The students in schools of Maoist affected areas of Jharkhand are scared of pursuing their education. Unavailability of books and quality teachers has added to the woes.
According to social activists, holding a conference on Thursday regarding the problem and its solution, deployment of security forces in the vicinity of school, is the major cause for the 'scary feeling'.
Notably, children in such areas are often forced to join various groups of Naxals. Due to this reason, parents prefer migration of their children to another State for a secured life instead of turning them into a Maoist.
The experts related the matter with Home Minister Rajnath Singh's statement in New Delhi few days back, where Jharkhand was indicated as the State with maximum left-wing extremism in the nation.
"None of the States affected by Naxalites have succeeded in implementing the directions of Supreme Court and High Court stating all schools to be demilitarised immediately," State advisor to commissioner of Supreme Court, Balram said relating to the screening of movie 'Caught in the Crossfire', which depicts the dire situation of children living in conflict areas.
Balram had been a part of the movie team and has interacted with several students and teachers attending such schools in Khunti and Balumath. Jharkhand State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (JSCPCR) member Ranjana Choudhary mentioned the support of political leaders a hurdle in tackling the pathetic scenario. Choudhary for the one decade has been working in such areas which includes Bishunpur constituency as well.
"Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan has sensitised the community but teachers and senior government officials avoid visiting schools based in the interior parts of Maoist-prone villages. Unless, the government does not ensure proper coordination of the mentioned hurdles, NGOs alone cannot create a safe school atmosphere for these scared children," she added.
Apart from discussing the need on making a peaceful atmosphere for the school students, the speakers focused on lack of Primary Health Centres, anganwadis, roads, functional hand pumps, toilets and power supply in these areas.
The State of India Newborn (SOIN) report 2014 launched recently was disseminated here by NGO Save the Children. "Around 8 lakh children are born in Jharkhand every year of which 18,000 babies die in the first month of delivery. Reasons behind this unexpected numbers are the long inter-district radius, slow infrastructure process and low medicine distribution," said an NGO member over the report.