Sharmili Mallick

Mayurbhanj: From mid-day meals to free books and uniforms, the State Government is doing it all to boost primary education in Odisha. But such schemes fail to reach the beneficiaries due to callousness on part of officials on the field.

The Siripur Primary School in Udala area of Mayurbhanj district is the glaring example of such neglect. With crumbling walls and lack of proper classrooms, the students of the school are forced to study in unsafe condition.

As two classrooms of the school are in a dilapidated condition, 40 to 45 students from Class I to V are forced to study in single room.

"With many students in one room, it becomes so noisy that we find it difficult to concentrate," said a student, Malati Nayak.

Though the repair work of the two classrooms was taken up in 2012, the construction work is yet to be completed.

"We had appraised the concerned administration and the education officer several times,  but action is yet to be taken in this regard. Besides, the school also lacks proper drinking water facilities," alleged Siripur resident Paresh Parida.

Not only Siripur Primary School, the teachers of Khaladi Primary School in Udala are also forced to take classes in turn as there is only one classroom for around 85 students in the school.

With no proper rooms, the students are forced to eat their mid day meal (MDM) in the space outside the school.

"As there is no proper rooms, we take classes in one classroom," informed Khaladi Primary School Headmaster, Ramachandra Patra.

"The school is in a dilapidated state and has not been repaired since the last 10 years. We fear that the unsafe structure could lead to mishaps someday," a local of Khaladi village, Laxman Singh.

"We will investigate the matter and if we find the school building in bad condition, then we will take measure to resolve the issue at the earliest," said Udala Block Education Officer (BEO), Sudhakar Behera.

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