School for Dalits running on its ruins

The school building has 13 classrooms of which 10 rooms are not in proper condition for teaching,as roofs and walls have developed cracks. “We cannot take classes in these rooms due to the imminent threat to the lives of the students,” said BB Joshi,Principal of the school.

One of the two hostels has not been used for long after its roof had collapsed. “In the space meant for two students,eight students live in each room in the hostel,” said Joshi.

“The school gets Rs 18 per day per child for food as opposed to Rs 40 given to other government-aided schools. Only Rs 150 per year per student is given for books and Rs 300 annually for clothes,” added Joshi.

The children study under trees and stairs and are exposed to heat,rain and cold in the absence of proper classrooms,said SP Tiwari,general secretary of the Teachers Association.

District Magistrate Rajeev Agrawal,who is the chairman of the management committee,said recently the staff had apprised him of the poor conditions. He had written to the Ministry of Social Welfare demanding allocation of fund for the school.

“The government will decide on the basis of my report,” he added.

The staff members claim that they have approached the Minister of Social Welfare,Indrajeet Saroj,several times,but in vain.

“We had sent a letter on August 4 to the state government highlighting the problems,” said Joshi.

“The school should admit 245 students but we gave admission to only 170 students. They are kept in the hostel which has a capacity of 100,” said the principal.

“There are only 19 staff members against 42 sanctioned posts. There are no teachers for maths and science,” added Joshi.

The school was established by a non-governmental organisation,Ishwar Sharan Ashram,along with two other similar schools in Lucknow and Saharanpur in 1959. Freedom fighter Jagjivan Ram,father of Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar,had inaugurated the main building of the school in his capacity of Railway Minister in 1960.

This is the only school in eastern UP where Dalit children belonging to the denotified tribes category from Azamgarh,Jaunpur,Allahabad,Pratapgarh,Mirzapur,Fatehpur,Kaushambi,Ghazipur and Sant Ravidas Nagar are admitted. The teachers and staff are yet to receive the benefits of the Fifth Pay Commission.