Demanding not to merge Girl’s Higher Secondary School at Khutgaon with other schools, a large number of villagers led by Sarpanch Nohar Singh Tulavi and Siksha Samiti President Tensingh Nareti on Wednesday handed over a memorandum to Kanker District Collector Alarmelmangai D. In the memorandum, Sarpanch Nohar Singh Tulavi said that there were nearly 194 girls enrolled in the school coming from three neighbouring villages. Out of them, 160 belong to Scheduled Tribe, four from Scheduled Caste, 23 from other backward class and seven students from other castes. If the school would be closed, the girls would have no other option, but to discontinue their education.
The Sarpanch said that other schools are miles away from the village and in view of the protection of girls it is not safe for them to travel such a long distance. The girls had also to cross highway and there is no availability of vehicles to drop them to the school. He said that because of the rationalisation of schools, as many as 14 schools in the interior villages of the block would be closed, which would hit hard on the education of the children as the main schools were miles away from the villages. After going through the application, the Collector assured the delegation that the application would be forwarded to the senior officials for discussion.
Meanwhile, more than a dozen of villagers of Sihari on Wednesday staged protest against the closing of the only High School in the village which was opened two years back. Sarpanch Ram Gawde and Deputy Sarpanch Manoj Duga leading the villagers handed a memorandum to the Collector, condemning the rationalisation of schools.