Official indifference puts city school kids at risk

Hyderabad: Even as the powers-that-be are busy making tall claims of means and ways adopted to improve education system in the State and how schools are being provided with all facilities and required infrastructure, a reality check proves that the facts are quite the other way round.

In an alarming development, it is found that about 60 per cent of the school premises in the State capital are in unhygienic condition, let alone myriad schools in rural Telangana which even lack proper buildings and staff. They have become garbage dumping points, risking the lives of school children.

What is more shocking is that the civic body officials who are very much responsible for keeping the city clean have placed garbage bins and non-operational Swachh toilets near government schools. To make matters worse, thoughtless lots have made core areas open urination points, leading to unbearable stink.

Highly placed sources in the corporation said that out of 3,053 schools in The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits, about 1,700 schools have either dumper bins or public toilets.

For instance, residents near the Government High School in Musheerabad main road told The Hans India that the compound wall of the school had become open urination point. I Jaya Prakash, a resident of Bholakpur said the civic body officials had turned a blind eye to government high school which is in Musheerabad.

He said due to the delay of Swachh auto tippers, which collects door-to-door garbage, residents in the neighbourhood had been dumping garbage in the bins provided by the civic body, making the bin spill over.

Echoing his concern, B Rambabu, a resident of Moosarambagh said the vicinity of Swami Vivekananda Centenary High School had been turned into a major garbage duping point for adjoining residents. He said not only the residents, sometimes the GHMC staff also dump the garbage in the bins provided by the corporation.

Interestingly, he said, the corporation had placed dumper bins in all four directions of the school. “It has become breeding site for mosquitoes and stray dog menace is high. Several unreported dog bite incidents have been noticed in the area,” he said.

When asked about it, a senior sanitation wing official told The Hans India that most of the government schools in the core city were in narrow by-lanes where auto tippers or rickshaws were unable to travel. He said the corporation had been chalking out plans to collect garbage from these areas.

He said the corporation would strengthen the effective solid waste management system. Besides the corporation, it was the duty of citizens to keep the school premises hygienic, the official said. He said that the corporation would also conduct awareness camps in all schools, especially in government schools at the earliest.

Such conditions are prevalent in over a thousand schools in and around the GHMC limits and the children are put to umpteen hardships due to the indifferent attitude of the civic officials.

By Maddy Deekshith