Team Herald
MARGAO: Even as the language issue hots up and there are debates galore, how much does the administration care about the infrastructure of schools where future India is being trained and educated.
The roof of a school in Zambaulim is in a precarious condition and large chunks of slabs fell on a student last week and the incident has spread fear among parents and school students. The parents have urged the government to take immediate steps to avert such mishaps.
This school in Zambaulim was inaugurated by the then Education Minister Subhash Shirodkar. The structure has completed over 25 years and the surprising fact is that the building hasn’t been repaired even once. When visited, pieces of slab were seen in front of the entrance of the staff room, library and the corridors of the classes. When discussed with some teachers, they said they had informed the concerned authorities that such collapses were happening for years.
“Instances of pieces of slab collapsing on students at school and causing injuries have been frequent,” they told. Last week, a girl student was injured after a portion of a slab fell on her.
There are 120 students in the school which includes secondary and higher secondary sections. Students from Rivona, Zambaulim and Shirvoi study here. The PTA meeting of the school was held last month and the incidents of water dripping in classes, slab collapses and others were taken up. PTA chief Kishor Zambaulikar said, “Because the school building is in a dilapidated condition, we are scared of injuries to students. As incidents of slab collapses have increased, we informed the headmaster,” said Kishor. “We need a new structure instead of repairs,” he added.
Headmaster Vanita Prabhudessai said, “When the first incident happened, I took a picture and showed it to the education department officials and they assured us that they had informed the GSIDC for repairs. However, I have no idea why there has been a delay.”
