Children’s education dream dims as lone school shuts down

Teachers of the NGO-run school said the authorities wanted the schoolchildren to shift to a school which is four km from the locality.

According to the teachers,they tried to convince the authorities to continue them teaching until a proper school would come up in the area for the children,but all in vain. “We met even the district education officer M M Jani,but he drove us out of his office saying he would not listen a word on this,” said Khairunnisa Pathan,a teacher.

“The DEO told us that he was not going to restart the school. He said it was his right to allow or deny a school to run under Special Training Programme (a programme run under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan project),” said another teacher.

Samina Diwan,a teacher associated with the NGO-run school,said the authorities wanted the children to go to a school in Gyaspur-Bhatha area near Fatehwadi which was about four km away. Lower primary schoolchildren cannot go this long distance if transportation,as promised,was not give to them,she said.

“I wanted to study like children in other schools and therefore,when I had got admission in this school,I was very happy that now I had got a chance to get education,” said Irfan Kalubhai Mir (6),who lives near the Ice Factory at Vishala Circle area.

“Our teachers tried hard for the school to continued but they could not succeed in their effort. We are still willing to join studies again but we see no such good luck for now,” said Anwar Babubhai Mir,Irfan’s classmate. “We cannot walk up to a long distance to the other school in Fatehwadi and there is no transportation facility,” he said.