Jaisalmer schools lack safe bldgs, students forced to study outdoors

Time of India

a day ago

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Jaisalmer: Hundreds of children in Jaisalmer district are forced to study outdoors under trees or in makeshift shelters due to a severe shortage of safe school buildings. Despite repeated requests from school authorities, the govt has failed to allocate adequate funds for repairs, leaving more than 1,200 classrooms in over 500 govt schools in urgent need of attention.
In the current academic session, at least 25 schools in Jaisalmer, located near the Pakistan border, are operating without any buildings. Students in these schools have no choice but to attend classes outdoors, exposed to extreme weather conditions. Even in schools with buildings, many classrooms are in such dilapidated condition that they have been declared unsafe, forcing multiple classes to be combined or moved outside.
The education department reportedly allocates only Rs 10,000 per year for repairs in secondary and higher secondary schools. This amount is barely enough for minor maintenance and often gets used for other expenses such as electricity bills. As a result, essential repairs are neglected, and the safety of students is compromised.
According to Mahesh Kumar Bissa, district education officer (secondary), principals have been instructed not to use unsafe rooms and to relocate students to safer areas. However, actual repair work requires approval from higher authorities in Jaipur, and proposals often remain pending for years. Six years ago, a school building in Chainpura collapsed during school hours, yet little has changed since then.