Students forced to drink water from nullah sans tube well in this Odisha school

Students of Dimbiripankala Government Primary School under Gajapati’s Mohana block are reportedly forced to drink polluted water from river and streams in the absence of a tube well on the premises of the educational institute.

As per reports, more than 60 students from Dimbiripankala, Rajimera, Balipanka and Lundrisahi pursue their primary education in the school. But, the school neither has a potable water supply nor a hand pump forcing the students to wash their plates and drink water from the same water body after having their mid-day-meal at the school.

A student Damanik Mallik said, “There is no hand pump in our school. So, we are forced to clean our hands and plates in the river water.”

"Drinking water is a perennial problem in this school. Our children go to the nearby stream to wash utensils after eating mid-day-meal. They even have to drink that water,” said, Mini Malabisoi, a parent.

Even the Headmaster of the school, Timi Gamang admitted to the problem. He said, “We have drinking water problem in our school since its inception in 2006. The students have no other options than drinking water from the river and streams nearby.”

Not only the drinking water, but the school grapples with many other issues like electricity supply and water leakage from the roof.

Asked about these problems, the Assistant Block Education Officer, Kuna Patra said, “The issues regarding the water, electricity and school building are under the jurisdiction of the Panchayat Raj department. We have already informed the BDO about the problems of the school. We will have to escalate the issue to higher authorities if the BDO does not resolve our problems.”