Sajid Raina
Bandipora, Oct 13: At least 14 government schools in north Kashmir’s Gurez valley are operating from rented houses for the past several years, leaving students suffer.
Data collected states that 14 government schools including primary and middle schools have been operating from rented wooden houses for the last several years.
“Gurez’s education system has suffered for decades in terms of staff shortage or school infrastructure. It seems the government doesn’t want Gurez’s education system to grow,” the locals alleged.
In these rent based schools, the locals said that besides lack of drinking water, toilet facilities and ground facilities, there are no benches in the classrooms for the students who are assembled in just one room. “These rented buildings have nothing in them to be called a school,” the locals said.
A local said that the government seems to be in a deep slumber as no steps have been taken to improve the infrastructure for students which will have all basic facilities. “As the government is making tall claims that we are providing digital education to students, especially in border areas we are lacking proper accommodation to sit some schools have only 3 classrooms for eight classes”, Aarif, a class 8 student said.
Nisar Ahmed, another local resident said that “Not only these 14 schools san basic facilities, but there are other such schools in Gurez valley that are operating from dilapidated rooms where students are cramped together by the concerned teachers.
He also said that the government has failed to provide adequate accommodation to the students in rural schools forcing them to attend classes under open sky.
At times the students of more than one class are crammed in one room by teachers leaving no scope for students to grasp what they are taught. Meanwhile, an official said that the land has been identified for six rented school buildings, we will try to complete it in next year and we had already contacted higher authorities and PRI’s of several villages if land has been given for these schools we will try to complete and construct the proper school buildings as soon as possible.
