BOGMALO: Government Primary School, Bogmalo, will be shut down soon due to low enrollment in the last few years. The decision to close is pending before the Education Department, and once it gives its nod, the decades-old school will be closed.
According to sources at Assistant District Education Inspector (ADEI) office, Vasco, there was a sudden decline in the student-strength of the Konkani-medium school located near Chicolna-Bogmalo. This year not a single student sought admission there, even though the school officials waited for two months.
On June 9, a Herald report informed that no student turned up at the school on the first day of the new academic year. Within two months, the Mormugao ADEI office had to forward a report for the school’s closure.
According to records obtained from the ADEI office, seven schools in Mormugao have closed down over the years. The government school in Bogmalo will be the eighth.
An ADEI official said, “The government schools in Murdi-Cansaulim, Cuelim, Velsao, Matve (Dabolim), Simbal (Sancoale), Assaidongri (Dabolim), and Vaddem (Vasco) have been shut down due to low enrollment. Most of the 24 primary schools in Mormugao are neglected. The lack of amenities is one of the reasons behind the student shortfall in government schools.”
Even if the administration takes up repair works for schools in Mormugao, the same is either done haphazardly or left incomplete.
“The repair work for the Government Primary School, Zuari Nagar was taken up by a State agency, but the work was never completed. Similarly, the government school in Mangor Hill is left in a dilapidated state. There is no one to hear the grievances of the school management,” said a headmaster under condition of anonymity.
If lack of facilities and dilapidated buildings are reasons behind the decreasing enrollment of students, then the issue is serious and needs attention from the officials before the Mormugao schools move towards closure.
