Currently Planned Project:
❖ School Building Construction in Upper Dolpa, Nepal
Name of the school: Tripitak Primary (Elementary) School
(See below for location of the project on map)
(Photos provided by Dawa Phuntsok Gurung)
❖ Introduction:
Build For Education, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation registered in the State of California, USA, is currently raising funds to replace the existing dilapidated school building with a new permanent building for Tripitak Primary (Elementary) School, located in the upper Dolpa region of Nepal.
The building will be constructed in coordination with the school board President Dawa Phuntsok Gurung, who is also a teacher of the school. Dawa has also been actively raising funds locally in Kathmandu, and has been updating the school Facebook page regularly. The Facebook page link is: https://www.facebook.com/www.tripitakprimaryschool.
❖ Tripitak Primary School:
Tripitak Primary School is located in the village of Lhuri (Ward No. 1 of Shey-Phoksundo Rural Municipality), situated in a valley at an elevation of about 4,000 meters (~13,000 ft), surrounded by mountains of more than 5,000 meters (~16,500 ft) in elevations, in the upper (Northern) portion of the District of Dolpa (called the Dolpo region).
Some photos and graphics are given below.
The Dolpo region borders with China (Tibet) in the North. Four to eight days of strenuous hiking from the small Southern town of Dunai (also the District Headquarters of Dolpa District) is the only way to reach Lhuri village at this time (see the map below for location). People of Dolpo have preserved the original Tibetan culture and tradition. So, it has become one of the most attractive places to visit for both Nepali and non-Nepali tourists who are extra adventurous. The hiking route goes thru several passes, some exceeding 5,000 meters (~16,500 ft) in elevations. There is a small airport located near Dunai, in a small town called Jufal, which has regular flights (weather permitting) to the nearby bigger airport of Nepalgunj.
The new school building is aimed at providing better school facility for the underprivileged students of these neighboring villages: Lhuri, Shungjer and Kiwa, where the students can learn in Nepali, Tibetan and English languages close to their homes, without having to walk miles everyday to attend other neighboring schools.
The proposed building will contain 5 classrooms (see below). Locally available materials will be used for construction of the building as much as possible. However, reinforcing steel bars, cement, lumber, roof and other materials will have to be transported to the site form the nearby towns using yaks, mules and horses, since there is no road connection. Consideration will be given during the final design of structure to meet the requirements of the local governments for earthquakes, wind, snow and other applicable loads. A local contractor and a local engineer/construction manager will be hired for construction of the building. Estimated cost of construction is about US$ 75,000, of which one-third is estimated to be raised in Nepal. Detailed engineering design and drawings are being finalized by a licensed structural engineer.
❖ Letter from the school:
❖ Glimpse of the existing school building and classrooms (All photos are provided by Dawa Phuntsok Gurung):
❖ Proposed School Building (CAD model):
• Front Views:
• Side View:
[Note: Seismic gap will be provided between the two wings of the building.]
• Rear View:
• Roof Framing Scheme (using roof trusses):
• Drawings (These are preliminary — final plans are being completed):
❖ General Location of the School Site (Lhuri Village):
❖ Location of School Site (Lhuri Village) on Google map (Approx. latitude, longitude: 29.493 N, 83.056 E):
❖ School Site (Lhuri Village) from Google Earth:
Please donate via GoFundMe page:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-to-build-a-school-building-in-dolpa-nepal
Or, donate via PayPal: