Periphery Areas: Chandigarh govt schools grapple with classroom shortage, students face harsh heat

At Government Model High School, Vikas Nagar in Mauli Jagran, where the minimum strength in a class is 50, students are crammed into small rooms. Some are forced to sit on the floor. Classes are being held in the corridors on the first and second floors of the building. The corridors are open from one side. There are no ceiling fans and a warm breeze is the only ‘respite’ for the students in the sweltering summer.

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As per RTE Act norms, government schools must not turn away students from enrolling. The resultant spike in enrolment has especially affected schools in the periphery of Chandigarh, where the population has been on the rise due to low housing costs as more people from outside the city settle here.

Chandigarh Newsline visited five schools in these areas to find that the spike in enrolment has resulted in similar situations in all of them.

At Government Middle School, Kishangarh; Government High School, Mauli Colony; Government Senior Secondary School, Khudda Lahora, there is a serious shortage of classrooms. At these schools, the computer labs have also been converted into classrooms.

A teacher from Government Model High School, Vikas Nagar told Chandigarh Newsline, “Our school has nearly 4,000 students and we have limited classrooms. We do have a responsibility to teach the students but attention needs to be drawn to the shortage of space. The issue has been raised with the education department time and again and the only solution is either construction of newer schools in the area or provision of more classroom space.”

As per RTE Act norms, the ideal Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR) for Classes I-VIII should ideally be 30:1. Last year, however, keeping in mind the increasing number of enrolments at city government schools, the UT education department issued instructions to government schools in the city to ensure a PTR of 40:1.

But the infrastructure has not kept pace with the increasing PTR.

“The rent in the periphery areas of Chandigarh is low, which is why many people choose to live here and several migrants also reside in these areas. This is one of the reasons why the schools in periphery areas are overcrowded and the shortage of classrooms is posing a serious problem,” said Arvind Rana, president of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan Teachers Welfare Association, Chandigarh.

This year, the PTR is likely to rise. The education department recently directed city government schools not to refuse admissions to students and also to accommodate students who come for enrolment from the vicinity.

As per the RTE norms, government primary schools are mandated to provide admissions to students residing within one-kilometre radius and government elementary schools are mandated to admit students residing within a three-kilometre radius from the school. “Students can apply to schools beyond the three-kilometre radius, but government schools are constrained to provide admissions to students residing within one-three kilometres first before admitting students from farther areas,” Singh added.

According to a teacher from Government Senior Secondary School, Mauli Village, “Even the website of the UT education department states that efforts are being taken to ensure that each class has around 40 students only, but if you look at the government schools in the periphery of Chandigarh, each classroom has over 60 students.”

At some of the government schools in the periphery of the city, the PTR is alarmingly high, with more than 70 students being accommodated in the same class. Not only is this putting pressure on teachers, schools are increasingly facing constraints in accommodating such large numbers.

“The problem has been persisting for the past two-three years and appointment of more teachers is not the only solution,” said Rana of SSATWA.

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Deputy director of schools Chanchal Singh said the education department was looking at starting double shifts at several government schools. Singh added that the admission process at government schools was also being streamlined. “The schools that witness a high rush of students, evening classes will be initiated to reduce the rush. Not only this, the education department is also looking at schools in different areas and clusters of schools in the region are being surveyed. Now that the admission season is ongoing, admissions will be given on the basis of availability after looking into the cluster of schools in each of the recognised areas. Not all students can be accommodated in the same school, of course.”