Pawan Gupta

Pawan Gupta

Pawan Kumar Gupta is a graduate from IIT Delhi. After graduating he spent 11 years setting up and managing a chemical industry. Decided to change career in 1987 and got seriously involved in research and practice of Vippassanna (a meditation practice with its origin in Buddhism). Came to live in the mountains in 1987 to pursue interest in Vippassanna. Set up SIDH in 1989/1990 alongwith his wife Anuradha initially to start pre-primay and primary schools in remote villages of Jaunpur (a tribal block in Tehri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand, near Mussoorie). The institute grew organically but the main focus remained education.
 
During the course of running schools and interactions with the local community the learning was that “education” (schooling) was giving a false sense of arrogance and the “educated” started perceiving themselves and their communities as “backward”. This led to mindless imitation of what was assumed to be “developed”. Most of the work that followed stemmed from this understanding of society. This resulted in developing a module for developing “thinking teachers”, starting an open ended residential school/ college called “Sanjeevani” and “Gap Year College” for young people. It led to contextualizing subjects to the local geographical and cultural environment of the locality which resulted in Guidebooks for teachers called “Jaunpur ke Ped Paudhe” and “Understanding History”. Chattisgargh government recognized this effort and distributed these books in all their schools. Have initiated and guided many research projects which culminated into research studies: “A Matter of Quality”; “Child and the Family”; “Text and Context”.
 
A number of books were published and edited to challenge the present world view namely, “The collected writings of Dharampal” which gives an account of the education system in India in the 18th and early 19th century (extracts from reports of British Administrators); the status of agriculture produce, implements and yield in different parts of India at that time, the Science and Technology in India during 18th/ 19th centuries; the tradition of civil dis-obedience and non co-operation in India etc.. I also have edited books (“Mahatma Gandhi Ek Punarvalokan”) and conducted exhibitions to reveal certain facets of Mahatma Gandhi which are courageous and effectively challenge modernity. The exhibition was held at the South Asia Institute, University of Heidelberg, Germany under the title “Quintessential Gandhi”.
 
Regularly write columns (“Dayron ke Paar”) for national dailies like “Jansatta” (from the Indian Express Group of ublications); Hindustan, Amar Ujala. A compilation of these published articles was taken out in 2003 called “Dayron se Pare Kuchh Nazariye”. Have edited “Himalya Raibar” a journal on society, science, education and politics for 18 years.
 
Currently involved in teachers mentoring programs, making of a film to present the ‘Other India’ and a course for ‘teacher mentoring’.
 
Pawan K Gupta
Hazelwood
Landour Cantt.,
Mussoorie.
 June 3, 2010