Children risk their lives in 40,000 dilapidated schools. But does government care?

Over 2000 schools do not have separate toilets for boys and girls. Over 1000 schools do not have electricity connection. 19,000 schools without play ground and drinking water. DISE report puts State to shame regarding the way government schools are treated.

Classes are being conducted in over 40,000 classrooms that may collapse any minute. As many as 19,000 schools do not have playground. Over 2000 schools do not have separate toilets for boys and girls. About 1000 schools do not have electricity. Innumerable schools do not have drinking water facility. The list of apathy goes on. This is the District Information System for Education (DISE) report for the year 2016-17 for the State regarding primary and high schools.

The report released by the Education Department itself gives a pathetic state of affairs of primary and secondary education in the State. It is a proof of how government schools are neglected. It can be recalled that last July, a school building in Yamakanamardi, Belagavi, collapsed killing two students. Immediately, post the tragedy, the government announced that action would be taken to repair all government school buildings in the State. However, with granting a meager compensation to the family of the children who died, the government totally forgot its assurance, reports Kannada Prabha.

At the legislative assembly session in February, Primary and Secondary Education Minister Tanvir Sait had announced that an action plan would be formulated for repairing the dilapidated school buildings. He had also said that an appeal would be made to the Chief Minister to allocate additional budget for this purpose. But the budget did not make any additional provision for repair of school buildings.

The DISE report says not a single school building was repaired. In the previous year’s report DISE had pointed out that 33,000 classrooms were on the verge of collapsing and had recommended that they should be repaired on priority. This year in 2016-17 the number has gone up to 40,000.

There are a total of 44,893 primary and senior primary schools, 4,678 high schools, with over one crore students studying in the State. Of these, 37,872 primary schools and 2,385 high schools are in the danger of collapsing any minute. These have to be repaired on top priority. About 39,000 classrooms require small repairs. If action is not taken immediately, the Yamakanamardi tragedy may repeat, reports Kannada Prabha.

The other facts and figures mentioned in DISE is scary:

1. 10,000 schools - 9,297 primary and 1,075 high schools - do not have compound wall, with stray animals and miscreants entering into the school at will. Over 2000 schools are not following the High Court order of providing separate toilets for boys and girls. They use the same toilets.
2. About 1119 schools do not have electricity, 116 schools do not have drinking water, 178 schools do not have a library. Of the total 48,571 schools 19,542 schools do not have playground.
3. The DISE reports on government aided and unaided private schools is not very satisfactory either. Of the 7000 aided schools and 20,000 non-aided private schools over 1200 classrooms require major repair works. Around 1500 classrooms require minor repairs. Around 60 aided and 1500 unaided schools do not have separate toilets for boys and girls. 170 aided and 1250 unaided schools do not have electricity. 470 aided and 3600 unaided schools do not have playground. Over 800 unaided schools do not have drinking water facility.

So what is the government going to do now?