The Origins of the Institution

Loreto Day School, Dharamtala, dates back to 1879. However, according to the sources available to us, its roots maybe traced back to 1863, when the Catholic Young Men’s Society ( CYMS ) set up a Sunday School in the Sacred Heart Church, with fourteen children. From about 1865, the Loreto Sisters of the Institute Of The Blessed Virgin Mary ( IBVM ) started teaching these children.

On the 21st of April, 1879, the Loreto Sisters, under the charge of Mother Gonzaga McCarthy and Sister Dympna took over the Free School that had been run since 1876, by the CYMS. It was situated on 154 Dharamtala Street. The school had only twenty five pupils. The building in which the School was housed, had been taken on rent for a few months. Thereafter, it was shifted to another vacant house at 164 Dharamtala Street, in December that year.

Soon the number of pupils increased, and it became necessary to find a bigger place. The CYMS collected subscriptions for this .On the 1st of May, 1880, Loreto Dharamtala moved to a new premises at 169 Lenin Sarani. The new two storeyed building was purchased at a cost of Rs 22,000. The ground floor accommodated the Free School while the first floor was given to the Pay School. In 1883, owing to the high costs involved in repairing the building, it was pulled down and rebuilt with the help of a government subsidy. The school expanded rapidly. Its strength increased from almost 300 in 1883 to four hundred and eight in 1900. Two hundred and nine of them paid fees.

In 1920, we had as many as five hundred pupils. The main building rose to three storeys in 1913. The years 1926 to 1928 saw the erection of the two storeyed wing to the East and another three storeyed wing to the West. The verandahs were enclosed to provide more classrooms.

In 1929, the school reached an important milestone when it became a Secondary School, taking the Senior Cambridge Examination. The building in which the Free School was run, later came to be called the St Francis’ Building.

Our Institution Today

Loreto Day School, Dharamtala today, educates children from all walks of life and all faiths. It is recognised by the Education Department of the Government of West Bengal and is under the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education ( Anglo Indian Board of West Bengal ) . It is affiliated to the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination ( CISCE ).

In 2017, the school reached another important milestone. The first ISC was admitted. They appeared for the ISC examination in the year 2019.

The school focuses on an all round development of the students and seeks to foster an atmosphere that is conducive to the intellectual, social, moral and physical development of the child. It gives prime importance to the values of Justice, Peace , Integrity , Freedom and Love. It seeks to reach out to the marginalized, in order to help them take their place with dignity among others. In keeping with this aim, the students have been involved in a variety of Reach Out Programmes.

The students of the Senior Section undertake social service projects through the Christian Life Community (CLC), the Leadership Training Service (LTS) and the Ecology Club. These projects are usually spear headed by the students under the guidance of their Animators. This helps them to hone their leadership skills.

The Principal . the Staff members and all the students are members of the JPIC and are constantly involved in reaching out to the less privileged. They have been contributing food to the Food ATM that has been set up by the Kolkata Mary Ward Social Centre. They have also been working with the local KMCP school by volunteering, once a week, to teach the children there. The school also houses a Rainbow Home which is an integral part of the school family.

Ours is a busy commercial area located in the heart of the city of Kolkata. Despite the constant flow of traffic just outside the school, the rallies and processions in the area and the high decibel levels of the local vendors, the school continues to rise against all odds. Students report punctually to school despite the challenges. The cheerful faces is testimony to the fact that they love the time that they spend in school. It is indeed most heartening when past pupils come back and regale us with fond memories of their school life.