Acting on a media report, the District Magistrate of Surguja in Chhattisgarh conducted an inspection of a ruined school in a far-flung village and took immediate action, including sanctioning a new school building and suspending the village secretary.
The visit was made a day after India Today reported that village kids had to learn in a dilapidated Anganwadi kitchen because there was no working school building, which existed only on paper, it was reported.
Shaken by the grim situation, the DM visited the premises himself and raised serious concern over the lack of basic educational infrastructure. "Children cannot be taught in such unsafe surroundings," said the DM during the visit. He sanctioned the building of a proper school building for the village on the spot.
Taking administrative action, the DM suspended the village secretary for dereliction of duty and served a show-cause notice to the block education officer for not taking action earlier against the long-pending issue.
The incident has again brought to light the disconnect between records and ground realities in rural education. It also highlights the important role played by the media in bringing spotlight to the forgotten corners of the system.
The authorities have been directed to start the process of building without any delay, and ad-hoc measures for safe learning environments are being made for the affected kids.
With administrative accountability now underway, residents are optimistic that the children will finally receive the classroom they deserve.
DM Inspects Ruinous School in Chhattisgarh's Surguja Following Report, Sanctions New School Building
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