Life near Indo-Pak border: No school for Punjab children as hyacinth chokes Sutlej, boat fails to budge

However, as they reach the banks and try to pull the rickety wooden boat, locally known as a berhi, using an overhead rope, it fails to budge as the river is choked with a dense growth of hyacinth that the villagers refer to as jungli booti.

Life still hinges on the rickety wooden boat in Kaluwala of border district Ferozepur in Punjab. (Express Photo)

Villagers said the children have been sitting at home for a week now. Besides these 12 children who study in high school, the primary school in Kaluwala, which has around 30 students, has also become non-functional as its lone teacher has been unable to reach the village via boat.

In 2022, The Indian Express had reported how two girls from Kaluwala travelled to their high school in Gatti Rajoke by pulling a rickety boat through the waters of the Sutlej, the sole mode of transport for the villagers to reach the other side.

Following the report, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issued a notice to the Punjab Government over the “lack of proper education facilities for children in the Sutlej surrounded border areas” and subsequently, a probe committee constituted at the district-level recommended setting up a “pontoon bridge” for the students.

In 2023, Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains took a boat to the primary school in Kaluwala and announced that a bridge would be built at a cost of Rs 53 crore. However, this is yet to materialise due to several issues such as “security concerns along the international border” and permissions required from the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Centre.

Villagers at Kaluwala struggling to row the boat due to the recent hyacinth growth in the Sutlej. (Express Photo)

Kala Singh, a villager, said such dense growth of hyacinth is being seen in the river after a gap of many years, and despite efforts, the boat is unable to make its way through it. “Children reach the river bank every morning with the hope that they will be able to pull it through, but this year the vegetative growth is just too dense. Seven of the 12 children who go to school in Gatti Rajoke are girls,” he said.

“Even in our own village, no teacher is coming to teach primary school children due to the same issue. The school in our village does not even have a permanent teacher. Teachers hesitate when it comes to being posted here as they fear that crossing the river could be dangerous,” Singh said.

Worried over their children losing access to school, the villagers have written a fresh letter to authorities reiterating their demand for a bridge. The letter to the deputy commissioner states: “Our children are unable to reach school and if someone gets unwell in the night, it becomes impossible to take them to hospital via boat. Currently, the river is choked with jungli booti (hyacinth) and children are unable to reach Gatti Rajoke school.”

“There’s always the lurking danger of an accident while crossing the river using a boat. If a permanent bridge cannot be built, please see that a temporary one is set up, at least for children to reach the school,” they requested.

Villagers say it’s for the first time in past many years that such dense hyacinth growth has been witnessed during monsoons. (Express Photo)

Reacting to the letter, Deepshika Sharma, Deputy Commissioner, Ferozepur, said: “I had a meeting on the issue with officials from the irrigation and drainage departments, and the BSF. However, they said the hyacinth roots are too dense this time and cannot be removed using JCB, etc.”

“They will clear out on their own when the water flow in the Sutlej increases. That will happen only when the monsoon is at its peak and water is released from upstream. Till then, we are trying to find some temporary solution for the children to reach school. If nothing works out, we will arrange online classes,” she assured.