Cyclone Fani-ravaged School in Puri Cries For Attention

Puri: Its almost three months since the extremely severe cyclonic storm wreaked havoc in Puri, but the coastal district in Odisha is yet to recover completely from its after effects. The authorities seem to be struggling to rebuild the infrastructure of several schools, which bore maximum brunt of the cyclone.

One such school is the Bholanath Viyapeeth near Gundicha Temple in Puri. After the havoc caused by Cyclone Fani on May 3, the playground of the school is still waterlogged due to absence of proper drainage system. As a result, around 700 students of the school are forced to have midday meal (MDM) standing in the waterlogged ground.

Moreover, the school is also struggling with drinking water facilities after supply pipelines were damaged in the cyclone. Lack of water supply has also created problems in maintaining overall sanitation inside the school.

"The bathrooms stink and are not in usable condition. The boys are forced to attend nature's call outside while the girls do not have any alternative. Besides, due to the waterlogging in the playground, we are unable to play games," alleged a student.

Principal of Bholanath Vidyapeeth, Subash Chandra Jena said, "We do not have proper channel for the discharge of water to the main drain. We are also working to solve the drinking water issues in the school and have decided to build a tank for restoring water supply."

"We will seek the help of PWD officials to flush out water from the ground so that students can resume playing. We will also make arrangements for drinking water facilities in the school," assured Puri District Education Officer (DEO), Biswajit Ghosh.