Solapur. The programme was conducted successfully in 166 schools.

Read Report of the Programme for the year 2018-19 (English) | (Marathi)

 
 
 

Hemant Lagvankar was interviewed by Mrs. Uma Dixit on All India Radio, Mumbai on the occasion of National Science Day. The interview was based on "Shanivari Vidnyanvari".

It was broadcast on February 28, 2019 in the programme 'Vanita Mandal' on Asmita Channel of All India Radio, Mumbai.

Click to listen interview -> Shanivari Vidnyanvari Radio Programme

 
 

In the academic year 2019-20, the programme ‘Shanivari Vidnyanvari’ was successfully conducted at 29 places viz. Deola, Shirsondi, Malegaon, Chandwad, Dhule, Phaltan, Umri, Ratnagiri, Sangola, Solapur, Sakri, Ambajogai, Chalisgaon, Jalna, Jalgaon, Ajra, Amravati, Chandgad, Kolhapur, Warana Nagar, Bidri, Pangaon, Pune, Pandharpur, Barshi and Northeast Mumbai. The programme was also conducted at Nipani in Karnataka state. Also, a new version of this programme (i.e., Module-2) was implemented on an experimental basis in 32 schools in Mumbai suburbs.

During the year, 575 college students conducted the programme successfully in 296 schools and more than twelve thousand school children benefited from it. Out of 296 schools, 66 schools belonged to Municipal Corporation or Zilla Parishad.

Read Report of the Programme for the year 2019-20 (English) | (Marathi)

 
  We have marked our presence in the following districts :  
   
     
  Progress of Shanivari Vidnyanvari at Glance  
  Year 2016 - 17  
 
  No. Place No. of College Volunteers Total No. of Schools covered No. of classrooms covered No. of Municipal Corporation or Government Schools Total No. of Sessions Taken No. of Students benefited (Approx.)
  1.
Nashik
   27 12 12 12 120 320
 
     
  Year 2017 - 18  
 
  No. Place No. of College Volunteers Total No. of Schools covered No. of classrooms covered No. of Municipal Corporation or Government Schools Total No. of Sessions Taken No. of Students benefited (Approx.)
  1.
Nashik
   30 15 15 10 150 400
  2.
Mumbai
   51 25 25 --- 250 1000
  3.
Nandurbar
   25 10 10 0 90 450
  Total for 2017 - 18   106 50 50 10 490 1850
 
     
  Year 2018 - 19  
 
  No. Place No. of College Volunteers Total No. of Schools covered No. of classrooms covered No. of Municipal Corporation or Government Schools Total No. of Sessions Taken No. of Students benefited (Approx.)
  1.
Nashik
   40 20 20 --- 200 500
  2.
Mumbai
   90 60 82 31 820 4100
  3.
Dhule
   20 10 10 1 100 300
  4.
Nandurbar
   20 10 10 0 100 300
  5.
Deola (Dist. Nashik)
  20 10 10 2 100 300
  6.
Jalgaon
   10 9 9 3 90 450
  7.
Solapur
   24 13 13 0 129 400
  8.
Pandharpur (Dist. Solapur)
   6 3 3 2 25 100
  9.
Gadhinglaj (Dist. Kolhapur)
  18 9 9 0 90 275
  10.
Bidri (Dist. Kolhapur)
   14 7 7 1 70 220
  11.
Amravati
   19 10 10 1 99 500
  12.
Nipani (Karnatak State)
  10 5 6 4 60 150
  Total for 2018 - 19   291 166 189 45 1889 7595
 
     
  Year 2019 - 20  
 
  No. Place No. of College Volunteers Total No. of Schools covered No. of classrooms covered No. of Municipal Corporation or Government Schools Total No. of Sessions Taken No. of Students benefited (Average)
  1.
Nashik
   22 17 17 17 170 350
  2.
Chandwad (Dist. Nashik)
  16 8 8 7 80 493
  3.
Deola (Dist. Nashik)
  38 19 19 8 190 714
  4.
Malegaon (Dist. Nashik)
  18 9 9 2 90 522
  5.
Shirsondi (Dist. Nashik)
  18 9 9 0 90 618
  6.
Mumbai (Module 2)
  64 32 32 18 320 1142
  7.
Mumbai (North East Region)
  20 10 10 1 100 425
  8.
Ambarnath (Dist. Thane)
  8 4 4 0 40 209
  9.
Pune
   12 7 7 0 70 385
  10.
Dhule
   18 10 10 0 100 260
  11.
Sakri (Dist. Dhule)
   20 10 10 0 100 372
  12.
Chalisgaon (Dist. Jalgaon)
   10 5 5 0 50 239
  13.
Jalgaon
   22 11 11 0 105 406
  14.
Solapur
   40 20 20 0 200 867
  15.
Barshi (Dist. Solapur)
  8 4 4 0 40 185
  16.
Pandharpur (Dist. Solapur)
  10 5 5 0 50 305
  17.
Sangola (Dist. Solapur)
  4 2 2 0 20 78
  18.
Ambajogai (Dist. Beed)
  4 2 2 0 18 68
  19.
Pangaon (Dist. Latur)
  8 4 4 1 40 246
  20.
Umri (Dist. Nanded)
  7 4 4 0 40 193
  21.
Jalna
   16 8 8 1 78 277
  22.
Aajra (Dist. Kolapur)
  20 10 10 0 100 373
  23.
Bidri (Dist. Kolhapur)
   10 5 5 0 50 192
  24.
Chandgad (Dist. Kolhapur)
  20 10 10 5 100 409
  25.
Gadhinglaj (Dist. Kolhapur)
  28 14 14 0 140 448
  26.
Kolhapur
   10 5 5 1 50 185
  27.
Warna Nagar (Dist. Kolhapur)
  16 8 8 0 80 507
  28.
Phaltan (Dist. Satara)
  22 11 11 0 109 498
  29.
Ratnagiri
   10 5 5 0 50 180
  30.
Amravati
   36 18 18 3 180 750
  31.
Nipani (Karnatak State)
  20 10 10 2 100 443
  Total for 2019 - 20   575 296 296 66 2950 12339
 
 

In all, the programme 'Shanivari Vidnyanvari' has been sucessfully implemented across 524 schools with the support of 999 college students, benefiting over 22,089 students.

(Click here to see cognizance by the press)