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Fifteen decades of glory
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The bond between its ex-students is so strong that wherever they are and in whatever position they are placed, their eyes well up at the very mention of the school.
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The old bell still tolls.
"I could write a book on the school and on the wonderful teachers who taught there. It was over 30 years (1969 batch) that I passed out from the school but its memories are still green in my mind. Its imposing arches and the European stained glasses in its chapel visit me often in my dreams. Every time I come across an old pal the topic that crops up for discussion is about the school," reminisced an old student of St. Aloysius High School, Prem Padmanabhan, in a column dedicated for such ex-students in a website. Well, that is the common feeling among the alumni of the school who like to be called `Aloysians'.
The journey of this school started 15 decades ago when Visakhapatnam was Vizagapatam, and three-fourth of the district was identified as agency area. So one can imagine the extent of literacy prevailing in the district at that time. Every three of 100 persons in the agency area could read and write and in the plains it was little over 11 per cent of the total populace. There were hardly any good educational institution for the natives in the plains, forget the agency areas. The town had only one English medium school run by the East India Company, exclusively for the children of the British soldiers who were stationed here. It was during those days that a missionary, by name Fr. Tissor from the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales (MSFS), set sail from France for an arduous journey to Vizagapatam via Madras in 1846. After reaching here, he realised the need for a good school for everybody. He acquired a small two-room house by the seaside in the fort area (as Old Town was referred to in those days) to start the institution of his dream. And that was the inception of St. Aloysius' Anglo- Indian High School, the oldest school in Visakhapatnam district. It has crossed the sesqui centenary mark and stands erect with its head held high like the Rock of Gibraltar, imparting qualitative and meaningful education to thousands over the years.
Though the school made a humble beginning in a two-roomed house (still part of the main school building on the eastern side) with a handful of students, the institution is today housed in a magnificent edifice that this metro can be proud of with a student strength of over 2,000.
The development was not overnight. The physical acquisition started after 1873, when the public road to the south of the school and the land next to it was first taken over for the purpose of a playground and setting up a kitchen for the orphans in the boarding school that was already there by that time. Adding bit by bit over the years, the school compound extends from the old lighthouse battery to the present workshop area.
Once the required land was purchased, the construction of the present building was undertaken by a visiting missionary Fr. Cyril Allioud, under the plans and guidance of the local fund engineer, Arbuthnot. The structure was completed as we see it today by 1930, and the major share of credit goes to the then principal of the school, J.L. Contat (1899-1927).
The imposing building of St. Aloysius Anglo-Indian High School in the Old Town Area. -- Photos : C.V. Subrahmanyam
The Gothic architecture of the school building is unique. The stone cast three-storeyed building resembles a medieval castle in Europe. The huge quadrangle in the centre of the school complex has not lost its sheen over the weather-beaten years and is still being used for assembly and games. The parlour of the school is a museum by itself, it not only treasures a few priceless books and photographs but the unexploded bomb, which missed its mark during the Japanese air raid of 1942 was recovered from the beach beside the school by the then principal Fr. Gaston Poncelle and kept there. It has however now found a new home and is kept in the Visakha Museum.
The school has many firsts to its credit. Apart from being the first English medium school with boarding facility in the district, it was the first to start an industrial school for the poor under the aegis of M.S.F.S. in 1890, within the campus. The industrial school was the first of its kind between the Presidencies of Madras and Calcutta. Till today, this school, which is fondly known as Brother's Workshop, is regarded as the premier training school in the district.
Since its inception, this institution has always looked forward to build literate individuals with morals and ethics rather than just pass out a few students every year. "Though we have both the State syllabus (SSC) and the Indian School Certificate (ICSE) streams, our aim is to impart education that is not confined to the four walls of the institution, but lead the students to useful and effective involvement in nation-building. We believe education should be imparted to guide a person towards the goal that one dreams of and not thrust upon as a system or curriculum," says the present principal of the school, John V.V.
The bond between its ex-students is so strong that wherever they are and in whatever position they are placed, their eyes well up at the very mention of the school. "I heard a lot about the school from my dad who studied there in the early 1930s. He used to go nostalgic every time he spoke about it. Though I never visited India I can now vividly draw a sketch of the school," quoted Mark Flynn from the US in the same website that was hosted by two of its alumni, Vara Prasad and Ravi, voluntarily as a mark of respect. Similarly Subbarao Seethamsetty, who passed out from the school in 1961and now resides in the US, fondly remembers every square inch of the school and its teachers by their names.
The school is the unifying subject among its old pals. Whoever studied here shares a special bond with the imposing building and the teachers. Not only the students, even the teachers have a similar affinity towards the school and its students.
"My thirteen years stint as the principal of the school was the most memorable part of my life. I am proud to be part of its legacy. The school was like my home wherein dwelled my family that comprised teachers, students, parents and the management staff. Students were dearly precious to me and I believed that every human being deserves to be respected, and that could be the reason why, they still keep in touch," says the former principal of the school, Father Joseph Pulickal.
But all is not well with the school. It is under the serious threat of being evacuated from its grand premises. The threat of pollution from the outer-harbour and coal jetty is looming large over its architectural splendour. "We are negotiating with Visakhapatnam Port Trust for an alternative site as the children may be affected by the increasing pollution levels," says Father John in a choked tone.
Whatever be the alternative, this building needs to be preserved as a heritage site mainly for its historic and architectural splendour and cannot be relegated to a warehouse for cement and sulphur. After all, it has been the temple of learning for over 150 years.
SUMIT BHATTACHARJEE
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