Local villagers, including students of the Abdul Rahim High School under Biritol Panchayat in Tirtol block, staged a protest demanding repair of a damaged school building.
They raised slogans against Jagatsinghpur district administration and School and Mass Education Department, alleging that no repair works of the school building were conducted after the school sustained damage during cyclone Fani in 2019. As a result, the students were forced to study under the open sky, they complained.The villagers informed that the damaged roof of the classrooms posed a threat to their wards. Besides, there was no provision of mid-day meals and drinking water, toilet for students and teachers and no boundary wall of the school, after Fani had damaged the school infrastructure.
As many as 200 students are studying in the school. Due to poor maintenance, the roof is leaking during rain. Even a portion of the roof has fallen down. The school is shut down due to Corona, else it would not be possible to resume classes normally, alleged some villagers.They further said that they had submitted petitions to the Collector and officials of the Education Department many a time demanding renovation of the damaged school buildings, but no action was taken so far.
Birtol Panchayat Panchayat Samiti member Bijayini Mallick had approached the Revenue Divisional Commissioner [RDC], Central, on March 12 last, seeking a direction to the Paradip Port Trust [PPT] to provide funds out of CSR funds to renovate the school building. The RDC directed the PPT to provide funds. But as the direction is yet to be executed, she said she again wrote to the RDC in this regard.