At Varanasi Ashram School, every Saturday is a bag-free day. While Uttar Pradesh currently requires at least 10 activity-based “bagless days” per year in line with NEP 2020, schools are free to go beyond this minimum. Our weekly practice supports the same goals: joyful, hands-on learning and meaningful experiences for children.

NEP 2020 encourages schools to offer regular opportunities for experiential learning and enrichment activities (NEP 2020, §4.26). Making Saturdays bag-free gives our younger students more room to explore, create, and learn with all their senses.

This Saturday, a group of interested students, guided by a knowledgeable teacher, began preparing a new khet on the school grounds. Together they loosened the soil, removed stones, and planned the space for growing vegetables — learning teamwork, observation, and patience along the way.