Campers for ten days, now friends for life
   Date :26-Apr-2019

 
 
Staff Reporter:
 
Bhonsala Adventure and Sports Foundation and The Hitavada Twinkle Club Personality Development Camp has reached mid way in its ten-day tenure 
 
Children need exposure. They need to be kept busy and there could not have been a better option than sending these brats to a military and adventure camp. The first batch of the Bhonsala Adventure and Sports Foundation and The Hitavada Twinkle Club Personality Development Camp has 236 Boys and 119 Girls, divided into six companies, four of boys and two of girls. Armed with their lensman, Team Hitavada paid a visit to the camp and saw the children enjoying every moment, be it the obstacle course while practicing commando attack or horse riding, archery or swimming. They stuck to their work, with instructors, keeping a sharp eye. Their bubbling energy witnessed, would have put any high protein drink advertiser to eat the dust. This scribe checked with the Chief Administrative Officer on the general menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner with something extra at 4 pm.
 
Mangesh Kemdeo, also in charge of the mess said, “We have Indian breakfast Poha or Idli Wada or bread butter jam, Vada Pav. Those doing the jummaring and valley crossing get their breakfast served at site, hot and fresh. For lunch, we give them Dum Aloo, or Chatpata Kofta, or Sev Bhaji with gravy. For dinner, we give noodles, manchurian rice, fruit custard, Pav Bhaji, lemon Pulav. What more can one expect. The kids reacted positively on this, when they were asked about how it is going. “Home is a forgotten entity. Newly made friends are important at the moment,” said one boy whose Josh seemed to be on the upward swing. Representatives from each company were spoken to and what they all said must put a feather in the camp of the event organisors .
 
 
Ajainveer Veer Singh Renu, Madhur Manoj Deshpande, both representing Shivaji Company, felt that the camp was great fun. “Teachers are engaging and encouraging. We now can appreciate a soldiers life and work. We are learning importance of punctuality and discipline. The infrastructure provided is first class”. Representatives from Rani Jhansi Company, Shreya Malviya and Anannya Jaiswal described the camp as one whose memories they will be carrying for a life time. “We learnt how to adjust to life at a different place sharing the accommodation, meal with an unknown, later becoming well known, how to go about even after staying away from parents.
 
The caring staff helped us to keep sentiments away and enjoy”. Representative of Jijamata Company, Sai Joshi and Siddhi Mude spoke of the camp being very adventurous. “It has a rigid routine but getting up early is now a habit. We are being looked after by our instructors and teachers, who ensure that we eat well. We are happy with the mess. On the activities, we feel ,that this camp has given us the opportunity to learn archery, firing, horse riding crossing obstacles”. Members of Swami Vivekanand Company also complimented the food and activities and felt that ten days were too short a tenure for the camp. Subhash Chandra Bose Company represented by Arnav Srinath from Aurangabad said that this camp site is beautiful. “I breathe fresh air and the activities are balanced, indoors as well as outdoors. I made lot of new friends”. The Hitavada also spoke to the Military instructors Capt Chand Mohd, Sub Roshal Lall, Sub Ram Navlakhe, Sub KLA Nathan , who wore a smile on their hardened faces, and expressed their happiness on the response of the children to learning.
 
The campers, we found out, are busy from 5.30 am starting the day with flag hoisting, followed by outdoor activity from 6am to 8am. A piping hot breakfast awaits them with time to take bath, Indoor activities commence from 10.10 am till 1.30 pm. Soft drink break is given in between. Lunch is at 1.30 pm. Students who have enrolled for performing in the dance on the concluding cultural programme go for practice while others take rest. At 5 pm outdoor activity starts again till 7.10 pm. They are given a break and at 7.40 pm, it is time to say evening prayers at the Ram Temple of the school, followed by an evening lecture or screening of a short movie. Dinner is served at 8.30 pm. After that it is lights out. On day one, the children laughed and chatted merrily inspite of being told to sleep, but after day two, they just knock off. Head Master Ajay Shirke also chipped in with inputs.